Boost II

iTrader: (1)

Travelling down a near empty dual carriageway @ about 85 in an old Astra. At the time I am being leisurly overtaken at about 90 by a BMW. I see side road coming up and a car waiting - I can't believe it when this car pulls out onto the dual carriageway and sets off down the lane in front of me. He is slowly accelerating away from a stand still and I am heading towards his backside at 85 and I'm only a couple of hundred yards away and boxed in by the BMW. I am thinking this is it, it is not even worth breaking at this stage I am doomed whatever - goodbye cruel world. Luckily one of those rare breed a good and vigilant BMW driver saved me by heaving on his anchors allowing me to swerve in front of him into his lane at the very last minute.

Also rolling the Scoob on a narrow lane but that was less scarey, although I was just as lucky that time to get out OK.

TKH

I once had the misfortune to take an old lady well into her eighties out on test drive in a Nova she was doing ok apart from slipping the clutch you know that lovley asbestos smell well anyway about 10 minutes into the drive she decided to try the car in her garage to make sure it would fit before she bought it and on route we had to go round a roundabout about halfway around she suddenly came to a complete stop selected reverse and started to do a high speed reverse back around the roundabout at this point i asked her what the **** she was doing as politley as possible with cars flying all around to which she said quote.

" I'm sorry dear i just missed my turn off dont worry it happens all the time"

i drove the car back to the garage and yes she did buy it worrying eh !

Regards

Tim

robman

During Xmas - showing in-laws my snazzy new office. Technology Park had about 3" of packed snow. Car contained me, wife, in-laws and 7 month old sprog.

Tech park was like an ice-rink and scoob was slipping and sliding everywhere, but managed to get around ok.

Decided to leave and headed down the exit road at circa 20mph. Eased brakes on as we headed for the red traffic lights. ABS jammed on solid and car started to slide. Eased off, tried again (as per a very useful thread that had been posted about driving in snow a few days earlier). Same result. Car was accelerating down the hill towards the red lights and a t-junction with a main road with cars whizzing past and no way to slow it down.

The next bit is a blur but we went sideways out onto the main road and I managed to avoid killing us all somehow.

Learned very quickly that snow demands huge respect, even in a scoob.

robman

Oh and these 2 wheelers:

* Losing the front end on a slippery roundabout on my honda MB5 with a double-decker bus about 10 feet behind me (he was being a ****)

* Mounting the kerb at 30mph on the same bike after putting a new front tyre on and going out in the rain - get out of the way pedestrians!

* Crashing my honda CR80R motorcross bike into a 3" thick track marking post at about 90mph. It was my first season on the CR80R and the first race. Combination of over zealous youth, more powerful bike, dreadful line out of the corner and a track marking post that was out of line with the others! Post snapped, I blacked out, handlebars broke and I shredded my mates jumper that he'd kindly lent me before going out 'cos it was freezing!

* On my Honda NSR250R I was making Good Progress(TM) around a beautiful sweeping right hand bend, knee-out, thinking I was Wayne Gardener or something. Coming towards me was another Honda (CBR 600 I think) also making Good Progress(TM). Both basically on the central white line approaching with a combined speed of, um, a lot. Somehow we both had the same idea in an instant - go on the wrong side of the road - and we skimmed past each other. My bike practically needed a new seat after that. About a week later my mate did the same thing in Bala but it was a car coming the other way and he died instantly.

And like everyone, suddenly going over the rumble strips on the inside of the motorway when you knew you used to be in the outside lane, but you were definitely getting sleepy. Wakes you up faster than a gallon of red bull!

[This message has been edited by robman (edited 22 February 2001).]

Neil Smalley

The idea for this thread was borrowed from the evo forum, but it's a good one to add here.

What's your scariest moment when driving? Y'know the one where you think Oh **** i'm going to die!!

There have'nt been many moments like that for me, but one that springs to mind is last year, when i'd only had the scoob for a month or so.

I came onto a large roundabout from the motorway (M1) and proceeded to scoot round it. I hit some diesel and in then did the worst thing and lifted off mid bend(used to drving FWD cars! ). So not only was the surface slippery I had the dreaded lift off oversteer. I remember sliding towards a large crash barrier(it all seemed like slow motion, as these things do) and thinking s t! I managed to correct the car's skid by a combination of putting the power on and adjusting the lock and ended up scooting down the road I wanted to go down.

No idea how I managed to miss the barrier, just that it taught me respect for the car and my own limitations.

[This message has been edited by Neil Smalley (edited 22 February 2001).]

