[RacingNick]

Today, in the midst of rush hour traffic I was rear ended by an 85 year old lady. I am very pleased with how much damage the g6 lacked. For how hard the hit was, I was expecting much worse. I just need a new bumper and maybe a new trunk.

The only thing that concerns me is that when I was hit the car randomly shut off. Is that a safety feature? If so that will make me feel a lot better since there really is no explanation why it shut off because I was hit in the back.

Thanks!

 

[geewhiz]

It could be a safety shut off but as long as it runs ok now I wouldn't worry over it.

 

[MattInSoCal]

The only thing that concerns me is that when I was hit the car randomly shut off. Is that a safety feature? If so that will make me feel a lot better since there really is no explanation why it shut off because I was hit in the back.

Automatic fuel pump shutoff. It is indeed a safety feature designed to keep the street from getting flooded with gasoline should a fuel line break during a collision. Your fuel pump will also be shut off if the oil pressure ever drops below a pre-determined level for too long.

I don't know if GM has ever done it, but I know that Ford in the past (and maybe currently) used to put a fuel pump reset switch in the trunk, and then hide the reference to it in an obscure part of the manual.

~ MattInSoCal

 

[RacingNick]

Alright! That helps a lot! Thanks

 

[lt_dan]

About the fuel shut off!

All fuel injected cars have some type of fuel shutoff in case of an accident. In the case you cited, the oil pressure switch does not, in itself, shut off the fuel pump. It sends a signal to the computer and if certain conditions are met, the computer will shut off the fuel pump. The primary way the computer knows that the engine is running is from a reference signal from the distributor. The ECU will not allow any fuel supply until it receives distributor reference pulses. As a backup system to the fuel pump relay the fuel pump also can be energized by the fuel pump switch and engine oil pressure sensor. The sensor has two internal circuits. One operates the oil pressure indicator or gage on the instrument cluster, and the other is a normally open switch which closes when oil pressure reaches about28 kPa (4 psi). If the fuel pump relay fails, the fuel pump switch and engine oil pressure sensor runs the fuel pump.

source:autorepair.about.com

 

[360ci]

Gotta love fuel shut off!

 

[RacingNick]

Insurance adjuster said Ford was the only one to have this feature.
Guess he was wrong!

 

[360ci]

Insurance adjuster said Ford was the only one to have this feature.
Guess he was wrong!

Ford's are more user friendly, meaning they usually won't require a dealer visit to reset, as for a decade or so there's a button in the trunk area that you could push to reset the system. Newer systems, even from Ford, generally require a dealer visit as their computer controlled.

If it's any consolation I don't know much about cars when you put everything in perspective, but as far as your everyday insurance adjuster goes, I bet I've forgotten more about cars than an insurance guy will ever know.