2007 Prius totaled by a mailbox!

aSmithee · 11-01-2007, 07:29 AM

I bought my 2007 Prius in March. Love it. In September my wife hit a mailbox (at 45 mph) and the insurance company decided to total it rather than repair it (dealership estimate was $20,000). Seems to me that one mailbox should not be capable of totaling this car!

F8L · 11-01-2007, 07:37 AM

Was it one of those cute mailboxes with a rooster on top? Or the ones shaped like a bass?

aSmithee · 11-01-2007, 07:44 AM

I was not there, but I think it was the same shape as the iceberg that sank the Titanic.

Boo · 11-01-2007, 08:27 AM

Man that's too bad. Hope you're wife wasn't hurt.

BTW, don't be surprised if the USPS sends you a bill for damage to the mailbox.

lefat1 · 11-01-2007, 08:33 AM

i'd like to see that, got any photos...was the mailbox attached to the house? must have been or on a concrete pole. glad ur wifes ok. dont need photos of her..lol..

Bob64 · 11-01-2007, 08:33 AM

Sigh :/

I hope you didn't buy the car to help the environment... because there goes about 40,000 gallons of water among other things...

aSmithee · 11-01-2007, 08:35 AM

Thankfully, my wife was not hurt at all. BTW, the mailbox wasn't one of the big blue USPS box, it was just your average homeowner installed mailbox on a metal post.. Like I said, it must have been made by the Titanic iceberg Co... hard to believe that such a minor accident could cause so much damage (busted windshield, one wiper gone, cracked engine, etc).

qbee42 · 11-01-2007, 08:41 AM

Any accident at 45 mph is likely to cause incredible amounts of damage. The amount of energy being carried at speed is really scary. Likewise, cars that are good at protecting their occupants, such as the Prius, are likely to suffer more damage when hitting small hard things. The car folds up and compresses, absorbing most of the energy, instead of bouncing its occupants around like a pea in a whistle.

Tom

lefat1 · 11-01-2007, 08:44 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Bob64 @ Nov 1 2007, 08:33 AM) [snapback]533321[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Sigh :/

I hope you didn't buy the car to help the environment... because there goes about 40,000 gallons of water among other things...
[/b]

did <strike>he</strike> she hit a fire hydrant too?

F8L · 11-01-2007, 08:45 AM

Be glad she wasn't driving a full size GMC/Chevy truck. She might have been hurt. Check out the tests

A narrow steel pole should do much more damage than hitting a larger object due to force being applied to a very small area instead of spread out over a larger area and being absorbed.

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11-01-2007, 07:29 AM	#1
aSmithee Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 5 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I bought my 2007 Prius in March. Love it. In September my wife hit a mailbox (at 45 mph) and the insurance company decided to total it rather than repair it (dealership estimate was $20,000). Seems to me that one mailbox should not be capable of totaling this car!

11-01-2007, 07:37 AM	#2
F8L Collecting Data on Nature Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Sacramento, CA. Posts: 3,989 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: #4 Nominated 1 Time in 1 Post TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 15	Was it one of those cute mailboxes with a rooster on top? Or the ones shaped like a bass?

11-01-2007, 07:44 AM	#3
aSmithee Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 5 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I was not there, but I think it was the same shape as the iceberg that sank the Titanic.

11-01-2007, 08:27 AM	#4
Boo Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: New York, NY Posts: 2,198 My Car: 2007 Prius Package: #2 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 12	Man that's too bad. Hope you're wife wasn't hurt. BTW, don't be surprised if the USPS sends you a bill for damage to the mailbox.

11-01-2007, 08:33 AM	#5
lefat1 Fat Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Sunny S. Florida Posts: 1,065 My Car: 2008 Prius Package: #6 Touring Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 5	i'd like to see that, got any photos...was the mailbox attached to the house? must have been or on a concrete pole. glad ur wifes ok. dont need photos of her..lol..

11-01-2007, 08:33 AM	#6
Bob64 Sapphire of the Blue Sky Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Virginia Posts: 801 My Car: 2007 Prius Package: #2 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Sigh :/ I hope you didn't buy the car to help the environment... because there goes about 40,000 gallons of water among other things...

11-01-2007, 08:35 AM	#7
aSmithee Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 5 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Thankfully, my wife was not hurt at all. BTW, the mailbox wasn't one of the big blue USPS box, it was just your average homeowner installed mailbox on a metal post.. Like I said, it must have been made by the Titanic iceberg Co... hard to believe that such a minor accident could cause so much damage (busted windshield, one wiper gone, cracked engine, etc).

11-01-2007, 08:41 AM	#8
qbee42 Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Northern Michigan Posts: 5,180 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #7 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 5	Any accident at 45 mph is likely to cause incredible amounts of damage. The amount of energy being carried at speed is really scary. Likewise, cars that are good at protecting their occupants, such as the Prius, are likely to suffer more damage when hitting small hard things. The car folds up and compresses, absorbing most of the energy, instead of bouncing its occupants around like a pea in a whistle. Tom

11-01-2007, 08:45 AM	#10
F8L Collecting Data on Nature Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Sacramento, CA. Posts: 3,989 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: #4 Nominated 1 Time in 1 Post TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 15	Be glad she wasn't driving a full size GMC/Chevy truck. She might have been hurt. Check out the tests A narrow steel pole should do much more damage than hitting a larger object due to force being applied to a very small area instead of spread out over a larger area and being absorbed.