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Types of Cases

Over the past 34 years Dr. McElroy has worked with:

  • Event Data Recorders – EDR
  • Tachographs
  • School Busses
  • Transit Busses
  • 15 Passenger Van Rollovers
  • Fast Motorcycles
  • Cruiser Motorcycles
  • Children’s Motorcycles
  • Sudden Unintended Acceleration (SUA)
  • Pedal not bolted securely to car causes SUA
  • Pedal Misapplication
  • Alleged Brake Failures
  • Actual Brake Failures
  • Bicycles
  • Bicycle impact to Pedestrian
  • Car into powered wheelchair
  • Vehicle Stability Control
  • Brakes
  • Anti-Lock Brakes
  • Car & Heavy Truck Steering Failures
  • Too Fast For Conditions
  • Cruise Control on in the rain
  • Cruise Control causes unintended acceleration
  • Vehicle accelerator jammed open after collision
  • Vehicle takes off after collision
  • Powered mobility cart stability
  • Ambulance accidents
  • Tractor Trailer sideswipes vehicle in same direction
  • Car sideswipes Tractor Trailer in opposite direction
  • Motorcycle allegedly causes multi-car collision
  • Small motorcycle assembled improperly crashes
  • Police Car strikes Tractor Trailer
  • Police Car strikes Pedestrian
  • Police Car goes off roadway
  • Police Car overturns
  • Car runs over Black Bear at night
  • Utility trailer disconnects
  • Severely rusted swimming pool maintenance pickup truck frame permits trailer disconnect
  • Overloaded pickup truck and trailer
  • Overloaded limousine tires catch fire
  • Airport shuttle bus fires
  • Were vehicle lights on at impact?
  • Pedestrian suicide decapitation in tractor trailer impact
  • Pedestrian struck by car
  • Pedestrian night visibility – urban roadway
  • Pedestrian night visibility – interstate highway
  • Sleeping person run over by tractor trailer
  • Dump truck transmission falls out and struck by following car
  • Dump truck suspension failure causes driver fatality
  • Tractor Trailer suspension failure causes rollover and driver fatality
  • Tractor Trailer tire failures
  • Heavy Truck Underride Guards
  • Tank Truck impacts rear of Tractor Trailer and car at toll plaza
  • Golf Cart accelerates and throws passenger off rear facing seat
  • Golf Cart struck by automobile
  • Golf Cart strikes pedestrian
  • Maintenance Golf Cart struck by turning Tractor fitted with rotary roadway sweeper
  • Air brake failures
  • Air brake compressor failure
  • Air brake proportioning valve failure
  • Air brake line failure
  • Car manufacturing defect suspension failure
  • Fire Truck accidents
  • Seat belts worn, not worn and failures
  • Car stops in middle lane of freeway and struck by Tractor Trailer
  • Car stops on freeway and is struck by multiple vehicles
  • Gasoline tank truck fire and explosion
  • Car gas tank fire and explosion
  • Car gas tank ruptured by runaway utility trailer
  • Post Impact Vehicle Tampering
  • Insurance Fraud
  • Commercial truck not fitted with proper size mirrors
  • Heavy load forklift goes through bottom of truck floor
  • Forklift runs over worker in factory
  • Forklift runs over landscape worker
  • Vehicle Inspections
  • Design Defects
  • Manufacturing Defects
  • Maintenance
  • Impact severs fuel lines
  • Impact severs brake lines
  • Garbage truck worker caught in hopper
  • Garbage truck, left & right side driver control lockout problem kills maintenance technician
  • Allison transmissions
  • Allison transmission rebuilding
  • Train engineer collision injury
  • Car into parked train
  • Car under Tractor Trailer
  • Pickup under Tractor Trailer
  • Car towing Pickup struck by Tractor Trailer
  • Vehicle into rear of Tractor Trailer in dense fog
  • Night – Driver hits toddler on dark roadway
  • Night – Bicycle, with no reflectors, struck by SUV
  • Night – Inattentive driver strikes pedestrian and tow truck with car
  • Night – Retroreflective DOT Tape visibility
  • Night – Pedestrian cuts hole in fence and is struck on limited access highway
  • Truck coming in for maintenance pushes mechanic into refrigerator and wall
  • Post Impact – cruise control cable pulls throttle wide open and vehicle then strikes house
  • Sun Angle and Position obscures motorcycle at impact
  • Roll bar amputates rear seat passenger’s arm when vehicle rolls over
  • Rear impact to vehicle causes driver’s seat failure, driver injury, and loss of control
  • Frontal impact with unrestrained rear passenger goes between front seats and crushes front seat passengers wearing seat belts
  • Obstructed sight lines obscures traffic
  • Not stopping for Stop signs
  • Gasoline explodes when generator is being refuled
  • Battery explosion
  • Passenger tire delamination
  • Dump truck tire failure
  • Tractor Trailer tire failure
  • Motor Coach multiple tire failures
  • Trial exhibits
  • Child runs between parked cars, into street in business district, and is hit by motorist
  • Child not restrained in car seat in impact
  • Child in car seat, but not properly installed in impact
  • Car, SUV, and Pickup truck axle flange failures
  • Car, SUV, and Pickup axle failures
  • Loss of vehicle control after pavement dropoff
  • Loss of vehicle control at highway repaving lane height edge
  • Door reinforcement beam ejected from car in crash
  • Door falls off car after modest side impact
  • Door opens after impact when “B” Pillar fails
  • Door opens after impact, ejecting rear seat occupant
  • Door opens after car spins 180 degrees and secondary contact pulls door handle
  • Aluminum wheels come off car
  • Tires not properly reinstalled after maintenance
  • Tire comes off after maintenance
  • Tire impacts vehicle after coming off Tractor Trailer
  • Tire impacts vehicle after coming off car
  • Tire explosion during maintenance
  • Tire repair leads to tire failure and accident
  • Split Rim failures
  • Tire mismatch failures
  • Tires not rated for vehicle load
  • Tires run underinflated or overinflated
  • Hydroplaning because of worn tires
  • Hydroplaning because of roadway water ponding
  • Tractor Trailer driver injury in loading dock area
  • Transit bus mechanic injury during air conditioning maintenance
  • Auto Part Integrity – OEM, CAPA, other
  • Full Body Sectioning
  • Automatic transmission not shifting properly
  • Manufacturer Recalls
  • Manufacturer Service Bulletins
  • Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
  • USDOT Standards
  • NHTSA Recalls
  • FMCSA Standards
  • Jet Sk runs over another Jet Ski
  • Offshore Power Boat occupant injury
  • Highway debris through Tractor Trailer windshield
  • Highway debris through car windshield
  • Highway debris destroys Tractor Trailer
  • Organized Crime Auto Theft
  • Vehicle Identification Numbers
  • Metric and SAE Fasteners Co-Mingled
  • Wheel Nuts / Lug Nuts
  • Wheel Loss – defective clamping force
  • Wheel Loss – maintenance / service issue
  • Bobcat type Skid Steer Loader  – faulty hydraulics causes amputation
  • Skid Steer Tracked Loader burns up

