M5 crash update.

[Dragonlady8]

Stupidity
It's sad but true. Completely destroyed ...... down to the engine block
Yes it was a 2008 BMW M5 that belong to a parent.

http://www.ocala.com/article/20080126/BREAKING_NEWS/30775910/1053/BREAKING_NEWS


Interesting discussion on the M5 board as well:
http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=111545

[booby bunny]

This is one of those times I hope the families of the victims that died sue the freakin pants off the kid's parents.

We have had fast fast fast cars. From the Isuzu RS that Kip built to 400Hp and less tan 1800 lbs to the STi, and never not once did we ever think it was okay to let an 18 year old have access to it.

Wait, we did let one 19 year old drive the STi.. Jon, a fellow auto X kid with driving skills and a brain. But on when the STi had her winter boots on.

[finkle]

[scott a]

http://www.wakeskating.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=17998

[brew]

[brew]

It looks like they may have taken the thread down on the M5 board. I was in the middle of reading it and now it appears to be gone.

It's amazing that the news keyed in on a thread that the kid posted on that site about going faster and driving recklessly. Luckily a lot of the members tried to talk some sense into him, even though it didn't work. He posted about wanting to drive faster and shift smoother at 140+ at 9 pm the night of the wreck.

It should make everyone think twice about what they post in a public forum. The Ocala paper had a number of quotes from the discussion board posted up. If it would have been the constant bashing like you see on here a lot, it could have really made some people look bad.

Do you think that someone will go after the owner of the message board for allowing street racing discussions on the board? I'd hate to see it happen, but I definitely wouldn't put it past someone.

[Dragonlady8]

brew, did your parents give you access to an M5 or any other vehicle of that capacity?


Just asking.

[booby bunny]

finkle, brew, If the parents buy the car for the kid, 18 or not, they DO have a responsibility here.

[brew]

I had a Blazer, a Camaro, an Escort, a station wagon, etc., but I'm not sure how the vehicles matter.

From the time I was 16-19 I had a friend get convicted for vehicular manslaughter for killing a pregnant woman and he was driving an S-10. I had another lose his leg in a bad crash and he was driving an S-10. I had another get in a wreck, hit the dashboard, and have to have his face reconstructed because of how badly he was messed up. He was driving a Silverado. Another got killed, he was driving a Ford Ranger. In the last two years there have been a number of kids killed in wrecks around where I live and almost all of them were driving trucks and most involved alcohol.

The only thing that seperates me from all those listed above, is either luck or the grace of God, whichever you believe in. I was just as stupid as the rest of them, but I lived to tell about it.

You can give a 16 year old guy a Ford Escort and he's going to see how fast it will go no matter how well his parents teach raise him. It is quite apparent that you don't understand males, if you don't believe that.

This kids parents have suffered the worst thing any parent could ever imagine. Not only that, but their sons immaturity took four other kids lives in the community. However, them getting sued is the last thing that anyone should be considering. Did the other kids parents not teach them about situations that they should walk away from? It was a group of guys being guys, and the worst outcome imagineable came to be.

[Commodore]

booby bunny, I'm sorry, but that's just rediculous. The driver was responsible, not the parents. HE was asking for info on it. Planning ahead for it, consciously looking to push the envelope. How are his parents responsible? Because they gave him access to a car? I have had access to a BMW V12 with 400hp, and 650hp hot rod truck. I didn't do anything stupid with them, or risk others lives.

He knew what he was doing by taking that car and pushing it's limits. And if alchohol was involved, then it's a no brainer.

For someone to blame the parents is truley a sign of stupidity. I'm sorry that's the only way to say it. Not only diid the parents not have anything to do with it, those other kids had plenty of opportunities to get out of that car, or never get in. They were all consenting adults. They just made a terrible decision.

This is why this country is doomed. NO ONE will take responsibility. It's always someone elses fault.

[eeven73]

[Chattwake]

sad situation...

[booby bunny]

[jt09]

[DRAGON88]

[Commodore]

If he had just killed himself. You may, MAY be right, and then the parents would have a terrible burden to face life knowing that they provided him with this car.