[This message has been edited by Neil Smalley (edited 22 February 2001).]

harj

Scariest moment for me was driving the Nurburgring on my first time in the Fog

Oh and getting it sideways a few times around the Carousel while trying to go ***** out.

Other than that, hmmm. Everyday driving to work I think

Scott W

Mine would be last summer on my motorbike - I overtook Golf VR6 who then thought it would be clever to chase after me and prove how quick his car was.

So I went in to a serious of right and left hand bends a little too quick, and thought to myself s!*t those trees are oh so close, and to this day I still don't know how I got out of these corners alive!

I've since learnt my lesson - if someone tries to chase after you and prove themselves, the best thing to do is pull over and let them go by. Unless I'm in the Scooby and I've got some jumped rep behind me!!!

Dave P

falling asleep on the way down to france in my old mazda, cruise control set to 90mph. Had the wife and kids in the car too.

Fortunately my wife woke me up!!!!

I learnt my lesson as well. Stop if I'm tired and plenty of red bull and pro plus.

Dave

MarkF

Barrel rolling my Cavalier twice! Lost the back end on a wet road. When the rear offside wheeel went onto the double white line it snapped round and the front nudged a bank flipping the car over. Got out without a scratch!
I'll never be as lucky again.

[This message has been edited by MarkF (edited 22 February 2001).]

Cheeky Jim

One of two escapades....

1st when I was 17 and in my Mum's Austin Maestro (A real power machine!) anyway, I was doing about 70mph on a reasonably wide A road, and I came over the brow of a hill to be faced with a traffic jam at a set of traffic lights.....I stamped on the anchors and fortunately there was a filter lane for those wishing to turn right and it was empty.....I can still see the faces of people stuck in the traffic and me skidding past in a cloud of screeching tyres and blue smoke!!.....I really did think I was going to die.

The only other time was when I was riding a friends 1100 Virago, when braking for a roundabout I managed to lock the rear wheel, gave my self a tankslapper and then proceeded to do a great Superman impression as the bike threw me off!! I then proceeded to slide on my leathers into the inside lane of the roundabout.....I was sat there feeling a bit dazed when a car came round the bend and fortunately swerved at the last minute missing me by about 4 inches.... Another 'I am going to die moment'!


Jamie

simon_prickett

Two...

One on the way to Heathrow to pick up future father in law the day before my wedding, in appalling rain and wind, a load of bales of insulation fell off a truck a little way in front of me on the M40, had to severely test the ABS (had a Fiat Coupe 20v turbo then), but squeaked past without hitting anything (how I have no idea). Pulled off immediately and drank a lot of coffee.

The second in my old Fiat Punto going down the M1 to Leicester with 3 passengers, Peugeot 309 in front of us blew a tyre, span round, continued sliding backwards in front of us, hit the banking at the side of the motorway, did two barrel rolls and landed on its roof. The car's 5 occupants plus a dog survived unhurt which was a bl**dy miracle as an unsecured 21 inch monitor came out through the back window, the dog wasn't secured and the middle person in the back seat didn't have a seatbelt on. I was somewhat nervious by this point, but had the wherewithall to stop the driver of the 309 lighting a *** right next to the wreck. When we got to the restaurant we were going to I really felt like a whiskey or three, but of course was driving!

Nothing to report in the Scoob to date though

Simon.

NeilT

mine was on my motorbike, going through guildford, about 10 years back, 11pm at night on a 60mph straight road. Going pretty fast (well very fast), no traffic around, then came up to a vitara sitting on a side road waiting to pull out, so, slowed down (a bit), got to about 15 metres of her, then figured she wasnt going to pull out on me so wound it back, and what do you know.....she did - she pulled straight across my path at about 5 metres away. I just remember thinking oh F%ck this is it, i'm dead, and bracing for the impact. To this day I still dont know how I avoided her, it was almost like something picked me and the bike up and dumped me down on the other side of her.
Had to stop the bike after and get off as I shaking so much.

well thats my tale...

brickboy

One car and one bike one as well ...

In car, it was spinning my boss's 325i ... my first go in a sort-of prestige motor, damp bend with negative camber and a ridge in the road, and of course, a bootful in 2nd gear. Boy, when those 3-series let go, they let go *quick*! I was used to oversteer from MGs and Dolomites, but this was something else. A complete kerb-to-kerb spin, didn't hit anything, came to rest facing the wrong way, no damage but about 6 months tyre wear in 3 seconds.

