No HSE Action over De Villota Crash
Discussion
However family consider seeking compensation:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshir...
Tricky one isn't it? I can see their point of view, but she was doing something risky and whilst the circumstances were unexpected in the extreme, is there ultimately a chance of serious injury when driving an F1 car?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshir...
Tricky one isn't it? I can see their point of view, but she was doing something risky and whilst the circumstances were unexpected in the extreme, is there ultimately a chance of serious injury when driving an F1 car?
"As soon as we have seen the report we will analyse this in order to evaluate the next legal steps to claim the corresponding civil compensation from those responsible, in order - as Maria herself always wanted - to ensure that accidents of this type never happen again."
Yes, that's right, because that always works. Nothing to do with lawyers fees and cash, no, no.
Yes, that's right, because that always works. Nothing to do with lawyers fees and cash, no, no.
entropy said:
Interestingly driver error was something the team do not wish to disclose and not an outright denial...
Well this doesn't surprise me:According to the BBC (via Freedom of Information) she wasn't briefed about protocols for stopping the car in the temporary pit area: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshir...
If she wasn't given proper instructions on how to stop the car safely then I can imagine there is potentially a valid claim there. Having said that it wasn't the first time she had drive an F1 car was it?
Something very odd about the whole situation and I expect the full truth will never come out anyway.
Something very odd about the whole situation and I expect the full truth will never come out anyway.
What a complete joke so let me get this right she crashed into the back of the truck because she couldn't pull the clutch in when the steering wheel turned? so the hell was she doing in a Formula 1 car in the first place?
Now the family want to sue?
Utter classic, and you wonder why there are no women in F1....
Now the family want to sue?
Utter classic, and you wonder why there are no women in F1....
I don’t see what the deceased being female has got to do with it. She hit the back of the truck because, as I understand it from reading the BBC report, the electronic systems overrode some of the driver’s attempts at stopping the car. To quote the BBC report:
“De Villota pressed a button to unlock the clutch and disengage the gears before the crash, but nothing happened. A gear change from second to first was also rejected by the engine idle control, the documents added.”
Also I’m not surprised that the driver loses the ability to reach the clutch paddle on the steering wheel whilst applying full lock because the cockpits are so cramped.
IIRC a major Japanese manufacture has had a similar issue with road cars in the USA where they would not stop and just carried on at high speed whatever the driver did it ignored their commands. There where IIRC several fatality’s. In my opinion there are too much electronics in these vehicles allowing the opportunity for a perfect storm to crop up once in a while and make a bad situation far worse.
“De Villota pressed a button to unlock the clutch and disengage the gears before the crash, but nothing happened. A gear change from second to first was also rejected by the engine idle control, the documents added.”
Also I’m not surprised that the driver loses the ability to reach the clutch paddle on the steering wheel whilst applying full lock because the cockpits are so cramped.
IIRC a major Japanese manufacture has had a similar issue with road cars in the USA where they would not stop and just carried on at high speed whatever the driver did it ignored their commands. There where IIRC several fatality’s. In my opinion there are too much electronics in these vehicles allowing the opportunity for a perfect storm to crop up once in a while and make a bad situation far worse.
Are you for real nobody else in the history of formula one that I can remember has ever failed to bring a car to a halt at the end of a test run the only person to manage to stupendous feet with somebody seemed incapable of pulling the clutch in.
As for your reference to cars on the road doing the same thing with sticking throttle is the same kind of brain dead drivers involved it never occurred to them to knock it out of great, or turn the bloody engine off but then again only in America.
To be an f1 driver, your supposed to know how to drive Ffs.
As for your reference to cars on the road doing the same thing with sticking throttle is the same kind of brain dead drivers involved it never occurred to them to knock it out of great, or turn the bloody engine off but then again only in America.
To be an f1 driver, your supposed to know how to drive Ffs.
Wasnt briefed on how to stop.....
Fair enough if it was a punter off the street but she was supposed to be a professional racing driver.
If she didn't know how to stop the car she had no place being in it.
Rather than trying to protect her name they should come out and say whether it was driver error or not, just like when when Bransons space ship broke up on a test flight it was quickly established to be pilot error.
Fair enough if it was a punter off the street but she was supposed to be a professional racing driver.
If she didn't know how to stop the car she had no place being in it.
Rather than trying to protect her name they should come out and say whether it was driver error or not, just like when when Bransons space ship broke up on a test flight it was quickly established to be pilot error.
Edited by SmoothCriminal on Saturday 27th June 22:38
Scuffers said:
What a complete joke so let me get this right she crashed into the back of the truck because she couldn't pull the clutch in when the steering wheel turned? so the hell was she doing in a Formula 1 car in the first place?
Now the family want to sue?
Utter classic, and you wonder why there are no women in F1....
Yes, I'm sure having a penis would have improved her ability to stop the car no end. Now the family want to sue?
Utter classic, and you wonder why there are no women in F1....
The article doesn't say why she wasn't able to pull the clutch in at full lock.... could have been a technical issue, physical limitations within the car, etc. But no, lets just assume she had her nails done the night before and didn't want to chip them.
