the oddest accident. i was sitting at a stop light. my son asleep in the passenger seat.

[seabeyond]

i had my foot on the brake. the car in front of me is inching back in reverse. i am watching it get closer and closer. i honk the horn. honk some more. then contact.

my son was woken by my horn. i said something about the woman being in reverse. he told me i was going forward. the woman came to my window and i asked if she was in reverse. she said no.

we parked and there was no damage, scratch, nothing to either car. YEA

but it was the oddest thing. it was slow before contact so i had plenty of time. my eyes were showing me that the other car was moving to me. i had foot on break. i really felt like i was in a different universe.

odd odd

i am now concerned about getting old. we laugh about it, cause, hell i dont remember much. but this one FELT really weird.

anyone experience anything odd like this.

and i am not THAT old.

[Warpy]

1. Get your brakes checked

because air in the line can sometimes do that.

What flummoxes me sometimes is pulling into a parking lot space when the adjacent car is pulling out. I invariably think I'm still moving after I've stopped and really stomp on the brake.

[seabeyond]

5. i think i will do that. thanks. nt

[northoftheborder]

32. I've had that sensation of the car moving while is a car wash, and the machinery is moving.

[woodsprite]

2. have you ever had the odd feeling

when you're at a stop light and you're going one way slowly while the car next to you is going another way slowly? it's disorienting.

Was the other person's car a stick? It may well not have been in reverse, but it may have been gliding backwards. Some people do it unknowingly at the lights, but I've seen others do it on purpose (sit there and rock back/forth - pisses me off!!!).

[seabeyond]

6. i really dont recall experiencing something like that in past. possible.

but i thought it was clutch out and moving backward, lol. but i doubt that car was shift.

[Greybnk48]

3. It's not your age. I've had weird motion sensations like

that in the past. But, are your brakes working properly?

[seabeyond]

8. ooooosh, i hope so. good to hear

i think i basically want confirmation this was not TOO odd. lol. gonna have them checked. paid attention to them after that, at my stops, and didnt see i was doing differently and car stopped.

thanks

[Uben]

4. You don't have to be THAT old!

Ha! HEll yeah we've had that happen......more than once!

That's why when I stop at a red light, I put the car in park, jump out and chock the wheels, and secure a rope to the nearest tree until the light changes. You can never be too safe.........right?

[seabeyond]

10. really?

lol lol. good to hear.

i am just so happy, no damage.

[Ninjaneer]

14. + 1

Sometimes I make the drivers around me do this as well.

As you said, you can never be too safe.

[aikoaiko]

7. If it weren't for your son saying you were going forward, I would have thought that the

driver in front didn't have a foot on the brakes and rolled backward. But if he said you were moving forward its possible. Might be worth having your brakes checked.

[seabeyond]

12. i have a friend that was sittin two lanes over. i am sure she looked when i was honking

i still dont believe i was going forward. never had the sensation of moving forward. i am going to ask her. cause, really, didnt feel like it.

[Goblinmonger]

9. Sorry this happened to you.

From my perspective, it's not the accident but the oddness of the situation that caused your feelings. Glad everyone and everything was safe.

I will echo a few sentiments from above:
1. Could just be the relative movement/perception thing.
2. Get your breaks checked regardless of what you ultimately think it was to make sure they are fine.
3. Could be a manual transmission issue of the person in front of you.

[seabeyond]

13. it was an older vehcle in front of me.

i appreciate people talking to me. helping to put in perspective.

thanks

[sufrommich]

11. I've had that weird feeling at traffic lights when the car next to

me moves and I slam on the brakes thinking it is me moving. It happens to everybody. Maybe your son is wrong and he just "felt" like you were moving?

[seabeyond]

15. thanks. i have had that happen. when car next to me moves and i get that feel

and slam on breaks.

i have a friend two lanes over. i am sure she looked when i honked horn. i am going to ask her.

[LucasD]

16. She may not have been in reverse, but...

... if she was driving a stick shift she may have had it in neutral, or had the clutch depressed, and took her foot off the brake. That would explain why she rolled back slowly, assuming she did.

[seabeyond]

17. that is what i thought was happening, having had shifts before, myself. nt

[Arkansas Granny]

18. I was sitting at a stop light once when the vehicle beside me started backing up slowly.

It felt like I was creeping forward and I was literally standing on the brake pedal before I realized that it wasn't me that was moving. It was a really strange sensation. I think it was like those optical illusion puzzles. My mind processed what I thought was actual, but in reality it was not.

