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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Driving / March 2008Old Lady Driven!
Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems in the car? The old bag freely admits she mistook the gas pedal for the brake. http://ktla.trb.com/news/ktla-carintopostoffice,0,6670989.story Elderly Driver Slams into Post Office, 3 Hurt March 24, 2008, 2:23 PM PDT Police say an elderly driver lost control of her Ford Taurus and slammed into the front of the Burbank post office today. Three people were injured in the accident. The car was driven by an 88 year old woman who told officials her sandal got stuck and she accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the break pedal. The car plowed through a plate glass window, 20 feet into the building shortly after noon. Officials say they will examine the car to see if it was functioning properly before they determine the exact cause of the crash, which is most likely human error.  Signature"Dave's not here, man!" - Tommy Chong > http://ktla.trb.com/news/ktla-carintopostoffice,0,6670989.story > The car was driven by an 88 year old woman who told officials her > sandal got stuck and she accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > properly before they determine the exact cause of the crash, which is > most likely human error. See, this is how we should try to get out of our next speeding ticket. All we have to say is that we mistook the gas pedal for the brake pedal. ;) >> http://ktla.trb.com/news/ktla-carintopostoffice,0,6670989.story > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >See, this is how we should try to get out of our next speeding ticket. >All we have to say is that we mistook the gas pedal for the brake pedal. ;) Or that the sandal got stuck..... -- KRETP - or die!!! > Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems > in the car? The old bag freely admits she mistook the gas pedal for > the brake. They still have to investigate and rule out other possibilities. However, with such a statement, they don't have to investigate that hard.... > Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems > in the car? The old bag freely admits she mistook the gas pedal for [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > "Dave's not here, man!" > - Tommy Chong Someone who's 88 and wearing sandals (!!!) ought not be behind the wheel anyway. > http://ktla.trb.com/news/ktla-carintopostoffice,0,6670989.story > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > sandal got stuck and she accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the > break pedal. What's a "break pedal"? Do I hit that when I want to stop in the middle of the street and eat a doughnut? > The car plowed through a plate glass window, 20 feet into > the building shortly after noon. This Sloth seems to like mashing the brake pedal. > Officials say they will examine the car to see if it was functioning > properly before they determine the exact cause of the crash, which is > most likely human error. The car was obviously lacking a proper controller mechanism. > Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems > in the car? So they don't have to explain why they *didn't* to not only their own headquarters but every Tom, Dick, and Harry, Esq., representing either the various insurance companies or personal-injury plaintiffs or defendants. Raising in a jury's mind the idea that perhaps the investigating officers were doggin' it, taking lazy shortcuts and making lazy assumptions, is a courtroom evergreen. Besides, it'd be a hell of a thing if there *were* a mechanical fault, and a flustered old lady who'd just been in an accident assumed the blame wrongly. Not betting the main chance, but looking at all possible causes and complications might be considered to constitute doing one's homework. All that aside, it isn't immediately obvious to me how getting a shoe stuck would cause you to hit the gas instead of the brake. Getting stuck under a pedal, sure, but I'd like to see a diagram of this. Maybe trying to scoop it up with her foot and wiggle it back on, she stepped on the gas pedal? --Joe On Mar 26, 1:26 am, Ad absurdum per aspera <jtc...@california.com> wrote: > > Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems > > in the car? [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > --Joe Getting a shoe stuck can do weird things. I have SPD cleat-style bike shoes that I use for cycling. I made the mistake of driving my truck with these on once. After the second time the cleat grabbed the pedal I took them off and drove home in socks. Now I know to carry an extra pair of "driving" shoes whenever I'm going riding. In my case I was having issues with the cleat locking to the clutch pedal. Fortunately that's an easy enough fix - smash the pedal to the floor and turn off to the side of the road to sort things out. I'm not sure I'd care to experience a shoe stuck in the accelerator pedal, especially in an automatic. It'd probably be easy enough to handle, just keep the shoe pulled back and pull over. Still, having experienced a shoe locked to the clutch pedal, having it locked to the accelerator is not something I'd relish. >Getting a shoe stuck can do weird things. I have SPD cleat-style bike >shoes that I use for cycling. I made the mistake of driving my truck >with these on once. Cleat shoes are one thing, but SANDALS? What feature of sandals would make them susceptible to getting caught on the pedals? >After the second time the cleat grabbed the pedal >I took them off and drove home in socks. Now I know to carry an extra >pair of "driving" shoes whenever I'm going riding. Like these? http://www.coastalboot.com/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16261&category_id=266 Signature"Dave's not here, man!" - Tommy Chong > On Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:12:25 -0700 (PDT), "DanK...