Cops Nab Speeder Bragging Online

[austin552]

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2007260136,00.html

[Steve PH]

That will never stand up in court, speedo readings are not accurate enough to prosecute. For the police to get an idea of how fast he was really travelling the fuzz would need video evidence with some identifiable land marks, so they could work out speed by time and distance.

[Joeaksa]

Hope it does not hold up. No LE officer was there and if it is shoved through then this is the start of a slide downhill.

In Germany if one normal citizen sees someone doing something that they feel is illegal they can then contact the police and file a complaint against them. Unless the other person can prove that the offense did not happen then the police will ticket them!

Something like this is exactly what we do not need!

[notfarnow]

On the other hand, I'd love to see people fined based on the videos THEY shoot of themselves doing 100mph on city streets. I would have no sympathy for them.

I speed on the highways, and am willing to suck it up if I get caught, but I have no tolerance for people that use city streets as raceways and proving grounds.

I don't know where the line should be drawn. I've only done ~110mph in a 911, because that's all I felt comfortable with. I know many of you have done 140+ mph. I actually think there's a time & place for that. Dawn... no cars around... you're the only person being put at risk. Many of you are very good drivers who know their cars' limits.


Here's a video of a guy doing 200mph on a public highway.


What happens if he loses it? Great car, and yeah I'd want to do 200 mph too, but on a track. I have to assume that anyone willing to pass cars on the highway at 200mph is just not a good driver. I don't think anyone with real skills would do that; they'd understand how risky it is.

[holtjv]

Wow. The video is really irresponsible but damn incredible--you can appreciate the speed.

[notfarnow]

Originally posted by holtjv
Wow. The video is really irresponsible but damn incredible--you can appreciate the speed.

I agree 100%

I'm a car nut, and I love the sight & sound of the GT at speed. It's the fact that he's passing cars at 200mph that bothers me. If it had a completely clear highway it probably wouldn't bother me.

However, I think the fact that he films himself commiting a crime begs for police attention. Youtube is full of videos like this... just search "200 mph" or "180mph". If I did something as reckless as that, there is no way I'd film it and post it online.

As for admissability of the online "evidence": How would you feel if someone bragged about driving after a drinking 6 pack, and posted a shot of their breathalizer results? Would you be comfortable that there's enough proof that a crime was committed?

I guess I'm sensitive to the issue because I live in a 30mph street, and regularly have people speeding past my house at 50-60mph. I am putting a stop to it though; I have a plan. I'm turning into the crotchety old man of the neighborhood.

[cashflyer]

I kind of like that VX220...

"...ostensibly a Lotus Elise with a nicer engine...

It would be easy to dismiss the VX220 as nothing more than re-bodied Elise. The two cars were, after all, developed by the same people. Easy, but incorrect. In reality, the two cars are defined by their engines.

In place of the 1.8-litre 120bhp MGTF unit found on the standard Elise, the VX220 is powered by an altogether more potent 2.2-litre 145bhp powerplant..."

Or the turbo version with a 2.0 litre Astra GSi engine producing 200bhp.

[speeder]

Originally posted by notfarnow
What happens if he loses it? Great car, and yeah I'd want to do 200 mph too, but on a track.

Which track were you thinking of where one could go 200 mph safely? I don't disagree that going 200 on a public road w/ other vehicles present is irresponsible, but the fantasy that there is a track somewhere nearby (or far away) where you can swing by, pay a few bucks and go 200 is laughable.

First of all, the few tracks where that speed is even physically possible are probably all NASCAR ovals with cement walls on the outside of the turns. Yes, the only remotely safe place to go 200 mph and live to tell about it is on a deserted highway. A very long, straight, empty highway preferably with clear conditions and visibility of 2 miles+. Such stretches exist all over the western USA, and maybe elsewhere. (I wouldn't know).

Once again, before someone with poor reading comprehension jumps down my throat, I am not advocating driving that fast! But if you do, it will be a lot safer on a deserted highway than any track. Race tracks are designed to be challenging to drive fast on, and public highways are designed with the exact opposite criteria. (By damn good engineers, I might add). This statement is proven every time some goofball like the guy on youtube or some drunk in a stolen PU truck is getting chased by the cops on TV. These dickwads wouldn't make it 1/3 of the way around Willow Springs w/o getting sheet metal up their ass.

[notfarnow]

Originally posted by speeder
Which track were you thinking of where one could go 200 mph safely? I don't disagree that going 200 on a public road w/ other vehicles present is irresponsible, but the fantasy that there is a track somewhere nearby (or far away) where you can swing by, pay a few bucks and go 200 is laughable.

Bonneville. El Mirage. Maxton.

But a good point. There really aren't many proper venues for doing 200mph. Even R&T and C&D used a public road, albeit nearly abandoned, to do many top speed tests.

Still, if top speed is your bag, then maybe yearly events by the SCTA or ECTA are a better venue.

