It's never an accident....

[McLaren]

http://www.businessweek.com/autos/content/jun2006/bw20060608_466074.htm

The American Way?

 

[amp88]

The American Way?

I was tempted to say "Only in America", but I think you've already got that covered

On a more serious note though, obviously this woman has lost her husband. That's a terrible thing. It shouldn't happen to anyone. However, that's life, accidents happen and sadly people lose their loved ones. To try to sue Porshce, the track, the other drivers etc though is, IMO, stupid. Yes, stupid. Motor racing is dangerous, hundreds of people have died over the years, not only competing in races but in private test sessions and track days like this. No matter what you do to try and make things safer (more run off areas, adding chicanes to slow cars down, increasing size and depth of tyre walls, using safer barriers etc) there will always be accidents, some of them fatal. It sounds like the Ferrari driver made a mistake, pulling out in front of the Carrera GT, but even if it was the Ferrari driver's fault, everyone on the circuit would have signed the release form. They knew the dangers, they knew what they could have been letting theirselves in for.

To try to sue Porsche claiming they knowingly built an inherently unsafe car is ludicrous. I just can't fathom this at all. The fact that her lawyer has already won a similar case is gobsmacking. Supercars typically have been, are and probably always will be 'difficult' to drive. They're not supposed to be family hatchbacks for taking the children to school. Unless there was an actual mechanical fault with the car (cracked/damaged suspension for example) I really hope she doesn't win this part of the lawsuit. If she does win and this type of case gains popularity, people like her are going to force supercar makers to totally sanitise their cars in order to be 'safe' or pull out of the US totally. Sanitising them would be crazy, part of the appeal is that they're supposed to be totally different to everything else. Not to mention the fact that it's impossible to make anything completely safe, nevermind a car. With any human behind the wheel (inexperienced or not) of any car, there's always a chance they could have an accident, killing themselves, their passengers and any pedestrians. It's a risk people take. Most people can accept this inherint risk, most people are reasonable.

As I see them, the facts of the matter are this:

• Her husband went for a track day.
• Her husband signed the release form.
• Her husband knew motorsport could be dangerous.
• Her husband willingly got into another driver's car.
• Her husband was killed in a crash almost certainly because of driver error, not because of the Carrera GT.

 

[Sting]

Tail happy.... erm, doesn't the Carrera GT have a rear wing to keep the rear in check, and anyway doesn't it say the driver is a former racer? So that BS about the car not being safe in untrained hands is out the window because I'll be damned if being a former racer is not training enough.

 

[ExigeEvan]

Surely this will mean guns, knives and staplers will require proper training before they can be used correctly?

 

[jimihemmy]

Well, here is how I see it.....

First let me say, I don't race cars and I don't have a personal car powerful enough to even consider racing or taking to a track.

I can understand the point of view of the wife wanting some compensation for the early departure of her husband. But really, who is at fault?

1. The track? No. The track should not be liable because they were not controlling the club.

2. The Club? well, maybe....the flagman sent the car out, saw the impedening danger and tried to stop them.

3. The Ferrari driver? a little. I would bet, that everyone who drives (whether at a track, race, or just to the grocery store) knows to look out for other drivers as well as driving however is safe for them. Granted, he was at a track, why wouldn't he be going faster? Could've been his first time at a track...

4. Driver of the Carrera GT? hard to prove...who knows what he told passenger while driving? How do we know he did not discuss the problem with his potential buyer?

I think both drivers are at some fault...both should have been looking for other cars as they drove. I'm not buying that the car was 'defective'.

I mean, c'mon, it's a Porsche!

 

[Sting]

Surely this will mean guns, knives and staplers will require proper training before they can be used correctly?

and possibly even waterbombs!

It's a silly case, she should realise her husband knew the risks involved with track days and accept that there were harsh consequences to her husbands actions/decisions.

I swear America is the leading country for being sued. lol

 

[Danoff]

This probably won't go anywhere.

 

[Kylehnat]

I swear America is the leading country for being sued. lol

That's because nobody in this country wants to have any sort of accountability for their own actions (or in this case, the actions of a loved one). That, and we're very greedy, wanting money for any sort of setback we face.

 

[DuckRacer]

This probably won't go anywhere.

Yep, like the people who sued McDonalds because they got fat.

 

[Cosmic]

OT :

Yep, like the people who sued McDonalds because they got fat.

 

[3-Wheel Drive]

What happened to personal responsibility? The driver was a professional, so "not safe in untrained hands" is completely out of the question. He knew he was having control issues, and took a passenger along with him. He knew the risks, drove it fast (knowing he was having some handling problems), screwed up, and paid the price. Did he inform the passenger of the problems? We may never know. If he did, then the passenger willingly took a risk. Accidents happen.

