It is ridiculous that people can say that this "was just another car accident." Someone like Hastings would not tell people that he had the "biggest story of his life" about government organizations and then go out and max out is car in L.A. streets. For those not familiar with Hastings, he was a writer for the Rolling Stone, among other news outlets, that wrote an article that actually led to the dismissal of a U.S. General.
I can't think of too many accident scenarios that would cause a 500+ lb engine that's bolted to the frame to get ripped from its mounts, have enough energy to go through the front of the car, and still have the energy to go 70 ft. on top of that. It is worth noting, as you can see of the picture in the wreckage, that it was not only the engine, but the transmission and a RIPPED IN HALF driveshaft as well . The guy was right in saying "you couldn't write an accident like this for a movie". He would have had to hit that pole in excess of 130 for that to happen and for the car to just completely ignite. Also the fact that he is driving a C250, which doesn't have much power as Mercedes go, and the amount of room it would need to get to a speed that would cause that type of collision is obscene.
The only other car wreck I have ever heard of of this magnitude is when someone crashed their Ferrari Enzo into a pole at 162 mph which caused the engine to be launched ~100 ft from the wreckage. Also worth noting is that in that Ferrari, the passenger cell and engine compartment are designed to separate in a collision for passenger safety. Oh yeah, even that collision did not result in an "explosion" and the car bursting into flames and the guy lived.
Having worked on new Mercedes like this, I can say that the entire car (like all modern cars since the past couple years) has all computers linked through a CAN system. Mercedes also employs Electronic Braking Systems, and drive-by-wire (Electronic Throttle Control) technology
The land of the free, home of the brave.
