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The car of an elderly hoon

Posted by: 3AW Drive | 6 January, 2009 - 4:50 PM

Above is an image of the vehicle police impounded from a 78-year-old man after he was clocked doing 170km/h in a 100km/h zone in Warragul.

The man has since paid a $600 fee and has retrieved his car, prompting some - like 3AW Drive host Steve Murphy - to suggest the penalty is not harsh enough and that the car should have been crushed at the hoon's expense.

What is your stance on this sensitive issue? Leave a comment below which may be used by 3AW talkback hosts.

Blog comments Your Say

  • OK, he was caught doing 170 Kmh in a 100 zone, it is against the law, and he must wear the consequences.

    I dont consider him being a "Hoon", I guess he had the urge to give his hot nissan pulsar a bit of a squite. Big deal, the road must have been void of traffic and he must have had full confidence in his driving ability considering road conditions, his vehicle and his driving ability.

    If he was on a German autobahn he would have been travelling in the SLOW LANE.

    I am 62 years old and have travelled at 285 Km per hour on a stretch of Autobahn in Germany. NO PROBLEM ,the road AHEAD was clear, and my Kawasaki Ninja is capable of such speeds in relatively short distances.

    German drivers dont have any problems with speeds in excess of 170km per hour on Autobahns, so what's our problem here in Australia?

    Some of our roads are equal to if not better than the German autobahns and we are restricted to 100 km per hour. Thats total B-S, and just legislated for revenue raising and has nothing to do with road safety.

    Get Real, why not impound the vehicles of "Hoons" who sit on the 100 kph speed limit and hog the right hand lanes on our freeways. Thats going to lower frustration and potential accidents.

    I regularly interstate between capitals, and i constantly exceed the speed limit. WHY?, because at 100kmph over long distances I become fatigued, and start to " Nodd Off ".

    If i am travelling at say 140 -150 kmph, I am totally alert, and DONT "nod off" at the wheel.

    The fact is I consider myself to be a safer driver when exceeding the speed limit on the interstate.

    Werner Sunday 11 January, 2009 - 12:15 PM
  • How ridiculous. You have EastLink with a 100 speed limit and then you have what is little more than a side street with the same limit.

    Who comes up with these arbitrary limits? Mr Bean?

    Manu Friday 9 January, 2009 - 7:36 AM
  • Crush the car? If we crushed every car that had ever exceeded the speed limit on a quiet country road can you SWEAR that you would still have your car? Have you NEVER done anything like this? Yes or no?
    I think he shouldn't have done it.
    Yes it's illegal. Yes he'll be punished.... plus he's been publically named in news services worldwide, and blasted by our Premier (that bit would have been tougher if it had been someone with any credibility as an insightful road safety expert), and he'll be disciplined by his car club. Pretty harsh already, considering he hurt nobody. And please don't start start with the "... but what if..." "...endangering other drivers..." rhetoric because if there had been any indication of a dangerous situation he simply would not have driven that fast. You wouldn't tear into an obviously hazardous area and he wouldn't either. Yes, stopping distances are longer as speed rises so he increased the chance of not being able to stop for something that was hidden and then suddenly moved out on to the road in his path. Let's be honest- that doesn't happen a lot on our roads. If it did 100kmh wouldn't be safe either.... or 60....
    Why hasn't our safety conscious Premier announced an enquiry into why a 61 year old man (whose name HASN'T been reported worldwide) drove his car (at a perfectly legal speed) off the road ind into a group of people in Lorne? No, don't crush his car either. Let's find out what we can do about preventing REAL tregedies instead.

    Justin Mclean Friday 9 January, 2009 - 12:25 AM
  • That is such a stupid idea. Why not sell it for parts or something useful. What is the point of crushing the car, it's a valuable thing. Also limit the hoon to driving cars under 1.6 litres engine capacity for the next 5 years.

    Feebie Wednesday 7 January, 2009 - 10:15 PM
  • I'm in total agreement - we should crush the vehicles of these hoons. It would only take a few for the hoons to realise they may lose their most prized possession if they continue to participate this stupid, dangerous activity.

    Vivienne Wednesday 7 January, 2009 - 2:22 PM
  • I rememeber Frank Green on 3aw saying total power is tyranny and total liberty is anarchy. We have gone down the civil liberties path too far and some people think that they have the liberty to do what ever the want.Whether it is hoon driving or street violence like Ron Barrasi had to fix we need to stop pussy footing around . Doing 170 kms in a Porsche or an old bomb is still life threatening , I say crush them both .

    mark Tuesday 6 January, 2009 - 9:13 PM

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