si325i

A car dealer caught driving at what is believed to be the highest speed ever recorded by Scottish police has been jailed for five months.

Jason McAllister was caught by police travelling at 156.7 mph in a BMW M3 on the A90 between Aberdeen and Dundee in March.

Sentencing him, Forfar Sheriff Kevin Veal described his speed as "absolutely outrageous".

McAllister, of Manor Avenue, Aberdeen, had admitted dangerous driving and driving while disqualified.

As well as the prison sentence, he was disqualified for four years and ordered to resit an extended test.

I understand it's the highest speed recorded by a speed detection unit by the Scottish police

Chris Macintosh, procurator fiscal
Procurator fiscal Chris Macintosh said a police patrol was told to be on the lookout for McAllister's vehicle.

Mr Macintosh said: "It was a BMW vehicle, it's a very powerful model.

"The vehicle was seen travelling at a very high speed."

Police clocked the vehicle several times and found he was doing 120.6mph in a 40mph zone and 156.7mph on the dual carriageway, which has a speed limit of 70mph.

Mr Macintosh said: "I understand it's the highest speed recorded by a speed detection unit by the Scottish police."

When stopped by police as he neared Dundee, McAllister said: "This is all that I need - I have just fallen out with the girlfriend."

Defence lawyer Lynne Bentley said: "He accepts there must be a custodial sentence.


Inspector Nick Hull: "It's crazy"
"It's his own car. Extremely stupidly he made the decision to drive."

Sheriff Veal told McAllister: "Anybody driving at this speed must realise that it's dangerous and inevitably a custodial option will be top of the priorities."

The sheriff said the fact that the accused had already been banned from driving reinforced his view.

Sheriff Veal said: "This level of speed is absolutely outrageous and poses a risk to every other road user."

Reacting to the case, Roger Vincent, of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), said: "It was absolutely crazy for someone to try and drive at that speed on a public road.

"Anyone who has lost a relative in a crash caused by excessive speed would be horrified by the cavalier attitude of this driver."

Tayside Police Inspector Nick Hull said officers were astonished at the speed of McAllister's 3.2 litre vehicle.

He said: "We're not talking about someone who has allowed himself to slip just over the speed limit, we're talking about someone who had deliberately driven at 156 mph on a public road.

"The stopping distances at that sort of speed are around about a quarter of a mile, it's crazy."

H7

I'd say he got off lightly. Wonder what the police were driving to take off from a standing start and catch him doing 156mph! McLaren F1?? Bet it wasn't a Scoob

Mycroft

I suppose that is the silver lining.

.. the Filf didn't join in.

.. that usually means death... usually some one else.

.. for every Rozzer killed in pursuing these drivers 6 innocents are killed.

FASTER MIKE!!

thougt m3's were restricted to 155mph? so much for that working

Skittles

They are supposed to be. The limiters in M5s and M3s are now "soft" limiters. There are a lot of people who have been over the 155mph in Germany.

I have been 168mph before the limiter kicked in around the Millbrook bowl in a 2002 M3 (not in mine), with 4 people in the car, and the roof down!

It then bounces off the 168 mark. This is a speed confirmed by a couple of other e46 M3 drivers.

In any case, its just plain stupid restricting a car to 155 mph cant be all that differnet to letting it run to the top end, which I *believe*, from what I have read in the motoring press, is c.180mph is unrestricted.

I *think* earlier M5s etc were actually 155mph.


[Edited by Skittles - 5/15/2003 7:19:11 PM]

Mycroft

In fact, all last years reported deaths 'on duty' were car related... all but three were reported as being during pursuits of one kind or another.... 187 members of the public died in the same 'incidents' as a result...

yikes

I've had an indicated 170mph out of my M3 - The car would have given more, perhaps another 5 to 10mph indicated - so by and large the limiter is a nonsense, although I have heard from some owners that there cars have been limited.

Cheers
Richard

Mike123

I know it was an E46 M3 he got clocked in but out of interest when Autocar tested the Dakar Yellow E36 M3 (non-evo 286bhp) model they got 162mph (on test equipment) when the limiter kicked in I seem to recall - 7mph more than supposed 155 limit.

Claudius

I cant see what they are doing putting the guy into jail for that!?

Thousands of people drive this speed every day in Germany (and elsewhere).

kenny.c

claudius--is it not legal on the autobahns in germany ??

H7

Different countries, different laws. Polizei will pull you over in Germany if they spot you doing that speed in a speed-limited area. 150+mph is only safe where it's safe. This guy was doing that speed where it wasn't safe. And right in front of the police too . No sympathy.

Claudius

Ok, may not have been safe, but to jail for speeding sounds a little OTT to me.

Think about it this way: being a car dealer, the guy is probably already half (or more ) dishonest. What the hell will he be like after 5 months in jail!? LOL

SCOSaltire

he also was driving without a license...
and had been banned earlier

in a performance car its so easy to use the potential and go those speeds

i wanted to so often... and only the thought of a ban stopped me...
in places, its quite safe
speed limits are stupid
it should be driving guidelines - safe driving, not slow driving

H7

I agree with you Claudius, jail is OTT and five months inside isn't going to reform him - he's much more likely to learn some more tricks of the trade . But unfortunately, the law in the UK provides for jail as a penalty. We all know the risks of being caught over the limit but assess the risk according to our own personal circumstances. Most of us are pretty good at deciding when is safer to push that risk and when it's definitely not safe to do so. This guy's problem was that he pushed 150+mph in broad daylight, on a road known by everyone in the locality to have regular police presence, kept 100+mph through roadworks which are sited at junctions known and proven to be dangerous, and he did it all in full view of the police! He might be stupid but, at 27 and driving an M3, he's unlikely to have been ignorant of the law, not that ignorance is any defence anyway.