On bike, it was shooting the crest of a hill on my trusty old X7 on an unknown road, to be faced with a 90-degree right hander 30 yards later. Luckily the road had a soft, high verge that curved up like a mini wall of death .... and it was summer so the verge was hard. The bike went up the verge and tracked round, rejoing the road as smooth as you like. Had to stop and smoke 3 tabs before I could carry on!

MattOz

Would have to be any time spent as a passenger with Harj in his Focus diesel!!

Did you know that that thing is actually quicker than a 22B? LOL

Matt

cwal1

On a Suzuki GSX750EF at the TT in 1984 I got to the end of Sulby straight where there is a sharp 50 mph 80 degree right hander over a bridge with 3 foot high brick walls and then a bit of a drop to the stream below.

Came to turn the bike in, started to accelerate at the apex, the fron wheel washed out and I went fron first into, then throught the brick wall and down to the stream. Didn't have time to think I was going to die but it was pretty scary. No broken bones just a scraped and dislocated thumb and a big repair bill.

Chris.

Paul Milton

Yep, with Harj!!! In the FOCUS! Blimey, in the snow on his estate! Harj....it was funny mate. And as for Matt Oz, it was his fault as he kept taking the pi$$ out of him for it. lol

On a serious note, my scariest moment was in a friends Lotus Carlton. He is a very good driver and not dangerous but one day we were making progress on a dual carriageway when It went into a single lane. Right hander, left hander then onto a long uphill straight. Over the brow of the hill come three bikers (at night) coming home from the Lord Lucan in Hants (a bike meet we were going to see) three abreast on the wrong side of the road over taking a car coming over the other side of the brow of the hill

Two of the bikes got over onto the right of us and in front of this car, the other then took evasive action to avoid both his mates and us and went up the left hand side of the car (smashing the wing mirror on my side ) as he went past...God only knows why my Mate never swerved left or right...because had he one or two of these maniacs would of been dead as would probably of we. My mate was not speeding either (at that point-given that we were approaching a hill where we knew that on the other side was an equal decline), these guys were seriously lucky...The guy (or gal) that smashed the mirror was soooo very lucky. We stopped in horror....did they? Did they bollox!

My friend who is a local police officer was the driver, and to this day he regrets not turning around to get their plates. It was seriously out of order. I am shocked at the fact that they did not stop, but we were more pleased that they were alive and could ride off.

Nutters, but not all bikers are mad.

(Edited because I just realised Paul was on my system last night. Muppet! )

Ronnie

[This message has been edited by Paul Milton (edited 22 February 2001).]

Pete Croney

Winding a pair of 1 litre Saxo's up to 185km/h on the A8 motorway down from Monte Carlo to Nice, only to take a racing line into a right hander and finding that not only did the bend go on for ever, but it tightened and tightened and *tightened*.

Being three up, with all of our luggage, the four wheel drift towards the centre reservation created a silence in the car that was deafening. Anders went translucent and Mark Coleman inhaled half a B&H in one drag.

With at least 50mm of tarmac to spare, we made the bend.

Oh how we laughed... a LONG time afterwards

If anyone thinks their wife/girlfriend gives them a hard time about speed, you should have had Anders in your car after this one

Nimbus

A LONG time ago on my bycycle, late at night coming back from my freinds house. Riding down a dual carriage way, I came to a roundabout and needed to go stright on. As I passed the first exit I saw a car comming out onto the roundabout and I though 'he's going to hit me!!' and sure enough he did. All I can remember if flying though the air and slidding along the tarmac. It was all in slow motion and a bit sureal.

Nothing broken (except my bike) and a few cuts and scraps.

Scared my parent more than it did me...

[This message has been edited by Nimbus (edited 22 February 2001).]

RonaldoH

LOL@Pete

I am still trying to get Anders to wince as a passenger, that must of been seriously scary.

darren f

Scariest moment? 0.5 seconds after I discovered I wasn't going to be a World Rally Champion, as my Mk2 Escort (I know, I know….. ) swopped ends on me, launched over a verge and rolled.

You can guess the scenario- 17 years old, passed test two months, first experience of driving on ice -there wasn't a straight panel left on the car. 'Friends' remarked how much better it looked afterwards.

Isn't it funny how things seem to go in slow motion? Too damn quick for my driving skills though!!


[This message has been edited by darren f (edited 22 February 2001).]

brickboy

cwal1 -- bloody hell, that was a lucky escape! Not many people get to demolish a brick wall and survive it ...

Luis

floating in gasoline and oil after my firends Dodge MY39 landed on the roof. No, this is not a typo, the car was really made in 1939!

