October 1, 201411 yr A good share of us have been there - Deer jumps out in front of you, and reflex kicks in before rational thought can act... Had that happen this afternoon on my way home from work this afternoon. I live, and work, in a rural area, my drive is mostly on gravel roads - woods and farm fields abound, and in those woods and farm fields are deer, turkeys, and other creatures that can do some damage to a vehicle in the wrong circumstances. Today, I turned a corner - woods on both sides of the road initially, but one side opens up to a field a few feet on...wasnt going very fast...maybe 20 mph... Deer jumps out of the woods on my left - practically on top of me. reflex took over, jerked the wheel and got too close to the edge - into the ditch I go... We have some pretty deep, steep sided ditches around here, but also rather wide in some places - I thought for sure that I was going to end up on the passenger side at best, on the roof at worst...the car kind of balanced on the breaking point of flipping on her side and flopping back onto her wheels for a long second - almost like it was trying to decide which way to go...she decided to land on her feet (thank goodness!) When it landed on its wheels, I knew I needed to get it moving or I would end up stuck for sure (wet sticky mud in there) started moving slowly, got it leveled out as much as I could - everything felt like it was ok... no obvious problems. I knew I had a fair distance before I would come to a culvert so I had a little time to think about how to get myself out of a bad situation. both sides of the ditch are pretty steep, no easy way out, not even into the field on my right. I also knew that I was going to need to get a little speed up if I was to have any hope of driving up out of that ditch... started gathering speed - got it up to about 30 mph or so, and pulled the wheel to the left a little....and up we go - almost thought it was going to high-center on the edge, but I had enough momentum going to get her up and over the edge, and back onto the road. Pulled to a stop, got out and walked around the car, checking for damage - couldnt see anything obviously out of whack, aside from the little plastic piece at the front of the rear wheel well. Finished the drive home - car seemed to be completely fine, altho it can be hard to tell on gravel roads - then checked the car over again, and took a few pics... Aside from mud and grass in places it shouldnt be, you would never know that I had driven almost a quarter mile in a ditch! no dents, nothing appears to be bent or damaged (that wasnt already) not even a scuff on the new front bumper cover... no fluids leaking anywhere, everything seems to be in perfect order. a testament to what these cars can do, and handle...
October 1, 201411 yr Glad you're OK! And the Subaru too. I too live in deer country; they are truly unpredictable.
October 1, 201411 yr Wow, what a story heartless! Proud of your calm, logical approach to getting out of trouble. And of course very happy that you and the wagon are okay!
October 1, 201411 yr Author Thanks guys. Just wish "logic" had stepped in a little sooner - I wouldnt have jerked the wheel and ended up in the ditch if it had! LOL but at 50 years old, I will admit to having been in a ditch a time or two (or more) before. Experience is an excellent teacher! That and hanging around with off-roaders - watching and learning.... But yeah, the car did amazingly well once I did get my thoughts together, and with no obvious problems coming out of it. The AWD system did exactly what it was supposed to do. there was that split second as I came over the edge - passenger side wheels pushing for as long as they had contact, that I was unsure I was going to make it out, but once the weight of the car brought the drivers side down onto the road, that sides wheels grabbed and pulled me the rest of the way out - well, that and the momentum I had managed to build up... gonna stop on my way in to work this morning and see if I can get some pics of the ditch where all this happened... I regularly see deer and turkeys at this spot so tend to be pretty cautious there anyway - was just so startled when that one came out so close to me.... Edited October 1, 201411 yr by heartless
October 1, 201411 yr Good driving man...........it is possible that you could have bent some suspension parts. It could be money well spent to get a 4 wheel alignment, just to know for sure that your alignment is good
October 1, 201411 yr Just be glad you aren't in Jackman, Maine, mooose country. Truckers regularly have them run out in front of their trucks.
October 1, 201411 yr Great save!It's reassuring to know you can rely on your driving and also on your car's ability when you need it, eh?Recently I had a deer teleport out in front of my 05 Outback. I was on a paved road and travelling about 75kph with my 4 year old son in the back seat. I stood that poor car on it's nose with the brakes so hard that I heard the tires chirping (must have been JUSSSSSSSST before ABS cut-in). Thankfully the deer missed us by a couple feet.Those pesky deer belong on BBQ grilles not car grilles.
