Should the Porsche that killed Rapid & Furious Paul Walker be on the road? Carrera GT left professionals ‘white with fear’ during test drives
By Aaron Acute 12:05 BST three Dec 2013, updated 17:35 BST three Dec two thousand thirteen
- Rally champ who tested the car said he was ‘funked’
- It has been involved in other high profile crashes
- Experts urged caution in their initial reviews
- Porsche warned car wouldn’t be able to drive over beer can on its side
The supercar in which Paul Walker died this week left professionals who tested it ‘white’ with fear and has been branded ‘the most dangerous car on the road’ by a former manufacturer.
The two thousand five Porsche Carrera GT was being driven by the Hollywood starlet’s friend and business playmate Roger Rodas when it crashed in Los Angeles on Tuesday, killing both of them.
It has since emerged that car experts have long voiced concern about the souped-up model’s suitability for the road, due to its ultra light carbon-fibre framework and Five.7 litre race-derived V10 engine.
Too dangerous? Both professionals and engineers have voiced concern about the supercar’s suitability for the road
It has a plane out speed of two hundred five miles per hour and its design is derived from earlier Porsche Le Guy’s models.
Porsche knew of the car’s sensitivity when they launched the model in 2004. According to TMZ, a memo circulated to sales staff said of the GT Carrera: ‘This vehicle cannot drive over a Foster Beer can that is lounging on its side.’
‘You need to be aware of what type of road surface you are on (dips; pot slots, seam heights, etc.)
‘The Carrera GT is as close to a racecar as we will ever get, this car has all the disadvantages of a racecar.
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In a chequered past, the GT has been crashed by talk showcase legend Jay Leno, who lost control while speeding around a circuit in 2005.
Another incident in two thousand five witnessed two sportscar enthusiasts Ben Keaton and Corey Rudl killed in a racetrack smash in California after the Carrera GT they were travelling in swerved into a concrete wall.
In that case, Porsche paid a portion of the $Four.5million compensation fee awarded to the family of Mr Rudl after it was established there were ‘treating problems’ with the vehicle.
Before its official release eight years ago, notable car experts gave excited but cautionary reviews of the GT, in which the cars power and speed were repeatedly lauded alongside notes about how it was prone to steering off course.
Tragic: The aftermath of the car crash that killed Paul Walker displayed the vehicle to be out of control. The car has a history of unpredictability, according to reports In flames: The distinctive crimson finish of the Porsche could be seen engulfed in flames, above
Speaking about testing the car at Germany’s famous Nurburgring, Walter Rohrl, a former world rally champ and Porsche test driver, told Drive magazine: ‘[It was] the very first car in my life that I drive and I feel startled. I came back into the pits and I was white.’
That was echoed by renowned car critic Jeremy Clarkson when he reviewed the Carrera for hit British Big black cock motor display Top Gear.
‘The dangerous part is that it requires immense skill to drive, and is tremendously unforgiving.’
– Doug DeMuro, former Porsche worker
During his test drive, the accomplished repeatedly lost control of the car on an empty race track.
And, albeit being thrilled by its rhythm and power, he described the supercar’s engine as a ‘landmine’.
He said: ‘I have never felt anything like that.
‘You need to be awake to drive this swift. It truly isn’t an effortless car to control, the clutch is brutal, the power is savage, and the treating. you truly are on a knife edge.
‘Other cars forgive you, but make a mistake in that and it bites your head off.
‘[That] v.Ten engine is a landmine’.
Writing on car site Jalopnik.com, Doug DeMuro said: ‘The most dangerous car on the road. Very sad.
‘The dangerous part is that it requires immense skill to drive, and is tremendously unforgiving.
‘And it’s hard to understand the car’s boundaries because it’s unlike virtually any other car on the road, and it’ll react in ways other cars won’t.
Erratic: During a TV review very first broadcast in Britiain in 2004, the Carrera GT was seen to be prone to swerving out of control Caution: When reviewing the car in 2004, British TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson said the car was unforgiving, telling ‘you need to be awake to drive this swift’ Albeit the car was the fastest to finish a lap of the display’s course Clarkson, described the motor’s engine as a ‘landmine’
‘I personally think it’s the most dangerous car out there for this reason, and I know several people – including a duo of former owners – who agree.’
The two thousand five crash for which Porsche accepted partial liability, bears a striking similarity to the accident which claimed the life of the Paul Walker and Roger Rodas.
Then, Carrera GT possessor Ben Keaton suggested to give fellow car fan Corey Rudl a rail in his fresh sports car at the California Speedway track.
After another driver in a Ferrari pulled out in front of the pair, they swerved to avoid a collision but careered straight into the track’s concrete wall.
After Mr Rudl’s wifey took legal activity alleging the wrongful death of her hubby Porsche agreed to pay eight per cent of a total $Four.Five compensation fee.
PORSCHE CARRERA GT: TECH SPEC
ENGINE SIZE: Five.7ltr
TOP SPEED: two hundred five mph
ACCELERATION: 0-62 mph = Three.9s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: 13.Two mpg
DRIVE TYPE: Rear Wheel Drive
GEARBOX: Manual, six Speed
UNLADEN WEIGHT: three thousand forty two lbs OR one thousand three hundred eighty kg
During the case it was established that the Carrera GT was designed without electronic stability control, which Porsche calls PSM.
Craig McClellan, a former racer and a successful plaintiffs’ attorney from San Diego represented the Rudls.
He alleged the lack of a PSM system was most likely a marketing decision as the model was primarily billed as a ‘race car for the streets’ and track cars are generally made without a stabilising system to counter over-steer.
Speaking after the settlement, he told SportsCarMarket.com that the Carrera GT should be ‘feared’.
He said: ‘Most people, especially those with children on the streets and highways, would fear a vehicle like the Carrera GT, with its tricky treating characteristics, 600-plus horsepower, and unskilled, unqualified drivers.
‘When a ‘race car for the streets’ is sold to anyone with enough money, regardless of his capability to drive it, and it doesn’t even incorporate modern electronic safety devices that correct driver errors, then maybe the manufacturer should accept some responsibility for the foreseeable deaths that will result.’
Mail Online have contacted Porsche but a spokesperson refused to comment.
The car has been involved in other high profile crashes, but the death of Paul Walker will bring fresh questions about its safety