Silver Surfer

When I was younger overtaking a few cars on the South Mimms roundabout and then as I turned off towards the M25 clockwise on a sharp left hander hitting a patch of diesel. Car span 180 degrees to face the cars I just overtaken. As it was dark they didn't have a clue what was going on!

Kev

Traveling back up to the Midlands on the M40 one night with the wife and kids and having a Yokohama blow-out on the front of my old XR2i, forget what people say about "opposite lock" etc it instantly dug in and spun the car around several times ( in slow motion ... why is it all in slow motion ?? ) We were just passengers it happened so quickly with barriers and headlights everywhere, how on earth the car missed everything .... but we ended up facing the oncoming traffic in lane 2 with headlights bearing down hard and wife/kids screaming ... in the usual UK way no one let me get the car to the hard shoulder for what seem like ages but I eventually got it over on the rim.... I then just sat there for about 10 minutes gathering thoughts and trying to calm everyone down .... but believe me I needed the most !!

Turned out I drove over a piece of metal which caused the fatal tyre damage ( did'nt see it, but the traffic car turned up and got the tyre casing off the road with the metal still in the sidewall and tread).... but I never cruise in any car now without both hands at 10 to 2 on the wheel in a firm but comfortable grip ....

K

ScoobyDoo555

My scariest moment was just before Christmas (last year). Driving from Kidderminster to Leominster, about 10 miles before Tenbury, Newnham Bridge. I was doing about 50 (I know, I know, EVERYBODY sez that, but I was).
Came to the brow of a hill. I know from 10 years of driving this road that you can overtake on the other side of this brow - not that I expected anybody to be doing so.

However, somebody was. Not a car. A lorry cab. Overtaking a gritting lorry.

All I remember was seeing the lights from both lorries flashing like mad, then bump, bump......

I'd somehow managed to pull onto the grass verge and skidded to a halt (never used the ABS in the Scoob - VERY harsh!!)

I sat there, car was covered in mud, just thinking "what the f$ck happened there?!"

If I had've connected with that lorry, I certainly wouldn't be hear today......

Dan (who drives even slower than he did before )

The other time was whilst I was looking for a Scoob. Found a very nice WRX Rsr (sports kit). I loved it. Came back next day with my then-pregnant wife and her parents. Of we went - she drove. The "salesman" was coaxing her "faster. faster - it's a sports car you know. It'll take it!"

We eventually came to a stop. The wife was a bit shaken up, so she sat in the back with me and the salesman drove us back with my father-in-law in the passenger side.

The salesman "decided to show us how the car sticks to the road like **** to a blanket" by doing 85mph around a 30mph country bend. Needless to say, we didn't make it. The car bounced off both sides of the road, ricocheting off the grass verges, and rested in the hedge......
10 seconds later, a car came up the road in the opposite direction.......

Very lucky. The guy even had the ***** to ask if I'd still buy the car if the damage was repaired!!!!

[This message has been edited by ScoobyDoo555 (edited 22 February 2001).]

PeteC

My first car, when I was at university, was a special (ie, a kit car). It looked a bit like an E-type coupe, and was quite quick - at least, it would see off all the MG Midgets, Sprites, Spitfires, etc, of its day. At some stage, the previous owner had decided to turn it into an open top car by cutting off the roof at the top of the front side pillars, but then later had converted it back to a hardtop.

The suspension was very hard and skittish, which led to a very exuberant driving style - you hung the back end out on the corners, balancing everything on steering and throttle, coming out of the corner on full bore. Great fun! The downside was that hitting any irregularity in the road surface, even a catseye, would be enough to jump the back end.

Anyway.......I was coming back to college late one night when I hit a patch of black ice where the road had been sheltered by a high hedge on the left side of the road, which at this point was dead straight. (Afterwards I found out that the ice was so bad that you could hardly stand up on it!). I think I must have caught one of the catseyes, or a stone or whatever, enough to get the back moving. There was absolutely nothing I could do about it. The car spun 180 degrees (in slow motion, of course), with me looking over my shoulder trying to see where I was going. It went backwards down the road, went through a fence on the other side of the road, down a bank, and crashed onto its roof. I can still remember thinking "I've bought it this time!", and praying "Please God, don't make it hurt".

I think I was knocked out, or blacked out, but when I came around, the first thing I noticed was the gearlever hanging down from the "ceiling" and thinking "That can't be right". I then realised I couldn't move, and then I heard something dripping. Logic sort of went out of the window, and despite the car being on its roof, I had visions of petrol dripping onto the exhaust, and panicked. Fortunately, I managed to fight my way out, and managed to thumb a lift in a lorry back to college.

