From the "This Could have been a hell of a lot Worse" column (Car Accident)

[ChiFlyer]

First of all this was a single car accident and no one was injured.

The future Thai wife and myself did a little shopping at Num Chai today. We decided to do the weekly grocery shopping at the Villa Market in the "Little Walk" shopping center after that. This was our first time there. The parking spaces and aisles are not as spacious as one might prefer at this location. When I was pulling into a spot, the accelerator suddenly unexpectedly surged. I barely missed the car next to ours and we catapulted off of the parking block into some bushes. A large bush helped stop us or we would have gone over the meter drop into the aisle just below ours landing on another car.

Talk about a major adrenaline rush. 

The car appeared to be ok, so we did our shopping and drove home. During the ride home it became increasingly obvious that everything was not ok with the car. There was an occasional unusual sound (a cover for an engine part was dragging a little). We got home and unloaded the groceries. Just about then I started getting engine warning lights. Got the car parked. Turned it off and it would not start again. Let it sit for a couple of hours. A friend stopped by and helped check it out. Car now started with no engine lights. We drove it around the parking lot a little with no problems.

The we did a detailed inspection. One tire was damaged to the point that it was looking a little dangerous and there was some minor damage to the previously mentioned small engine cover plate. Started it up again and started getting engine warning lights again.

At this point it was decided that it was time for discretion to have priority over valor. Called the insurance company. Amazingly their evaluator was there in about 1 hour and he was coming from Chonburi. After the initial evaluation, we had to meet him back at Little Walk so that he could see the scene of the accident. The guy was efficient and I like that. The insurance company arranged to have the car fixed and got a tow truck out to take the car there. We paid for the tow truck @ 1000. We are 50% responsible for the tire replacement as it was a little worn. I will replace the other front tire as well at my own cost.  

We were told that we should have the car back in a couple of days.

The car is about 5 years old now, but with only 45,000 kms on it. We have our 6 month maintenance at Mazda in a few weeks. We will definitely have them pull the logs on the accelerator problem. All in all, I now plan to replace the car next year, if that can wait that long. The costs of the new house are causing me to be careful with budgets. There goes my Khon Kean swimming pool into 2025. 😞 

Oh, I have read of others having this accelerator surge problem with Mazdas from this time frame. Just saying for now.

 

Edited February 16, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[fforest]

An accelerator surge problem sounds like a potential Major disaster in the making to me.....

[forcebwithu]

Good no one was injured. If it were me, I wouldn't drive the car again until the reason for the accelerator surge is found and corrected.

[Lantern]

^Betting it's a computer issue.

[ChiFlyer]

8 hours ago, Lantern said:

^Betting it's a computer issue.

My thoughts as well.

[ChiFlyer]

8 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

Good no one was injured. If it were me, I wouldn't drive the car again until the reason for the accelerator surge is found and corrected.

It was towed into the shop and is being corrected.

[ChiFlyer]

In case anyone is interested this thread talks about this problem for Mazdas in general

https://mazdas247.com/forum/t/intermittent-surge.123855961/

From what I gather, the problem can occur when shifting from reverse to drive and quickly pressing the accelerator. Because of the narrow parking spaces and also narrow lanes, that is exactly what I was doing.

Not happy about it and the car's days of me being the owner are numbered.

[Stillearly]

24 minutes ago, ChiFlyer said:

In case anyone is interested this thread talks about this problem for Mazdas in general

https://mazdas247.com/forum/t/intermittent-surge.123855961/

From what I gather, the problem can occur when shifting from reverse to drive and quickly pressing the accelerator. Because of the narrow parking spaces and also narrow lanes, that is exactly what I was doing.

Not happy about it and the car's days of me being the owner are numbered.

I've owned Mazdas for 30+ years , currently got the CX3 , I've never had any issues of any type .. great cars imho 

[ChiFlyer]

8 hours ago, Stillearly said:

I've owned Mazdas for 30+ years , currently got the CX3 , I've never had any issues of any type .. great cars imho 

I am glad Mazdas have worked out for you.

My understanding is that the problem is highly intermittent and tied to the gear shifting pattern that I described and also affects only some cars. Hey - I read it on the internet, it must be true. 🙂

Basically, I have really liked our Mazda-2 (up until yesterday 😞 ). It is great for getting around Bang Lamung, easy to park  (up until yesterday 😞 ), great for gas usage, and just about perfect to do the grocery shopping etc. It has also stood up well on occasional trips to the Khon Kean area. We paid something like 400,000 for it when it was 2 years old. I have been very happy with it (up until yesterday 😞 ).

I will likely get rid of the Mazda and ask Toyota to welcome me back, after we get the house settled into.

Edited February 17, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[Glasseye]

I had a 2004 Mazda 3. Best car I have ever had. Some old lady stopped to get her mail (mailboxes not far from me). She was driving a HUGE old Chrysler. 

Bitch forgot to put the car into park when she got out. the car rolled back and crushed my 3, fucking totaled it.

