Video: Semi-trailer wheels come loose and obliterate Subaru Forester

A driver is lucky to have escaped uninjured after a pair of wheels separated from an oncoming semi-trailer and smashed into his car.

Language warning – the dialogue in the video above contains some NSFW phrases.

It’s estimated the two wheels would weigh approximately 200kg combined, impacting the SUV at a relative speed of 120km/h – with the accident occurring on a 60km/h stretch of Beach Road in Christies Beach, South Australia, directly outside two school campuses.

“A sedan with a more sloped front end could have easily scooped the wheel and [crashed] through the windscreen,” one person commented.

“Just be thankful he wasn’t riding a motorcycle,” another wrote.

While the exact reason is unknown at this stage, as the two wheels were still attached to each other when they bounced into the path of the Forester, it’s likely they became detached from the trailer due to a wheel bearing or axle failure.

Images posted in the video show the front of the Subaru completely demolished ahead of the front wheels, almost certainly writing the vehicle off.