[seabeyond]

20. that is what it felt like

thanks arknsas. and i have had that feeling with other cars moving and pressing harder on my break. weird the way visual will be interpreted in the brain.

[pinboy3niner]

19. I think that can easily happen when you don't have a visual reference point

You only saw the cars getting closer together. If you'd looked out your side window, a stationary reference point would have made your movement obvious.

Without a reference point, your brain interpreted the movement based on what you knew: you were stopped, with your foot on the brake; therefore, the other car must be moving.

I think you're okay. The time to worry is when you post this OP all over again and you're sure it's the first time. :)

[seabeyond]

23. lol, ... oh, hugs. thank you

i get that. that makes sense and it is exactly what happened. if i had looked to the side, i would have seen movement. i only watched cars getting closer.

and makes sense why my brain did what it did.

i feel so much better, lol

i love our smart duers

now.... why the hell is anyone rec this silly post, lol

[nuxvomica]

21. It sounds something like that weird parking lot feeling

Sometimes when I'm in my parked car and the car parked next to me starts moving I get the sick feeling that my own car is moving in the opposite direction. If you're only focused on the other car, neither driver can be sure which one was moving. Was your son basing his perception of movement on something stationary outside or just the other car? In any event, you should probably get your breaks checked.

[seabeyond]

24. we were both only look at the car moving closer, lol

i feel so much better, listening to everyone reasoning.

i was about ready to make a doctor visit, lol.

[abelenkpe]

22. Very similar to an accident I had recently

Only I was the one who backed into the car behind me. Wasn't pressing on the brake hard enough and there was a slight hill so the car drifted backwards.

Was the woman in front of you driving an older car with a clutch?

[seabeyond]

26. it was an older car. but flat land

no hill. but i thought it was doing just what you said.

as i said above, i had a friend two lanes over. i am sure she looked when i honked horn. i am going ot ask if i was going forward. some posters have explained how focusing on just the car, my brain interpreted what i did. since i had foot on break.

[blogslut]

25. Glad you're both okay

Sorry that happened to you.

[seabeyond]

27. the lady was really nice. we were both dressed in slippers and

jammie bottoms. lol. coffee in hand. was kinda fun, after seeing NO damage.

thanks

[aquart]

30. Yeah, but you're still kinda shocky. Take that into account.

Just because there was no damage physically to you or the car doesn't mean you aren't really spooked. Things felt out of control and it takes a bit before you totally trust being in control again.

The solution I recommend is to treat yourself really really really well the next couple of days.

[seabeyond]

33. i think that is the thing

driving after that, was like, how do i know i really am breaking, lol. didnt have the same confidence driving home. that is why i am glad i did the thread and so appreciative of posters and their comments.

thanks.

[aquart]

35. Got rear-ended last year. It's the not being in control that hurts.

Now go INDULGE. Out of sheer gratitude to life that it wasn't worse.

[HubertHeaver]

28. Should that happen to you again, look at the ground. If you

are moving, the pavement will appear to be moving. If you are stationary, the pavement will be also.

I had a similar problem with a full-size Blazer surrounded by 18-wheelers. The only way I could tell if it was me moving or the truck in front of me moving was to look at the pavement. While I was aware I was creeping forward, my perception was that the truck was backing into me.

[seabeyond]

29. a poster above suggested that. it is a very good tip.

really, a duh, but not something i thought about. my son is 16. gonna share the tip with him. i had plenty of time to do that.

thanks

[meow mix]

31. in space no one can hear you scream nt

[seabeyond]

34. or honking the horn... lol ?

[Shagbark Hickory]

36. Easy to roll back with manual transmission. I like to rock back and forth when I'm waiting at a ligh

Fun to watch the nervous look on people's face in the rear view mirror.

[meow mix]

37. lol yeah same here.. i hate automatics!

they take a lot of fun out of driving.. and they suck in deep snow too

[seabeyond]

38. ah, the chuckles.

i had my first standard in carmel valley. lots of hills with stop lights. that is where i learned to drive stick. mine was fear of rolling back and hitting, not chuckle at scary others. they should have been afraid, lol.

