Drive carefully out there. OT

[TodFitch]

Just say this on the web site for the local newspaper: http://www.mercurynews.com/rss/ci_21663417

I don't know who the driver was but I am pretty sure the Model A Ford club people will find out soon.

[40P10touring sedan]

Ouch that hurts i multiple ways...hope the guy is gonna be ok...cars can be easily fixed - people, sometimes not so much.

Sad part is I bet he really was trying to stop...those A drums{if it were stock} aren't very big!

[Plymouthy Adams]

well it is a sad event on both side of the coin and why many people go against the grain and update brakes if they drive these old cars at all..the stigma should be removed from shows and events outside of concours who are true trailer queeens so not to lose points in judging if brakes are improved to today's standards...

[Chester Brzostowski]

well it is a sad event on both side of the coin and why many people go against the grain and update brakes if they drive these old cars at all..the stigma should be removed from shows and events outside of concours who are true trailer queeens so not to lose points in judging if brakes are improved to today's standards...

Well said Tim. But if this car was stock what was he doing on the highway with a 1929 vehicle.

Chet

[pflaming]

That's the reason I put disc brakes on the front, a dual master cylinder, and new rear axle. "Things happen FAST". Found that out Friday. I was painting the gable facia boards on the house so I too two strong tall ladders and placed a strong plank between. Then I took a second strong ladder as a means of getting up and down, all safety precautions. . .Well, coming down on the 3rd ladder I lost my balance and grabbed for the top of the ladder I was on only I grabbed the top of the 'scaffold' ladder which gave way and I hit a "mercedes" fast and hard. Still can hardly move. Gotta be careful.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Well said Tim. But if this car was stock what was he doing on the highway with a 1929 vehicle.

Chet

Chet...he was out there hopefully enjoying the fruits of his labor and haveing a pleasenat drive that did turn nasty...folks with old cars are out there on a daily bases..some cars have sat for long periods of time and things like brakes are not happy with these idle conditons and will build up residue internally..once the brakes are appled a couple times the chance of contanimation getting between the4 seals is very likly causing failure...

look at Chris and Jerry when they take the roadster out on these sporting events they attend..again, many ofolks still try to enjoy their old cars on nice days..

[bamfordsgarage]

If that was a stock Model A Ford it would be 4-wheel brakes but all mechanical, no hydraulic. He should have left sufficient room behind the car in front to slow down, but often moderns pass the older cars and change back into our lane right away filling up the safety zone.

Its easy to follow to close and/or not pay proper attention... I put my T Speedster up on the boulevard last week when the gal in front slowed suddenly for a pedestrian crosswalk. I could tell I wasn't going to stop in time and saw an opening to the right — stopped with the two right wheels up the curb on the grass and my car directly beside hers.

[Chester Brzostowski]

Chet...he was out there hopefully enjoying the fruits of his labor and haveing a pleasenat drive that did turn nasty...folks with old cars are out there on a daily bases..some cars have sat for long periods of time and things like brakes are not happy with these idle conditons and will build up residue internally..once the brakes are appled a couple times the chance of contanimation getting between the4 seals is very likly causing failure....

Tim,

Point well taken but the article said he was on the freeway. I take my 29 Plymouth out often and it has 4 wheel hydraulic brakes. I wouldn't go on a freeway or highway it's just crazy. Especially in an urban environment. He must have been modified and had a brake system failure. A stock 29 is just not suited for super highways.

Respectfully, Chet...

[TodFitch]

If that was a stock Model A Ford it would be 4-wheel brakes but all mechanical, no hydraulic. He should have left sufficient room behind the car in front to slow down, but often moderns pass the older cars and change back into our lane right away filling up the safety zone.

Its easy to follow to close and/or not pay proper attention... I put my T Speedster up on the boulevard last week when the gal in front slowed suddenly for a pedestrian crosswalk. I could tell I wasn't going to stop in time and saw an opening to the right — stopped with the two right wheels up the curb on the grass and my car directly beside hers.

I see nothing in that short article to say if the Model A was stock or not. For all I know it might have been modified to have four wheel disc brakes. I strongly suspect that it was not upgraded to have seat belts as the driver was ejected from the car. But there is nothing to indicate how close to stock the car was.

The key here is exactly as bamfordsgarage note: You need to leave sufficient room to stop at all times. If the visibility is restricted due to terrain or weather then you need to be going slow enough to stop as soon as something comes into sight.

If you are driving a stock Model T with only a transmission band brake you should leave more room than if you driving a stock Model A with four wheel drum brakes. If you are driving a '33 Plymouth with small drum brakes you leave more room than if you're driving a modern car with power assisted four wheel disc brakes.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Woodside,+CA&hl=en&ll=37.509488,-122.346325&spn=0.019881,0.041285&sll=37.269174,-119.306607&sspn=10.206527,21.137695&oq=woo&hnear=Woodside,+San+Mateo,+California&t=m&z=15

It is a little unclear to me from the article, but in that area traffic from a local road, the north bound exit from I-280 and the west bound traffic from a freeway section of California 92 is funneled into a single lane transition to the two lane section of 92 that goes over the mountains to Half Moon Bay. After all those traffic sources are funneled together there is a sharp left hand turn with limited visibility followed immediately by a traffic signal for the traffic for the south bound California 35 and south bound exit from I-280. I know that in a modern car I have been surprised by traffic stopped for the light. The lesson learned is that you approach that curve at a speed slow enough that you can stop immediately. But if you aren't familiar with that intersection, and the Model A drive might not have been, you can easily be unpleasantly surprised.

Edited September 30, 2012 by TodFitch

[Plymouthy Adams]

many folks have driven their old cars for so long without incident and often get lured into a false sense of security..Chris also describes a situation I hate when towing...I leave plenty of room between myself and the car in front but alas this is but a open invation for some person to jump into the void...they have no idea what is involved in towing a car...hopefully they temselves will get a dose of their own medicine and discover the reason for the gap...when in traffic I drive with my foot in place for the brake and the one hand on the electric controller..has saved my bacon more than once with those dive bombing Mitsubishi's

[Don Coatney]

To the seat belt issue, I wonder if the injuries would have been less had the driver not have been ejected? I do know that there will never be an answer to this question but it does make me wonder.

[Dan Hiebert]

Personally, I don't see enough info in the article to draw any conclusions. Intersting tho, that I was in Mac's Antique Auto Parts in Lockport NY on Saturday picking up parts for my daughter's Falcon, surrounded by Model A subject matter experts when the topic of Model A brakes came up because there's a Model A in their showroom that's "modified" with hydraulic brakes.........The word "prayer" came up every time someone mentioned hitting the original mechanical brakes.

[bamfordsgarage]

...The word "prayer" came up every time someone mentioned hitting the original mechanical brakes.

Model A mechanical brakes, properly set up, can lock all four tires in a forceful stop. So will hydraulics. Both stop you just as quickly (excepting the two-wheel-braked Model T).

Granted, it is challenging to set up mechanical brakes so they will perform at their best and the "self-equalizing" characteristic of hydraulics is one of their chief advantages over mechanical. Mechanical brakes also need occasional linkage adjustment and lubrication.

There are many advantages to hydraulic brakes but, just to be clear, if they are both set up and maintained correctly, either system will work as well as the other.