Video: Pick-up slams into back of high end BMW that "couldn't be left in neutral" at parking lot

[NanLaew]

3 hours ago, TGIR said:

I have never in my life owned or driven a car that couldn't be put in neutral.  Now I have to admit I've never owned a BMW but I cannot for the life of me understand why they would build a car in this manner.........anyone know the purpose of this seemingly idiotic mechanical masterpiece?

It's a safety interlock which seems mostly to accommodate the lazy driver who doesn't set the park brake and thus stops the car from rolling away. Pretty common on all vehicles with an automatic transmission. Some marques have a get-around like the older Honda CRV that has a slot beside the shifter that, after you stick the shifter in Park, turn off the engine and remove the ignition key, you stuck the key in the slot beside the shifter which allows the shifter to be moved to Neutral

 

Same with my Ranger although they blank off access to the mechanical defeat of the interlock located just forward of the shifter with a plastic plug. There's at least 1 company on eBay making plastic buttons that you replace the blanking plug with and in the same way as above, you stick it in Park, turn off and remove the ignition key then press the after market button and pull the shifter into Neutral. The warning system chimes once when you open the door but ignore it, get out and lock up.

[richard_smith237]

37 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Or the people who build these places could plan it properly and provide enough parking places for the customers they want to attract. But parking places don't make money so they don't, and they are too dumb to realise that if people can't find a place to park then they'll go somewhere else and perhaps never return. You know, an appreciation of cause and effect that isn't common here.

 

Someone calling the owners and designers of shopping malls dumb...  I wouldn't be so outspoken regarding the intelligence of people who have attained a level of success in their lives or careers that they can either own or design a shopping mall...  I certainly wouldn't be calling these people dumb !... 

 

I wonder if you would think them dumb if you met and spoke with them? or are you just feeling somewhat feisty behind the keyboard ?

 

 

 

 

[connda]

  That should happen more often.

[lvr181]

9 hours ago, ferguston said:

What's the difference between a BMW and a hedgehog?

 

A hedgehog has its pricks on the outside.

That was an old Porsche joke many many years ago.  

 

But nicely used for today. 

[wozza]

Look at the person standing on the right hand side of the Pick up ,  she was standing between the drivers door and the rear suicide door (hinged from rear of door) when the car lurched forward she went with it indicating to me that the rear door was open and i reckon it was a slipped foot accident 

[Thian]

4 hours ago, bdenner said:

Have to agree! What is the procedure due to an accident or mechanical failure:-

How is it towed or even winched up onto a flat bed truck?

 

BTW What is with this BS parking arrangement! I'll tell you what it is = the Thais are just too effin lazy to walk any distance. I see it every day in our Amphor where they Double Park to save a 10 metre walk from an available parking space!

I remember the SAAB cars could only get the key out of the ignition when the stick was in reverse...That car would be 30 years old now though.

 

Never heard of a bmw with a system like that, but it was against cartheft.

[samsensam]

9 hours ago, overherebc said:

Looked at the video a few times and I'm going on the lines of foot came of the clutch as the pick up jumped a bit then kept going in a straight line when the driver went into panic mode.

If it was deliberate it's much more likely that easing against the car and pushing would have gone on.

Perhaps even intending to move forward a bit before turning the wheels and reversing to get more angle to get out.

 

agree, i dont think he intended to drive with such force into the blocking car, it's a kind of dumb thing to do.

[Moonlover]

8 minutes ago, Thian said:

I remember the SAAB cars could only get the key out of the ignition when the stick was in reverse...That car would be 30 years old now though.

 

Never heard of a bmw with a system like that, but it was against cartheft.

Yes I remember that system, but that SAAB had a manual shift. What's under discussion here are auto-shifts

[Moonlover]

10 minutes ago, samsensam said:

Looked at the video a few times and I'm going on the lines of foot came of the clutch as the pick up jumped a bit then kept going in a straight line when the driver went into panic mode.

If it was deliberate it's much more likely that easing against the car and pushing would have gone on.

Perhaps even intending to move forward a bit before turning the wheels and reversing to get more angle to get out.

Good spotting, I hadn't noticed the open doors.

 

It's just possible that the pick up had been left in gear when it was parked. These big diesels have a lot of torque, even at low revs, so when he turned the key to start, the vehicle lurched forward.

 

From the reaction of all those around the pick up, I'm sure this was an accident, not a deliberate act.

[toolpush]

13 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Good.  If your car really can't be left in neutral then drive around until you find a space that you can reverse into and doesn't block other cars.

I agree. Som Nom Na on the BMW owner. Some SOB boxed me in with an older car not in neutral at the Pattaya equivalent of the DMV. I had to wait over an hour and still no show, I locked up my 4 x 4 and drove over the parking curb/island and left cursing big time.

[ujayujay]

Usual Thai driving skills

[observer90210]

two fools who banged into each other...

[Sig]

17 hours ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

I was one boxed in, but the security guard had a rolling jack and moved the car in less than 5 min. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Yep, seen that a number of times. And I would think that Thais should know about that... or at least go talk to a parking attendant about your problem. Then the attendant would let them know that they could help move the car. No reason at all to come to such a ridiculous level of anger. We're all trying to live in this world together.... even people who need to leave their car blocking yours for a few minutes. But the BMW driver should have left notes on the windshields of the cars being blocked, not only on his own car!

[Moonlover]

14 hours ago, Air Smiles said:

A car should never be parked in neutral for safety reasons, should be either 1st gear or reverse.

