F1 display in India - David Coulthard gets caught 'speeding'

(from Crash.net) --- i have had trouble judging my speed in the past, but have never thought that I was driving 60 mph and was actually going 160 mph!!!

DC gets knuckles rapped during F1 display

David Coulthard is facing a fine or a ban from driving in India after breaking a pre-arranged speed limit during an F1 demonstration run in India.

The Scot was clocked at nearly three-times the pre-arranged limit during demonstration runs with Red Bull Racing across the new Raijiv Ghandi Sea Link bridge in Mumbai – with the event capping a week of F1 celebrations in the Indian capital.

However, Coulthard's demo run could now see him face possible action from authorities after he clocked speeds of up to 160mph on the run.

The speed limit for the event had been set at 60mph, double the normal limit for traffic using the bridge.

“I have asked my officers to submit a report on the event,” Satish Gavai, managing director of Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, was quoted by the Daily Mail. “Action will be considered only after it is established that the vehicle went beyond permissible speed limits on the sea link.

“If there is anything incriminating it will be handed to the appropriate authorities.”

Coulthard himself apologised for going over the limit.

“I was trying to judge what 60mph would be but I have no speedometer on the car,” he said. “I spent my career driving over 200, so I am sorry if I went over the speed limit.”

Event organisers are also set to lose a £20,000 deposit that had been held as insurance against any speed violations.

 

David Coulthard is one of the best drivers in the world... frankly, imposing an arbitrary speed limit on him for a demonstration is ridiculous. He knows the limits of the car and isn't likely to do anything stupid.

Besides, how are you supposed to demonstrate an F1 car at 60mph anyway?

All the best,
Andrew.

 

Sounds like a prearranged publicity stunt.

 

Let's not get carried away, now

 

Utter nonsense...

 

Well, he's got a Superlicense at any rate.

And as far as F1 drivers go, I'd rate him at least in the top third.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

20K fine and a driving ban in a country he most likely be returning to anytime soon seems to be a small price for the publicity.

 

As an Indian I am very ashamed of how my people are treating this incident. First its throwing Richard Gere in jail because he made a jesture( Play kissing one of the bollywood actress) that offended the indian population. What bothers me is India is in a position to be a economic leader next to China. They need focus on attracting more outside investment and improve their infastructure An F1 race can really help their local economy along with promoting their country, but if they keep doing stupid crap liike this, no one would want to do anything there. This is just typical Indian politics.

 

Why would he have to guess what 60mph was...... it's says it on the steering wheel.

 

Agreed, 1469718.5 rupees hopefully paid in the lowest form of this currency a truck load.

Thank you, for your perspective agreed.
And I thought it was just here (UK) we had to put up with this sort of crap.

 

Well, when you consider that there are probably 3 billion people who have never driven a car, and another 2 billion that have never driven over 100 mph and maybe another 500 million who have never been over 120 mph and, and, and . . .

the, the statement is correct. For that matter, I am one fo the best drivers in the world. I am at least better than 5.5 billion other people.

 

It is called marketing. Red Bull got a bargain!

 

Unless there's an Indian GP and he is still doing TV....hmmmm

Of course, he can always hire a driver! It is still an utterly ridiculous knee-jerk reaction to a harmless incident.

 

From what I know about traffic in India he'd be crazy not to.

 

All seems a bit silly really. The F1 circus should pack up there things and take there cars home. Try India in another few years time

 

Haha well Dave what you know is absolutely correct. The traffic there makes Mexico look like Finland

 

+1

 

Mexico with snow and ice. Now that's scary.

 

Not like the old days. A thousand pardons would have taken care of everything .

 

Just to play Devil's advocate:

I haven't seen the demo space but, if like other F1 exhibitions, there may have been very little in the way of barriers between spectators and a hand-built prototype hurtling at 160 mph. If a critical part were to suffer a failure or the driver a lapse in concentration in such an environment, the result could easily surpass the body count of the 1955 LeMans disaster.

Personally, if I were there with my kids, I might be pretty unnerved by a surprise 160 fly-by without a net (anyone recall the recent dragster and monster truck demo accidents?). But then again, it'd be awfully cool to see that up close!

 

Or dramas I'm a Malaysian-Indian, and i get what this whole thing is about. Just being dramatic

 

Yep, valid points.

 

What's the pit lane speed limit? if there was a strict limit, seems like it should have been fairly easy to just dial it into the car's software and press the "pit" button before he went out onto the bridge, yes?

I think that the police overreacted, but just wondering about the driver's "I didn't have a speedometer in the car" defense...

Gio P

 

Is it 50mph? Or thereabouts, anyway...

All the best,
Andrew.

 

It's actually 100km/h (just a hair over 62mph) and they are not flexible on the thereabouts part. Just ask Sebastian Vettel. Although they don't measure with a radar gun or telemetry. They actually measure it using a time/distance calculation.