  • Hydraulic Excavator, in maintenance, runs through building
  • Commercial truck steering gear “locks”
  • Tractor Trailer “No Brakes” runaway
  • Earthmoving equipment catastrophic engine failures
  • Motorcycle high speed impact
  • Motorcycle medium speed impact
  • Motorcycle struck by car
  • Motorcycle struck by runaway trailer
  • Motorcycle lights on at impact?
  • Mobility Carts
  • Street Sweeper truck struck by car
  • Police Cruiser, assisting motorist, struck by Tractor Trailer
  • Out of position passenger injured during impact
  • Unsecured child seat in car
  • Phantom piece of sheet metal allegedly kills rear seat passenger
  • SUV Rollover
  • Elevated Vehicle impacts car
  • Car hits tree (frontal , sideways , or rearward)
  • Car hits wooden pole
  • Car hits concrete pole, engine and transmission continue down the street
  • Multiple impact single vehicle crash
  • Multiple vehicle in-line impact
  • Car torn into multiple pieces at impact
  • Tire delamination causes crash
  • Highway work zone crash
  • Post impact fire
  • Drag racing crash

LSV – Low Speed Vehicle – or – NEV – Neighborhood Electric VehicleMobility Cart Trial Exhibit with Lines of Stability

Mobility Cart Trial Exhibit with Lines of Stability

Mobility Cart Trial Exhibit with Lines of Stability

Immediate Accident Response

If you need immediate accident and technical response please contact our office.

New vs Old: Automotive Trends 2023 – 2030

NEW VEHICLES

With the decade beginning in 2020 the automotive industry is dealing with four key new vehicle trends. All of these trends will be significant in all sectors of transportation including passenger cars and tractor trailers.

These trends will be relevant in collision analysis, accident reconstruction, and vehicle mechanical technology.

  1. Powertrain electrification
  2. Vehicle lightweighting
  3. Connected vehicles
  4. Autonomous vehicles

OLDER VEHICLES

In May of 2023 the average age of sedans and passenger vehicles was 13.6 and 12.5 years respectively, as reported by S&P Global Mobility, with nearly 122 million vehicles more than 12 years old.

ECONOMIC REALITY CHECK

According to Automotive News the average price of a new vehicle is nearly $48,000 with an average payment of $730 per month. High-end pickup trucks and luxury vehicles can exceed $100,000 with monthly payments in excess of $1,000.

OLD & NEW FORENSIC CONCERNS

Older vehicles absolutely require periodic maintenance. Deferred maintenance will result in vehicle performance degradation which will result in more collisions.

New vehicles have significant Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Here are some: Blind Spot Warning, Lane Keep Assist, Pedestrian Automatic Braking, Autonomous Emergency Braking, and Adaptive Cruise Control.

Each and every one of these ADAS systems, with their respective components, requires proper setup and alignment. OEM Maintenance and Repair Procedures must be followed during the service procedure to be conducted by a trained technician.

If the technician does not know how to fix it, and they do not have the proper tools and equipment, that ADAS system will not work as the manufacturer designed and installed the system into the vehicle. All of these factors are relevant in accident reconstruction and post-collision vehicle analysis.

CONCLUSION

Both old and new vehicles, passenger cars to tractor trailers, have important technical issues which must be thoroughly analyzed during post-collision analysis. Because of this complexity a team approach may be necessary to optimally deal with: 1) driver, 2) vehicle, 3) environment; during A) pre-crash, B) crash, C) post-crash.

Forensic Accident. Com – Photos

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