Dead men tell no tales. But the blackbox blabs!

[red930]

A good buddy of mine was killed in an auto accident just before hurricane Katrina hit.

 

Charlie was killed when a loaded 18 wheel dump truck turned in front of him on a foggy morning. Everyone blamed the truck driver for turning in front of him and there was no way for Charlie to avoid hitting the truck.

 

His family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company and driver of the truck that turned in front of him causing the accident. Or so we thought.

 

The attorney for the trucking company had the blackbox in his 2005 GMC pickup truck analyzed and placed into evidence.

 

Turns out Charlie was going 72MPH on a narrow two lane road that was under construction right at dawn on a foggy morning and he didn't have his headlights turned on. The speed limit on that section of road was posted at 35MPH.

 

Based upon the evidence he was driving almost three times faster than he could see down the road. The truck that turned in front of him had a two second warning that a vehicle was approaching. Charlie hit his brakes 0.7 seconds before impact and the airbag deployment.

 

While I still feel bad for his widow and kids, I now have sympathy for the driver of the dump truck since it truly wasn't his fault.

 

On the other hand, Charlie made some bad decisions that cost him his life and took him away from his family.

[CPDMF]

Sorry about your friend. Most bad decisions don't kill us and for most of us we learn fast enough to avoid making those fatal decisions.

 

It's also good to hear that an innocent man's life was not ruined for something he had no chance to avoid and hopefully Charlie's family can find some closure. He *&%$#$ up and it cost him.

[Jachyra007]

My condolences as well. I feel bad for those involved, having one assumption about the cause of death, only to find out that it is completely the opposite.

 

I guess blackboxes would help find out who was rightly responsible for any given accident in autos, just like they find out what happens with airplanes.

[fmc_boss]

Sorry to hear about your Buddy.

 

Before i got out of the trade a few years back, we used to obtain 'black box' data from police vehicles after particular incidents. I recall on one occasion, we could clearly plot the drivers actions from the data recovered. It went something like this;

* Motor starts (stone cold startup)

* Manually slected 1st

* Throttle 100%

* Rear wheel speed sensor speed differential(we guessed one wheel was still in the dirt), & significantly faster than both front wheel sensors

* Manually selects 2nd, then 3rd

* Road speed rapid, then slows a little,

* ABS system (anti-lock brakes) engaged - front wheels

* Road speed decreases significantly

* Loss of data from LHF wheel sensor

* Ignition off.

 

Yep - he didn't quite make the corner.....

Vehicle was sitting there when i got in that morning with LHF stoved in pretty bad, huge 'gutter mark' LHF rim, brake disc shattered, etc, etc...

 

Didn't quite match the story on the accident claim form though.

[wardog]

Yes, my condolences to the family for their unfortunate loss of a loved one.

 

ExRoadie, it takes a big man to start a Topic in the manner you chose. I truly and sincerely hope you too find closure for the loss of your friend.

 

 

 

I drive truck for a living. Big trucks. When loaded out I weigh ~80tons. Tractor and two trailers, all riding atop 11 axles and 42 tires. Last year while traffic was moving along at 55mph on a freshly rainslick highway a car lost control out in front of me and I t-boned him. First ever accident I've found myself in. Weighing out as I do there just isn't alot you can do when this happens out in front of you. No injuries, thankfully for him. When the local police arrived they naturally were under the assumption I was at fault. Both started in on me, right from the get go. They tag-teamed me three ways but loose. To his credit the other driver owned up to being at fault.

[General Septem]

They're installing blackboxes in cars now? Talk about privacy invasion.

[tasr]

My condolences ExRoadie for the lost of your friend.

 

They're installing blackboxes in cars now? Talk about privacy invasion.

Its the vehicles central computer and it stores all kinds of information about vehicles performance. This has been in vehicles for many years. It is used by auto industry for trouble shooting mainly. As you can tell from this thread it is also use by insurance investigator to piece back together the information after accidents. That information can most certainly detail the final performance of said vehicles.

[General Septem]

Its the vehicles central computer and it stores all kinds of information about vehicles performance. This has been in vehicles for many years. It is used by auto industry for trouble shooting mainly. As you can tell from this thread it is also use by insurance investigator to piece back to together the information prior to accidents. That information can most certainly detail the final performance of said vehicles.

 

It can also be used to hunt down anyone who goes more than five miles per hour over the posted speed limit for any length of time. Sure, you're out and about, you go 61 in the 55 zone, maybe even pass by a few cops, hell they won't stop you because for that it's really not worth the hassle. Then you come home and find a speeding ticket in your mailbox with "Big Brother is watching you" written on it.

[wardog]

It can also be used to hunt down anyone who goes more than five miles per hour over the posted speed limit for any length of time.

 

Popping your supposed conspiracy theory, no it can not.

 

It isn't installed to hunt anything or anyone. Dogs hunt. Leopards hunt. The box simply reads engine management and related vehicle parameters for diagnostics. Not its intended purpose for installation, the box can be used as evidence when read by a duly Certified Technician, as recognized by the courts.

[boywander]

 

Good call Ex, and a shame it came to that. Hope his folks come through alright.

[General Septem]

Popping your supposed conspiracy theory, no it can not.

 

It isn't installed to hunt anything or anyone. Dogs hunt. Leopards hunt. The box simply reads engine management and related vehicle parameters for diagnostics. Not its intended purpose for installation, the box can be used as evidence when read by a duly Certified Technician, as recognized by the courts.

 

The box can obviously read the speed someone was going, which as far as I'm concerned is an invasion of privacy. This man's family's lives were ruined, and I'm supposed to say "oh well, he was speeding"? I'm not comfortable knowing that the cops can look at my black box and see I've been speeding, or even my mechanic, so it's an invasion of privacy. What if the cops were to offer rewards for mechanics who report people whose blackboxes have reported speeding?

[wardog]

This man's family's lives were ruined, and I'm supposed to say "oh well, he was speeding"?

 

That is not what I inferred. Nor intoned. Maybe you're loosing sight that the data is a factual recounting leading up to the incident. I don't know. But remember that this data may some day come to your aid in determining fact from fiction as it relates to yourself or a loved one.

 

Ex, I've spoken too much here and with that I'll take leave. Again, please accept my condolences towards the family and friends of the deceased.

 

 

Sincerely,

Rick