Further to my recent thread re a motorway incident, the lack of interest in the mechanics of a car etc by joe public, treating a car like white goods is regularly demonstrated.
Many readers on this forum have more than a basic understanding of the oily bits etc but joe public?
New drivers are shown how to point to a dip stick but how many are taught that if the engine stops, chuck it in neutral and it will still roll (maybe with heavy steering) etc.
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2175345/M40-crash-Woman-burned-death-Buckinghamshire-motorway-Porsche-careered-car.html
The tragic accident on the M$0 and some responses ....
"It would be interesting to discover as to why her car went on fire after the crash ...and also as to why nobody had a fire extinguisher in their vehicle......"
"I always keep to the far left lane on these multi-laned motorways. I simply do not trust the other drivers on the road and if you do break down you have the chance to push your car off and out of the way. "
"Breaking down is only speculation. She was just before the Beaconsfield junction which she may have intended to take but missed and so stopped precariously to pull over to it. Again... only speculation! "
I suspect few cars beaking down have brakes locked on or any other reason thatthat the car cannot roll but I have seen several car recently in dangerous positions where they could have been moved by gravity to a safer position.
|
More likely when the engine stops they jam the brakes on.
"He has since been released by medics and has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving,"
When quite possibly he was tootling along in the middle lane and the woman in front of him jammed her brakes on in an emergency stop for no apparent reason.
|
I'm pretty sure that if I was tootling along in the middle lane and the driver in front jammed his brakes on I wouldn't do that much damage, if any, regardless of separation - there was a significant speed differential there. It seems likely that the Porsche driver was culpable, to put it carefully.
In any case the story implies (somebody saw the lady on her phone) that she had been stationary for some time before the collision. I hope he wasn't on the phone.
|
I'd hardly call an Almera 'tiny' or 'flimsy'.
Lot of damage mind, and surprisingly little to the Cayenne by comparison.
Tragic loss of life, whichever way you look at it.
|
>>I'd hardly call an Almera 'tiny' or 'flimsy'<<
Actually apm, I would say the Almera is flimsy, going by the one I owned for 4.5 years.
Compared to my present Mitsubishi Lancer anyway.
|
>> I'd hardly call an Almera 'tiny' or 'flimsy'.
>>
I was just about to post exactly the same. OK, you know they're going to describe the Cayenne as "powerful" but the descriptions of the Almera are just ridiculous.
|
I wonder if the Mail writes this stuff with a knowing wink, or whether they just enjoy leading their readers around by nose with the use of unnecessarily emotive language.
I wonder too if they would have bothered devoting so many pictures to it (or reporting it at all) if the story had been dear little old lady tragically killing rich got-it-all go-getter instead.
Commiserations to the families concerned though, awful thing no matter how it happened.
Last edited by: oilburner on Thu 19 Jul 12 at 19:39
|
>>"It would be interesting to discover as to why her car went on fire after the crash...."
Looking at the catastrophic rear-end damage, the petrol tank has to have split like a ripe fruit upon impact. Add a shower of sparks from the exhaust (you can clearly see it still sat on the road beneath the wreck amidst what remains of the rear end) or a piece of bodywork scraping on the road as it's catapulted forwards and Bob's your uncle.
Obvious I'd have thought.
|
Why was she in lane 2? Why had she 'broken down' and stopped so close to a junction and yet was unable(?) to get to the hard shoulder?
Great shame.
|
|
The Nissan has the lower half stoved in all the way to the B post. Thats split the fuel tank to pieces. The Cayenne has quite a bit of damage. The porsche hit the Nissan at some rate of knots.
|
>> The porsche hit the Nissan at some rate of knots.
The Mail report states the Nissan was 'catapulted 50 metres', which presumably gives a good indication of the speed of impact to those used to dealing with these things.
|
|
Quite chilling. I was travelling over that very bit of road yesterday evening. It is very very easy to go fast on it without realising it - in fact my speed warning alarm went off and it surprised me (it is set to 80 BTW) and I quickly dropped back to legal speed.
|
Do my eyes deceive me? The other car that was involved in this accident is supposed to be a Porsche. On checking the photo, with a policeman nicely hiding the number plate and the make of the car, since when has a Porsche had four doors, a roof rack and a tailgate? It looks to me as if it is an estate. - theman, stoke-on-trent, 19/7/2012 11:05====================Read the article, it says 'Moments earlier the powerful Porsche Cayenne 4x4 had ploughed into the tiny car that was stranded on the M40...............................' .
The latest ignorant post in the Mail.
|
|
They don't see Porsche Cayennes in Stoke on Trent. He knew what a battered Nissan Almera looked like tho.
|
|
You think the buffoon would have Googled for an image before making himself looking internationally thick wouldn't you
|
|
The Panamera is a revelation he still has to come.
|
Puts me in mind of Uncle Bryn from Gavin and Satcey....
"A Porsche with four doors and a Hatchback - what will they think of next....??!!!!"
|
>> The Panamera is a revelation he still has to come.
Its helps if you live near Chelski-Ham like I do. Anything grossly overpriced, in very poor taste and too big for its own wheels will always be seen first round there.
|
|
Seen a couple up here - possibly press cars doing stuff at the Mona Track.
|
|
Cobham high street is stuffed with them.
|
>> Cobham high street is stuffed with them.
>>
Theres quite a few round here.
I know that bit of road very well, and its not a nice place to be.
|
>> They don't see Porsche Cayennes in Stoke on Trent. He knew what a battered Nissan
>> Almera looked like tho.
>>
Lots of Ferraris tho..
(see John Caudwell etc)
|
It is just white goods !!! - Mapmaker