[Hawktel]

The only place I can think of that you can possibly do the 200 legal, and in relative safety is the Bonneville Salt Flats.

Safety being no concrete wall to eat when it all goes south.

[Tervuren]

I'd say Talladega is the only race track in the US I'd feel 200MPH+ speeds is achievable with a normal street legal setup without pushing things too hard, Daytona has possibilities as well. There are a few test circuits and facilities that have much larger tracks than the NASCAR ones that would probably be a better place.

I agree with the other posters, the interstates/highways are in some stretches built for speed. The biggest issue is wildlife - most tracks are fenced in, and they can keep track if anything breaks through and stop the race or testing. ON an interstate, a deer can come from no where. I've had one fly in front of me - and STOP on a deserted road twice in the short time I've been driving. I was going 35MPH...it was no problem. Almost every 944 collision I know of, involved wildlife running in front during spirited driving.

All the interstates are woods lined here, unless you are in the city - then you have traffic. Fastest I've ever gone was below 100MPH on a long bridge. Notice how I say that? I could of been doing 65MPH, 90, whatever... its dumb to give an exact speed, always say "somewhere below..."

[Tyson Schmidt]

The Nurburgring has several straights that are long enough for any car to reach it's terminal velocity.

The guy in the VX220 is practically local to that track........... er, I mean public toll road.

[speeder]

Yes, but doesn't the 'ring also have a stretch or two with an invisible dip or something that kills amateurs in Ferraris and Lambos?

[Tervuren]

Originally posted by Tyson Schmidt
The Nurburgring has several straights that are long enough for any car to reach it's terminal velocity.

The guy in the VX220 is practically local to that track........... er, I mean public toll road.

The group C 962's where only hitting 190 there in qualifying - and they set the record pace. I know of no normal road car equipped with normal road equipment hitting 200 there. I believe a C-GT hits about 180MPH on the main straight in the hands of a local racing driver who does a lot of test driving for cars.

The 'ring will bite you if your goal is top speed, a US highway is still safer. I don't live in the UK to comment on this particular story.

[Steve PH]

Originally posted by Tervuren
I don't live in the UK to comment on this particular story. [/B]

The speed was allegedly achieved on a British Motorway, Motorways were originally designed as derestricted roads.

Your average British motorway looks like this..



So long as its quiet you can see for a mile or so and in theory high speeds are pretty safe, just as long as the police don't catch you!

[Tervuren]

Originally posted by Steve PH
The speed was allegedly achieved on a British Motorway, Motorways were originally designed as derestricted roads.

Your average British motorway looks like this..



So long as its quiet you can see for a mile or so and in theory high speeds are pretty safe, just as long as the police don't catch you!

By derestricted, do normal lane rules not apply? I know on most UK roads the middle lane is for passing only, right lane for high speed traffic, and left lane for exiting/entering/slow traffic. That picture shows all the lanes in use.

[Steve PH]

The modern basic Motorway rules are pretty straight forward..

70 Mph limit (Boo Hiss!)
Lane one is for cruising, lane 2 is for overtaking stuff in lane one and lane 3 is for overtaking vehicles in lane 2, simple!

In reality lane discipline in the Uk is actually not too good and it is rarely enforced, at times you get lots of dim witted drivers just cruising in lanes two and three, its f@cking annoying!

[Tyson Schmidt]

Originally posted by Tervuren
The group C 962's where only hitting 190 there in qualifying - and they set the record pace. I know of no normal road car equipped with normal road equipment hitting 200 there. I believe a C-GT hits about 180MPH on the main straight in the hands of a local racing driver who does a lot of test driving for cars.

The 'ring will bite you if your goal is top speed, a US highway is still safer. I don't live in the UK to comment on this particular story.

I'm saying most cars can reach their own top speed at this track, not that they can reach 180 or 200.

I guarantee my C2 can reach it's top speed at the 'Ring.

[Zeke]

Jake, I have to agree with you, although I have driven somewhat faster in a 911 and felt comfortable with the car, maybe not so much the surroundings. However, even never having been anywhere near 200 MPH, I really don't think the video you linked showed 200 either. It didn't take long enough for the car to reach 200 in my estimation. Watching nearly 900 HP NASCARs at Pocono today go from 115 to 190 took about as long as that video took. Maybe he had the beans, it sounded healthy, but he didn't even get the 8500 RPM that the 190 boys were seeing, again, in my estimation.

Anyway, the cameras are here, this thread will only be the norm in a matter of time.

[Rick Lee]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
Hope it does not hold up. No LE officer was there and if it is shoved through then this is the start of a slide downhill.

In Germany if one normal citizen sees someone doing something that they feel is illegal they can then contact the police and file a complaint against them. Unless the other person can prove that the offense did not happen then the police will ticket them!

Something like this is exactly what we do not need!

Good thing no one reported us when I went for a ride along with one of the techs from Ruf. He got up to 330 km/h on that country road and there were some other cars out there that saw us. Unreal. I have never been so scared in my life.