205 replies to this topic

[akshay380]

Confirmations:

https://twitter.com/RealPaulWalker

It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide. He was a passenger in a friend's car, in which both lost their lives. We appreciate your patience as we too are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news. Thank you for keeping his family and friends in your prayers during this very difficult time. We will do our best to keep you apprised on where to send condolences. 

 

 

[Farhannn15]

He was an amazing actor and will be deeply missed. RIP Paul Walker

[mistareno]

Bugger. In a world of egos, he really seemed like a top bloke who prefered to live out of the spotlights.
Always willing to give his time to charities, and not just for the benefit of the media.
He was happy to show his real exuberance around cars and loved racing and driving (and surfing)
Never heard a bad word about the bloke. RIP.

[dav115]

Really enjoyed his part in the F&F series, gutted about the news. RIP.

[PorcupineTroy]

He made a stop at the indoor kart track I work at years ago. Loved the first F&F movie, 40 is way to early to leave. RIP.

[Reinmuster]

He still owed us 10 sec car. RIP, Paul.

[RosannaG]

Sad news, I liked the guy and his F&F movies.

RIP, Paul.

[Gilles4Ever]

 

The alleged driver of the car that was involved in a crash that killed Paul Walker has been identified as former race car driver Roger Rodas, according to a Santa Clarita radio station with sources close to the situation.

Roger was the CEO of the companyAlways Evolving, a car customization shop. The charity event for Reach Out Worldwide was being held at the company’s headquarters in Santa Clarita that afternoon when he went for a drive with Paul in a Porsche Carrera GT, which happens to be one of Roger‘s favorite cars. Both of them died in the crash after the car exploded into flames.

The friends had met when they raced cars together at the Pirelli World Challenge series years ago.

 

http://www.justjared...er-roger-rodas/

[dhill39]

Sad news,a day later and I still can't believe it,life is so fragile,we have to live it to the fullest.RIP Paul.

[akshay380]

Damn. RIP again

[John Player]

Very similar to Sean Edwards accident, also a passenger in a Porsche that caught fire.

 

Unbelievable

 

RIP

[paipa]

As sad as it is to die so young in an accident, there is NO excuse for anyone, let alone a racing driver to end up like this within city limits:

 

No, no and no.

[HoldenRT]

Wow.. RIP.

[MikeV1987]

A true car buff, so sad. Him and his F&F movies are a big part of why I love cars today, I'm not into big body kits, decals, etc like I was when I was a teenager. But he definitely had an impact on my love for cars which eventually grew into loving motorsport. R.I.P. to them both, too soon.

Edited by MikeV1987, 01 December 2013 - 17:24.

[sneaker91]

As sad as it is to die so young in an accident, there is NO excuse for anyone, let alone a racing driver to end up like this within city limits
 
No, no and no.

Is it confirmed as a single vehicle incident??? If so, the I regrettably agree with you.

Very tragic!!!

RIP

[loki]

Single car crash, authorities citing speed as a factor.

[Melchiot]

I've read some nasty reports on them being in such a bad shape that dental exams are needed to indentify them...Feel sorry for Paul to go out like this, but his buddy should had known better then driving on public roads at high speeds with such a dangerous machine.

[AustinF1]

I've read some nasty reports on them being in such a bad shape that dental exams are needed to indentify them...Feel sorry for Paul to go out like this, but his buddy should had known better then driving on public roads at high speeds with such a dangerous machine.

Yep. High-speed side impacts with poles/trees don't often leave much to examine. I doubt the fire had much to do with these men's deaths.

Edited by AustinF1, 01 December 2013 - 20:33.

[Disgrace]

Really hoping this one is a technical failure...

[Ross Stonefeld]

What, of the brain?

[Andrew Hope]

That they were going way, way too fast driving around town seems the easy conclusion to make without a ton of evidence, but nevertheless, if that's the case at least they didn't kill anyone but themselves.

Edited by Andrew Hope, 01 December 2013 - 20:55.

[Shiroo]

What, of the brain?

 

Looking at the car after the accident, we can easly say that the driver didn't use brain at all, so that can be the reason mate, that the brain was at fault.

With all due respect, when someone dies like that, he simply reaps what he sow. And Paul Walker was his passenger, he could say "Slow down mate". 

Car doesn't look like that even while going 100 km/h. 

 

And I agree with Andrew. At least they didn't take anyone else with them. 

[MuZzer]

Big, big shame. Loved the Fast and Furious series and saw a couple more of his films too. 

Seemed a top bloke too. There's no justice in this world is there?

 

Was that the Porsche that Clarkson was quite critical about on Top Gear not long ago?

[JHSingo]

Was that the Porsche that Clarkson was quite critical about on Top Gear not long ago?

 

Clarkson is generally critical of every Porsche...

 

But this is yet another example of why you should save the racing for the race track.

[maverick69]

Obviously very sad. More for their families than anything else. But that car looked fully wrapped around that tree - fire or not. So as has been mooted - it could be a case of extreme recklessness...... in a Carrera GT of all cars.

