msch

well one time i accidently left my gas cap off at the gas station and when i made a right hand turn at 25-30 mph, the gas rushed out and down the side of the car to the rear tires. Next thing i knew, the car was doing a 180 and there wasn't a whole much to do except put both feet in. It really is amazing how quick it happened. So i don't think the reactions are slow.

ed devinney

From one 993 wrecker to another, sorry to hear of your loss but glad you're OK.

The good thing that came from my accident was that I vowed to learn how to really drive and took seriously to DE. At this point I'm ready to get another 993, and fairly confident that this one won't get the better of me. At least not easily :-)

zoomzoom

I'm really sorry to hear of the accident and am really glad to hear that you are OK.

I think many on this board don't realise how dangerous ROUNDABOUTS are in the UK. British roads have a lethal combination of inverse camber roads with high crowns. Combined with a small/medium sized roundabout where the car effectively pitches upon braking, rolls on entry, and inversely rolls upon exit as it often simultaneously crests lightening the load under the wheels, it can be a lethal combination at seemingly mundane speeds. And all this without taking into consideration the effect of spilled diesel, oil, and/or the rear bias of the 993.

I fully understand your pain as I had a similar accident a couple of years ago in a 3 series up in Milton Keynes (roundabout capital of the UK) after having spent a full day at Bedford Autodrome without a single "off". I was purposefully driving slower going back to recalibrate my driving, yet an oil patch spun me before I could catch the usually benign rear end of the 3. Others behind said the car simply pirouetted into the armco as if it were on ice, and immediate inspection revealed a thin oil slick at 9pm on the roundabout.

Chin up - it happens to the best of drivers, and I'm sure you'll be back on the road in your next P-car! (btw, I went for the C4 precisely because of the roundabout hazards spoken of here which I spoke of in another post recently...)

Caveman

Hi Dan,

Sorry to hear of your acident but glad that you are OK. I slid on a roundabout a couple of years ago. It was just like the one that Zoom Zoom described. I was trundling along at about 30mph when I felt the car sliding. I tried catching it and unfortunately it then stopped sliding, started sliding again and by now I was leaving the roundabout almost sideways. Unfortunately there was a small traffic island in the middle of the road and I clipped this with my wheel. Bottem line I dented the wheel, punctured the tyre and broke the lower wishbone. Miraculously, I didn't touch the bodywork apart from breaking a lower clip on my nose cone. End result was I got a lovely new turbo nose so it wasn't all bad news! I bought a C4 precisely to avoid this kind of accident. Doh! Luckily my wife was in the car with me otherwise she would never have believed how slowly I was driving...

If your tyres are cold, the weather is cold and there hasn't been much rain then it can all add up to slippy conditions. I'll keep my fingers crossed that you can get the car repaired. What got damagaed?

Regards,

David

Felix

Hi Dan, Sorry to hear of your misfortune. Not sure if I can help other than to buy a pint or two for you to help drown your sorrows with but do let me know. Are you still working at LTP?

Terry Adams

Dan glad you are ok, and in good company with those including myself who have had the same experience. Mine was a 180 at 20 mph coming away from a stop on a damp country road with modest (I thought) power applied exiting the turn, and a half mile of clear road ahead. I learned to not be lulled by plenty of tread on the outside, but to check the inside tread for wear due to excessive negative camber for the driving I do.

mborkow

hitting an oily patch on the road is hardly your fault; you can't blame you or your car for that.

deltawedge

Glad to hear you are okay, cars can always be repaired/replaced. You made it through much better than one of my friends on a 2 wheeler who was leaned over in a turn and hit a patch of coolant. Into the guardrail he went (not into traffic, fortunately) but nothing permanently damaged other than the bike. He admitted he was at fault and a little more wary of road conditions, thereafter.

I can say that if the same event happened to me, it could only be my fault. Not the car's nor the road (what the heck is a roundabout?). After riding for many years (with no incidents), I consider myself both lucky and good, because I have avoided more than a few incidents by just paying attention to the road surface (oil, water, leaves, sand, rocks, tire rubber, etc). This is not the best method for speed (focusing so close to ones imminent path) but it is a good method for keeping the rubber side down.

grmnxtc

roundabout = traffic circle... a rare and strange thing this side of the pond... Boston area only, I'm led to believe.

deltawedge

Haven't been to Boston, but sounds like the ones in New Jersey? They are strange. The whole time you are going around them, you are looking to the outside of the circle to see where to exit, yet you should be looking where your vehicle is going.

agdamis

Dan,

Sorry mate. As everyone has said you are uninjured and that is what is important. Hope they do not write her off, as we are trying to preserve the breed, but if they do look at the upside you can get a new one to have fun with. Best of luck. Let us know how it goes.

AG Damis

JasonAndreas

We call them "rotaries" and in this particular case we even pronounce the R (i.e. its not silent, "pahk the cah", "This cah has powah", "wicked pissah"). For years the state has been trying to get rid of them because anytime your near one traffic turns into a total cluster f*ck. They finally just started tearing down what I think is the biggest rotary leading onto the Cape Cod bridge (if your smart you'll take the Cape Cod tunnel ).

Father of 3

Love the avatar - "people of ludes should not drive"

willisit

Wow.. thanks for the responses guys.

To the UK lads/lasses - nail on the head guys. You know my pain better than most I suspect. Stupid English roads.

Here are some pics. It's too black to see the caved in panels - but I'm praying for a repair and maybe a shiny new respray. But.. they may still total her.










Oh Phelix, I'm still there (just) - I did mean to call you but life took over and I never got the chance. If you fancy a coffee next week let me know - I think I'll need it.

mborkow

it is sort of hard to tell from the pics, but that doesn't look totalled to me.