From another group.

Dave Plowman (News) ( snipped-for-privacy@davenoise.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Yeh, right...

Roughly translated Using Bablefish (Bullshit to English) ---->

Our 17 year old parking/cleaning boy has accidentally crashed your bimmer into a lamppost in our carpark whilst teaching himself how to do doughnuts properly. The car hit the post so hard it caught fire (and he dropped his joint into the shagpile).

We are going to make up some pathetic story about a car starting itself in gear, despite the fact that these cars have an inhibitor switch stopping them from being started whilst left in drive or reverse, the car also managed to override it's immobiliser and ignition switch all by itself.

What a load of bullshit, yours *truly* (yea right)

The Worst garage in the world....(ever)

Andy

Jesus... I trust you've advised them to do the dealer up the wrong 'un, without any Vaseline.

-- JackH

Hmmm, in fairness, I have actually witnessed a car starting up all by iteslf with an electrical fault.

My desktop bulls**t meter just exploded. Please let us all know which dealer this is so we can avoid it until after the Second Coming is done with.

That would be more than one electrical fault, though, Andy? And then there's the question of the car selecting drive and releasing the handbrake...

Without know all the facts, it's hard to comment really, all I'm saying is, don't elliminate that it is impossible. I have also seen a car jump into drive and take itself through our workshop too.

Maybe it's because I do work at a main dealer, but I do get pissed off with seeing people taking every opportunity to rubbish them. Accidents happen, and this kind of thing can happen to anyone, dealer or not. OK, the excuse may be crap, if it is an excuse.

With a lot of modern cars being controlled by a single master computer now, it is certainly not inconceivable that this might happen. You could certainly have a major electrical fault that would start the engine up, and if it has an electronic gearbox it could also be set to drive. Indeed, had the main control box shorted and started to catch fire, it is quite possible that multiple circuits would have been affected. The fire could have been the trigger for the rest of it.

I'll go along with that. I have seen vehicles start themselves in the middle of the night. In fact it is not really uncommon, as I have heard of several others and know of several vehicles that have caught fire unattended and secure with the ignition switch certainly off.

Huw

The old Honda Melody scooters would start if you pulled apart a connector block (!)

Thanks Huw. Indeed, many modern handbrakes are pretty crap now too, so moving along is also possible.

Did the vicar walk in just as this happened?

: > HE has just called to say that there is a problem - apparently the car : > started itself, in gear, drove across the yard and went on fire ???

A problem indeed, but not the owner's ...

Ian