BUT, to have the other parents blame those parents for THEIR OWN KIDS CHOICES, is again, foolish. Why don't we sue BMW for making such a car? By your logic they should be responsible for letting the family buy it for their son.

You still haven't quite grasped it. The other kids chose to get in the car knowing full well he would be trying to max out that car on the runway. THEY MADE A CHOICE. They could have gotten out. But didn't. They are responsible for being in the car. What? Did they think he was gonna go look at airplanes? And that suddenly he just took off down the runway at 140+ mph? No. They knew what he was going to do.

And having training still has notihing to do with it. I may have a captains license, but knowing my limits is critical. Let's say my parents buy me a big boat. And lets say I'm out to sea in this large vessel. There is a storm, and I still try to cross in it and end up sinking and dying. My responsibility. Now lets say I have passengers. I tell them we are going into a storm. They know full well it's very dangerous. But they get in my boat anyways. They know we are doing a crossing in a storm. We all perish in a terrible accident. Who's fault is it? Would you sue my parents because they provided me with a boat? I pushed the limits and did something I shouldn't have done, even with training. And a terrible accident occured. A terrible ACCIDENT.

Where does it end?

[wakeboarderdave1]

I just don't understand the reason of blaming the parents. It's not their fault they bought the car for the kid. They were all legal adults, making them fully capable of making their own decisions. My prayers go out to the family though. No parent should ever have to bury their child.

[booby bunny]

So maybe I am wrong, maybe losing their stupid 18 year old son is punishment enough.

Huagy, we have boats fail to cross the bars every year. When people die, the captain's family and his/her boat owners. Fishing boats, pleasure boats, tour boats, someone is always liable...

The deal that is different here is this is a BARELY legal kid, with no special training to handle a vehicle with that much power, trying to push it to it's limits. He failed to show prudent judgement... I think his parents, in providing the car for him failed to take reasonable precautions. Where did he get the booze? From mom and dad's liquor cabinet? (do we know that?)

As a parent, would you hand the keys to a 500 hp, 82K dollar car to your 18 year old son? One who cruises the net looking for ways to go faster in it? Do you hand over the keys to ANY car to a child that does not show the maturity to NOT drink and drive?

I might buy such a car for my children (or an STi)... but only after skid car training, driver training, a couple of years of auto X and rally X under their belts AND a couple of trips to the morgue to show them what stupidity behind the wheel could really cost them. And much like that mom who sold her son's car out from under him for having booze in it, I would do the same.
*we recently took back the car we bought for my former step daughter after learning she was DWS, and had not paid her insurance... even though she "needed" the car... she failed to show responsibility*

[chavez]

Wow.

I am somewhat in agreement with BB here.

Giving an immature teenager access to an ultra-high-performance machine is just not smart.

In fact, it is irresponsible. Very irresponsible.

The other kids are dumb for getting in the car with him, but we live in a society where the only recourse the other parents have is in civil court.

That said, this was not a "kid". He was 18, an adult. I don't see why the parents should be held responsible in this case. If this was a 16 or 17 year old, I might see the argument. Maybe.

[jryoung]

The parents are idiots for buying such a car, but at the same time the kid was 18 and is responsible, maybe stupitidy runs in the family.

Just hours prior he posted that he'd never endanger others.

Tragic loss for friends and family, but it sounds like this kid got everything he ever wanted and was just not smart enough to respect it.

[jt09]

[RampageWake]

[brew]

Like I said before, if you give your son an Escort he's going to push it as far as he can push it. It's the nature of the beast when dealing with sons. You can teach them everything you can and hopefully the information will stick.

In a lot of cases, what seperates those of us that are still living from those of us that aren't is sheer luck.

[Dragonlady8]

[brew]

On the M5 forum some physicist calculated that it left the runway somewhere around 80 mph which most any care on the road will do.

[Dragonlady8]

My engineering friend would disagree to that calculation brew.
and it was an 80 ft drop off at the end of the runway.

[brew]

I'm just quoting what was said in the M5 forum that you have referenced above. They make note that based on the site, drop off, etc. that he was doing in the neighborhood of 80 mph when he left the runway.

[jt09]

[Dragonlady8]

[Nick Taylor]

[chavez]

[ontrider]

[jjaszkow]

[chavez]

Check this out:

[JV]