Absolutely Gutted!

[dave g]

Let me start at the begining:
I bought my DC5 in November of last year after craving something more exciting than the exec stuff that I had been running till then, and absolutely loved it from the moment that I saw/drived it

The wife, however, never really liked the car and constantly moaned about the harsh ride etc to the point that it was spoiling the whole experience of ownership for me She doesn't drive and the Teg is a real drivers car as you know, so she didn't appreciate it like me.

The moaning continued and was begining to get me down so eventually I agreed to look into something with 4 doors ( 3 x teenage kids), a softer ride but still had some performance and fun to be had. We narrowed it down to an Evo or an STI.

On the way up to Torque GT last Saturday to look at possibilities we were driving in heavy rain and hit a patch of standing water at a "good speed officer" which sent the car into a sideways skid which took a lot of effort and luck to control. :shock:

The missus was not impressed :evil: and added this ammo to her "anti-teg arsenal", insisting that Audi's etc don't behave in that manner and that she would not get in the car again etc. :roll:

To cut a long story short I have given in and for the sake of my marriage and my sanity I have today signed the paperwork to px the DC5 against a nice and safe Lexus RX300 :cry:

So she goes next Saturday and once again I shall live in the realms of boring cars.

I'm hoping to save enough to run a plaything again in the future, but until then enjoy yourselves you lucky sods :!: :lol: All the best, Dave

 

[rick c]

Firstly the incident with the standing water was a serious one (and very lucky that you didn't have an accident) but is purely down to your choice of tyres.

As for your missus' general distaste for the car it must be a difficult one, especially if she doesn't drive. My missus has her own car but every time we go anywhere together I drive. However until she pays something towards my car she can bollocks if she thinks she can tell me what car to buy. She can f***ing walk if she wants to moan.

But then I'm not exactly the sensitive type.

Each to their own at the end of the day. If that's her only mode of transport and (clearly since you have kids) your priorities are different to mine and I would say your idea of having a 'family car' and a 'weekend toy' would probably better suit your situation.

Best of luck :wink:

 

[C&S Evo7]

rick, there is alot more to the causes of aquaplaning than just tyre choice.


it is possible to aquaplane just about anycar with any tyres if the speed and road conditions are against you.

 

[redcap]

rick, there is alot more to the causes of aquaplaning than just tyre choice.

it is possible to aquaplane just about anycar with any tyres if the speed and road conditions are against you.

true but tyre type and tread depth makes a big difference.

I can't believe a non driver is making you change cars, i'd tell her to deal with it tbh. Surprised you are px'ing the Teg too as you must loose out surely?

 

[rick c]

rick, there is alot more to the causes of aquaplaning than just tyre choice.


it is possible to aquaplane just about anycar with any tyres if the speed and road conditions are against you.

Well, naturally doing 120mph over a small lake you could have the best wet tyres money can buy and it won't make any difference.

But you can't deny that some tyres are better than others in standing water.

I have Googyear Eagle F1 GSD3's on my 306 Rallye and in really heavy rain I've been forced to drive at 60mph while most other cars are merrily overtaking at 70 and 80mph.

Conversely I never had a single aquaplaning moment when I had Bridgestone RE720's on.

 

[logik]

Sorry to here you have to give the Teg up. Some women will NEVER understand the link with men and cars

 

[dc5-2ltr]

Trade the wife in mate...keep the Teg

 

[dave g]

Thanks for the commiserations guys!

TBH the aquaplaning issue is totally my fault - too fast in poor conditions and the speed and angle that I hit the water meant that no other result was likely - just bad driving

As for the wife trade in comments - I guess she is more important to me than any car (and more expensive to dispose of after 23 years!!) so sacrifices must be made, and even though the Lexus is boring it is an incredible piece of comfortable engineering (looking for a positive here!)

And yes - I am losing big time on the trade-in but having found the Lexus in stock at a good price/condition/colour etc I couldn't afford to take the time to fight off the joyriders and tyre-kickers in case I lost the car!

It will be back up at Torque GT after next Saturday (they underwrote the px) if anyone is interested in a CW C pack Mugen Teg - 51 plate - 44k - lots of extras - Defis, struts etc - and at the price I got someone should get a bargain :!:

 

[ErA]

i agree; deduct 1 nr. wife to offsite spoilheap...

gutted you've had to come to this, Teg ride isn't THAT unforgiving i don't think!

 

[dave g]

Just a bit of extra info having spoken to a boffin!

If you want to calculate the exact safe speed to avoid an aquaplane experience, do the following!

calculate the square root of your tyre pressure (ie if 36psi sq root =6)

then multiply this by a constant factor of 9 (ie 6 x 9 = 54)

This means that below 54 mph it is not possible to aquaplane, and it is only possible to aquaplane above this speed if the depth of surface water exceeds that of the tread on your tyres :!:

But don't use a calculator when your driving :lol:

 

[Neil_H]

Gutting! It's a shame when people don't understand the car.

Wide tyres on a light car are a major factor in aquaplaning - I wrote my S2000 off in just such a way (hit a huge puddle on the M20 at legal speeds and went into the barrier). The car I was behind - Seat Leon I think - went through at the same speed and didn't aquaplane.