October 1, 201411 yr And other stories Prius drivers will never ever tell... 1/4 mile in a ditch. Well done! Bet that exhaust smelled nice with burning mud and grass.
October 1, 201411 yr You might want to do a quick check of the alignment. Here is a quick check method you can do in your driveway. It applies to all cars and trucks. http://www.tercel4wd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=2273
October 1, 201411 yr Author Those pesky deer belong on BBQ grilles not car grilles. I agree! LOL And other stories Prius drivers will never ever tell... 1/4 mile in a ditch. Well done! Bet that exhaust smelled nice with burning mud and grass. at the Prius comment! and yeah, it STILL smells pretty good - I am sure there were little bits I didnt get out of there. Oh well, not enough to cause a fire or anything, I can live with it till it clears itself. and for all the alignment comments - I do plan on having it checked out soon, just to be sure, but driving in to work today, on the little bit of paved road I get to travel, it was straight as an arrow! no odd vibrations or anything. Gotta Love it! and I may have exaggerated the distance just a little, but hey, not perfect, and it did seem like it was a long ways! LOL anyway... Where I went in... and where I came out... ...probably closer to 1/10th, maybe 1/8th mile at most - sure felt a lot longer. the depth is kinda hard to tell in the pics - while driving along the bottom, the road was at about shoulder height, and I am short - 5ft 4in
October 1, 201411 yr So heartless--we know how you chose your entry point (to the ditch!) But how did you choose your exit--did you see a high spot, or just build up speed and "chance 'um?"
October 1, 201411 yr Author So heartless--we know how you chose your entry point (to the ditch!) But how did you choose your exit--did you see a high spot, or just build up speed and "chance 'um?" exit point was mostly the latter - build up speed and take a chance. I was hoping to find a slightly less steep spot, which is why I went as far as I did, but it never got any better, and with a culvert coming up, I had to take the chance and just went for it. lucky for me - and the car - it worked! LOL
October 2, 201411 yr Author oh, and madkow007's (the other half) response to hearing about the mis-adventure? "You went off roading without me?!?"
October 2, 201411 yr CUT. ok, that was good, but let's do it again, only this time fill the ditch with snow. ready, ACTION!!! Edited October 2, 201411 yr by johnceggleston
October 2, 201411 yr Seems like it's always deer season around here (central VA)- just a bit more in the Fall. I will also recommend an alignment as that will point out if you have any suspension damage. Also looks your car has good ground clearance, which i'm sure helped. Our '98 Legacy and new Impreza sit so low (too low for me personally).
October 3, 201411 yr Author CUT. ok, that was good, but let's do it again, only this time fill the ditch with snow. ready, ACTION!!! OMG - too funny! Give it a couple of months and we will talk! LOL forester wheels FTW You know it! "You went off roading without me?!?" Great line!!! I figured somebody would get a kick out of that one. In rally we call that a calculated ditch hook. Works for me! Seems like it's always deer season around here (central VA)- just a bit more in the Fall. I will also recommend an alignment as that will point out if you have any suspension damage. Also looks your car has good ground clearance, which i'm sure helped. Our '98 Legacy and new Impreza sit so low (too low for me personally). yes, it does have nice clearance - forester strut lift, with the forester 15 in wheels as well. Somewhere around 2.5 to 3 inches taller than stock. Makes it easier to get in & out of with these old knees, too, lol And yeah, I doubt that I could have done what I did on stock suspension - anything is possible, true, but probable? maybe not. It is always deer "season" around here too - just a noisier version in the fall... Give both of those cars a little lift - the 98 for sure - suspension swaps are pretty easy, just need the right parts - you wouldnt regret it!
October 5, 201411 yr Congrats on your save and thinking out the problem. I had a similar experience at my in-laws driveway. Someone drove the 90 Legacy wgn. into a ditch, the right rear wheel was off the ground and the frame was hanging the edge, no traction. I put that special someone in the drivers seat and I stood on the farthest part of the right/ rear as I could get. Loaded a few in laws in the cargo bay and when both rear wheels had good contact we backed it out like it was on solid ground. I was amazed, but it made me look pretty smart....and that's no mean feat
October 5, 201411 yr Author nice save, OLsubiedrivr! Well done, and I agree with Olnick - nice use of the In-Laws! hehe
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