What speed do you think?

[Laney760]

I guess this question might be as stupid as asking how long is a piece of string but I'll ask anyway :-)

Somebody I know has, under much duress, lent their Fiat Punto to an ******** who has driven it into a kerb, in a 30mph limit, resultant damage the wheel is actually bent at an angle to the car, the wishbone needs replacing, the car is undrivable

I know these cars are of low build quality but I am now wondering if high speed is clearly a factor here? Or is it difficult to say, could it just be the angle at which the kerb was struck?

[The Hooded Claw]

To break a Wishbone (Rather than bend it) ???? gotta be well over 45 Mph & It'll have totally SCREWED the Steering geometry & possibly the Steering Rack as well !!!

NOT GOOD AT ALL !!!!

[volvo always]

Originally Posted by Laneystrider

I guess this question might be as stupid as asking how long is a piece of string but I'll ask anyway :-)

Somebody I know has, under much duress, lent their Fiat Punto to an ******** who has driven it into a kerb, in a 30mph limit, resultant damage the wheel is actually bent at an angle to the car, the wishbone needs replacing, the car is undrivable

I know these cars are of low build quality but I am now wondering if high speed is clearly a factor here? Or is it difficult to say, could it just be the angle at which the kerb was struck?

I can't answer your above question but when I was learning to drive in a volvo 340GL I turned right and went in on the wrong angle and clobbered a high kerb and mounted it on the passenger front. It was at about 10mph. No damage at all!! Amazing
A friend of mine had a new fiat panda and both front shock absorbers needed to be replaced within 2 years at different times as they leaked fluid. He is a very carefull and steady driver.

James

[Moosejaw]

If they're admitting to 30 then it's 40 at least, although Puntos aren't the most robust cars in the world it must be said.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Laneystrider

I guess this question might be as stupid as asking how long is a piece of string but I'll ask anyway :-)

Somebody I know has, under much duress, lent their Fiat Punto to an ******** who has driven it into a kerb, in a 30mph limit, resultant damage the wheel is actually bent at an angle to the car, the wishbone needs replacing, the car is undrivable

I know these cars are of low build quality but I am now wondering if high speed is clearly a factor here? Or is it difficult to say, could it just be the angle at which the kerb was struck?

It is difficult to say , the newer the car the easier it is to bend the suspension however , and also the angle of the hit is a big factor . 30 mph is very fast for a moving wheel to hit an imovable object without something giving ..

[hawklord]

I found this an interesting question.... would one factor be, are the front brakes on? I'd have thought a locked (and skidding) wheel would react very differently to a freely-revolving wheel.

Of course, part of the "how long is a piece of string" element is, how high was the kerb?

[Laney760]

Originally Posted by hawklord

I found this an interesting question.... would one factor be, are the front brakes on? I'd have thought a locked (and skidding) wheel would react very differently to a freely-revolving wheel.

Of course, part of the "how long is a piece of string" element is, how high was the kerb?

I don't know how high the kerb or if he was braking but I do know something else -


The ******** in question is a Traffic Warden and, bearing in mind he is 30 years old and the said bike is a moped, one day last year he decided to do a wheelie in a residential area and crashed into an old ladie's car. He fled the scene, failing to stop after the accident and the old lady couldn't get his number plate due to bikes only having a number plate at one end

Somebody tipped off the relevant authorities and he was questioned but lied about the source of damage to the moped and can you believe it, he got away with it

I'll try and find out if he braked and the height of the kerb. He wants to pay for the car to be fixed out of his own pocket, mmm, insurance comes to mind, or lack of


The wheelie by the way was done on duty, in full uniform, on the local authoritie's moped

[richards80]

you can not say how fast or slow some one was going other than the length of skid marks, quite a fiew years ago i owned a bmw 5 series and they are built very well, i lost control of mine on a round about covered in oil, i was traveling at no more than 25mph when the off side rear wheel struck the kirb, smashed the alloy to pices bent the rear swing arm 90 deg, the face of the wheel was on the floor but still bolted to the hub bent shock snapped the half shaft at the cv joint but other than that no other damage.

[Laney760]

Originally Posted by richards80

you can not say how fast or slow some one was going other than the length of skid marks, quite a fiew years ago i owned a bmw 5 series and they are built very well, i lost control of mine on a round about covered in oil, i was traveling at no more than 25mph when the off side rear wheel struck the kirb, smashed the alloy to pices bent the rear swing arm 90 deg, the face of the wheel was on the floor but still bolted to the hub bent shock snapped the half shaft at the cv joint but other than that no other damage.

Damage enough I think, sounds like you were very unlucky

[richards80]

could of been alot worse but it was late evening and not a busy school morning