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Crash Safety-Insight saved my life <3

9K views 40 replies 11 participants last post by  rhoneyman 
#1 ·
Unfortunately after 162,000mi the best car I’ve ever owned & I met some black ice along with strong crosswinds on a rural Buffalo NY backroad. The impact speed was around 40-45 mph (55 limit zone) and the car simply was blown sideways on black ice and struck a pine tree trunk appx 5 seconds after loss of control. This was an extremely late winter event even for us here in Buffalo and I had unfortunately already replaced my snow tires with firestone firehawks. (I recommend those tires other than in winter conditions, however). The speed at impact was probably about 40-43mph. Curtain airbags deployed as they should front airbags did not as they weren’t required as this was a full side impact. The damage was extremely severe and even peeled the roof off of the cabin yet I literally walked away from this crash with nothing but bruises and typical soreness. I did not even have whiplash, which is beyond remarkable. I have some pretty dark bruises on my torso and abdomen where the seatbelt retractors detonated and pulled up the slack (again great job honda- they zipped the belt back and I felt the retraction just split-second before the tree impact as it should) and stopped me from hitting my head on the intruding tree and passenger side curtain airbags. I impacted the center console/armrest around my ribcage and this impact with the center console/armrest was extremely violent due to physics as this was a worst case scenario accident-and I can only praise Honda‘s engineering team and their foresight in using higher density foam in an area where they are aware that a driver may make impact with the car during this kind of accident. I credit this also for saving my life as I honestly believe if the center console was made of a hard plastic or vinyl that I would have had severe internal injuries that I may have even succumbed to such as collapsed lung or internal bleeding. I will miss this car so so much- however I will never forget it’s advanced engineering and safety and all of the aspects about it that make it the best car I ever owned- and especially the part where it saved my life and I walked away from a crash like this! Also I will miss the 162k trouble free miles. Drive safe y’all!<3
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#2 ·
Wow... glad you were able to walk away safely, and thanks for taking time to recap. Gotta say I'm a little sad we can't learn from your high mileage ways any longer. :( Do you think you'll look at replacing with another Honda/Insight?

Curious about your assessment on this... it sounds like you were in the car alone and the impact was on the passenger side. Based on the damage/impact and remaining structure, do you think a front passenger would have been able to walk away safely as well?
 
#4 ·
Thank you!!- And I share that sentiment about the high mileage! 162k with no real issues! Unfortunately it is maybe unlikely that any passenger would’ve survived this impact as I was told by the sheriff that I was lucky that I was alive. Additionally the scrapyard that takes all of the wrecked cars from the area was very grim when I came in to get the plates and apologized to me about the passenger I told him I did not have a passenger and they were very shocked because apparently typically most (older lower tech) cars will not blow side airbags or any airbags on the side of the car unoccupied so they thought there was a passenger. I told them I was alone and fine and they seemed very relieved. They told me that typically when a vehicle strikes a tree in the center of the door there is almost never any chance of survival just due to the fact that there is no structure in any car at this exact location he said it was worst-case scenario and that these accidents are almost always a fatality. It is amazing that I am uninjured besides bruises. For insight (haha puns) of the impact I had a Tupperware of corn-chex with me for a snack and when I took it out of the car when I cleaned it out it was literally dust- literally complete dust. It’s insane. I could not even clean out my glove box it would have legit literally no joke required the jaws of life to pry the door away to open it. My iPhone 2’nd gen SE has also apparently not survive the impact because it is constantly spinning the wheel that is next to the LTE bar and it will only stop momentarily if I reset the network settings then restarts and the battery dies like every 8 hours. I believe the internal antenna is damage from the impact. I had a reusable plastic water bottle and the impact was so severe that it crushed the drinking pop top of it into the bottle. I had a baseball cap that was pinned into the passenger seat so deeply that I literally had to pull tug-of-war to get it out (my fav hat!! 😭) and it is stretched out to the point I can’t wear it. I opened the rear driver side door to try to clean out the backseat and I had to pull with all my strength to get it open it would never close again it was hitting solid metal every time I tried to close it. If you check the pictures there is a bottle of WD-40 in the passenger side door cupholder that I used to deice the radar that also didn’t survive the impact and everything in the car smells like WD-40.
Pretty much literally everything inside of the car except me and the HondaLink did not survive the impact. my ezpass toll tag and comma AI (which I was not using at the time as it was already deactivated by the “radar obstructed”) were in the backseat from originally the front windshield.
I have yet to check on the comma AI as it was like literally $1000 and I don’t even want to know LOL. The wiring harness for the comma ai, the entire Honda camera in the windshield and the OBD2 port as well as the wiring harness of the comma ai were all also destroyed as well.
I would absolutely buy this car again- I literally owe my life to it!!!
 
