Yes. And it’s definitely a scooter that is broken to the point that no one in their right mind would try to repair it on the spot. That thing ain’t going anywhere without some major repairs…and judging by the age, I’d say that it’s a scooter that probably wont ever be on the road again.
It doesn’t look like a head-on collision with something big like a car. That would result in much more damage to the plastic at the front. The plastic frame pieces look like they’ve been forced out from the top of the forks, as has been mentioned. And like I mentioned previously, the forks remind of when I crashed into a tree stump on my dirt bike (something low and not big and high like another car). The angle in the forks reminds me of that crash.
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I think that would depend on the speed at impact. If both drivers slammed on the brakes before impact, this could be the possible result. But you would expect more damage to the “nose,” so you may be right.
Doesn’t have to be a head-on collision. He could have side swiped someone. Slammed on the brakes, slowing him down before the impact resulting in less damage to the front of the scooter. Maybe side swiped the wrong black BMW or Benz.
I was thinking similar, but maybe he insisted to be dropped off at the view point to handle himself. But this doesn’t explain why is the bike 200m from the road close to the viewing platform with all the parts piled up- if the accident was on the road, why not just leave the bike at the car-park next to the road
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No way are those front forks at a normal angle. The wheel is literally rubbing against the base of the scooter’s footrest.
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Agreed. See more recent posts above.
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There is also a dent in the wheel rim from a low level impact like a curb anything bigger wouldn’t leave that type of dent
Edit: marked on @SuiGeneris photo as F
Re: Condition of bike in video:
Scooters are designed to drop and crash well.
I was involved in a horrible accident on a Honda scooter a few years back. A car came at us fast on the wrong side of the road going around a corner on a mountain and I had to pull into the inside to get out of harm’s way (or fly straight off the mountainside). Got around the car but the back wheel clipped the verge and bike, passenger and driver were scattered across the road. The bike actually somersaulted as a result of the crash. Car naturally sped off.
Broken ribs from hitting the trees down the hillside (which probably saved me), chunks of bone worn off by the road, clothing and skin missing from one whole side of my leg and torso. A hole worn in the helmet from the road. Severe concussion. Passenger had similar injuries.
What was notable about this crash was the condition of the bike:
- One cracked mirror
- 10NTD sized scuff to cracked mirror.
- Palm-sized scuff to the plastic exhaust cover.
*Tiny crack to front-side plastics.
It cost me about $5 to fix the bike which ended up on its side with the throttle stuck on and took at a bit of getting to.
The fact we can ascertain that bike has crashed from a blurry video suggests to me that the accident / damage was pretty severe.
It might (unfortunately) be worth pointing out to @Davesbrother that there’s a known culture in Taiwan among truck drivers of resolving accident situations which may affect them financially in the most expedient way possible for them without regard for others.
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One possibility:
Dave was already in an upset mood having just had an altercation with his wife. We know from Dave’s brother that Dave was already being shut out by his wife’s family. Dave took off. Maybe had a few drinks? (He is holding a beer in almost all of his photos). Got into an altercation with another vehicle, road rage ensued until the collision happened. The collision may have been intentional too from either party. The people involved did away with Dave.
If this were my brother, and I had the time and passion to try to figure out what happened here, I would start from this accident. Find out who the reporter was, try to get a hold of them. Find out how the station was notified of the scooter. Find out who the first police officer on scene was. Find out who reported the scooter to the local precinct. Try to get that person’s contact information. Find out how that person found the scooter. Was it in the middle of the road with plastic scattered everywhere? Was it propped up against the wall as we see in the report? Was there blood? What was the weather like when the scooter was found and the night it would have been in an accident?
Of course, that’s easier said than done…especially if you don’t speak Chinese.
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Also - there are a lot of plastics around modern cars and they are designed to absorb impact / shatter to save lives / protect the chassis and components in the event of a collision.
If he hit a car, head on at speed there would be a lot of car scattered around the road where the accident happened and there would be paint from the car on the scooter / plastics but unfortunately the video is too blurry to make it out.
This! Exactly this.
And that is where Forumosans can step up to the plate and help! Let’s get the ball rolling on these items!!! Unfortunately my Chinese is crap.
Not necessarily true, I had a bike written off after a bump at less than 10mph, front wheel locked turned and it twisted the frame where it joins the forks. Looked like a mess.
Sounds like you need to buy a Honda 
Joking aside. This looks to be whats happened to bike in the news reel.
Also, am I the only person who is still confused on which direction he was going? Was he heading from Taidong to Taipei? or vice-versa?
From the wife’s message to Dave’s dad: “He left our taidong home unhappily on the night of November 15th 2016 and our scooter was found the next day in Hualien.”
From the Liberty Times: “據《三立新聞》報導，加拿大籍男子住在台東，與他結婚10多年的妻子則住在台北，前天（15日）兩人起了一些爭執，白姓男子便從台東騎車要到清水斷崖散心，但機車到了昨天（16日）被警方發現棄置在清水斷崖附近。”
According to the wife, they lived in Taidong (“our taidong home”).
According to the Times report, they lived in Taipei (妻子則住在台北).
The wife never even mentions Taipei. She just says that he left their house, and the scooter was found in Hualien. OR when she says “our” Taidong house, is she referring to her side of the family?? Not David and her?
The problem is that I am almost positive that the second you approach the precinct with questions, they are going to tell you that they can’t give you any information unless you are a direct relative.
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I would imagine they had more than one house. Her family is pretty well off, at least everyone is saying so.
He was in Taidong driving North. It all ended in Hualien.