Super Member
Quote:
Originally posted by blueSL
SL Boy - you're right, looking at it again, he almost damaged the rear near-side, car stepped out quite sharply.
Mustard - I hit 6 inches of standing water in the dark at about 60 mph, car acquaplaned and spun like a top through 360 degrees before hitting the barrier with the offside rear and ending up with the front wedged under the barrier. For all the skid pan training I've had, when it actually happens, you think "b**st**d" and make a mess of it.
£26k repair bill, 6 months to do it, I was very lucky not to be hurt.
Ouch! Pain in the butt & wallet. Now theres a situation that no amount of fancy electronic wizardy would help, surely. Inclined to think a heavier car might have been better performing. Originally posted by blueSL
SL Boy - you're right, looking at it again, he almost damaged the rear near-side, car stepped out quite sharply.
Mustard - I hit 6 inches of standing water in the dark at about 60 mph, car acquaplaned and spun like a top through 360 degrees before hitting the barrier with the offside rear and ending up with the front wedged under the barrier. For all the skid pan training I've had, when it actually happens, you think "b**st**d" and make a mess of it.
£26k repair bill, 6 months to do it, I was very lucky not to be hurt.
And only 60mph. Hearing things like this I'm getting more and more inclined to get a worked over Segway.....
Member
Quote:
At the risk of repetition, was the SL55 Jasper Blue? [/B]
Yes it was the Jasper.At the risk of repetition, was the SL55 Jasper Blue? [/B]
Jasper certainly looks good on the road...
Yes, the 355 can be vicious because it has wide tyres which aquaplane easily and a low polar moment of inertia which makes it very inclined to spin once the tyres let go. The SL would be much more forgiving because the traction control would attempt to correct the spin by braking the appropriate wheels to counteract.
There was the well publicised case in 1995 of the Legal Adviser to the Ferrari Club taking one for a test drive in the wet from GrayPaul in Loughborough. He spun it, went backwards into a tree and the car caught fire. The salesman was able to get out but the driver was trapped and died. Worse, he had left his young son at the dealership and by the time I turned up for my own booked test drive in the same car, they were waiting for his mother to come and pick the boy up. Truly, the stuff of nightmares.
Shortly after, there was a recall to re-route the fuel pipes, don't know if the two were connected.
Yes, the 355 can be vicious because it has wide tyres which aquaplane easily and a low polar moment of inertia which makes it very inclined to spin once the tyres let go. The SL would be much more forgiving because the traction control would attempt to correct the spin by braking the appropriate wheels to counteract.
There was the well publicised case in 1995 of the Legal Adviser to the Ferrari Club taking one for a test drive in the wet from GrayPaul in Loughborough. He spun it, went backwards into a tree and the car caught fire. The salesman was able to get out but the driver was trapped and died. Worse, he had left his young son at the dealership and by the time I turned up for my own booked test drive in the same car, they were waiting for his mother to come and pick the boy up. Truly, the stuff of nightmares.
Shortly after, there was a recall to re-route the fuel pipes, don't know if the two were connected.
Super Member
Quote:
Originally posted by blueSL
Jasper certainly looks good on the road...
There was the well publicised case in 1995 of the Legal Adviser to the Ferrari Club taking one for a test drive in the wet from GrayPaul in Loughborough. He spun it, went backwards into a tree and the car caught fire. The salesman was able to get out but the driver was trapped and died. Worse, he had left his young son at the dealership and by the time I turned up for my own booked test drive in the same car, they were waiting for his mother to come and pick the boy up. Truly, the stuff of nightmares.
Shortly after, there was a recall to re-route the fuel pipes, don't know if the two were connected.
That's a tough tale - poor kid! He'll never look at Ferrari's the same. How must the mother have felt. Originally posted by blueSL
Jasper certainly looks good on the road...
There was the well publicised case in 1995 of the Legal Adviser to the Ferrari Club taking one for a test drive in the wet from GrayPaul in Loughborough. He spun it, went backwards into a tree and the car caught fire. The salesman was able to get out but the driver was trapped and died. Worse, he had left his young son at the dealership and by the time I turned up for my own booked test drive in the same car, they were waiting for his mother to come and pick the boy up. Truly, the stuff of nightmares.
Shortly after, there was a recall to re-route the fuel pipes, don't know if the two were connected.
It happens - my son was hit by a red-light runner last night - totalled his car (Focus) and left him pretty dazed. Had to drive to pick him up and it left us all shaken and driving carefully.
In praise of other cars - this Focus, which I reall do rate, took the damage very well from the side and front. Air bags deployed, crumple-zones did their job, just a burn from the bag's pyrotechnics. No fire, fortunately. Safety is one issue I don't ignore in a car, but speed is something I do have a problem with. I'd regret it if my son had learn't bad habits from me, so learning to drive more responsibly after all these years of rallying and fast long distance continental trips.
That's terrible, but good that your son is OK, as you say the car did its job of protecting him even if it's a right-off - it can be replaced.
An accident certainly brings home what can happen and I'm a slower driver than I used to be.
An accident certainly brings home what can happen and I'm a slower driver than I used to be.
