Q: I know this is old news, but it is unnerving to say the least.... http://formula-1.updatesport.com/news/article/1197801667/formula_one/F1gossip/Schu-in-Coburg-police-probe/view.html Keep racing off the roads!! Bugatti, tuning radio, cRasH springs to mind!! Unfamiliar vehicle...he doesn't know how well maintained the vehicle is, unless he did a thorough pre-drive check..... It appears he didn't leave enough time to complete his journey. A common cause of accidents.... The last time i saw him drive an unfamiliar vehicle 1) he stalled (no launch control!!) 2) he span (no traction control!!) Both at the Race of Champions !!!!!!!!!BOY DID I LAUGH and it still makes me LAUGH!!!!!!! Yes Rosbif, i have driven extensively in Germany, and yes, the standard of driving is poor. However, that is all the more reason to be circumspect, wouldn't you agree? I would also agree that there is no proof, but I would assume that the driver was not driving at a speed to SchMACKER's liking and that is why he took over????!!! Germany - According to the German Federal Statistical Office in 1998, 7,792 citizens were killed in motor vehicle accidents, with 497,000 injuries reported. We estimate that 65,000 of the reported injuries were serious. I presume these are the people paying FAR more attention that you speak of Rosbif?? And how can you blame a road surface for an incident? My students were taught to look to themselves for the requisite control. Poor surface? Reduce speed!! You are a tome of knowledge regards F1, but your intimating that the road takes control of a vehicle is rather strange? 1 injury is 1 too many
A: I wasn't particularly bothered when this story broke months and months ago, and I'm still not. If you think it was out of the ordinary you obviously haven't driven in Germany very much. Anyway, without proof which is admissible in court there won't be any further action. EDIT Having lived in five countries (including Germany) and visited over two dozen more, I'd say that the Germans have one of the highest standards of driving in the world, especially on the Autobahn. They pay attention to what is going on around them FAR more than drivers from other countries, and their serious accidents are usually caused by the poor quality and maintenence of their infrastructure (the West German Autobahns are often in a shocking state, as lots of money originally intended for them has been spent on modernising the East German ones), not bad driving. EDIT 2 I was more thinking along the lines that they haven't updated their Autobahn exits, or widened the Autobahn itself from 2 to 3 lanes in large parts of the West...some parts don't even have a lane for emergencies. That is where the infrastructure is dangerous, and it's where you see the biggest accidents. In those places, one person's little problem can very quickly become 50-60 peoples' very big problem, especially when cars are travelling closely together at REDUCED speeds, for example in roadworks. On clear Autobahns with cars spread apart you very rarely see any problems, even at 240kph. There was a perfect example of this last week...cars travelling quite slowly due to snow flurries, one person braked too hard, set off a chain reaction and you have a 60 car pile-up because nobody has any room to avoid the cars around them. That accident wasn't due to speed, but it caused one fatality and about 3 dozen injuries.