R100 - Someones out to get me

[steve hawkins]

Not as bad as poor Rob but......

I have just had my second accident on the R100 I bought recently This was the bike I was proposing to change the trail on (R65 yokes).

I was rear-ended yesterday morning by a car whilst I was stationary. My 13 year old son was riding pillion. Forunately both myself and my son were knocked out of harms way as the bike was punched from under us and we are both relatively unscathed. The driver was driving into direct sunlight (early morning) and did not see us till it was too late (no excuse as she was going too fast for the road conditions). However it was a relatively low speed collision - sub 20mph.

However this does mean that my changing yokes experiment is put on indefinate hold whilst the insurance, etc, is sorted out.

The bike is likely to be written off, due to its low market value and the fact that prices are specified by new parts and labour.

Damage as far as I can see is as follows:

New rear mudguard(fender) smashed.
New rear light cluster smashed.
New rear seat cowl dented.
Right hand exhaust silencer dented and pushed forward.
Frame bent where right hand silencer fixes to it - pillion foot rest area.
Right rocker cover scratched when bike when over on it.

Who knows what else?

Not been assessed yet - but the price list of new parts alone exceeds the money I paid for the whole bike.

Not even sure I want to fix it up at the moment as this is the second close call I have had on this bike in as many weeks, with 15 years of clear motoring before that.

Weirdly enough both collisions were by the same make and model of car; Nissan Micra - Turquoise in colour. Two different female drivers though - i.e. not the same car. But I will be watching out for Turquoise Nissan Micra's (Small town car - popular with the ladies in the uk for being small, cute and easy to park) in the future as my life seems to depend on it.

I have been riding the noisey bright red R65 Cafe Racer for 7 years without incident and am now starting to wonder if the quiet, dark R100 is possessed! Or is it just that Turquoise Nissan Micra's are so attracted by it that they have to try and hump it!

Grumpy/bemused and confused - Steve

lighter faster - where is my hacksaw?

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

At least it wasn't YOU that was asleep at the wheel, unlike some crashers I know...

[nhmaf]

Good heavens, Steve !  I am glad that you are your son are OK !  Still, take it easy the next few days and be watchful for signs of whiplash injury to your neck, shoulders, and back.  Those rapid acceleration impulses from behind can really do a number on the human frame as well as a motorcycle's.

You might be onto something about those turquoise nissans... but more likely it is the inattentive drivers that tend to own them that are the problem.   I know when I see certain makes/models of cars, or cars with certain aftermarket exhausts and pink/orange flames added on, to be wary of an oblivious young driver with delusions of immortality at the wheel - I give them a very wide berth - though when one is stopped at an intersection, there isn't too much one can do.   I try to follow the MSF course rules of keeping the bike in 1st gear at the light, and checking my mirrors in case I need to plan an escape forward or to the side in a hurry.

[Justin B.]

Y'all are making me wonder if I should cage it for a while!   Glad you and your offspring are relatively unscathed.  And to the cager...  [smiley=rifle.gif]

[Ed Miller]

Y'all are making me wonder if I should cage it for a while!   Glad you and your offspring are relatively unscathed.  And to the cager...  [smiley=rifle.gif]

Wouldn't help me much.  Like, I'm so much more visible in my tiny silver CRX....  

Steve, maybe you could just hang on to the motor, in case the one on your R65 ever bites it?  Glad you're OK.

[Justin B.]

I agree with Ed, a light, SWB R100...  

[msbuck]

 What's going on around here these days?   There is just TOO much of this crashing going on - and Steve you've had more that your fair share!  

I also wonder if the stealthy black quiet R100 has anything to do with your visibility.  I've never really believed in the 'loud pipes save lives' theory, but maybe this is more than that even.  Glad to hear you and your son both same out unscathed (at least physically) from this little incident.  I hope you make good use of your R100 in whatever form you can - you are so clever, there's no telling what you could do with this wreck now!

[Melena]

Steve,

Not you too!   [smiley=wall.gif]  And twice?  What is going on here?   :-?  