 

I'm not a bad driver, and I have been very lucky to drive some exotic machinery (a couple of F40's.... even a Jag XJR-15 among other things) - but the GT was by far the most hairy. There is no way you should open one of them up on a track without some serious run-off...... so God knows what they were up to there....

 

RIP 

[Rich]

I once filmed a frontal impact test and afterwards had a chat to the technicians who run the tests. I asked them what speed they test at and they answered 57km/h. I asked why they don't test at higher speeds and the technician said there's no point. The test is done to gauge the protection offered to the vehicle's occupants. Anything over 60km/h is deemed fatal so the car is not required or expected to protect the occupants. Kinda scary that when you're doing 75km/h on a main  suburban road with a limit of 80, you're already 15km/h over the limit where the car can protect you. Yet most drivers would feel very safe at that speed.

 

I never watched any of Paul Walker's movies but I always find these "hours before death" pictures to be especially poignant. You see someone full of life and doubtless with many plans for the future. Just a few hours later, it has all ended in an instant.

[maverick69]

I once filmed a frontal impact test and afterwards had a chat to the technicians who run the tests. I asked them what speed they test at and they answered 57km/h. I asked why they don't test at higher speeds and the technician said there's no point. The test is done to gauge the protection offered to the vehicle's occupants. Anything over 60km/h is deemed fatal so the car is not required or expected to protect the occupants. Kinda scary that when you're doing 75km/h on a main  suburban road with a limit of 80, you're already 15km/h over the limit where the car can protect you. Yet most drivers would feel very safe at that speed.

 

I never watched any of Paul Walker's movies but I always find these "hours before death" pictures to be especially poignant. You see someone full of life and doubtless with many plans for the future. Just a few hours later, it has all ended in an instant.

 

Agree with that - but the GT is a tough bit of kit though. Carbon tub etc.

[Donka]

It happened in a commercial district in Santa Clarita which had 2 wide lanes per side plus a giant open median in the center.  From the video of one of the first people to show up you can see parts from the car strewn across all lanes.  If you use google street view near the drivers shop where they left from, you can see a bunch of tyre marks from burnouts and donuts just down the street. So it seems many people hot-dogged over there on those wide open roads since the who knows how long ago the Google car drove through the area.

 

Here's the footage from some of the first guys driving up to the scene:  http://www.youtube.c...h?v=KXxhJeP5k1s

[bonjon1979a]

People who drive like idiots on public roads cause so much pain and suffering. Just glad they didn't take any innocent bystanders with them.

[1Devil1]

People who drive like idiots on public roads cause so much pain and suffering. Just glad they didn't take any innocent bystanders with them.

 

Paul Walker didn't drive the car, do you see the problem here? Not only the (racing) driver died, his buddy too, in this context who can you can come up with a comment like that? 

[bonjon1979a]

To be fair actually, walker wasn't driving, and its of course really sad that anyone should die like this. But I see it all the time on the streets around me, pricks in high powered cars, thinking they're invincible and putting theirs and others lives in danger. For what?! For what?! That car was wrapped around a tree, debris thrown seventy yards away, on a public road? Jesus...

[bonjon1979a]

My original comment wasn't about walker. It was about the driver.

[SR388]

Rip

[ForzaGTR]

Absolutely gutted, seemed like a lovely chap. Loved the F&F movies, those films sparked my interest in fast cars. Tragic that he died so young. My thoughts are with his family.

[Coral]

I have been sad about this all day. Paul Walker had such a beautiful smile (yes I know that shouldn't make a difference, but it does to me). It's such a terrible tragedy. RIP Paul and friend.

[pdac]

Paul Walker didn't drive the car, do you see the problem here? Not only the (racing) driver died, his buddy too, in this context who can you can come up with a comment like that? 

You think that, as a passenger, he had no control over the driver - his buddy - whatsoever?

[ermo]

Didn't Lewis Hamilton's father crash in a Carrera GT as well?  Any rumours of tyre marks near the accident site? To go sideways into a tree at the side of the road with enough force to rip a carbon fiber tub in half requires ... a certain willful disregard of common sense and physics, not to mention road safety regulations?  Then again, if the bloke driving the car was indeed a racing driver as has been suggested, one could argue that he was trained to disregard the risk associated with high speed driving to a certain extent.

 

Sad, but effective cautionary tale.  And a crying shame for Paul as well.  Top bloke by all accounts.

 

From the Top Gear Porsche Carrera GT review (where the Stig spun it repeatedly and couldn't get a proper lap in until he'd practiced driving it the whole morning!) :

 

 

"it's much lighter than the McLaren [SLR] and that makes it nimbler and edgier and that ... makes it more of a handful."

(Jeremy has an oversteer moment in a corner) "Whoa whoa whoa whoaowowow ... you need to be awake to drive this car fast!"

"It really isn't an easy car to control, the clutch is brutal, the power is savage and the handling ... you really are on a knife edge. But if you put in the effort, boy ... oh boy, do you get the rewards!"
 

"(in) that [the Carrera GT], you make a mistake -- it bites your head off. It's that simple."

Edited by ermo, 02 December 2013 - 00:46.