#3 ·
Additionally also I forgot to add that HondaLink did activate despite the radio/climate control being completely destroyed and it called a dispatcher who sent EMS out and also a Sheriff and honestly they were excellent and the dispatcher stayed on the call (which went through my iPhone) for 11 minutes even though I had already climbed out of the car and was not answering him. They literally waited listening from the car until a fireman at the scene came to talk to him to tell him they could disconnect. Beyond impressed by that additionally, especially with a free service.
 
#5 ·
Additionally also I forgot to add that HondaLink did activate despite the radio/climate control being completely destroyed and it called a dispatcher who sent EMS out and also a Sheriff [...] Beyond impressed by that additionally, especially with a free service.
To clarify the "free" part - you did not have a subscription to HondaLink, but just activated it on phone and car? Honda's descriptions call it a "subscription-based service" but that it activates if the airbags deploy.
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#8 ·
Hmm interesting. That’s odd but I won’t complain about it haha. I did buy the car in 2018 maybe it was a different policy back then? It was also a demo car in the showroom floor and had 300ish miles on it when I bought it maybe the demo cars have everything activated so every feature is working? If you see anything about this let me know I am interested as I will always have that activated now. I never had to call 911 or try to figure out what road or intersection I was near or even house number – they just showed up (EMS) and I’m not sure if I would’ve even been able to figure that out as I was a little shocked by the whole thing when it unfolded.
 
#9 ·
Did a little more web searching, and found that the "HondaLink Assist" feature (pg 437 above) which notifies emergency personnel upon airbag deployment or severe impact is activated by user selection in Bluetooth HandsFree Link.
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Awesome that Honda makes this emergency notification available to everyone who connects via bluetooth, makes this selection, and has phone in car if/when accident occurs... but a little misleading in that their HondaLink site pasted above makes it sound like only the Touring trim gets this, and only upon subscription.

Here's the scoop from Honda Canada:
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#10 ·
@onthefly1050 Glad to hear you're safe! You really put the 3rd gen Insight to the test for us from reliability to safety. I bet the Honda safety engineers in Ohio would love to hear your story. (y):)

Honda R&D Americas (Automotive Safety)
21001 State Route 739
Raymond, OH 43067-9705

I don't keep my vehicles forever and upgrade within 10 years because the safety enhancements are worth it. I also start my shopping based on what vehicles are awarded the TSP rating from IIHS that year.

@insightfully I have the HondaLink iOS app and HondaLink Assist in my EX. I also have it setup in my uncle's CRV Hybrid EX-L. The Display Audio screen prompts you to turn it on when you first setup the HondaLink app and then it ask for location sharing. The EX has a GPS module(for SiriusXM and Android Auto) so I think that's where the location data is sourced from.
 
#11 ·
We have three late model Hondas - two Insights and one Civic. I'm not sure, but the location data may come from the phone, not the car. The Bluetooth setup prompts for confirmation to enable auto-911 dialing in case of an accident. I hope to never need it but am happy it's available. My son, 17, is a new driver, and I'm happy to put him in my 2019 Insight. His choice was between that and a 2006 Honda Odyssey minivan. Even though the minivan is larger, I feel the Insight is the safer vehicle. The only downside/upside to giving him my 2019 Insight EX is that I had to purchase a new 2021 Insight EX to backfill. Poor me :). I love my new Insight!
 