Her daughter called a couple of days later asking to pay cash instead of filing an insurance claim. I told her to f**k off and the most advisable thing she should do is to take the keys away from her Mother. 

[ChiFlyer]

Had to go to the Mazda repair center out toward Chonburi today. This was for the TWF to sign off on the repair approach. The car is in her name. The Repair Center is really in far North Naklua according to my way of thinking, but whatever.

The required parts and labor to get the car fixed all the way up will take one month. WTF. Given the potential severity of a repeat problem, I did not turn into the angry Farang.

We rented a Toyota from a friend of the Bolt driver for 20,000 for one month. Love the Toyota. Licking my Mazda wounds.

While out at the Mazda Repair Center I noticed this car. I obviously mean the white one. Wow - makes one think.

 

Having the Thai Partner gets things done better and so much more efficiently. I am lucky to have her.

Edited February 18, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[Zambo]

7 hours ago, ChiFlyer said:

We rented a Toyota from a friend of the Bolt driver for 20,000 for one month. Love the Toyota. Licking my Mazda wounds

Having the Thai Partner gets things done better and so much more efficiently. I am lucky to have her.

That's a great deal, less than i was paying in 2009

[forcebwithu]

9 hours ago, ChiFlyer said:

Had to go to the Mazda repair center out toward Chonburi today. This was for the TWF to sign off on the repair approach. The car is in her name. The Repair Center is really in far North Naklua according to my way of thinking, but whatever.

The required parts and labor to get the car fixed all the way up will take one month. WTF. Given the potential severity of a repeat problem, I did not turn into the angry Farang.

We rented a Toyota from a friend of the Bolt driver for 20,000 for one month. Love the Toyota. Licking my Mazda wounds.

While out at the Mazda Repair Center I noticed this car. I obviously mean the white one. Wow - makes one think.

 

Having the Thai Partner gets things done better and so much more efficiently. I am lucky to have her.

If they're going to leave the car parked in the open for up to one month while waiting for parts it's going to accumulate a pretty good layer of grime. Might be worth it to invest in a dust cover while it's parked. It'll make the clean up of the exterior much easier.

[ChiFlyer]

3 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

If they're going to leave the car parked in the open for up to one month while waiting for parts it's going to accumulate a pretty good layer of grime. Might be worth it to invest in a dust cover while it's parked. It'll make the clean up of the exterior much easier.

Good idea. We actually have one already, in the trunk. The TW is going to call Mazda tomorrow and ask them to put it on.

[ChiFlyer]

5 hours ago, Zambo said:

That's a great deal, less than i was paying in 2009

Well this is a little embarrassing. The TW initially told me that it was a Toyota. I was very focused on taking pictures of any dings and how the car drives, so did not look at the model name. I was out in the lot this Morning and our Toyota is definitely a Honda. Very nice car, but not a Toyota. 🤨

[ChiFlyer]

It Could have been a lot Worse - Part 2

We got the Mazda back two days ago and it seems to be working as it should. We are due for our 6 month maintenance, so I will have them pull the logs at that time looking for any records of the accelerator surge problem.

The Honda rental expires on Monday. We have continued to use it for now, as most of our driving is taking things out to the house from the condo and the Honda has a little more storage capacity.

Today as we approached the entrance for the community where the house is located a work crew was doing some landscaping improvements. One of them using a grass cutter accidentally shot a small rock into the side window on the drivers side. Luckily the window did not shatter, but it was close.

The rental guy came out and picked up the Honda and gave us an over sized Toyota SUV. I told him he did not have to, but he said it made the paperwork easier. Ok - don't fight TiT.

The lead of the work crew disavowed any responsibility. The Tfiancee gave her quite an ear full.

Security and the Juristic management became involved. 

I seem to be on a good luck streak with regard to the minimization of the effects from my bad luck. 🙂

 

 

Edited March 18, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[ChiFlyer]

6 hours ago, ChiFlyer said:

It Could have been a lot Worse - Part 2

We got the Mazda back two days ago and it seems to be working as it should. We are due for our 6 month maintenance, so I will have them pull the logs at that time looking for any records of the accelerator surge problem.

The Honda rental expires on Monday. We have continued to use it for now, as most of our driving is taking things out to the house from the condo and the Honda has a little more storage capacity.

Today as we approached the entrance for the community where the house is located a work crew was doing some landscaping improvements. One of them using a grass cutter accidentally shot a small rock into the side window on the drivers side. Luckily the window did not shatter, but it was close.

The rental guy came out and picked up the Honda and gave us an over sized Toyota SUV. I told him he did not have to, but he said it made the paperwork easier. Ok - don't fight TiT.

The lead of the work crew disavowed any responsibility. The Tfiancee gave her quite an ear full.

Security and the Juristic management became involved. 

I seem to be on a good luck streak with regard to the minimization of the effects from my bad luck. 🙂

 

 

Part 2 - an Update

I am actually quite angry about the way this played out, but there is not much I can do about it and I will not suffer a financial impact with regard to the outcome.