VolvoT5 said:
Yes, I'm sure having a penis would have improved her ability to stop the car no end.
The article doesn't say why she wasn't able to pull the clutch in at full lock.... could have been a technical issue, physical limitations within the car, etc. But no, lets just assume she had her nails done the night before and didn't want to chip them.
look, dress it up all you want, simple fact of the matter is she failed to stop the car.The article doesn't say why she wasn't able to pull the clutch in at full lock.... could have been a technical issue, physical limitations within the car, etc. But no, lets just assume she had her nails done the night before and didn't want to chip them.
being blunt, she should not have been in it in the first place, no way was she anything like good enough for an F1 car, her past driving record is stunningly unspectacular, the only reason she was in the car was because of a big bag of money (from daddy).
The point here is that if anything, it's this kind of stunt (that sadly went horribly wrong) is not going to help the cause for women in F1 (hell, not a single woman has ever entered GP2).
Fonz said:
I don’t see what the deceased being female has got to do with it. She hit the back of the truck because, as I understand it from reading the BBC report, the electronic systems overrode some of the driver’s attempts at stopping the car. To quote the BBC report:
“De Villota pressed a button to unlock the clutch and disengage the gears before the crash, but nothing happened. A gear change from second to first was also rejected by the engine idle control, the documents added.”
Also I’m not surprised that the driver loses the ability to reach the clutch paddle on the steering wheel whilst applying full lock because the cockpits are so cramped.
IIRC a major Japanese manufacture has had a similar issue with road cars in the USA where they would not stop and just carried on at high speed whatever the driver did it ignored their commands. There where IIRC several fatality’s. In my opinion there are too much electronics in these vehicles allowing the opportunity for a perfect storm to crop up once in a while and make a bad situation far worse.
Regarding Toyota - was there actually a defect?“De Villota pressed a button to unlock the clutch and disengage the gears before the crash, but nothing happened. A gear change from second to first was also rejected by the engine idle control, the documents added.”
Also I’m not surprised that the driver loses the ability to reach the clutch paddle on the steering wheel whilst applying full lock because the cockpits are so cramped.
IIRC a major Japanese manufacture has had a similar issue with road cars in the USA where they would not stop and just carried on at high speed whatever the driver did it ignored their commands. There where IIRC several fatality’s. In my opinion there are too much electronics in these vehicles allowing the opportunity for a perfect storm to crop up once in a while and make a bad situation far worse.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009%E2%80%9311_To...
http://www.drive.com.au/motor-news/toyota-the-acce...
Scuffers said:
look, dress it up all you want, simple fact of the matter is she failed to stop the car.
being blunt, she should not have been in it in the first place, no way was she anything like good enough for an F1 car, her past driving record is stunningly unspectacular, the only reason she was in the car was because of a big bag of money (from daddy).
Even if we accept your points (not sure I do, as there are plenty of pay drivers in F1 and it wasn't the first time she had driven a car), none of that has anything to do with the fact she was a woman. being blunt, she should not have been in it in the first place, no way was she anything like good enough for an F1 car, her past driving record is stunningly unspectacular, the only reason she was in the car was because of a big bag of money (from daddy).
Whichever way you try and 'dress it up' your remark was blatantly sexist and uncalled for. To highlight one example of a mistake (which may or may not be driver error) and use it as an illustration of why 'women' aren't in F1 is wrong. Nobody would make such a generalisation about male drivers, black drivers, etc, etc.
VolvoT5 said:
Even if we accept your points (not sure I do, as there are plenty of pay drivers in F1 and it wasn't the first time she had driven a car), none of that has anything to do with the fact she was a woman.
Whichever way you try and 'dress it up' your remark was blatantly sexist and uncalled for. To highlight one example of a mistake (which may or may not be driver error) and use it as an illustration of why 'women' aren't in F1 is wrong. Nobody would make such a generalisation about male drivers, black drivers, etc, etc.
and you're missing the point of what I am getting at.Whichever way you try and 'dress it up' your remark was blatantly sexist and uncalled for. To highlight one example of a mistake (which may or may not be driver error) and use it as an illustration of why 'women' aren't in F1 is wrong. Nobody would make such a generalisation about male drivers, black drivers, etc, etc.
there are literally thousands of people who are trying to progress their racing careers with the dream of getting to F1, most will fail, through lack of money/support/tallent.
the problem here is that she had a rich parent, who was prepared to pay whatever, and ultimately is IMHO responsible for her accident in the same way any farther would be if they buy their 17 year old son a ferrari Enzo as their first car and wonder why they crash it.
Yes, there are plenty of pay drivers out there, sad but a fact of life for motorsport, event he likes of Maldonado can drive though (he actually won a GP2 championship).
The fact she was a woman does not help, there has not been a woman in F1 (properly) since Desiré Wilson in 1980 (and she never took a single start in F1 WC), if we are going to get a woman in F1, we need to see one progressing through the motorsport ranks, and that's just not happening.
Just turning up with a bag of cash does not an F1 driver make...
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