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#14 ·
So- this is gonna add to the conundrum about the Hondalink for sure 100%- BUT I did not have the phone paired to Bluetooth!!! It was a new replacement phone I received from apple a couple weeks ago HOWEVER it was connected to hondalink via the USB and apple carplay ONLY- the bluetooth did not reconnect with the new phone (new apple ID) and I had not gotten around to reconnecting it yet since its basically the same user connection when it is connected to carplay except to dial out you must long hold the voice button for siri. (I would have eventualIy). remember distinctly it asking permission for the hondalink via carplay which i allowed.
I think any bluetooth or carplay connected (and hopefully android auto) phone will dial out to the hondalink dispatch 800 number if the phone is still connected and a crash is detected. Ironically, hilariously and def somewhat irritatingly - the phone managed to stay plugged in to the lightning cord even with a 45mph tree impact and the impact with the wall of explosive propelled curtain wall... (Go figure - the phone that wont stay plugged in to the charger in the bed or keep the headphones in while exercising had NO issue staying plugged in with that impact lol. I recommend the bluetooth connection as had the phone unplugged from the cord the call would not have likely been place. A13 chip is fast but not THAT fast and even if the call was placed it would not have been audible esp considering the temporary tinnitus from the impact and airbags.
 
#16 ·
Glad you are ok! I have 66,492 on mine now, and I still feel safer in it than I do when I ride with my buddy in his big GMC Denali pickup (Of course he drives like a crazy guy too). I am glad you made it out without serious injury and I know we are all thankful you did not have a passenger! My question is in regards to the back seat passengers? Do you think a child sitting in the backseat on the passenger side would have been hurt? I know it's a weird question, but I have two daughters and I can't help but play the scene out you just went through - of course I live in Florida, but we have drivers from all over the country and world, and enough rain to make the roads scary at times.. I was recently tapped on the rear (didn't do any damage save for a tiny crack in the bumper) by an old lady who wasn't aware of her surroundings in a parking lot! lol..
 
#36 ·
Just curious, but did the passenger seat side airbag go off too? I was under the assumption that if no one is detected in the front seat, the system deactivates the front airbag and the seat mounted airbag to decrease potential repair costs.
The torso airbag in the seat did deploy. I think this crash was such a bad impact that the car and yaw sensors/ computers ect. just took a "send everything" approach to the accident. I know the advanced airbag systems detect severity and will adjust accordingly. I believe this is why it did deploy and the scrapyard people were concerned as such. I think the deployment of that airbag was appropriate even unoccupied i grazed the passenger overhead curtain airbag from all the way on the driver's side and with a higher speed impact there may have even been some contact with the side torso airbag as well (arm hands ect). I have not suffered from any long term injuries either. The airbags also prevented almost all of the broken glass from entering the cabin this also may have been a reason as well. A very well engineered and safe vehicle!
 
#17 ·
Just curious, but did the passenger seat side airbag go off too? I was under the assumption that if no one is detected in the front seat, the system deactivates the front airbag and the seat mounted airbag to decrease potential repair costs.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Some thought went into the safety and engineering of the 3rd gen Insight with respect to weight. Aluminum is used a lot throughout the car (which is lightweight but not nearly as strong as steel), but there are strategic points of the car that use a high grade reinforced steel, like the rear for instance (in cases of rear collision).
 
#31 ·
I’m so glad you sent that picture of the phone setting screen! That’s exactly what my screen looks like. There is nothing anywhere on my screen that’s says Honda link assist. You even highlighted HondaLink assist under ringtone in blue, but it’s not on the screen under ringtone or anywhere else. Please forgive me if I’m missing something obvious.
I have a 2020 touring and an iPhone XR.
I did double check that my phone was paired to Bluetooth using the instructions at the end, so that’s something.
 
#32 ·
I’m so glad you sent that picture of the phone setting screen! That’s exactly what my screen looks like. There is nothing anywhere on my screen that’s says Honda link assist. You even highlighted HondaLink assist under ringtone in blue, but it’s not on the screen under ringtone or anywhere else. Please forgive me if I’m missing something obvious.
I have a 2020 touring and an iPhone XR.
I did double check that my phone was paired to Bluetooth using the instructions at the end, so that’s something.
Hmmm... the manual snapshot has an asterisk by it, indicating 'not available on all models' - but you have the top Touring trim which should (?) have this. Yet the Touring trim is the one Honda lists as having Automatic Collision Notification by subscription. I own an EX, but maybe another Touring owner can share what they see for better comparison...
 
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