I'm so glad that you and your son are okay, besides the bruises to body and ego.  I'd start being more aware of all of those small Nissan Micras.  There might be something about the windshield that lets the sun get into the drivers eyes easier.  (Darn car manufacturers don't think about those things I'm sure).

Maybe we all (in the US anyway) need to take the Advanced Rider Course just to keep us on our toes.   I'm surely thinking about it.  

[trolle]

another of my idiosynchrasies: Younger female drivers in cars. They seem to be blind, at least to two wheel drivers and they scare me as do cars turning left, cars driving fast on a side road up to the road I'm driving on, drivers waiting to enter my road and looking the other way.

Sorry to hear about your accident and glad to hear that your son and you weren't seriously hurt.

greetings from a grey and relatively warm north - mediocre driving conditions

[steve hawkins]

Hmm and small frame R100....Now you are talking..I have my old R65 wheels......some yokes,

However, it is early days yet.  The Insurance Assessor is not here yet, so currently I am in 'Limbo' - wherever that is?


I rode to work on the R65 Cafe Racer this morning just to chase the 'goulies' away.

Very pleasant - nice to have a second bike.

Cheers All

[suecanada]

Stop it ...just stop this!! I hate to hear any one of you are hurting. Thank goodness you are alright Steve!!! Do not do as I do...do you all hear me??? What in the world is going on? If this many of us are getting into trouble..no fault of yours Steve...I wonder how many bikers out in the whole world have gotten hurt?

We do not want to have to set up a new section on this forum entitled "My stunning progress in rehab! How I am Feeling now"

[Justin B.]

Do you want to moderate that one?  

I feel you're probably healed up enough for me to pick on ya a little!  [smiley=beehive.gif]

[Altritter]

Trolle wrote: <<  Younger female drivers in cars. They seem to be blind, >>

In my area, they tend to be on cell phones. Same thing.

Also, nhmaf wrote: << I know when I see certain makes/models of cars, or cars . . .. >>

Re both quotes: Some people call that "profiling"; others refer to it as having "a high level of predictive validity."  

Seriously, both David Hough (Proficient Motorcycling and More Proficient Motorcycling and Lee Parks (Total Control) talk about this in their books. They contend that one can infer possibilities from the kind of vehicle, the age of the driver, and the driver's bahavior, and take appropriate precautions. Of course, that's useless when someone comes up your exhaust pipe!

Steve, I'm sorry for your misfortune, but I'm happy that there were no injuries.

Don't know how things work in the UK, but in the US, it's sometimes possible to buy back your own damaged vehicle from the insurance company at a very good price after the insurance settles the case. At that point, the person has both wrecked bike (for parts) and the insurance settlement proceeds to help obtain another machine. Who knows -- perhaps the insurance adjuster will not have a clue as to the market value of a serviceable R100 boxer and its appurtenances.

Good luck!
John

Good luck! Hope you find another bike.

[steve hawkins]

I could have this bike running again by the weekend, if I did myself and had a few spares.  All be it with a few dents and stuff.  

It was a pretty low speed hit.  Fortunately the other driver only had 100yrds to accelerate uphill with a 1000cc engine from where she turned out from.  She did not brake but she was going less than 20mph.   A stout thump that punched the bike from under us and knocked it sideways, or we would have been sat on her bonnet(hood) instead of the road - rather than a serious wipe-out.

Un/fortunately, insurance companies generally talk about 3 year warrantees and paint, new parts with top labour rates, whereas I would be using some second hand parts and fixing some of the parts that have been damaged - buying new where there is no other sensible option.

I took the bike out tonight and run it up the street.  She does not seem to be bent, she steers okay, so there is every reason to be hopeful that I can keep the bike and get some cash to bring it back up to spec.  

But you never know with insurance companies and policies do change.

Steve H

[trolle]

Now I have to add another one to my idiosyncrasies: German tourists in old cars. The day before yesterday one of those tried to ram me from my left. I was doing about 50 mph when he drove out from a side road on my left. Luckily he saw me as soon as he was in my path and had room to keep to the left making it possible for me to overtake him on his right side.

Sometimes the margins are rather thin!

greetings from a sunny and cool north with excellent riding conditions.