NHTSA complaint: 2001 CHEVROLET IMPALA — AIR BAGS
I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY IN TRAFFIC AND I SWITCH LANE TO CARPOOL LANE. AS I WAS PICKING UP SPEED WHEN I WAS REAR ENDED FROM BEHIND PUSHED DOWN FORWARD FURTHER AND MY CAR TURNED AND SLAMMED ONTO THE CENTER DIVIDER LANE. AFTER MY CAR STRUCK CENTER DIVIDER LANE SAME CAR WHO HIT ME HAS NOT SLOWED DOWN AND HIT ME AGAIN ON HIGH IMPACT BEHIND DRIVER SIDE PASSENGER DOOR AND GAS TANK SMASHING ONTO MY REAR WHEEL. NONE OF THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED IN MY CAR. I AM 5'1 IN HEIGHT AND WEIGHT ABOUT 133LB. WE BOUNCED AROUND AS WELL AS MY BACKSEAT PASSENGER WHO IS MY DAUGHTER WHO WAS SEATING IN A BOOSTER SEAT AND WE WERE BOTH WEARING SEAT-BELTS. WHEN THE CAR HIT US SIDEWAYS AND JERKED US AROUND MY HEAD SLAMMED BY THE DOOR PANEL AND BUSTED MY HEAD OPEN WHICH CAUSED IT TO BLEED BADLY. BELIEVE IT WAS THE INITIAL IMPACT FROM THE REAR MY KEYS FLEW OUT OF THE IGNITION AND ON TO THE FLOOR IN THE BACKSEAT FLOOR FIREFIGHTER HAD TO SEARCH BECAUSE I TOLD THEM AS SOON AS THEY SHOWED UP "MY CAR IS STILL RUNNING I DON'T KNOW WHERE THE KEYS ARE AT!" THE IGNITION WAS STILL IN ON POSITION AS IF THE KEY WAS IN IT. MY DOORS ON DRIVER SIDE AND BEHIND DRIVER SIDE WAS SMASHED AND MY CAR SHIFTED OUT OF ITS ALIGNMENT THAT EVEN MY DAUGHTER WHO WAS IN THE REAR SEAT BEHIND THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE OF MY CAR HER DOOR COULD NOT BE OPENED BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. WE WERE BOTH REMOVED FROM THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE DOOR AND AMBULANCE TRANSPORTED US TO HOSPITAL. MY DAUGHTER WHO IS 10 YEARS OF AGE WAS SHAKEN UP SICK TO HER STO
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — Office of Defects Investigation