Ever had a car try to kill you ?

[fastfredracing]

Just test drove a 1990 mustang gt with a supercharger that has not been on the road since 2013.
The car is running terrible and it has really spongy brakes . Last time I drove this car, I remember it being crazy fast .
So, I am coming back from my normal 1/2 mile test drive on the back road by my shop . The car is spitting and sputtering, backfiring etc. Im in 3rd gear about 2 k rpms going maybe 35 ish mph . I decide to boot it and see if it will clear its throat.
Throttle sticks wide open, I see the boost gauge go for the moon, and both rear tires are spinning voilently as I am going sideways heading for the guardrails . I stab the brakes and they do not slow the thing even slightly .
Thankfully, I have had this drill before, and I was able to get the cluth in and twist they key off before I exploded or wrecked, but I need a new set of drawers .
Got any good ones ?

[flatbutt]

Not in a car or so much detail but my old Kawasaki 2 stroke triple was always trying to kill me. Marshmallow brakes and a gumby frame make for very sporty riding.

[GH85Carrera]

I was driving a friends SS 396 Chevelle that he called the light switch as it was either idling or WOT with a very high compression cammed up engine. It was a pain to keep at a steady speed and the slightest throttle made it take off. All of a sudden it started raining. I was terrified as I drove across a bridge. It was spinning the tires with the lightest of touches to the throttle, and with full positraction, the rear was flopping around like a fish. As soon as I got off the bridge, I pulled over and said you drive this thing back.

He sold it soon after.

[Tim Hancock]

'72 240Z in college.... When I first bought it, it had worn tires and an auto trans (I later installed 4 speed manual).

Mid 80's... me and a buddy were cruising along on a rainy day doing about 55 and a good song came on the radio. I punched it and when it downshifted it instantly went into a high speed 360 degree spin with 2 lanes of oncoming traffic and traffic behind us... Somehow I gathered it up and somehow we avoided getting hit by any cars. Lesson learned..... Never mash the go fast pedal with bald tires on wet slick asphalt in lightweight car with auto trans and non posi rear end while in heavy traffic.

Had even scarier incidents in airplanes, on streetbikes, on motocross bikes and in a dirt track race car.

[oldE]

The '73 Torino I had was not a cold weather car. The automatic choke would stick on at times. The immediate response to a stuck auto choke was a quick stab at the throttle. That was fine and good until the morning the choke did not release and another hit on the throttle caused the choke to come off and the throttle to stick wide open on a snow covered street. Turning the key off allowed me to coast into the yard of a convenience store. They had no gas line de-icer, but a bottle of rubbing alcohol poured over the linkage got things freed up so I could get to the nearest gas station where de-icer was available. The car was not over powered, but full throttle on a slippery surface gets your attention. I was almost glad when that car rusted out a year or so later.
Best
Les

[stevej37]

Numerous times when on my bike.

[Tim Hancock]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

I was driving a friends SS 396 Chevelle that he called the light switch as it was either idling or WOT with a very high compression cammed up engine. It was a pain to keep at a steady speed and the slightest throttle made it take off. All of a sudden it started raining. I was terrified as I drove across a bridge. It was spinning the tires with the lightest of touches to the throttle, and with full positraction, the rear was flopping around like a fish. As soon as I got off the bridge, I pulled over and said you drive this thing back.

He sold it soon after.

Before I put modern bigger wheels and tires on it a couple years ago, our '69 SS396 Chevelle could at times even chirp the tires when shifting to fourth gear. Not a good car for cruising high speeds the way it is geared and with it's big block engine have to run at very high rpm at 70 mph, but my god when effing around at lower speeds that thing was squirrely with it's period correct 14" old hard tires. Now with these new wider stickier modern tires it barely chirps when shifting to second.