[Ross Stonefeld]

I have even less tolerance for anyone with a pro racing license doing this. They should be *more* aware of the dangers, and that the road is not the place for this kind of fun. Besides, even the best street cars don't come close to even basic race cars so why take the step down.

[Seano]

Very sad when anyone is killed especially when they had just spent time and effort raising funds for the victims of the recent hurricane.

 

I don't condone street racing but as this was a single car incident, it wasn't. Nobody else was hurt and it looks like not a bad bit of road to have some fun on.

 

I doubt there's many people on here who have at some time driven beyond what the law permits just for the pure hell of it. Its just knowing when and where you can do it reasonably safely only putting yourself and your own wallet at risk. Both were skilled and accomplished drivers but things can easily go wrong especially in a car like that on a public road. Daily Mail minds - you could equally say F1 demo's on Public roads in a dense crowd are irresponsible.

 

 

RIP boys - you certainly lived your lives.  Looks like James Dean has new company.

 

Seano

[ANF]

Daily Mail minds - you could equally say F1 demo's on Public roads in a dense crowd are irresponsible.

Well, they sometimes are.



As was this.

[Tsarwash]

My original comment wasn't about walker. It was about the driver.

I really dislike people taking stupid risks on the streets too, but there is no need to be rude and disrespectful about the recently deceased.

[Tsarwash]

 

I doubt there's many people on here who have at some time driven beyond what the law permits just for the pure hell of it. Its just knowing when and where you can do it reasonably safely only putting yourself and your own wallet at risk. Both were skilled and accomplished drivers but things can easily go wrong especially in a car like that on a public road. 

There's only two places where you don't risk others. A field and a race track.

[404KF2]

People who drive like idiots on public roads cause so much pain and suffering. Just glad they didn't take any innocent bystanders with them.

I totally agree, these people were both fools, and they both had kids too.  

[Lemnpiper]

Hi Guys,

 

   By chance today I was checking out a new Mercedes gull wing coupe  and the owner of it happened  to mention he formerly owned the Porsche involved  in the wreck.

   He states  it was very "twitchy' under power and that due to it's weight , engine location , and power of the engine  it truly isn't fit for use on  public roads. Which is why he got rid of it.  And that it was the dealer he sold it to, that called him to let him know it was his former car that was in the Walker crash.

  As he relayed this story  , I noticed his wife  seemed very relieved that he had gotten rid of it  , but sad it had ended up killing two people.

 

 

 

   Paul

[sneaker91]

Driving fast enuff on public roads with a passenger to demolish a car like that is more than insane.

Stupid Stupid Stupid.

Everyday I c people like seano who think they are coordinated driving like try hards.

Should be based on IQ and a beep test. Easy fix to the worlds road toll. Don't let idiots drive no matter how much money they got.

[tifosiMac]

Terrible circumstances for these guys to die. Condolences to the families as this was shocking and completely unexpected.

 

I was never a fan of Fast and Furious. I saw the first two films and thought they were appalling, but appreciate Paul was a good actor and well respected for what he did for charity which went beyond what most famous people do.

 

Hopefully more details will come to light over this unnecessary crash. It looks like a violent wreckage for what was a fairly residential area and with assumptions flying about excess speed being the cause. A terrible shame.

[Nemo1965]

I have even less tolerance for anyone with a pro racing license doing this. They should be *more* aware of the dangers, and that the road is not the place for this kind of fun. Besides, even the best street cars don't come close to even basic race cars so why take the step down.

Agree Ross. And though I am very averse against claims that 'bad behaviour' in films lead to bad behaviour in real life, that is very difficult to maintain when a car who plays in movies about driving cars fast and furious dies in a carcrash that was fast and furious. I just can't help that todays movies and even todays motorsport lead to a total disregard of the dangers.

[275 GTB-4]

Tragic loss of two lives...

 

Did anyone else read where Paul had a Grandfather who raced?

[EthanM]

Tragic loss of two lives...

 

Did anyone else read where Paul had a Grandfather who raced?

 

 

I heard somewhere over the coverage of Paul Walker's death that his grandfather was a professional boxer, didn't hear that he raced

[alpinesmuggler]

I don't condone street racing but as this was a single car incident, it wasn't. Nobody else was hurt and it looks like not a bad bit of road to have some fun on.

 

I doubt there's many people on here who have at some time driven beyond what the law permits just for the pure hell of it. Its just knowing when and where you can do it reasonably safely only putting yourself and your own wallet at risk. Both were skilled and accomplished drivers but things can easily go wrong especially in a car like that on a public road.

Seano, the guys' families were hurt. The charity and people it was helping are hurt.

 

I'm not going to defend idiotic speed traps, speed limits that are lower than they were in the '80s, and ever-present radars that are only there to generate income for the state. That said, one day's "reasonable safety on a familiar road without traffic" can very quickly (as in less than 1 second, a long second admittedly) turn into another day's "I'm glad the only thing that I ****ed up was my car, and my passenger and I lived to think about our driving habits while celebrating modern car safety."

 

Plus, you get to support your friendly local racetrack. And then, if you're actually driving a Porsche GT or somesuch, you want to give people the time to give you envious looks.