Experience working on them is VERY different from experience driving them . And we're talking driving them over 8/10s, not sedately... which anybody can do.

 

I stand corrected. Seems ABS is not required in the US! Required in UK since 2004 and EU since 2007.

 

May we change the focus on this sad incident to what can be learned from it?
Considering the mid engine design of the CGT and the 612 hp, the car quickly responds to driver inputs. This is one of the reasons the CGT is so enjoyable for a driving enthusiast, but it is important to point out that changes in the road surface (oil, debris, etc) and any changes to the car itself (failed suspension component, tire failure, failed oil, coolant or fuel line, etc) can quickly lead to a situation that even a highly qualified race driver will have difficulty recovering from.
That being said, as drivers of these ultra high performance cars it is important to maintain them, including having a through annual inspection.
Be ever vigilant when driving them especially on public roads.
My heart goes out to the friends and families who lost loved ones.

 

"Highly qualified " is not what Paul or his buddy were. His buddy even crashed in WCGT practice. (which usually reserved for the very green racers with a few exceptions) He was a pure novice racer, with not enough eperience to be driving a car this hot, that fast. The car is not at fault here. It is incredibly safe and responsive, when driven at or near its capability. The problem is, it is so powerful and responsive, that those limits (speedwise) are faster than other more common cars. So, when over the limits, you are going faster. When you are going faster, the forces usually go up with the square of speed. so, a honda at 50mph crashing will be a factor of 4 x less destructive vs the GT going 100mph.
Mechanics are not qualified to judge the safeness of driving the car, other than they know what they see as far as damaged vehicles and know they probably cannot drive them at the limits either, due to lack of experience.

Clearly, the driver of this CGT was inexperienced enough to get way over his head in the car, around a very smooth and gradual turn, becuase he couldnt "Feel" the car under-him. And barring any kind of major mechanical, like a blowout, or wheel falling off, or oil on the road, he was driving beyond his ability and killed two people. Sad, but hopefully a lesson for those wanting to show off to their friends.

 

That's funny right there...

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/p...crash/4116755/

no mechanical issues

 

no surprise

 

Looks like speed is at the top of the radar now......imagine that.....

 

Investigators have said " at least one of the tyres was made in 2004" . madness .

 

For those of you still on original rubber, please black bag them for the "Concours" of the future and install fresh tires for today's driving.

 

Merlin, you posted this back on page one of this thread.

Nice call...






I wonder how many miles were on this particular CGT??? I'd be very surprised if the rear tires were original as they wear out pretty quickly. However, the fronts could have been original to the car. If so, they would be very hard at this point and cause the car to understeer badly.

 

I wonder how people survived era when there were porsches, no speed limits on highways and no electronic assistance..

 

• They learned to drive in a car that bit them, or at least warned them, when they did something a bit stupid. Nowadays, nanny-aids allow folks to commit stupidity without even knowing it. Unfortunately, because nothing bad happened during their last stupid episode, they proceed to push the limit of stupid even further.......until eventually.....the nanny-aids can't keep up. With all the modern nanny-aids, I don't think people are really learning how to drive anymore. Heck, cars are now able to follow the car ahead, brake for you when you aren't paying attention, and even parallel park for you. Sad.......
  
• Back in the good ole' days, 200HP was hard to come by. Nowadays, the grocery getter sedans are beyond that. 600, 700, 800....HP was almost unthinkable back then, at least for most street cars. Unfortunately, the Carrera GT combined 700 HP without nanny-aids.....a not so good combination in the wrong hands.