[hootinholler]

39. Hard on the clutch n/t

[Frustratedlady]

40. I had that happen, but it was a semi. Craziest feeling...

I was stopped at a red light, a red sports car was behind me with 2 people in the front seat and a man in the back. I got the sensation I was moving and looked in the rearview mirror to see the young man leaning over the console to the front seat like he was trying to escape. I then saw a wall of grill behind the sports car. The driver to the sports car opened his door and jumped out, waving his arms frantically.

The semi driver stopped inching forward and jumped down out of the cab. "I didn't see you, buddy! Honest!"

The sports car was so low to the ground and it was a snub-nosed semi, or whatever you call it. With the car in between us, as he inched forward, he pushed the red car into mine and we all inched right along with him. I was driving a Buick, so to move both of us was no easy task. They were still looking over the sports car, but I made sure I didn't have any damage and left.

[seabeyond]

42. well,

it is good to hear all these stories. decades of driving and never havng experienced this, i was really concerned, lol.

thanks

[gvstn]

41. I did this at 16!

My first week driving. I was taking my new Jordache jeans to be hemmed. I had a tall bottle of Coke that tipped over and I was trying to keep the jeans from getting wet. I was sure I had my foot firmly on the brake. The guy in front of me was backing up into me. Bang...bang..and again bang! What was that old man doing? Ha ha!

It is strange how you can perceive something exactly opposite of what is happening. But I wouldn't worry about age it is a human (or is that hubris?) thing. :)

[seabeyond]

44. ah ha

love your story. well, 16. not gonna pin it on old. rollin eyes, and all the times i talk about inexperienced 16 yr old drivers, lol

thanks

[FailureToCommunicate]

43. Two stories. Driving in town, suddenly a car 20 feet in front

of ours stopped and went into reverse. I saw the white reverse lights come on. I had our toddler twins aboard (and relearning to drive defensively) My honking didn't stop her car, in fact it seemed to be increasing it's speed towards us.
Time seemed to slow down... I put our car into reverse and moved backwards, looking in the rearview mirror to make sure no one was behind me. It was a four lane, usually busy, center of town. As soon as her bumper hit mine I braked to a stop, put it in park and ran to her window. I was assuming there're been some sort of medical mishap. The lady was elderly -well older than me anyway - and seemed confused when I asked why she had backed into me. She said she thought she was going forward. I saw that she was otherwise okay, the cars seemed undamaged, and stood there till she put her car in drive and moved forward. I didn't think to get her plate number or report it.

The second incident just happened the other day. A friend of my sons -now teens- had just gotten his license and offered to drive friends home from a dance party (where there was no alcohol) The kids that got a ride with him later said that he drove the whole way with the parking brake on, and only realized it -despite the warning light- after braked started smoking and they smelled it.

I guess my point is young, or old, misjudgments can happen. We are only human.

Glad you and your son are okay.

[seabeyond]

45. the first story is crazy, lol

bet that made you pause a bet.

thanks

shit happens. works for me.

[scorpiogirl]

46. Yes, I have.

I have driving anxiety and have experienced what you are talking about. When other cars move slightly when I'm stopped, it creates that feeling for me. It's freaky.

[seabeyond]

47. it is good to know

i am far from the only one to experience this.

thanks.

[RobinA]

48. Sounds to Me

like you eased up on the brake while still having your foot on the pedal. I have done this. "Look at this idiot in front of me, drifting backwards!" "Oh sh*t it's ME drifting forwards." Always I had let my attention wander and didn't have the brake fully depressed.

[seabeyond]

49. hey robin

i am thinking that is exactly what happened just as you say. "Look at this idiot in front of me, drifting backwards!" "Oh sh*t it's ME drifting forwards."

and i do feel that much of an idiot, lol.

[DainBramaged]

50. she rolled back because her idle wasn't high enough to hold the car

against the torque converter if it was an automatic, or she had it in neutral if she had a stick. I've had that happen and the guy tried to claim I rear-ended him, until the cops came and ran a check and saw he had his license suspended for too many points and off he went, and so did his claim...

[seabeyond]

51. thanks dainbramage

luckily, i had a friend a couple lanes over. when i honked, she should have looked. i am going to ask her later today (only cause i am really curious) when i see her.

it has to be, lol. surely i was not that stupid, watching it all the while, and it was all me, lol. thankfully, no damage anywhere. pretty painless lesson

[Fire1]

52. Welllll. I can still tell if I'm moving forward or not. n/t