[oldE]

At a distillery in Scotland the guide was taking my wife and me back to the visitors' center when we passed by an old Citroën DS. I pointed it out to the Missus with a brief mention of the suspension ( it was sitting on its bump stops) when the guide offered to show us how his car would come to normal ride height when the engine started. While the car was putting on its show, the guide told us about the day he was coming over the road from Balmoral to Granton on Spey and on a long twisting down hill, the belt for the hydraulic pump broke. That robbed the car of brake boost, steering assist and suspension travel. He said it was like guiding a wooden cart with practically no way to slow down and a reluctance to turn down the mountain .
We had been down that road earlier in the week. I was impressed he survived.

Best
Les

[3rd_gear_Ted]

Being able to reach into a Porsche and access the ignition key was my problem.
My son was going to start my car at the racetrack and it unknown to him it was in gear.
Being a Porsche it started right up and started heading across the paddock toward a new GT3.
My son surfed the paddock on his size 13's until he could turn key off. The GT3 owner and me were so lucky

[1990C4S]

My 996 had bad rear tires and terrible rear toe adjustment (hence the bald tires). It was so twitchy in the rain I stopped at a shop and the car put up on the hoist, I was sure something was broken/loose. Nope, just terrible alignment, wet roads, and bad tires. I did about 45 MPH max on the highway that day. It was the only time a car has scared me.

My 74 911 throttle stuck once, a combination of key off/clutch in saved me, but not the valves. It was not scary; it was just expensive.

[pwd72s]

I had a then new 1965 Pontiac GTO. 'Nuff said.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by Tim Hancock

Before I put modern bigger wheels and tires on it a couple years ago, our '69 SS396 Chevelle could at times even chirp the tires when shifting to fourth gear. Not a good car for cruising high speeds the way it is geared and with it's big block engine have to run at very high rpm at 70 mph, but my god when effing around at lower speeds that thing was squirrely with it's period correct 14" old hard tires. Now with these new wider stickier modern tires it barely chirps when shifting to second.

Yea, all of my story happened on bias ply tires. Even in the dry it would smoke the tires at almost any speed with street tires. When he put the drag slicks on it for the drag strip it was a real beast. I was used to driving my 36 HP VW bug so it was a different universe for me. Radial tires were just starting to hit the market back then.

I have had my tame 350 El Camino since 1991, and it has limited slip rear end. In the rain, turning right, I simply know, go SLOW or it will loop around instantly as the rear tires spin with zero traction control. After 382,000 miles and not even a single close call I am used to it.

[pavulon]

[rfuerst911sc]

I was at a PCA autocross in Florida with my 83 SC coupe . Was in 3rd gear with go pedal floored and it stuck ! The telephone pole was fast approaching so I slammed on the brakes and turned off the ignition .

I remember the throttle linkage behind the gas pedal messed up . I was able to fix it at the event and drove home . Not sure what was darker , the black skid marks from my full panic tire stop or the mark left in my underwear 😋

[ErVikingo]

my ex brother in law's Mach 1. I had a flat on my car and he offered me to take his Mach home. Nice, I went for the brakes at the end of the block......... nothing. Downshift and e brake.

Decades later I wonder......

[greglepore]

Bike. BMW K1200, 2 up, on a 2 lane road in southcentral Pa. Whacked the throttle wide open to pass a cement truck, cable broke/jammed, and throttled stayed wide open. Bikes accelerate FAST even 2 up-thank god for the kill switch.

[911 Rod]

I had the throttle return spring on my 911 break while on track. Strange thing was the return was intermittent. Fun times.

[RANDY P]

Mercedes W123, throttle stuck during a hard punch in Las Vegas traffic.

rjp

[Zeke]

Seems like a stuck throttle is the majority. Thankfully throttles and brakes have always worked for me. Before I learned about throttle lift oversteer I spun a 356 Speedster off an on ramp and was damn lucky to not have rolled it in the dirt. Wasn't mine and it cost me about everything I had at the moment to pay for repairs out of pocket.

Kinda never liked the 356 after that. Had one for a year but sold it because I didn't like the way if drove, handled and stopped. It was a B with drum brakes.

[p911dad]

My homemade minibike tried once when I was about 12. Throttle got stuck open and I jumped off into my grandmother's big flower bed. Minibike just needed another adjustment. I added a kill switch after that.