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It's been a very good year for Vic Gundotra, Google's chief of social networking. His project Google Plus hit 10 million users within two weeks of launch. But it almost took a horribly wrong turn in January, when Gundotra got distracted and nearly plowed into a stopped car on the highway.

Luckily, the wealthy Google VP had a very expensive Mercedes to prevent any carnage.

In a television commercial touting his $138,000 S63 AMG Sedan (excerpted above), Gundotra says he took his eyes off the road and failed to notice the stopped freeway traffic ahead of him. He credits the car's "magical software" with halting the vehicle and preventing untold carnage. He said his body shook and his pulse quickened for 20 minutes at the thought of what he could have done to himself or to the vehicle in front of him. "Certainly, I could have affected someone else's life," he says. "And so, there's someone else who's indebted to Mercedes as well, but doesn't even know it."

Remember to give thanks tonight for the luxury car companies who heroically prevent distracted rich guys from plowing you into the asphalt.