Top Gear crash a CCXR valued at £606,000
- Thread starter Slick Rick
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Keef
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The author did say that the rear diffuser had been removed by an engineer and, presumably, not reattached. That lack of downforce could very well have contributed to the lack of control. But once you hit a wall of a cone and shatter a rim there's not much that'll save you.
Blackbird.
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Excuse my possible ignorance but how does one engineer's mistake effect their chances at participating in a racing series? I'm sure Koenigsegg has more then just a few engineers?
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Not to mention the fact that all the teams have their own engineers.
Anyway, I think this crash is just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Once they'd hit that cone, any downforce that would have been created by the venturi probably wouldn't have stopped them spinning. Besides, even if the venturi had been fitted, it wouldn't have been much use if the car was skidding "along on its flat underbelly like a plastic sledge." If there's no air under the car, there's no downforce being produced under the car.
Still, quite what the engineer was doing travelling at ~120mph along what looks like a narrow poorly surfaced B-road, with farms, and so tractors, along the roadside is another matter entirely.
Anyway, I think this crash is just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Once they'd hit that cone, any downforce that would have been created by the venturi probably wouldn't have stopped them spinning. Besides, even if the venturi had been fitted, it wouldn't have been much use if the car was skidding "along on its flat underbelly like a plastic sledge." If there's no air under the car, there's no downforce being produced under the car.
Still, quite what the engineer was doing travelling at ~120mph along what looks like a narrow poorly surfaced B-road, with farms, and so tractors, along the roadside is another matter entirely.
Ouch... I wonder if the engineer gets to keep his job? 
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GilesGuthrie
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This is just flat-out wrong. Top Gear did not crash the car. It was a manufacturer-appointed driver who crashed the car after performing modifications on it and then driving far in excess of the speed limit on a public road.
Mindlessly attributing Top Gear to the crash is what's causing the mass-hysteria levelled against the programme and the magazine.
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Yea thats true, fair enough. Would it have been better if I posted 'Top Gear involved in a crash with a CCXR valued at £606,000' ?
GilesGuthrie
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You could even say "£606,0000 CCXR crashed during Top Gear feature preparation", then you pique all the TG-bashers' interest, but the back-story tells the whole truth.
The more I think about it, the more it annoys me that the Koenigsegg engineer was so irresponsible. I could (I think) condone the 120mph, and I could condone the modification to fit the camera, but to combine them is lunacy. Would he have done same if the modification had been a special 'let's remove the brake calipers to save weight' one?
The more I think about it, the more it annoys me that the Koenigsegg engineer was so irresponsible. I could (I think) condone the 120mph, and I could condone the modification to fit the camera, but to combine them is lunacy. Would he have done same if the modification had been a special 'let's remove the brake calipers to save weight' one?
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Top Gear didn't crash a CCXR, they got played by a fake Koeniggsegg engineer who was actually a bum that just walked onto the test site at the perfect moment.
No engineer in charge of such a unique and specialized car would dare drive in the condition of that bum.
From what I gather, the spoiler wasn't fixed and some kind of trunk lid wasn't fixed either. On top of that they were riding convertible? Or did I get that mixed up? (in any case, it didn't sound safe).
None the less, top gear did not crash that car.
Who crashed that car? A man claiming to be an engineer from Koeniggsegg. Was he really who he claimed? I hope not.
No engineer in charge of such a unique and specialized car would dare drive in the condition of that bum.
From what I gather, the spoiler wasn't fixed and some kind of trunk lid wasn't fixed either. On top of that they were riding convertible? Or did I get that mixed up? (in any case, it didn't sound safe).
None the less, top gear did not crash that car.
Who crashed that car? A man claiming to be an engineer from Koeniggsegg. Was he really who he claimed? I hope not.
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Top Gear didn't crash a CCXR, they got played by a fake Koeniggsegg engineer who was actually a bum that just walked onto the test site at the perfect moment.
No engineer in charge of such a unique and specialized car would dare drive in the condition of that bum.
From what I gather, the spoiler wasn't fixed and some kind of trunk lid wasn't fixed either. On top of that they were riding convertible? Or did I get that mixed up? (in any case, it didn't sound safe).
None the less, top gear did not crash that car.
Who crashed that car? A man claiming to be an engineer from Koeniggsegg. Was he really who he claimed? I hope not.
If you think about it, it actually does make sense. The guy had taken the spoiler off, but when he put it back on, it wasn't attached properly. Which makes me wonder, did it fall off before the cone, because it probably could've stood a good chance of staying on until grinding the bottom of the car, the time where downforce would be needed the most. The other part of the car that came off was the roof, which is what scared the passenger.
I'm sure it was a man from Koenigsegg who crashed it. He had probably driven the car lots before. He probably knew the limits and was going a ways below them.
There was a cone in his line. There is not a lot one can do once they hit a ten-pound cone mid-corner while going at a reasonable pace. This kind of thing probably could've happened to the likes of Micheal Schumacher of Kimi.
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No.
The engineer unbolted the venturi to put a camera mount on. It wasn't reattached. He then drove the car from one location to another at over twice the national speed limit.
120mph without 100kg of rear downforce makes for a skittish car - maybe well below the limits of the car normally, but well in excess of them without a vital mechanical component.
The engineer compromised the car and then compromised himself by travelling too fast for the conditions - if you cannot stop the vehicle within the distance you can see then you are travelling too fast. The fact he couldn't avoid the cone is an indicator of this. From the moment the cone was impacted, the journey was over - but the crash was virtually inevitable when driving too fast without vital parts of the vehicle attached.
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Not wanting to defend the engineer, who was obviously a complete tool, but he didn't forget to bolt on the venturi. He just forgot that it had been taken off when he decided to show off on public roads in a customers car. Hmmm on second thoughts, he is just a tool. Plain and simple.
Cool skidmarks though
Cool skidmarks though
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A venturi is a channel which expands in cross-section. In automotive terms, they are generally found at the underside of the rear of the car. Road cars don'thave them as a general rule even if they look as if they do (e.g. Aston Martin V8 Vantage.) But, the Aston Martin DBR9 has a whopper. (Well done lads!)
As air flows under the car, the venturi tunnel, increasing in size under the car, lowers the air pressure inside the venturi. The higher air pressure above the rear of the car thus pushes the back of the car down.
I'd post a pic, but I'm lazy. Try Wiki-ing it, or 'Howthingswork.com'.
[WIKIPEDIA]Venturi_effect[/WIKIPEDIA]
V.
Oh, and the guy driving the car was a donkey. I show off a little when I'm driving our 'company cars', but nothing like taking blind bends at 120mph. He deserves the sack and having his licence revoked.
As air flows under the car, the venturi tunnel, increasing in size under the car, lowers the air pressure inside the venturi. The higher air pressure above the rear of the car thus pushes the back of the car down.
I'd post a pic, but I'm lazy.
Try Wiki-ing it, or 'Howthingswork.com'.[WIKIPEDIA]Venturi_effect[/WIKIPEDIA]
V.
Oh, and the guy driving the car was a donkey. I show off a little when I'm driving our 'company cars', but nothing like taking blind bends at 120mph. He deserves the sack and having his licence revoked.
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