RIP Paul Walker - killed in a CGT's passenger seat

[986_c6]

My condolences to both families.

CF tubs are used in race cars and extremely safe, the only difference between street and track is the controlled environment of the track...so sad for this to happen

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by KevinH1990

This reminds me of Jay Leno's adventure with a Carrera GT: 5 X CAR spin Jay Leno - YouTube

I'm sure its a great car, but the Carrera GT may be a little too much to handle for good but not great drivers. When you lose control you are dealing with the laws of physics and as someone pointed out there are a lot of objects out on the street that aren't very forgiving.

The first time I saw Leno lose control of that CGT I immediately thought of a Rennlist member who died at a Fontana track day in his CGT. Poor track marshaling put another car ahead of his CGT and while swerving to avoid the car he plowed the wall head on. The wreckage was devastating. That car was not engineered with the street or ovals in mind.

[Timco]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

The first time I saw Leno lose control of that CGT I immediately thought of a Rennlist member who died at a Fontana track day in his CGT. Poor track marshaling put another car ahead of his CGT and while swerving to avoid the car he plowed the wall head on. The wreckage was devastating. That car was not engineered with the street or ovals in mind.

Poor marshaling should have produced a lousy lap time. Terrible but oh well. Over-speed for the surface you're driving on or the traffic you're in, be it track or city streets, is always the driver's decision / fault....both had a choice.

I hope I never face a moment where I realize (besides hitting a deer or such) that I've gone too fast and now can't possibly control my car for a few seconds. Can't even imaging going that fast in town. That's privilege taking over. Total disregard. Like he owned the street. Aerials show the road looks just like a race track.....

[Timco]

Shop and crash site are circled.

[BYprodriver]

Local radio show just interviewed a guy that said he went to the crash site. He said the starter motor from the CGT was found 200 feet away on the second floor of a building where it had gone thru a window. Also said steering fluid had leaked & could have contributed to the loss of control.

[Perfectlap]

Those tire marks look too narrow to be from a CGT. The police tread match will certainly confirm.

You don't have to be reckless to lose that car. Frankly I never thought that car was safe in any open environment. In the streets you're always near some static object and the average sports car driver isn't trained to catch a car like that once it breaks loose. With an improper alignment or any dampness or differing road materials it becomes a hazard at any speed above 40-50.

Apparently there's a witness who saw them still in the car before it blew up. So it's entirely possible they may have survived the crash but could not be extracted before being burned to death/suffocating.

[Perfectlap]

Originally Posted by BYprodriver

Also said steering fluid had leaked & could have contributed to the loss of control.

And I'd be willing to wager the cause of the fire.

[Timco]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Those tire marks look too narrow to be from a CGT. The police tread match will certainly confirm.

You don't have to be reckless to lose that car. Frankly I never thought that car was safe in any open environment. In the streets you're always near some static object and the average sports car driver isn't trained to catch a car like that once it breaks loose. With an improper alignment or any dampness or differing road materials it becomes a hazard at any speed above 40-50.

Apparently there's a witness who saw them still in the car before it blew up. So it's entirely possible they may have survived the crash but could not be extracted before being burned to death/suffocating.

I don't doubt the tire marks are not from the GT necessarily, but shows a pattern of reckless driving on that city street.

As for speed, it's 35 on that road. I don't think its possible to lose control for any reason at 35. And let's say its industrial and give him some slack. 60 on that road wouldn't have caused all that. This is a very exceptionally extraordinary incident.

[BYprodriver]

Originally Posted by jsceash

Tragic. It looks like they were in a parking lot?

It's in a light industrial park, normally deserted on weekends & holidays. Apparently popular area for street racing etc.

[thstone]

My sympathy to the family and friends of the deceased. Rather than speculate on the cause(s), I'm waiting for some facts to come out of the investigation.

[Perfectlap]

I wouldn't be surprised if they were speeding my point is that it's a very easy car to lose once it gets going. Unless you're in a flat wide open area one wrong correction can put you upside down, up a tree or plowed into a wall. There's speculation Walker may have jumped behind the wheel decided to open it up and lost control. If the engine went airborne then it was probably a high speed spin turned high speed rollover and the very flammable steering fluid ignited the explosion.

[Nine8Six]

The local radio here ran a recorded interview Paul made about his new movie a week ago and then played the theme song :/ What Paul interviewed sounded genuine enthusiasm and was unbelievably touching given the circumstances. In fact it was unbearable. Brutal.

They also ran clips of FF and other of his hang-out shots here on the local CATV. Paul is and will be missed worldwide

[woodsman]

Sad to see. Fun gone bad. The scale of the corner allows a lot of speed. To me it looks like the driver just lost the rear end. 80 MPH? The front wheels look like they're at full lock- nothing to do but wait and hope- at the point of no-return, lock up the brakes, look out the side window, select neutral. T-bone-- the worst case scenario for the passenger. A few feet either way and it could have been so different. Life is temporary- it really is and dangerous. Another senseless tragedy. Visit your local track regularly and always have something in reserve on the street.

[reiver]

Originally Posted by jsceash

The maddening part of this is the passer bys videoing and no one attempting to help or put out fire. Some one confirming as they watched there are people in the car.

They used 4 extinguishers and ran out of them right off the bat

[Frodo]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

The first time I saw Leno lose control of that CGT I immediately thought of a Rennlist member who died at a Fontana track day in his CGT. Poor track marshaling put another car ahead of his CGT and while swerving to avoid the car he plowed the wall head on. The wreckage was devastating. That car was not engineered with the street or ovals in mind.

Yeah, from everything I've heard and read, CGTs tend to be really treacherous when pushed to the limit...not that I'll ever get a chance to test that!

Truly a shame...40's way too young. Wonder exactly what they were doing? I gather there were no eye witnesses? (Other than after-the-fact?)

[coreseller]

Originally Posted by Frodo

Yeah, from everything I've heard and read, CGTs tend to be really treacherous when pushed to the limit...not that I'll ever get a chance to test that!

Truly a shame...40's way too young. Wonder exactly what they were doing? I gather there were no eye witnesses? (Other than after-the-fact?)

I believe it is the first Porsche Walter Röhrl highly recommended to have electronic safety measures installed as standard.

[Timco]

Just read on another site 45mph estimated crash speed.....in a 15mph corner. Correction. 45mph corner...

Saw just now on news as well.

http://t.nbcnews.com/entertainment/paul-walker-was-real-hero-daughter-heart-soul-his-charity-2D11683842

[Timco]

Red line, car path. Green arrow, 15mph corner.


These show two different directions. Took them from news sites.....

Bottom pic is direction. Top pic is section to right of loop. 35 mph is section where they crashed. 45 in other sections.

[Frodo]

That's so weird. I've looked at the film footage and the aerial views. It looks to me like the crash occurred roughly in the middle of what is nearly a full 1/4 mile straightaway. How does one lose control of such a car on a straight stretch at 45 MPH???

[particlewave]

Originally Posted by Frodo

That's so weird. I've looked at the film footage and the aerial views. It looks to me like the crash occurred roughly in the middle of what is nearly a full 1/4 mile straightaway. How does one lose control of such a car on a straight stretch at 45 MPH???

Tire blowout...