Is the flagman at fault? Possibly. He could be if he sent a car out when he shouldn't have, and then it doesn't matter if he tried to correct the mistake. He still didn't follow procedure, and would be liable. So that is possible. The track shouldn't be liable, they have wavers one must sign warning of risks, although the decision to move the safety wall closer to accomodate a playground should be looked into (why did they?). Porche shouldn't be liable, people should realize these are extreme cars, and can be dangerous if handled carelessly. And the Ferrari driver? All he knew was he was allowed onto the track. First time nerves could cause hesitation. Other drivers should know that not all cars will go incredibly fast around the track, not everyone has done it before.

People suing others for inherintly dangerous activities make me upset. I ride dirt bikes, and one of my favorite places was closed because someone hurt themselves, and the owner stopped letting people in because she feared a lawsuit (This place was simply some private property that the owner allowed use of the trails for $5). She didn't want to get sued. A motocross park nearby got closed for almost a year while the owners fought a lawsuit (thankfully they won), because some kid broke a leg racing.

People get hurt doing dangerous things, and it's almost always their own damn fault. But instead of taking responsibilty, people these days love to blame others, beacuse it makes them feel better, and makes them "free" money, nevermind the fact that that is taxpayers' money, and they are taxpayers, too. THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH, PEOPLE! Every action has consequences, and the sooner this is realized, the better off we all will be.

 

[Dave A]

This might be the real reason why you don't get TVR's in America yet, can you imagin the court cases .

 

[Swift]

I can understand how they could sue the track because it seems there was some serious negligence. But dang, I hate it that people think that just because they can afford a car, they can DRIVE a car.

I've been to the track several times and I wouldn't even consider driving anything with 605bhp on a track without a good amount of professional instruction. Why would anyone else do less?

It's tail happy? Well duh!! It's a MR car with 605 HP, it's going to oversteer. It's a simple matter of understanding basic driving dynamics. Why is it so hard for some rich people to get that? Dang, even reading car and driver would let them know that.

 

[Dave A]

The problem today is that people don't acknowlegde things a simple as a lack of common sense like they used to, they do something stupid and it results in something bad happening. Something or someone has to be at fault for that which is fair enough, but it's becoming rarer and rarer for the blame to rest on a lack of common sense. Microwaves get hot inside, but I'd never use one to dry one of my cats if it came in from the rain (and yes it has been done, and the woman that did it took the microwave company to court because it killed the cat).

 

[Swift]

Microwaves get hot inside, but I'd never use one to dry one of my cats if it came in from the rain (and yes it has been done, and the woman that did it took the microwave company to court because it killed the cat).

What a stupid woman!!! I could understand the dryer, but the microwave!

 

[xXSilencerXx]

That is retarded. You know full well what you're gettin into when you buy a car like that. It was his choice. It was a straight up accident you can't blame the car.

 

[Speedy Samurai]

What a stupid woman!!! I could understand the dryer, but the microwave!

I recently read of an incident where a young man put his two month old baby in the drier because she spilled some drink on herself. She had some minor bruises and burns, and he went to court.

 

[Famine]

You know why they put warning signs on products? It's for stupid people. If stupid people had a sign we wouldn't need warning labels - or you could just not sell them the product.

"I'm sorry, I... can't sell you that."
"Duuuh why not?
Oh I forgot!"

You know what it says on a packet of Preparation H? "Do not take this orally". Well isn't that just sad? 'Cos you know, someone wrote them a letter... "Dear Preparation H, I ate this whole dang tube and I still got piles. Man my mouth so small I can't even eat a jelly bean. I can whistle real good though."

On the side of a can of shaving foam, you know what it says? "Do not use near a naked flame." Where the hell was that guy shaving at? Sitting round the camp fire... "Feelin' a little bristly *chhhhhhhhhhhhhhh* Mmmmm, smooth.

On my hairdryer it says "Do not use this while sleeping". Well Lord hasn't that become a problem? 'Cos I can't count the number of times I've been sound asleep, woke up and I've been doing my hair. "Honey, I've been sleep-stylin' again". It says "Do not use this hairdryer in the shower". Well what kind of idiot goes "Honey, I'm done shampooin' my hair! Toss in that hairdryer!". You know on the side of the shampoo it says "Rinse, lather, repeat, rinse, lather, repeat"? There's some idiots still in the shower, 'cos it doesn't say "Dry your hair off and try again tomorrow man".

(and so on)