DuttonOwners

Dutton Kit Cars and their owners

Dutton Legerra crash at Castle Combe 23/04/2018. The marshals were brilliant. Impact at 38mph. The wall is sponge, then two rows of tyres, then metal. Max de...

Rating:
  • Currently 0/5 stars.

Views: 216

Favourite of 1 person

Add a Comment

You need to be a member of DuttonOwners to add comments!

Join DuttonOwners

Comment by James Doulton on April 26, 2018 at 0:52

Also a pre-flight checklist might be useful because I knew that the tyre pressures were wrong for the track because I had added 10 psi the day before (to increase the ground clearance over the local speed bumps so the exhaust wouldn't get damaged again). Even more irritatingly, I had adjusted the pressures on my son's car before he went out, but then forgot to do my own. Doh!

My son was driving my V6 Hyundai Coupe and later on in the day he beat my track record by over 2 seconds.

This time, in the short time before I crashed it, the Dutton was going very well and I got to the highest speed I have ever done on the straight (101mph), so I probably would have broken my own record too ... if I hadn't broken the car.

Comment by James Doulton on April 26, 2018 at 0:38

I was thinking that a faster rack would have meant that I could get more opposite lock without moving my hands off the wheel, that might have been enough to catch it before it got out of control on the first skid. A faster rack means that the steering would be heavier which could be a problem, so it might need an electric PAS.

Also, I can remember a rally driver saying that he pushed the wheel around rather than pulling it so that in this case his left hand would be right at the top of the wheel, ready to pull it back quickly when opposite lock was needed. My hands were at "5 to 3" whereas "5 past 5" might have been better.

Comment by Adrian Southgate on April 26, 2018 at 0:04

Watching the video made me realise why I have a large steering wheel. 

Comment by Adrian Southgate on April 26, 2018 at 0:01

Indeed I have. 

Blue series one and black series two. No spare bumpers or bonnet though I do have ones that can be used to measure up for repairs if needed. Blue one will need the drivers door swapping and the A pillar repairing, the black one will need to be painted, doors are ok but bonnet and boot lid are warped. Neither have windscreens.

I also have a chassis on a table that can be used to drop your body on to repair it although it will be messy and need a respray.

Needless to say if there is anything I can do to help, let me know, having been in a similar same situation back in 2001 when CMV went up in flames. It's one of the reasons I have a shed full of sh1te...

Comment by Darren (Fl@pper) James on April 25, 2018 at 21:59

Just realised your in brizzle. My most recent habitation and used to drive the buses down there. Back home in Cheltenham now but not far away if you ever need a spare pair of hands just shout 

thats if they are not still holding a wire brushed angle grinder for more n more n more clean up 

glad to see your ok. As they say man made it. Man can fix it. 

Comment by James Doulton on April 25, 2018 at 21:50

I hit the 'wall' at 38mph and the deceleration was 4.5g. I didn't realise how much I moved and how close I came to using my helmet to modify the dashboard. The Escort inertia reel did its bit but maybe a 4 point harness would be better. There are quite a lot of things to investigate and/or improve as well as the obvious repairs.

Comment by Darren (Fl@pper) James on April 25, 2018 at 21:47

And breathe out. 

Confess it looks like it held up well. 

Any chance of tonight’s lottery numbers ? :) 

Comment by James Doulton on April 25, 2018 at 21:44

I think that the screen was completely undamaged. Maybe it was just as well that I didn't fix it in properly.

The total damage to the metalwork seems to be limited to the tube behind the bumper (now hammered straight) and a small change to the top wishbone so the left front wheel is a little further back than before. I drove it back to the pits and, after adjusting the tracking, then it seemed perfectly driveable. The glassfibre needed plenty of gaffer tape before I could drive it home (slowly).

Comment by Darren (Fl@pper) James on April 25, 2018 at 21:40

Confess I’m not a fan of castle Combe. Same reason. Albeit as passenger in a very very expensive anally restored rs2000 mk2 

we ended up on the inside with bruised egos but the track has never been forgiving in my eyes 

Comment by James Doulton on April 25, 2018 at 21:31

This was at the beginning of my third lap. I lost concentration going into the corner because of a faster car in my mirror which looked like he was going to try to overtake on the bend (which is strictly against the rules). As a result I had my speed wrong and I was off my usual line. It wasn't helped by having 10psi extra in the tyres, which I had forgotten to adjust before going out. If I had not tried to catch it then I'd have ended up on the right of the track, which is completely clear of things to hit.

I was completely uninjured except for a single bruise on my left wrist, probably from the handbrake.

© 2024   Created by Tim Walker (The Bodger).   Powered by

Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service