Most terrifying car you ever rode in.....
Most terrifying car you ever rode in.....
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Discussion

XJ84

Original Poster:

303 posts

186 months

Monday 9th May 2011
quotequote all
Mine was a nova than belonged to a friend of my dad's. But not the nova you're probably thinking of...
http://www.jmarchitect.ie/john/vwnova/terenure.jpg

Yep, just like that but in purple.
This was a vw beetle based kit-car from the 1970's, so as you'd expect you have beetle chassis, suspension, brakes, etc, only in this particular example the beetle engine had been swapped for an early 911 engine!!

Took me for a blast round his estate and back, a 911 engine powering half a ton of flimsy fibreglass was quick indeed!! I saw a ton on the speedo in what can't have been much more than half a mile of acceleration. No rollcage or anything like that, not even any seatbelts! Oh yeah, still on standard vw drum brakes too. Hooning it round corners like we're on a rally stage.
Also, we're talking about minor housing estate roads with parked cars everywhere, cats, children etc around, this guy was a proper lunatic!!
The whole car shook, wobbled and vibrated, the closed hydraulic 'roof' started to part company with the rest of the car past 50 or so. I'm sure I saw a couple of bits of daylight through the floor too. There was a very very strong whiff of petrol. It did sound good though through (what looked like) six dirty great carburretors...

As a young teenager at the time I thought it was awesome, only sometime later on I realized just how bloody dangerous the whole experience was!

So what about you lot then?? I bet there's some damn good stories on here.....

jbi

12,700 posts

234 months

Monday 9th May 2011
quotequote all
1970's yank tank with holes in the floor and almost no brakes at all.

Conked out on me in the middle of an 8 lane junction with traffic flying past on all sides.

TommyBuoy

1,298 posts

197 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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My mates Fiat 126, down the A14, with 4 people in it.

Horrendous.

stumpage

2,209 posts

256 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Anything driven by my Mother-In-Law!

PigFilth

3,640 posts

231 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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At 17 years old, my 998cc Metro City at 0.93 leptons with a bent front subframe, only-just-legal tyres, heading down a steep hill. Thought I was going to die in a fiery mass of flying engine parts. Teeth and indeed cheeks were clenched.

marky911

4,433 posts

249 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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My mates Australian touring car, Ford Falcon.
I hadn't been scared in a car for about 6-7 years before my ride in that around Cadwell.
Also, same mates 60's muscle car. 10 sec quarters, wheelies off the line! Road legal too.
Also on a lesser scale, my little track car. I get the shakes at the start of every trackday. Twitchy little bugger. smile

c0ldpl4ya

2,242 posts

218 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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My cousins friend taking me for a drive in an S2000 that had had £5k spent on the engine, i was about 12 and i crapped my pants (not literally).. awesome though, still want an s2000 to this day more than any other car!

J4CKO

46,838 posts

230 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Our Fiat 500, utterly terrifying, especially if you are about to get eaten by some tailgating Off Roader, crap brakes.

zeb

3,292 posts

248 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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A early 1981 mini that had been 'done up' by a mate. Usual stuff - peco exhaust and a 1.3 metro engine in it. Only problem was the fuel pump was in the glove box....and it was leaking. eek

oh yes....and every time you turned left you could see the road below due to the lack of a floorpan in the passenger side

absolute death trap with ended up wrong side of a hedge eventually and was thankfully written off with no major injury

Lefty

21,347 posts

232 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Land Rover 110 with 17 people on board!

motorsportbeng

200 posts

190 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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mk2 escort alongside gwyndaf evans on a welsh forest test stage

mgmrw2003

20,951 posts

187 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Either of the 2 following:

1) when 17, mate's 106 1100cc 5up down dual carriage-way when at around a lepton downhill he decided to tell us that it'd failed MOT the day before on 3bald tyres and the brakes being shafted. And had some "wheel-bearing issues". 2 of us swore that if we made it to the base of the 4mile long hill apropriately named "Mortal Ash" we would indeed slap him...... we did just make it, with the large roundabout at the base looming rapidly and him skating around on the damp tarmac whilst we emptied out bowels quietly.

2) my own 200SX, me driving, when all of a sudden I discovered black ice on the outside lane of the m180...... Car weighed nowt, low pro's on 18s about 9inches wide (or 9.5" cant remember) and suddenly I was sideways. Luckily I was solo, corrected the issue, and went home at 40mph quietly shaking.

anonymous-user

84 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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My Mini is generally scary in the rain, but as a young child I remember being a passenger in a NASCAR at Rockingham, don't know much about what happened just remember noise.

carlove

7,909 posts

197 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Going about 90MPH in a Citroen AX. fking terrifying

Rich_W

12,548 posts

242 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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"friend" at college in his clapped out 1.3 BROWN mk3 Escort. Thrashing the st out of his car down a hill (with speedbumps) showing off. He had NO ability behind the wheel, and he didn't "allow" for any other road users/pedestrians appearing suddenly. When we got to the T junction at the bottom of this hill. He outbraked himself I was genuinely scared! Proper !

He's not a friend anymore. And I gather he now lives in Newcastle so he's your problem now!

heisthegaffer

4,294 posts

228 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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In 1997/8, on the way back from Southend as a passenger in an Astra GTE 16v. On a particular corner that stands out more than the others (it was a frightful journey), I honestly didn't think we were going to make it round.

MrBrightSi

2,926 posts

200 months

Monday 9th May 2011
quotequote all
marky911 said:
My mates Australian touring car, Ford Falcon.
I hadn't been scared in a car for about 6-7 years before my ride in that around Cadwell.
Also, same mates 60's muscle car. 10 sec quarters, wheelies off the line! Road legal too.
Also on a lesser scale, my little track car. I get the shakes at the start of every trackday. Twitchy little bugger. smile
Wouldn't be a certain actor would it? Or is it just me grabbing wrong end of the stick?

My friends 205 1.1, the body roll in that is equal to those fairground rides where the person on the inside ends up crushing you alive. The car was never losing it around corners, however ive probably bent the floor pan with the ammount of pressure I put through my feet in fear.

6potdave

2,788 posts

243 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Friends Uno Turbo, far too quick for his ability (or lack of) at the time. Almost crashed 3 times in a 5 mile journey!

OdramaSwimLaden

1,971 posts

199 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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Here:


munroman

1,907 posts

214 months

Monday 9th May 2011
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An ex-colleagues 1.3 Ford Capri.

He didn't know how to demist the windscreen, so wiped it with his snotty hand.
The passenger door would fly open on bends randomly.
The suspension was st, it managed to let every bump through, whilst also being 'floaty' for the authentic car sickness experience.
The fuel gauge didn't work, and he ran out of petrol with me in it in pissing rain on the way to work, in the middle of nowhere. Twice........

Mind you, he saw it as an upgrade from his Skoda.