VIDEO: New SRT-10 owner learns that sometimes it is better to lift!
This video is an excellent example of Newton's Third Law. For every action (inexperienced or unknowledgeable driver spends $45K on 505 horsepower Dodge Ram SRT-10, looking forward to many days of enjoyable driving) there is an equal and opposite reaction (takes it to the drag strip on day one and destroys it!) Having spent time in many of these trucks on comparison drives while working at Ford SVT, I can tell you from experience that they must be driven with respect and finesse or many days at the track will end just like this poor guy's! Unfortunately he learned about 8 seconds too late that sometimes it is better to just lift and try again another day.
[Source: Streetfire.net via Jalopnik]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Stretch 1:23PM (11/25/2006)
One thing nice about the exotics, they make you take a course to show you how to handle the power.
Idiot didn't even launch it right.
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vectorbug 1:29PM (11/25/2006)
The thing I love about drag racing is you're just going in a straight line but people still crash.
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Tiago do Vale 1:34PM (11/25/2006)
A crappy car... may I say it?
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DKB_SATX 1:40PM (11/25/2006)
Tiago: well, for what it is the SRT10 is certainly not crappy, but that driver was. The idea of a hotrod truck is a little strange, since it's hard to get good traction with the light rear end, but they're quite popular and people pay crazy money for them. You can make the same mistake in a Ferrari though, quite often the weakest link in a vehicle system is the one between the driver's seat and the steering wheel.
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chuck goolsbee 1:45PM (11/25/2006)
OK, lets put a giant engine on a ladder frame, then put a lightweight bucket over the drive wheels. Then we'll mash on the go pedal and watch the rear end never bite.
What idiot thought a pickup would make a good performance car? Bad weight distribution, aero properties of a brick, handling properties of a drunken walrus.
I actually own a pickup... for use in hauling hay, plywood, fencing materials, a few cubic feet of dirt, the horse trailer, etc. It has decent horsepower, but I'm not stupid enough to drive it like a sportscar. That is why I also have a sportscar in the barn!
--chuck
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Bryan 1:49PM (11/25/2006)
Hey, at least the engine is probably salvageable.
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Bob-o 1:50PM (11/25/2006)
Contrary to what the author said, lifting was the reason he crashed in the first place. Had he countersteered slightly and kept his foot planted, the rear wouldn't have jumped out as it did...
So it begs the question, were you *really* a test driver at Ford SVT then? Surely anyone that's at least Tier 2 certified under Ford's Driver Cerification program would have known that (shouldn't SVT test drivers be Tier 3 if not Tier 4?)...
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Hamud 2:03PM (11/25/2006)
Some people still need to know a lot about the combination of a pickup+RWD and a 505HP engine.
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Mike 2:20PM (11/25/2006)
As Dirty Harry said in Magnum Force - "A man's got to know his limitations." This guy did not and is paying the price.
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Howard Kerr 2:39PM (11/25/2006)
Anyone who buys a high powered vehicle and then takes it ANYWHERE for a balls-out test of it's limits is asking for trouble. When I buy a new car (or truck) I figure there is a learning curve involved as I determine what I can and can not get away with while driving under all sorts of conditions. When driving my truck I go slower around curves when it's wet than I would in my car...at least until I can get a feel for the limits of traction.
And I can't even imagine buying a new ANYTHING and taking it to a track of ANY KIND...unless it was going to sit in the parking lot. Isn't this guy at all worried that he might void his warranty before the first payment is made?
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j-dawg 2:48PM (11/25/2006)
You guys are making a lot of assumptions about how long this guy's had his truck for.
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BOB 5:10PM (11/25/2006)
ESTA HOMBRE NO TIENE _B_R_A_I_N_S_
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dfd 3:38PM (11/25/2006)
#11 -
"Video Secription: Accident of a New RAM SRT-10 Truck"
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Dan 3:48PM (11/25/2006)
It would have held grip better with 15-20 illegal immigrants in the bed.
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Andy 4:24PM (11/25/2006)
Automobile magazine reports the Ram SRT-10 as having 56/44 weight distribution. Those aren't bad numbers, when you consider many vehicles hit up to 60/40. The 2007 single cab hits the scales at 5,200 lbs. and retails for $47,600. You could buy a new Corvette with that money and travel faster and look better. Some people prefer trucks.
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Rocket Punch 4:27PM (11/25/2006)
LMAO! Who brought the cool guy!? Seriously, what do you expect from a guy who bought this to begin with?
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Zo 4:43PM (11/25/2006)
I give this guy credit for one thing -- he did this on a closed track and not a public road. I am sure there are many incedents of the similar fiasco's on public roads. So, at least he had the sense of keeping the general public out of harms way.
But to some previous posters, I agree that if you get any hi-HP car a driving school should be mandatory. IMHO -- anything over 300HP should instantly require a driver training school.
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Rmi 4:38PM (11/25/2006)
A 500hp pick-up truck? Give it a transfer case and it can be a beast in drag racing.
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PitBit 5:03PM (11/25/2006)
Driver's fault. Possibly, yes. There is that danger of crashing whenever you get in a vehicle of any kind. I would never do that ever. I don't need to impress my amigos. Stick to Gran Turismo or some other driving sim game.
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AutoFan 5:56PM (11/25/2006)
Hey, I've seen this guy before! Seriously, his picture is right next to the word "dumbass" in the dictionary.
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