• The T-fiancee handled all of the followup communication with regard to this event. We both felt that the last thing the situation needed was making it into a Farang vs. Thai thing.
• The rental car owner and my T-fiancee met with the owner of the landscaping outfit and the Jurasic management for the property. 
• The Jurasic management said that they would pay for 50% of the damages.
• The rental agent said not good enough.
• The police were called.
• The landscaping firm owner switched their story to the car was damaged earlier than the incident and we were running a scam.
• The police, whom I suspect were gotten to by the landscaping owner, said they could not see who owed for the damages, so the landscaping owner had to pay nothing.
• The rental car guy told us not to worry. He believed us and he will run his own scam through the insurance company claiming the car was damaged after it was returned. I guess this is why I am driving an oversized SVU tomorrow.

TiT indeed.

What angers me is that the negligence of the landscaping company employed by the Jurasic office came very close to seriously injuring me (perhaps blinding me) and feel no responsibility in that regard.

Thinking about buying a car camera, although that would not have helped with regard to this incident, as I would have had the camera pointing forward. Still it is probably a good investment going forward. Several of my friends use them as the outcome of Farang vs Thai is predetermined.

Edited March 18, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[forcebwithu]

Even though the car camera wouldn't have caught the stone hitting the side window, it would have picked up the sound of the glass cracking. It would probably have picked up the work crew as you approached, therefore establishing a timeline of events. You would then have proof the landscaping firm was telling a tall tale the incident happened earlier.

[ChiFlyer]

On 3/18/2023 at 9:57 PM, forcebwithu said:

Even though the car camera wouldn't have caught the stone hitting the side window, it would have picked up the sound of the glass cracking. It would probably have picked up the work crew as you approached, therefore establishing a timeline of events. You would then have proof the landscaping firm was telling a tall tale the incident happened earlier.

Good points. I am looking around Lazada for a CCTV car camera. This one seems ok to me.

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/1080p-full-hd-dash-lcd-i2353632714-s7951659379.html?from_gmc=1&exlaz=d_1:mm_150050845_51350205_2010350205::12:19039203577!!!!!c!!7951659379!239154205&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4KurgOXp_QIVOZNmAh2dpwvLEAQYCCABEgJ_ufD_BwE

Anyone have any recommendations for one a car camera?

 

[Fredx58]

 

Anyone have any recommendations for one a car camera?

 

I recently had a front and rear camera fitted ,

the front camera is built into a slightly longer rear view mirror that was attached to the original factory fitted rvm 

 

the rear camera fitted just above the back number plate ,

superb job fitted all in I think it was about 4000 baht ish took about 45 minutes 

records automatically when the engine is switched on 

 

The make was decar 

His shop is to the left of Tesco lotus on the sukhumvit road 

The camera comes on when you start the engine but turns off after about a minute 

 

[ChiFlyer]

10 hours ago, ChiFlyer said:

Good points. I am looking around Lazada for a CCTV car camera. This one seems ok to me.

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/1080p-full-hd-dash-lcd-i2353632714-s7951659379.html?from_gmc=1&exlaz=d_1:mm_150050845_51350205_2010350205::12:19039203577!!!!!c!!7951659379!239154205&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4KurgOXp_QIVOZNmAh2dpwvLEAQYCCABEgJ_ufD_BwE

Anyone have any recommendations for one a car camera?

 

I have a buddy who lives in Phuket who is knowledgeable on this topic. I was chatting with him today. He brought up some good points. He said that he was suspicious of the Lazada example that I listed because the price sounds "too good". He also added that I may as well try it because at that price I can always toss it if I am not satisfied.

Said buddy (a super-tech friend) uses VIOFO models in his cars. I will take a look at those. He said his dash cams are getting a little out of date and the newer models might have better features.

Some things he mentioned:

• Consider if you want "parked" and "driving" modes. I see no reason for the "parked" and rumor has it one could possibly drain their car battery (speculation).
• He recommends a 1080P resolution just for the clarity of the recording.
• One should consider if the cam can stand up to the heat inside of the car when parked, given that one lives in Thailand. This was one reason he was suspicious of my Lazada sale item.
• Mounting and playback options are obviously important. 

More later. I am back into the moving, getting the house in shape, and getting married activities. I will be looking into dash cam choices as time permits. 😐

Edited March 20, 2023 by ChiFlyer

[ChiFlyer]

1 hour ago, Fredx58 said:

 

Anyone have any recommendations for one a car camera?

 

I recently had a front and rear camera fitted ,

the front camera is built into a slightly longer rear view mirror that was attached to the original factory fitted rvm 

 

the rear camera fitted just above the back number plate ,

superb job fitted all in I think it was about 4000 baht ish took about 45 minutes 

records automatically when the engine is switched on 

 

The make was decar 

His shop is to the left of Tesco lotus on the sukhumvit road 

The camera comes on when you start the engine but turns off after about a minute 

 

Thanks. I like this idea. 4000 and 45 minutes to get this level of coverage sounds good.