This is NOT a re-post!!! Scroll down, as this car is now fixed!
"Rowan Atkinson, comedian and petrol-head, has been discharged from hospital on Friday after walking away from a crash in one of the world's fastest road cars – suffering no worse than an injured shoulder, some very expensive coach work and wounded pride.
He left Peterborough City hospital in a wheelchair by the back door, flanked by security guards who attempted to block waiting photographers, and was driven away in a private ambulance.
The accident happened when one of the stars of his large car collection the maroon McLaren F1 – which he bought in 1997 for a reported £650,000, as a reward for the success of his Mr Bean film – apparently spun off the wet road on Thursday night, and hit a tree and a lamp-post. He was travelling on the A605 near Haddon, Cambridgeshire, at around 7.30pm, at the time.
His agents, PBJ & JBJ, confirmed that he will leave hospital sore but apparently without serious injury, that nobody else was involved in the accident, and that he has no comment to make on the incident.
Only a few weeks ago, when he clocked up the fastest guest star lap on the BBC Top Gear programme, he staunchly defended the McLaren to a presenter Jeremy Clarkson.
"You've got to live with it. I have lived with it for 14 years, I've done a lot of miles in it, I've done 37,000 miles – which for a McLaren is a lot," said Atkinson.
He loaned the car to the programme on a previous occasion, when it was driven by another Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond without incident.
In 1999, Atkinson damaged the bonnet of the car – which is capable of 230mph, and accelerates from 0-60mph in 3.2 seconds – in a low-speed shunt.
The vehicle will probably be returned again to the McLaren factory in Woking for repairs. A spokesman at the plant said: "We are waiting to hear more details on the incident, and wish him well for his recovery in the meantime."
On screen and in real life, Atkinson has a serious car habit. As the hapless Mr Bean he folds his long angular frame with difficulty into a Mini, but drives altogether flashier cars as his other alter ego, the Bond-lite spy Johnny English. He drove an Aston Martin in the first film, and alternates between a racing wheelchair, and a Rolls-Royce with – as he boasted on Top Gear – a 9 litre V16 engine in the new film, due for release next month.
Atkinson also races cars from his extensive collection, including his 1964 Ford Falcon. He is also believed to own a 1980s Aston Martin V8 Zagato, an Audi A8, and more thriftily, a Honda Civic Hybrid."
The timing is uncanny, considering he was just on Top Gear talking about this car; and the fact that he's logged over 37,000 miles on this car, which is a lot for this type of car. Not to mention, on that episode he logged the fastest lap time of any other "star in a reasonably priced car".
EDIT: Added a re-post warning for the re-post police.
[This message has been edited by Deabionni (edited 02-08-2013).]
My comment was in reference to him wrecking the F1 again!! Not to mention he lost a classic jag to an engine fire not long ago. However he is a VERY qualified racecar driver.
IP: Logged
01:24 PM
Deabionni Member
Posts: 4088 From: Kalkaska, MI Registered: Mar 2004
My comment was in reference to him wrecking the F1 again!! Not to mention he lost a classic jag to an engine fire not long ago. However he is a VERY qualified racecar driver.
Yeah, I was surprised to find out today that he has the fastest lap time on Top Gear.
Yea this will be the second time that his F1 has been returned to the factory for repairs. But the last time was a minor rear ender. He has not had a lot of luck with his high end cars.
However the F1 has 37k miles on it!! So he drives it a LOT!
IP: Logged
03:14 PM
Feb 8th, 2013
Deabionni Member
Posts: 4088 From: Kalkaska, MI Registered: Mar 2004
"Giant bill for fixing Rowan Atkinson's McLaren Fixing Mr. Bean's car: It costs a fortune to repair actor Rowan Atkinson's McLaren F1
LONDON (AP) -- Everyone who's had a fender bender knows the cost of repairs is going up. But few cars can be as costly to fix as "Mr. Bean" actor Rowan Atkinson's rare McLaren F1.
It took more than a year — and more than 900,000 pounds ($1.4 million) — to get his supercar up and running after a 2011 crash that left Atkinson with a badly damaged shoulder.
The high-performance car makes extensive use of carbon fiber and needed specialist care — it took weeks just to get a proper insurance estimate.
Ben Stagg, specialty insurer with RK Harrison, said the quality components used to make an F1 are one reason the repair costs were so high.
"All modern supercars are predominantly carbon fiber — most Lamborghinis, most Ferraris — and the smallest ding in carbon fiber is a big repair job," he said. "And part of the engine bay is gold, that's the best heat conductor. It's the materials they used compared to everyday cars that make it so expensive."
He said many owners baby their expensive cars, driving them only a few times a year in perfect weather conditions, but Atkinson actually drives his McLaren extensively.
The unusual repair job, thought to involve one of the largest car insurance settlements in British history, is extensively documented in Classic & Sports Car magazine, with a picture of the burgundy McLaren on the cover. Atkinson, last seen by many playing piano as Mr. Bean during the opening ceremony of the London Olympics, told the magazine he believes supercars should be used, not sequestered in garages.
"It depresses me when great cars are hidden away," he said. "It's a crime not to use it."
Magazine editor Alastair Clements said Atkinson should be applauded.
"He let us do the story because he wanted other enthusiasts to know that he loves it, that he isn't just some celebrity with an expensive car, that he's owned it for 15 years and loved it for 15 years," he said. "He's put it back exactly as it was. He's a bit of a hero. It's much more than the value."
Of course, the value is there — Stagg said the last used McLaren F1 sold on the open market went for about 3.5 million pounds."
[This message has been edited by Deabionni (edited 02-08-2013).]
IP: Logged
11:28 PM
PFF
System Bot
Feb 9th, 2013
Formula88 Member
Posts: 53788 From: Raleigh NC Registered: Jan 2001
At least you know it was fixed right! I would love to read the magazine article about the repairs. I'm happy they saved such a masterpiece of engineering.
IP: Logged
11:13 PM
Feb 10th, 2013
craigsfiero2007 Member
Posts: 3979 From: Livermore, ME Registered: Aug 2007
I am glad it didn't go to a scrap yard or something. I bet it was a pain to find parts though, explaining why it took so long to repair it. I think the only other cars that can more expensive to have repaired would be Bugatti Veyron or the Ferrari 250 GT California. You would be a hunted man if you ever wrecked a Ferrari 250 GT California. LOL!
IP: Logged
12:47 AM
AusFiero Member
Posts: 11513 From: Dapto NSW Australia Registered: Feb 2001
On a side note, I'm just having fun. It's not everyday I make the monumental mistake of posting a re-post!
With his income, its like one of us denting up a wheelbarrow. rather see a car like that out on the roads with the associated risks, and collecting miles, than sitting in a garage simply collecting dust.
[This message has been edited by User00013170 (edited 02-10-2013).]
IP: Logged
05:07 PM
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 25276 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
