Great way to total your Bugatti Veyron
11-12-09 | 11:50 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,979
Likes: 0
From: ca
Great way to total your Bugatti Veyron
http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairba...ican_crash.php
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaQ9Q...ayer_embedded&
You would think someone would have been smart enough to turn off the ignition and save the 16 cylinder engine that was running in the water for 15-30 minutes!
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaQ9Q...ayer_embedded&
You would think someone would have been smart enough to turn off the ignition and save the 16 cylinder engine that was running in the water for 15-30 minutes!
Last edited by toy4two; 11-12-09 at 11:53 PM.
11-14-09 | 10:26 AM
#3
Lexus Champion
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 1,645
Likes: 1
From: Richmond
thought the engine's intake's at the top? so I doubt the engine is actually dead.... And I doubt it's total since the car's so expensive and cleaning up a flooded car's not that hard, just electrical stuff you have to worry about after the cleanup...
11-14-09 | 10:34 AM
#4
Lead Lap
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 539
Likes: 0
From: Ohio
11-14-09 | 12:23 PM
#5
Lexus Champion
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 10,157
Likes: 9
From: Southeastern PA
I never saw saw the pelican he "avoided".
Trending Topics
11-14-09 | 10:49 PM
#10
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 22,608
Likes: 102
From: Waiting for next track day
11-16-09 | 06:59 AM
#11
Lexus Champion
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 11,205
Likes: 11
From: The Woodlands, TX
LA MARQUE — Police on Friday identified a Lufkin man who accidentally drove a $2 million Bugatti Veyron, a rare automobile that is perhaps the world’s fastest, into a saltwater lagoon.
Andy Lee House, 34, owner of Performance Auto Sales, told The Daily News on Wednesday that a low-flying pelican distracted him, causing him to jerk the steering wheel a bit — and he then dropped his cell phone.
The crash, however, was captured by someone filming the car as it traveled on the northbound frontage road of Interstate 45 about 3 p.m. Wednesday.
The man filming was traveling north on I-45. No pelican was visible in the video, which shows the car veering from the road and splashing in the lagoon.
With the Veyron in more than 2 feet of saltwater, House declined to give his name at the scene near Omega Bay.
Driver Offers Thanks
House posted a comment to The Lufkin Daily News, thanking everyone who was worried about him and the car.
“I have taken my exotic cars to school events, rallies, and allow anyone to take pictures of my cars and even rides in them,” House wrote. “I have allowed many people into my home to see my cars that I don’t even know. ... Say what you want about me, but there is a man in heaven right now looking over me and that’s all that matters!”
The 2006 Veyron is thought to have been one of only 200 made and one of only 15 in the United States. A 2006 model was for sale in Jonesboro, Ark., for $1.25 million. One of the prospective buyers was from Texas, The Associated Press reported in October.
Police Report Released
A police report, made public Friday, lists House as the driver and owner. The pelican caught his eye as it was quite close to colliding with the car, House said. House never said he was using the cell phone at the time. Dropping it added to the distraction just enough, sending the front passenger wheel off the road and into the soft, sloppy, muddy shoulder.
A Daily News reporter arrived at the scene about 15 minutes after the car entered the water just in time to see the gurgling exhaust stop bubbling like an outboard motor as the 1,001 horsepower engine died.
House, who was looking at real estate in Galveston the day of the crash, was not injured. The Veyron is capable of speeds of more than 253 mph, but House hadn’t risked driving it on a private fast track to test the limits, namely because the insurance company wouldn’t cover any resulting mishap, he said.
Insurance Company Takes Car
House called Gilbert Harrison, the tow truck driver who carefully winched the Veyron from the lagoon, telling him it was OK to release the car Friday to the insurance company. No information on the extent of the damage to the car’s electrical system, engine and components was available.
Harrison remembered House saying his phone rang frequently after the crash.
House seemed quite calm, Harrison said.
“What I told him was I’d be as gentle as possible,” Harrison said of the tow that cost less than $1,000. “I did this tow like I do every car — like it was my own.”
Lufkin Daily News reporter Jessica Cooley contributed to this story.
This story was brought to you through our partnership with the Galveston Daily News.
