The meaning of "Damned if it didn't work..." in the context.

[Ali Hsn]

Hello.
Could you please explain the meaning of the underlined expression according to its context?
The full text is about an autonomous car. This is the address if you need to read more.
Thanks in advance.

3. Audi’s engineers hadn't tried this before, but Lipinski had enough confidence in the tech to let me be the first to test it. Damned if it didn't work at the next light, bringing the car to a safe stop two car lengths behind the guy in front of us. “We didn't know it would do that!” Lipinski said with some excitement.

 

[Roman55]

I am not a teacher.

It's a way of saying that it did work at the next (traffic) light, and of showing enthusiastic surprise. The writer could have begun the sentence with "I'll be damned…"

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****



Hello, Ali Hsn:

I just thought that you would like to know that even in 2015, some people here in the United States still find the word "damn" to be unacceptable in polite society.

If you come to the States, it would a good idea NOT to use that word. Some people might have changed that sentence to: "Darn if it didn't work at the next light."


James

 

[MikeNewYork]

I think the unacceptability of "damn" in AmE disappeared many years ago for most people. Children will still be corrected, however.

 

[Matthew Wai]

It's a way of saying that it did work

Is it because 'if it didn't work' is the second conditional referring to an untrue situation?

Not a teacher.

 

[BobK]

I am not a teacher.

It's a way of saying that it did work at the next (traffic) light, and of showing enthusiastic surprise. The writer could have begun the sentence with "I'll be damned…"

Is it because 'if it didn't work' is the second conditional referring to an untrue situation?

Not a teacher.

I think you‘re attaching too much importance to the ‘if‘. The full meaning of the comditional is something like this:

If I were to say it didn‘t work, my soul wouild be consigned to Hell [as a punishment for lying].

But nobody would think anything of the sort. I think Roman‘s explanation was fine. Although it happens that the word ‘if‘ is there, in the context of this idiomatic usage there is no sense of conditionality.

b

 

[Matthew Wai]

http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/damn_4 Definition#2 may be worth the OP's reference.

Not a teacher.