I wasn't sure about whether or not I was supposed to report it, so the following morning I rang the local (to the accident) police station. The desk sergeant said that I didn't have to report it, but thanked me for calling. "At least I can call the lads off now" he said. Apparently, they'd noticed the car early that morning, had been convinced that no-one could have possibly survived the accident, and had been dragging a nearby stream in the belief that I'd crawled out of the wreckage, into the stream and died.

When I went back to look at the car later that day, I could see why. The pillock who'd had the car before me had made a real botch job of putting the roof back on, and there was no structural strength there at all. The whole lot had collapsed, and was level with the top of the dash, and the top of the seats - which weren't the high-back kind that you get today. The only space available were the driver's and passenger's footwells (and these weren't very large as this was a low slung sports car and you sat practically on the floor), and I'd obviously managed to get my head down into the passenger's footwell as the car rolled over. Without a doubt, if cars had had seatbelts in those days, then I would be dead.

TonyNesta

I have several to choose from, Chris (cwal1), you'll know about these......

1. Coming off a motorway slip road in my FWD Celica, greasy road, too fast into the roundabout, lost the front, corrected it and then did a complete 360 degree spin, without hitting anything ! Would have been cool if I had managed to keep the engine running....

2. Coming over the brow of a hill, at night, at high speed on my RD350YPVS. As I crest the hill, the road bends round to the right, too tight for me to make it; can't brake as I'm cranked over, so go onto the grass verge at about 70 mph. Manage to keep it upright over the bumps before hitting a molehill and dumping it at about 30 mph. Luckily no injuries, and not much damage.

3. On my RD125DX, before I passed my test (!) going for a 90 degree bend at Hampton Court before realising my square section tyres (Avon Speedmasters!) will not allow me to lean the bike sufficiently to get round the corner. Go straight on, across both lanes, in between oncoming traffic at about 30 mph, and manage to stop at the kerb. Had a tab, and made straight for the dry cleaners.

4. The most serious one. Driving along a dual carriageway at night on my RD350YPVS, just pulled away from lights so doing about 30 mph. Pedestrian steps into the road from behind a lamp post without warning and without looking - I later suspect he was drunk, but this was never proved.

No time to brake or take avoiding action - I hit him, the bike impacts a lamp post, I end up in the opposite carriageway with broken bones, trying to dodge traffic. We both end up in hospital, him requiring reconstructive surgery. Its at this point, I have my sympathy chip removed.

I was in hospital for a week, off work for six, and luckily my insurance company, after much investigation, find in my favour and I get paid out 2/3 what the bike was worth. I decide to call it a day, and buy a car.

See the results of this and other adventures at

Mungo

...Seeing something that looked like a wardrobe lying in my path in the outside lane on the M27 whilst doing about 110 in a Peug 205, with somebody on my inside . Didn't want to hit the brakes and cause a skid, so lifted off the gas and held on . The "something" turned out to be a double mattress that I hit at about a ton. The car went straight over it, and I came off the Mway at the first opportunity to checck the damage. None - except a load of mattress material and stuffing wrapped around the suspension arms . I changed my underwear and went on my way, a little more circumspect about speeding ...

Dazzler

After Christmas spent in Whitley Bay (North East) I drove my lady and I back to the South East in snowy conditions.
Obviously we used her Renault Clio !
Well, no problems for the whole journey, but when I got back, the little boy in me demanded I got the Scooby out for some fun on the snowy roads.
Well, I got as far as taking it off my drive and into a left hand turn off my road!!
Whacked the power down a little too vigorously at 5mph and slid helplessly towards a lampost, sideways.

In fact it was so slow I had time to wonder how much the damage was going to cost me. Fortunately I stopped inches before impact.

TAZ 2414

Have to be when I killed my last Scooby..

On an A road and over took a van on a straight before a S bend.. as I braked for the first bit of the S (left) the tarmac changed to a less abrasive type and the back stepped out, so I steered into it and got it straight but having had to apply power to get it back I was going way to fast for the bend which was coming up (righthand) and braked again and the back again stepped out and I put the rear of the car across the verge on the left hand side and took out three black and white bollards, get the car straight with a little bounce off a tree from the back only to be on the wrong side of the road and hit a people carrier head on.
The scariest bit was the realisation that after losing it and regaining it twice I was now going to hit this people carrier still going quick...

Impact was about 90mph at a guess...

See