@gmail.com" > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > Cleat shoes are one thing, but SANDALS? What feature of sandals would > make them susceptible to getting caught on the pedals? I don't know - I don't wear sandals. I do know, however, that something I do wear can cause problems. That said, I'm not willing to write off the potential for a problem with something I don't wear. I really, really doubt that sandals can grab a pedal like my SPDs. I'm not 100% sure, however, and I'm not willing to make an absolute statement about something I don't have any first hand experience with. > >After the second time the cleat grabbed the pedal > >I took them off and drove home in socks. Now I know to carry an extra [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > http://www.coastalboot.com/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16261&c... I just go with my normal black leather dress shoes. Slip on and off like slippers, comfy as can be - they do the job. If I were headed to the car racetrack I would reconsider, but just cruising to the local bike trail I don't see a need for special-purpose driving shoes. Then again, I drive a pickup - not a vette. I think that might be the real problem. ;) On Mar 26, 7:10 am, "DanK...@gmail.com" <DanK...@gmail.com> wrote: > > On Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:12:25 -0700 (PDT), "DanK...@gmail.com" > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > again, I drive a pickup - not a vette. I think that might be the real > problem. ;) Am I the only person who drives barefoot on here? :-) -Brent > On Mar 26, 7:10 am, "DanK...@gmail.com" <DanK...@gmail.com> wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] > > -Brent When I was in high school I used to take my sandals off to drive my Vette. At the time a Hawthorne PD told me I could get a ticket there for driving barefoot. Consider the little old lady may have lifted her foot off the gas, moved to the brake, the bottom of the sandal catches on the right side of the brake, and she pushes down, the sideways sandal pulling her foot to the right. And then she's too clueless to figure out what is going on. One time I let a girlfriend drive the Vette out in the desert. She was a leadfoot used to a '69 Chevy, so she put it in gear and stomped on the gas. What I didn't know at the time was I had a broken engine mount, and the engine torqued over, binding the 4bbl Holley full open. So we're screaming up the highway full-blast in 1st gear, with her screaming "what do I do?" and me yelling "stomp on the clutch!" Ahh, memories. jg -- @home.com is bogus. From uniontrib.com: SAN DIEGO: Police are looking for the thief or thieves who stole Chargers' linebacker Shawne Merriman's prized Mercedes Benz and then torched it. The 2006 sports coupe, valued at more than $180,000, was engulfed in flames when officers discovered it about midnight Thursday in the San Diego neighborhood of Emerald Hills, off Bethune Court, said police spokesman Gary Hassen. The car was sitting on top of plastic milk crates, and all of its wheels were missing, Hassen said. The luxury car had not yet been reported stolen, Hassen said. The 23-year-old NFL star lives in Scripps Ranch. > > On Mar 26, 7:10 am, "DanK...@gmail.com" <DanK...@gmail.com> wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 69 lines] > > - Show quoted text - I had a powerdful car with the same left motormount set-up. The first time it was scary, but the mill would flop bad intro place as the torque dropped off. Rather tha hitting the clutch, i I couldn't ride it out, I'd kill the ignition. (I fixed it the next weekend and oput a safety-chain between the upper nut and lower nut on the newer / stronger mount. > When I was in high school I used to take my sandals off to drive my > Vette. At the time a Hawthorne PD told me I could get a ticket there > for driving barefoot. I've never been much on either operating machinery or going around in public places, with specific exceptions like swimming pools or the beach, barefoot, so I have no firsthand acquaintance with that bit of the vehicle code. However, this seems to be a widespread urban legend, usually centered on California. There's a good writeup on the subject (circa the mid 90s -- caution; laws can change) at a sort of ur-Snopes site that grew out of alt.folklore.urban: http://tafkac.org/legal/driving.barefoot/driving_barefoot.html Note also the cautions that cops can think of other pretexts on which to give you a ticket if they think you are doing something that is legal but not a good idea. (And far be it from cops to exercise their imagination in this regard after pulling over a young guy in a fast car.) --Joe On Mar 28, 7:53 am, Ad absurdum per aspera <jtc...@california.com> wrote: > > When I was in high school I used to take my sandals off to drive my > > Vette. At the time a Hawthorne PD told me I could get a ticket there [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > > --Joe If you drive a car with "press-and-pray" mechanical brakes and have weak leg and foot muscles, you shouldn't drive bare-fotted. On Mar 26, 6:10 am, "DanK...@gmail.com" <DanK...@gmail.com> wrote: > > On Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:12:25 -0700 (PDT), "DanK...@gmail.com" > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > again, I drive a pickup - not a vette. I think that might be the real > problem. ;) All-in-all, I would be glad to Denise McCluggage take me around Sears Point for a few laps. (It's not that easy to think of a good old-timer female driver - older than I - but I think that I got one there.) Male racers used to pull in with "mechanical problems" just after she passed them, for some reason. >> Why are these "officials" wasting time looking for mechanical problems >> in the car? [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >investigating officers were doggin' it, taking lazy shortcuts and >making lazy assumptions, is a courtroom evergreen. CYA I can readily understand and accept. :) >All that aside, it isn't immediately obvious to me how getting a shoe >stuck would cause you to hit the gas instead of the brake. I don't know which is worse: the fact that these mental midgets come up with these ridiculously weak excuses, or the fact that they think so little of everyone else's intelligence that they expect people to actually buy into the bullshit. Signature"Dave's not here, man!" - Tommy Chong |
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