It's not the speed that's the issue in my book. As you've said, lots of people do 150+mph in relative safety every day. My experience whenever I'm in Germany suggests that the standard of driving on autobahns (for the most part) is much better than on UK motorways. However, this guy wasn't paying attention and had no concern for safety and that's what he's paying the price for.

Mycroft

But the 'Headline' doesn't say that... it continues the myth that speed is bad all the time... that is just rubbish we all know it but the Media ******* will latch on to that and the Filf will it seems happily play along as it suits their new-found greed...

NACRO

So it was safe for the police drivers to do high speeds to catch him up then? Bollox.

No way should speeding be a custodial matter even 155mph. If he had killed someone or caused an accident that would be a different matter.

Mungo

He should have gone and beaten someone up or broken into their house and stolen all their stuff. He'd have got any with it...
Prison for speeding is ridiculous.
Prison for driving without a license is just about understandable, but 5 months

BigJim

150mph on public roads is not relativly safe, it is simply not safe full stop.Plus, someone said a jail sentance if he killed someone - bit late then though. This guy should not be allowed to drive again, ever. Already banned, then does this - cant be trusted in my view. Driving is a privlidge, and with it comes much responsibility. Now I sound like Yoda ...
There is no defending this sort of thing. Its because of t*ts like this that insurance companies justify ever higher premiums, and the govt justify more speed cameras.

[Edited by BigJim - 5/16/2003 12:57:35 PM]

NACRO

150mph on public roads can be safe. In what way is it dangerous in itself?

BigJim

Cos neither you or no one else on this board can respond quickly enough to a hazard. I dont care how good you think you are or how capable your car.At that speed anything you hit is history. What you may walk away from at 70, you've no chance at 150. Plus, public roads can be poorly surfaced, covered in oil, cowsh*t and god knows what else to reduce grip, and are populated by people who may do all manner of unpredictable things.
If you want to go at that speed, go on a track day.
Why would you be so selfish as to gamble with other peoples lives in such a flippant manner?

ozzy

well the fact that you're travelling twice the distance in the same time frame relative to the speed limit. Therefore braking distances, reaction times are all ,uch greater. Your ability to avoid a accident is greatly reduced.

Driving at 150mph CAN be safe, but on a public road there is just too many variables that make it too risky and by far more dangerous.

If he'd lost control or had a tyre deflate at that speed, he'd probably do himself some damage but more importantly injured or killed another motorist.

All it takes is some to$$er too either not look in his mirrors before pulling out in front of you or actually using his mirrors but can't judge the difference in speed.

Points, a ban and even fines didn't seem to deter him, so the courts had no other choice but give him some time inside.

What else would have changed him? maybe a knee capping would get the message through.

Stefan

Mungo

If the road was straight and visibility was good, he'd have been able to see any potential hazrds with enough time to slow down. I'm assuming the road in question had no junctions on the stretch where the speed was recorded. I don't think we're talking about driving at that speed up the M1 on a Friday night with other cars around.

BigJim

How would he be able to see that nail thats about to explode his front nearside? How will he steer at 150 with 1 tyre gone? How quickly will he slow down with one tyre gone?

[Edited by BigJim - 5/16/2003 1:20:23 PM]

H7

The road he was clocked on isn't straight - it's a long four mile left hand curve (town bypass) with two staggered crossroad junctions where the road works are - they're in the process of engineering out the cross-over traffic with bridges. I doubt whether safety even entered his mind ....

Mungo

I'm still of the assumption that there were no other cars around - if there were he's bloody stupid. If not, he's risking his own life if he does hit the said nail/whatever has a blowout and goes flying into oblivion.
Now you're gonna tell me that that's being unfair to the emergency services who have to scrape his remains from the carriageway. Maybe so, but what's the difference between doing that and losing it on a trackday and expecting somebody else to pick up the pieces if it all goes horribly wrong?

NACRO

your nail argument applies at any high speed, your talking about a freak accident. Still yet to hear a convincing argument.

Mycroft

Nacro... there isn't a cogent arguement only a series of 'what ifs' if a cogent arguement could be brought forward then cars would be limited to the Japanese speed limit of around 120mph... that gives plenty of scope for 'emergency avoidance' the arguement was lost long ago... so the balnket limit/enforcement imposed and since then it is just PR and political Correctness that has kept it in place...

BigJim

Yes, but at the time, how could he know there would be no other But how would he have known there were no other road users around along his route? Ho couldn't! On a track day you can at least assume
1. Everyone is going in the same direction
2. People are more aware of speeding vehicles
3. No bikes, pedestrains, herds of cows etc.
4. No side roads, pedestrian crossings etc
5. Marshals who will warn you of any hazard you may not be able to see
6. Everyone who takes part does so out of desire,and fully accepts the increased risks of high speed driving
7. Run off areas and safety barriers enhanced to deal with high speed inpacts
8. Incidents will be attended by emergency far quicker than on an A road in the middle of nowhere

NotoriousREV

That doesn't make 150mph dangeous in itself. This is the problem, the government has this same attitude, you can't go fast because some idiot might pull out in front of you or misjudge your speed.

THIS IS NOT A SPEED RELATED ACCIDENT THIS IS DUE TO A CARELESS DRIVER!

Corpulent Tosser

Couple of points not being considered.

1 He had no driving licence (not dangerous but presumably there is a reason he was banned previously)

2 No insurance, not good if he had hit your car/wife/kid etc

We all speed, but 120+ through roadworks with a 40 limit !