A Duntroon man who continued driving a car as it fell apart around him appeared in the Oamaru District Court yesterday charged with dangerous driving and driving while suspended.
The court heard that on May 27, Karl Aaron Todd Blindell (41), loader driver, was driving a BMW vehicle through the Lindis Pass, on his way to Wanaka.
His licence had been suspended for 28 days from May 19, after he was caught allegedly travelling at 146kmh on State Highway 83, near Omarama.
Police prosecutor sergeant Chris George said at about 10pm, 1km north of the Lindis Pass Summit, Blindell lost control of the vehicle on a series of bends, crossed the centre line and crashed into a roadside barrier.
The impact caused significant damage to the barrier and significant frontal impact damage to the vehicle, but Blindell drove more than 50km in darkness, with no headlights and significant structural damage to the car.
He stopped just south of Tarras, after the engine sump had worn through on the road surface, allowing the engine oil to escape and causing the engine to stop.
He abandoned the vehicle on the left side of the road, with the rear of the vehicle impeding the southbound lane by about 1m.
An investigation found the remains of the right front tyre 20km south of the crash scene. The right front wheel assembly and front brake disk had been worn flat from contact with the road, to the extent that the right side sill and engine sump were also worn down.
The right front disc pads had fallen out of the brake caliper and the steering tie rod was no longer connected to the right front hub assembly.
Defence counsel Ngaire Alexander said Blindell drove slowly after the accident, ''at most 25kmh and sometimes slower than that''.
He claimed one headlight was working as he drove on and there were no passing motorists.
Blindell said he had lost control of the vehicle in icy road conditions and continued to drive because he did not want to be stranded in the ''isolated'' area.
''He accepts that it was dangerous, given the state of the vehicle,'' Ms Alexander said.
Judge Joanna Maze called for a pre-sentence report. Blindell pleaded guilty to both charges and was convicted and remanded at large to appear for sentencing in the Oamaru District Court on January 14.
After entering convictions, Judge Maze said she was amazed that the vehicle was able to operate for 50km after the crash.
Sgt George described photos of the vehicle, in its abandoned state, as something ''out of The Flintstones''.
Careless drivingA Christchurch man who ''underestimated'' the time it would take for the driver of a vehicle in front of him to overtake a truck and made a decision to pass the two vehicles at once, was convicted of careless driving in the Oamaru District Court yesterday.
Kane Lee Georgeson (22), carpenter, of Ohoka, admitted careless driving after the charge was reduced from dangerous driving, when he appeared in the Oamaru District Court yesterday. He was fined $400 and ordered to pay court costs of $130.
Police prosecutor sergeant Chris George said Georgeson was driving north on State Highway 1, on August 2.
At the passing lanes just north of Waikouaiti, he was second in line behind a truck. When he realised the vehicle in front of him, overtaking the truck, was not going to get past in time to allow him him to make clearance too, he overtook the car which was overtaking the truck.
He was stopped by police just south of Hampden.
Defence counsel Ngaire Alexander said when Georgeson saw that the passing lanes were coming to an end, he made the decision to pass both vehicles.
She said he accepted that in doing so, part of his vehicle passed over the yellow lines into the southbound lane, but he could see there was no oncoming traffic in the southbound lane at the end of the passing lane.
''His mistake was underestimating the time the other car would [take to] get past,'' she said.
Judge Joanna Maze said the level of lapse was ''more than minor''.
''You are fortunate that you did not cause a much more significant outcome in an accident,'' she said.