Andy Lee House, 34, owner of Performance Auto Sales, told The Daily News on Wednesday that a low-flying pelican distracted him, causing him to jerk the steering wheel a bit — and he then dropped his cell phone.
The crash, however, was captured by someone filming the car as it traveled on the northbound frontage road of Interstate 45 about 3 p.m. Wednesday.
The man filming was traveling north on I-45. No pelican was visible in the video, which shows the car veering from the road and splashing in the lagoon.
With the Veyron in more than 2 feet of saltwater, House declined to give his name at the scene near Omega Bay.
Driver Offers Thanks
House posted a comment to The Lufkin Daily News, thanking everyone who was worried about him and the car.
“I have taken my exotic cars to school events, rallies, and allow anyone to take pictures of my cars and even rides in them,” House wrote. “I have allowed many people into my home to see my cars that I don’t even know. ... Say what you want about me, but there is a man in heaven right now looking over me and that’s all that matters!”
The 2006 Veyron is thought to have been one of only 200 made and one of only 15 in the United States. A 2006 model was for sale in Jonesboro, Ark., for $1.25 million. One of the prospective buyers was from Texas, The Associated Press reported in October.
Police Report Released
A police report, made public Friday, lists House as the driver and owner. The pelican caught his eye as it was quite close to colliding with the car, House said. House never said he was using the cell phone at the time. Dropping it added to the distraction just enough, sending the front passenger wheel off the road and into the soft, sloppy, muddy shoulder.
A Daily News reporter arrived at the scene about 15 minutes after the car entered the water just in time to see the gurgling exhaust stop bubbling like an outboard motor as the 1,001 horsepower engine died.
House, who was looking at real estate in Galveston the day of the crash, was not injured. The Veyron is capable of speeds of more than 253 mph, but House hadn’t risked driving it on a private fast track to test the limits, namely because the insurance company wouldn’t cover any resulting mishap, he said.
Insurance Company Takes Car
House called Gilbert Harrison, the tow truck driver who carefully winched the Veyron from the lagoon, telling him it was OK to release the car Friday to the insurance company. No information on the extent of the damage to the car’s electrical system, engine and components was available.
Harrison remembered House saying his phone rang frequently after the crash.
House seemed quite calm, Harrison said.
“What I told him was I’d be as gentle as possible,” Harrison said of the tow that cost less than $1,000. “I did this tow like I do every car — like it was my own.”
Lufkin Daily News reporter Jessica Cooley contributed to this story.
This story was brought to you through our partnership with the Galveston Daily News.
11-17-09 | 08:04 AM
#13
Lexus Champion
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,102
Likes: 8
From: Hill Country, TX
Smells like an insurance scam. Let's see how this unfolds from that angle.
Whether or not it is repairable is yet to be seen. Typically in the Gulf area where they get occasional flooding if the water gets to the bottom of the dashboard the car will be totaled out. Too much electrical damage, and that is not counting a salt water bath in this case. A car this valuable may be restored, but who is going to do it? This isn't something your local shop could handle. It would almost have to go back to the 'factory'. And collector value will be dead.
The guy is a M-O-R-O-N.
Whether or not it is repairable is yet to be seen. Typically in the Gulf area where they get occasional flooding if the water gets to the bottom of the dashboard the car will be totaled out. Too much electrical damage, and that is not counting a salt water bath in this case. A car this valuable may be restored, but who is going to do it? This isn't something your local shop could handle. It would almost have to go back to the 'factory'. And collector value will be dead.
The guy is a M-O-R-O-N.
11-17-09 | 03:08 PM
#14
11-18-09 | 08:43 PM
#15
Thread Starter
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,979
Likes: 0
From: ca
guess now we know why he didn't want to kill the engine as it floated there for 30 mins, insurance money! Lots of money in this case.
Not to mention he didn't want to give his name at the scene of the crime... hmmm... no pelican either.
Too bad they will never be able to prove anything. Good way to get out from underneath a bad purchase in a tough economy.
Not to mention he didn't want to give his name at the scene of the crime... hmmm... no pelican either.
Too bad they will never be able to prove anything. Good way to get out from underneath a bad purchase in a tough economy.