While picking up my Son today from school, one of the teachers there decided to back his SUV into my 09 Fit. I tried to alert him by beeping my horn, and even tried to back up only to find a Minivan behind me. After his bumper ran over my front left headlight and front bumper, he decides to drive away, oblivious to what had happened or to the warning I had issued with my horn(need Hadley upgrade from my Wrangler). Lucky for me there was a police officer in his patrol car directly in front of him. I simply lowered my window, yelled to the officer who then asked me if I was serious and did the gentleman really hit my car, and we all got out to assess the damage. His SUV was ok, my Fit front bumper and headlight scuffed. Sucks but I needed to get the car into the dealer for first maintenance check up and now I guess an estimate will be added to that.

 

pretty stupid question..."are you serious?"

anyways, good thing youre okay

 

wow.. at least you caught him before he just drove away

 

That sux! People should have special licenses to drive trucks like that.

 

Yes..yes i am

I cant understand that if I ride over a small rock in any of my vehicles, this person did not: 1)hear me beeping my horn mutiple times before he backed into me, and 2) actually said he didnt even know he hit me.

Lots of my friends have Ridgelines and full size pickups, and none of them have had an accident like this. I am starting to believe that after a certain age, 60 maybe, you should attend a driving course or have to re-take a road test..just my 2cents

 

It's not the PU drivers. It's the SUV drivers generally. At least that has been my experience. I don't think old age is the issue either. I worry more about younger/inexperienced drivers and just generally clueless types that are rushing about as though they are in their own world. How old was the driver that hit you?

Anyway, sorry about your Fit.

 

I agree 100%. I have been screaming this for about 10 to 15 years now.

David - Dallas, TX

 

The driver who backed into my car was 54. That being said, accident will happen. I do agree with the statement that some younger/inexperienced drivers do not drive well. I just believe that in this case the motorist did not check his mirrors.

 

Sorry to hear about your Fit getting rolled over by the SUV. People hit you and think they can just drive away - what are they thinking. My cousin was parked in front of my house when my neighbor was pulling out of his driveway. I told my cousin as we were walking towards the gate that he was going to hit his car and he did. Then he pulled forward like he was just going to drive off - my cousin banged the back of his car and yelled, "Hey man you hit my car." Hope you get it repaired and back to new condition.

Cat :x

 

Thanks CAT, I was a bit upset, but accidents happen. And the motorist admitted it was his fault straight away. Even the Officer said it stinks because the car is new. Its just the bumper and headlight, i couldn't see any body damage. It is what it is.

 

Funny, (not literally) and I am going to repeat what we all experience with SUV drivers, but coming from a Toyota MR2, into a Fit, I feel like I am now driving a high profile vehicle. If you think they can't see you in a Fit, try an MR2, SUV drivers think you are a doormat in the MR2, and you will offer up as much resistance as those steel plate thingamajigs that they use to temporarily patch road repairs.

That being said however, I think the root cause is with the SUV driver, who sees the SUV as their personal insulated room of safety against the world. It's the reason they bought the thing in the first place as they certainly could haul the kids, household junk, or groceries in some other vehicle that has more "sport" in it besides just a moniker. I have even heard more than once the comment from the SUV owner about how "...If I get in an accident at least I have a big, safe car" (or something to that effect).

What bothers me most about that attitude is how it builds in a bias for poor attention to the job of driving. It's as though everyone on the road should take a mental Sominex, just to feel more relaxed and safe on the road. Or to put it another way, SUVs are the only way to drive drunk, without touching the bottle.

 

I do believe there are a fair number of SUVidiots who drive without much care due to the size of the vehicle. A number of these drivers find out first hand just what it take to operate such a vehicle in winter conditions. They think by putting the vehicle in four-wheel drive, they can continue to drive without care. I have seen the results of these drivers losing control at high rates of speed and leave the roadway into tress, rock walls etc. Certain people should not drive. Others need to slow down and take care.

 

Another Fit by a clueless SUV driver. I understand your pain

 

this has nothing to do with your story, , well except for the fact that I was in our 04 acura mdx and a girl in a chrysler sabring backed up and hit my side. More proof that's its the driver..... just a bit of irony lol, worse part is, she didn't even get out to see if we were ok, she sat there hoping I would drive away, she ended up paying my dedubtible and I'm sure her insurance went up

 

you should get some horns that will puncture the other persons bumper if they back up into you.. just an idea.. hahaha

 

Here's an interesting personal statistic. All 3 accidents that I've been involved with were caused by women who were on their phones while driving an SUV.

 

What has this got to do with you parking up under an SUV where the other driver could not see you?


Oh I am 67 and drive a Fit. Do I need to be tested?

In my day we walked to school.

 

It's the driver of the SUV that is supposed look where they're going and avoid hitting others. If they didn't see the Fit then they aren't doing what's safe and prudent driving. Not the fault of the Fit being there.

The fact that you posted that the fault was something about "parking up under an SUV where the other driver could not see you" makes me think that at 67 you should be tested.

 

You know I posted that to get reactions from posters like you. Funny how it is always the other guys fault eh?

 

I don't agree with that (blaming the victim) but I get your general point. It's kinda funny that a 57 year-old hit the OP and yet he wants to test people over 60.

In my experience, I have not found age to be the key factor in driver incopetence. There are just as many awful 30 year-old drivers as there are 70 year-old drivers. And let's not get started with teenage drivers. There are 2 types of drivers that I see as problems:

1. Clueless. Some people are just not good drivers. I don't know why but I gather there is not much that can be done about it. They just don't get it.

2. Inattentive drivers and just plain selfish pigs. People who talk and text on the phone, cross the center line with their huge cars and just expect you to get out of their way, etc. My wife wants to pass a law that allows us to shoot their tire out.

Anyway, no age group holds a monopoly on these 2 behaviors.

As a side note, driver's Ed and testing in the USA is one colossal joke.