Is there any way to tell how fast a car was going at the time of an accident?

Question

The driver at first said she was going 55, then later changed her story to 35. Is there any way anyone can tell how fast she was going? Someone told me once that the speedometer will freeze at the speed the car was going. Is this true?

Answer 1

Length of skid marks, extent of damage, other forensic evidence, data from independent crash tests or eyewitnesses may be helpful in determining a car's speed at time of impact. If it happened to be a more expensive car, it may contain a "black box" in which all car functions (RPM, speed, electrical systems, etc.) are recorded. These are not yet mandatory because people fear the data from them being used against them in these types of cases. Speedometers generally don't "freeze" and record the speed at point-of-impact. That's not to say they wouldn't under certain conditions but other forms of proof would probably be more reliable.

Answer 2

This was true of the older Camaros but these days the vehicle control module (the 'black box' of automobiles) has the capability of recording the speed of the vehicle at the moment of impact, HOWEVER, if I understand correctly this is usually only possible if there were an airbag deployment or some sort of massive sensor/computer failure.

Answer 3

The Speedometer freezing is an old wives tail  that has some basis in the old style speedos - a car going REALLY fast and being almost totally destroyed - might  be crushed fast enough to "freeze" a smashed speedo. Nowadays it's highly unlikely. Was she cited for going to fast,dangerous driving or anything else like that? If so there's you're answer - if no - Who did she tell she was doing 55 to - a cop - a witness - you - an accident report?  Cops can measure tire tracks and calculate impact speeds but usually only in cases where death or serious injury is involved. There is a possibility if a modern car was involved that the airbag deploy was recorded and some vehicles log the speed and brake timing at the same time in a digital recorder.

http://www.autoblog.com/2006/08/07/nhtsa...

However I don't know the legal status on obtaining the records from such devices. I imagine police could use it with a court order but I'm not sure if insurance companies or private citizens can access this kind of information. Good luck with your search.

Answer 4

if she tryed to break, they can tell by the tire marks on the road. they measure the marks by when she started to break, until the impact. i watch forensic files alot.lol

Answer 5

They (police ) only get far involved in investigation IF there's a death involved.

Sorry.

Good Luck...

Answer 6

I doubt that the speedometer will freeze, but I have heard that the police can tell some things from the length of the skid marks on the road, if there are any.

Answer 7

The only way this would be true is if the car in question was totaled in the accident, and the wires and whatever else was connected to the speedometer, were ruined.

With a thorough investigation however, it should be fairly easy to figure out how fast the car was going based on the damage done, size of the dent(s), airbags, and many other factors.

Also, do you have a witness from when she said 55? If so, then you can very easily take them to court and win.

Just demand a thorough investigation of both vehicles, because there is technology and such that can determine these types of things.