If you're having a bad day, look on the bright side: at least you haven't totaled a US$224,000 BMW.
Last Sunday, an individual less lucky than you did just that while taking a brand-new 730 Li for a spin in Da Nang. The unidentified person apparently lost control of the car after pulling away from a car show on Nhu Nguyet Street near Thuan Phuoc Bridge at 4:30pm.
With an overexcited driver at the wheel, the VND4.4 billion (US$224,000) beamer veered onto the sidewalk and only stopped after crashing into a street sign and a “medium-sized” tree, reports Thanh Nien.
As luck would have it, BMW's safety features are as advertised. Upon collision, the car's four frontal airbags deployed and saved the driver from going face-first into the steering wheel. No other casualties were reported at the scene, according to Lieutenant Colonel Ho Van Minh of the Hai Chau District Police, reports Tuoi Tre.
The only victim in the collision, it appears, was the BMW. Following the crash, the hood of the car was heavily distorted and the bumper fell out. The vehicle has since been brought back to Saigon for restoration.
The BMW 730 Li is part of a new luxury line which has only been available in Vietnamese showrooms since March. The car show, organized by a Saigon-based BMW dealer, provided prospective customers with the opportunity to test drive vehicles in Da Nang.
While the prospective customer responsible for the damage is probably feeling a little down, it turns out that s/he has been saved by the powers of insurance, which will cover the cost of the car's repairs. And anyway, there's at least some silver lining: after this incident, we may not have confidence in everyone on Da Nang's roads but we can firmly believe in BMW's safety system.
[Photo via Thanh Nien]
