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John Sims

John Sims

PCGB Admin
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Glad I didn't get Ledas for Beaky now. [:eek:]

Obviously the rest of those attending the Porsche only day will be delighted that they lost an hour of track time while a white 944 was recovered. Just as well it doesn't weigh much or it might have taken longer.
 
Did the bonnet fit cause the front end to lift? Or the weight loss upset the handling?

Probably best to blame the tyres - seems to work for other high-speed incidents...[&:]
 
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All the news, as it happens, when it happens. [:D]

Our reporter at the scene has reported in his report that the incident occurred when the front suspension collapsed. Fortunately, it would seem, this happened on a track as, had it been on the road, (perhaps on the Isle of Wight [;)]) it could have been far more unpleasant.

The drivers identity has been kept secret on account of we don't want to be held responsible for his lynching by those disgruntled through loosing track time in the recovery operation.

 
More News! As it happens, where it happens, when it happens.

It would seem that the alleged fragility of Leda suspension has been disproved, at least in this case. While initial speculation rested on the strut having broken now, photographic evidence from the scene, demonstrates photographically that it was the ball joint that sheared.

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Our news room has spoken to the driver (who we will call Peter E so as not to endanger him) and he said:-

"I was breaking hard for Druids when it went bang. I was just a passenger after that"

We understand he will be selling bags of Brands Hatch gravel for anyone who is interested. Prices are not expected to be high considering the plentiful stock he will be taking away with him.

News is coming in of an appeal being started on Piston Heads for the re-homing of displaced gravel. This will be a mammoth task so please give generously.

Peter E, who suffered a severe fracture of the wallet, has suggested that he now likes celery more than he did previously.
 
ORIGINAL: John Sims

More News! As it happens, where it happens, when it happens.

It would seem that the alleged fragility of Leda suspension has been disproved, at least in this case. While initial speculation rested on the strut having broken now, photographic evidence from the scene, demonstrates photographically that it was the ball joint that sheared.
Click to expand...

Is this the first confirmed ball joint failure on the forum ? I know some rennlisters have mentioned failures but not heard that anyone in the UK had broken their balls...... [:eek:]

Dave K.
 
Ive not heard of a 944 ball joint failure personally but have heard of a few on the 968's which is the same set up ??
 
ORIGINAL: dlknight

Is this the first confirmed ball joint failure on the forum ? I know some rennlisters have mentioned failures but not heard that anyone in the UK had broken their balls...... [:eek:]

Dave K.
Click to expand...

It is the first one I am aware of.

I note some of the after market lower wishbones have longer pins to accommodate the change in geometry due to running the car lower than standard. I discussed this with Peter but he didn't feel that his car was especially low and so didn't consider it a contributory factor.

It is obviously a worry though as having a front wheel brake free at speed is not going to end happily in most cases.
 
Eeek,looking on the brighter side it happened on a circuit(safer than on a road somewhere),Glad you are ok Peter.
 
OUCH!!! The only thing i've read about the effect of lowered 944's on the lower wishbone ball joint is that it accellarates wear of the ball joint. I've never read about other incidents regarding actual failure of the pin. Oh well Peter E, I hope you get her back on the road quickly and cheaply!
 
Yikes! That's the first failure I've heard of in our little bunch, though obviously most of us have had a worn one replaced at some point.

If nothing else is damaged then am I right in thinking it should just be a new balljoint (and a new pair of shorts) and away we go again.
 
Well that was an eventful day![:'(]

Thanks to our roving reporter and newsdesk for the constant updates on the forum. And sorry to everyone who attended and missed half an hour of track time because of me.[:)]

The car's now back with Ollie and the guys at RPM and they will have a look at it soon and let me know the full extent of the damage.

As John mentioned, it went without warning, no knocking noises and the car felt good. I was braking hard into Druids and after about a second there was a loud bang (bit like a tyre bursting) followed by a short trip straight on into the gravel. Oh and with lots of expletives along the way.

As the newsdesk pointed out I have an entire gravel trap in the front of my car. However the damage could have been a lot worse, and as Mark says, I dread to think what the result could have been if it had happened on the road...

So far the damage is (apart from the wishbone!): Both front wings are wrecked, one because the tyre rammed into it and the other from when it was craned out of the trap. The offside tyre has had a rough time and ought to be replaced too. Other than that I think I got away lightly, the engine bay is like a beach but all I could see was that the fan belt had come off. Hopefully the rest of the suspension survived intact.

I'm off to get me a beer now [:(]
 
It might be a good idea to get the pin on the other side checked out. The last thing you'd want is for the other side to let go on your first outing after fitting the new wings!!
 
Its good to hear you're ok Peter and looking at it philosophically.

From the point of view of the rest of us, all that gravel in your car means we are not so lardy and overweight anymore [:D]. Enjoy the beer, you've earned it
 
ORIGINAL: Peter Empson

Well that was an eventful day![:'(]

..............So far the damage is (apart from the wishbone!): Both front wings are wrecked, one because the tyre rammed into it and the other from when it was craned out of the trap. ............
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about the damage to the wing Peter. That's a damn poor show, you survive the off, with little more than a stained seat, only to get the car damaged during recovery. [:mad:]
 
It may not sound it, but the marshalls were very careful and did everything they could to prevent damage with the equipment they had, in fact there seemed to be some heated debate with the control room as they refused to just drag the car out and risk the wheel flailing around too much. The offside wing was ruined before I came to a stop anyway, I think the nearside was pushed in when the crane had to take a fairly sharp corner to get me off track, this may have been avoidable but I'm honestly not complaining.

Been doing some more thinking and remembered that I thought I might need to replace the front brake discs too as they were mighty hot when I came to a stop. They looked extremely blue when it was being loaded up, so can't help thinking they're possibly warped [:mad:]
 
Jeez. Mental note to not run my car at all with standard arms and get Charlie's or similar fitted before it turns a wheel in anger again.
 
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