Only when parked on a hill. I don't see any hills on this video. It's becoming clear to me now that this was almost certainly a case of 'starting in gear'.

 

If you watch carefully, the people, rather than the truck, the evidence is clear.

 

Firstly, the family were not all aboard and the driver's door is still open, so they are not yet ready to depart. There is a head showing just above the roof line on the far side by the open door. I believe that to be the driver. The guy who later appears n the white shoes.

 

Some folk like to get the engine running quickly, probably to get the A/C working. (or heating if they're in Issan right now) It is possible that he reached in and started the engine without checking that the gear shift was in neutral. When the truck lurches forward, the driver runs with it, no doubt trying to reach the ignition to switch the engine off again.

 

And finally, watch the body language. especially the lady in white. She has that 'hand on hip, very annoyed stance' that most of us are familiar with. When the driver comes forward, there is that deferential bow that we know so well and she glaring at him and pointing at the damage on the truck.

 

And please folks, don't come out with that hackneyed 'only in Thailand' phrase again! Such an accident could happen anywhere. Hands up all those who have never done anything stupid whilst driving, at least once in their lives.

 

I don't think I'll see many hands. Certainly not mine!

[ExpatOilWorker]

32 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

Only when parked on a hill. I don't see any hills on this video. It's becoming clear to me now that this was almost certainly a case of 'starting in gear'.

 

If you watch carefully, the people, rather than the truck, the evidence is clear.

 

Firstly, the family were not all aboard and the driver's door is still open, so they are not yet ready to depart. There is a head showing just above the roof line on the far side by the open door. I believe that to be the driver. The guy who later appears n the white shoes.

 

Some folk like to get the engine running quickly, probably to get the A/C working. (or heating if they're in Issan right now) It is possible that he reached in and started the engine without checking that the gear shift was in neutral. When the truck lurches forward, the driver runs with it, no doubt trying to reach the ignition to switch the engine off again.

 

And finally, watch the body language. especially the lady in white. She has that 'hand on hip, very annoyed stance' that most of us are familiar with. When the driver comes forward, there is that deferential bow that we know so well and she glaring at him and pointing at the damage on the truck.

 

And please folks, don't come out with that hackneyed 'only in Thailand' phrase again! Such an accident could happen anywhere. Hands up all those who have never done anything stupid whilst driving, at least once in their lives.

 

I don't think I'll see many hands. Certainly not mine!

I once stepped out of my car with the gear still in "D" and engine in idle. It slowly rolled toward a wall, but I caught up with it and slammed the break.

 

NB: Can you really start an automatic with the gear lever in "D"?

Edited February 8, 2018 by ExpatOilWorker

[Moonlover]

52 minutes ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

I once stepped out of my car with the gear still in "D" and engine in idle. It slowly rolled toward a wall, but I caught up with it and slammed the break.

 

NB: Can you really start an automatic with the gear lever in "D"?

I'm not so familiar with auto shifts (we Brits prefer 'real' driving ) but to my knowledge, an auto can only be started in 'park'.

 

However, most pick ups I've encountered have a manual shift, so my hypotheses is feasible. 

[pacovl46]

On 7. Februar 2018 at 11:44 AM, richard_smith237 said:

 

Depends on the Model... both my BMW's were keyless.

What happened if you left the car in neutral?

Edited February 8, 2018 by pacovl46
typo correction

[Lee4Life]

On ‎2‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 10:53 AM, BobbyL said:

I agree, there isn't an abundance of parking spaces in a busy place like Bangkok. It just does annoy me and I am surprised these issues aren't more common. 

There may not be enough empty spaces at times, but I have seen that often times there are and the people just don't want to look for them. Last time it happened to me the vehicle blocking me and another vehicle in was a 4 door pickup and had too much resistance for one person to push.

[KIWIBATCH]

Pickup driver did not even attempt a left turn...it looks like there is a heap of room for him/her to have done so...another useless Thai driver.

[Moonlover]

On ‎2‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 7:27 PM, NanLaew said:

I have never in my life owned or driven a car that couldn't be put in neutral.  Now I have to admit I've never owned a BMW but I cannot for the life of me understand why they would build a car in this manner.........anyone know the purpose of this seemingly idiotic mechanical masterpiece?

 

On ‎2‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 7:27 PM, NanLaew said:

It's a safety interlock which seems mostly to accommodate the lazy driver who doesn't set the park brake and thus stops the car from rolling away. Pretty common on all vehicles with an automatic transmission. Some marques have a get-around like the older Honda CRV that has a slot beside the shifter that, after you stick the shifter in Park, turn off the engine and remove the ignition key, you stuck the key in the slot beside the shifter which allows the shifter to be moved to Neutral

No, it is not a safety interlock to facilitate lazy drivers. What nonsense. It is a mechanical override (sometimes electronic nowadays) of getting the shift out of park and into neutral to facilitate towing or pushing in the event of a breakdown.

 

Electronic systems will also have an additional mechanical method in case of a total electrical failure.

[Moonlover]

On ‎2‎/‎8‎/‎2018 at 9:32 PM, KIWIBATCH said:

Pickup driver did not even attempt a left turn...it looks like there is a heap of room for him/her to have done so...another useless Thai driver.

And here we have, once again, an example of someone who has read the opening line, leapt to a conclusion and makes an ill-informed comment such as this.

 

Try reading posts #65, #69 and #74 and think again.

 

I see this often on this forum and it puts me in mind of a quote I read recently by R D Laing:

 

        'The range of what we think and do is limited by what we fail to notice'.

Edited February 10, 2018 by Moonlover