818 Accident Report

[john g]

With regrets, I am reporting that I crashed my 818S on its maiden test drive. As far as I can recall, I was shifting into second gear and the car skidded off the road and hit a small tree. Fortunately, there were no injuries other than a few bruises.

The car is now back in my garage, and the damage appears confined to the front passenger side. The radiator and radiator support are toast, as are donor parts including the steering rack and lower control arm. It appears that there is frame damage where the control arm mounts to the body.

I reported the accident to Factory Five. They said that, with my description (but no pictures) the car may be fixable. I will decide in my next steps in the next few days, but I don’t think I will rebuild the 818. If I decide to sell the car, I will post the “goods and bads” here first.

Please be careful when you take your 818 out for the first time. They are very powerful, especially my car that is based on a 2006 WRX.


John

[Mechie3]

Sorry to hear about the accident.

[Lumpyguy]

Dude that sucks! you are right, good thing know one got hurt. good luck

[Goldwing]

Ouch! I'm very sorry to learn of your accident. Glad you're OK.

[thall818]

That does suck. I know you worked very hard. Hate to hear it, but like others, I'm glad no one was hurt.

[wleehendrick]

Sorry to hear that, especially on the maiden drive. Just glad no-one was hurt.

If you don't mind, could you share anything else to put the rest of us at ease? Any chassis set-up details (stock springs/shocks, tires f/r, alignment settings, sway bar) that would explain it?

[Hindsight]

Oh no! Sorry to hear of your accident. The tube frames on these cars are pretty simple so if it didn't bend a bunch of stuff and the damage is just confined to a certain area, it may be easy to fix.

[Santiago]

Obviously our first concern is with the safety of the driver and any passenger. So very glad to hear you're ok and very sorry that this happened.

Post-crash reports can be very helpful, so I would also second a request for as much information as you're willing to give. The major manufacturers scour over crash data to see what they can learn, it's just good practice. So I'm appreciative of anything you can share.

Best,
-j

[AZPete]

Oh no! I feel so bad for you but I'm glad you were not hurt.

[gwarden]

Glad you didn't get hurt too bad it could have been much worse.
Don't give up on your dream of owning the car you came this far why not rebuild

[Frank818]

That is really sad! But happy no one was injured and no collateral damages other than the tree.

[2FAST4U]

So sorry to hear about the accident. Hopefully the car is repairable

[skullandbones]

Hi John,

Sorry for the misfortunate accident. Glad to hear you made it through the ordeal. I know your hurting after working so hard on the project. I hope you change your mind and get it back on the road. Either way, good luck from now on. WEK.

[mrmustang]

With regrets, I am reporting that I crashed my 818S on its maiden test drive. As far as I can recall, I was shifting into second gear and the car skidded off the road and hit a small tree. Fortunately, there were no injuries other than a few bruises.

The car is now back in my garage, and the damage appears confined to the front passenger side. The radiator and radiator support are toast, as are donor parts including the steering rack and lower control arm. It appears that there is frame damage where the control arm mounts to the body.

I reported the accident to Factory Five. They said that, with my description (but no pictures) the car may be fixable. I will decide in my next steps in the next few days, but I don’t think I will rebuild the 818. If I decide to sell the car, I will post the “goods and bads” here first.

Please be careful when you take your 818 out for the first time. They are very powerful, especially my car that is based on a 2006 WRX.


John

John,

Sorry to hear about the accident. However, be happy it's just the car that is broke, as it can be replaced, while your life cannot be.


Bill S.

PS: There must be someone in the Silver Springs, MD area that can look at the frame for you.

[metalmaker12]

Man, glad your ok!!! Yeah guys the car definitely has plenty of sack, so be careful and get used to its power onset.

[svanlare]

So glad that you are ok, that is the most important thing, everything else can be replaced.

[Samiam1017]

Sorry to hear about the accident. Where you in legal road going mode or go cart mode?

[ehansen007]

Man, that is a bummer. I was wondering when this might happen. When I drove Brando's car and that powerband came in, I realized it was only a when, not if question. Be careful out there guys. Please send pics if you can as I'm sure we're all interested in how the frame held up.

[Flamshackle]

Just to echo others sentiment im really glad your well enough to write this thread. I have lost a couple of good friends in car accidents and its good to see you are ok. I hope you rebuikd it and get to enjoy it

[phillig]

Sorry to hear about the accident but the best news is that you are OK. Keep us updated as things evolve.

[Scargo]

I second Santiago's comments. Sorry to hear this happened.
I am reminded of two things. First, some have knocked the Subaru motor. It is very capable.
Second, I had one of the first RX7 R1's in Dallas. I think it was May, 1993. Magazine articles came out about how amazing the car was. I think Road and Track said "it does not suffer fools gladly". Very shortly thereafter a person died in one in Dallas while going too fast.

The point I'm trying to get across is that the 818 can be very fast in skilled hands as has been shown. It can be a handful with a lot of horsepower or a turbo that suddenly produces lots of torque once it spools up. Messing around with the turbo, boost and tuning can be a double-edged sword. High HP STis are known to break all four tires loose when they come on boost. Here, we only have rear wheels... My brother's VW powered street buggy was, at times, un-steerable because of the power and light front end.
Many variables in a kit car build can creep in to spoil your party as you are enjoying the power. As I approach 70 (not MPH) I acknowledge that I am lucky to be around. I've totaled a number of cars. I'm a lot more careful and conscientious than I used to be. Going fast, I feel a lot safer in a prepared race car than a street car.
I would like to say that I have no idea whether power or the use of it was involved in the accident. I guess I was rabidly thinking of some that want lots of power. This is somewhat flamed by Wayne Presley's new thread (http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?16407-So-you-want-a-400-RWHP-818-huh).

[john g]

Thank you all for your comments and good wishes. Yes, the loss of a car is not easy, but the most important thing is that we are all safe and my son returned to school on time.

Per requests, I will take pictures and share details in the coming days. I have already sent pictures to FFR.

On the car, I have decided not to rebuild. The kit has been a wonderful experience for the family, with both sons contributing according to their own interests, abilities, and time. We completed the car up to the interior finish stage so we can take satisfaction in a job well done on the mechanical and body aspects.

I will be posting a 'for sale' in the next few days. The car could either be a great donor package or, as FFR suggested, something that someone could repair.

John