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Login to post Forums » Off-topic discussion » Toyota test driver dead near the Nurburgring

June 23, 2010 8:00 p.m. RexSeven Dork

Sorry if this is a repost, but I figured this deserves some attention here.

You've probably seen the car blog-o-sphere talking about the death of Hiromu Naruse, Toyota's top test driver. He was test driving the Lexus LF-A Nurburgring Edition just outside the 'Ring when he collided with a BMW. The full story is here:

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/06/23/breaking-toyota-chief-test-driver-dies-lf-a-ger...

Turns out the guy was behind some of Toyota's greatest cars, many of them GRM favorites:

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/06/23/seat-time-with-hiromu-naruse/

TFA said:
In addition to the racecars and the iconic 2000GT, Naruse-san had a hand in every revolutionary product to come out of Toyota. You name it, he was working on it. The 1965 Sports 800. His. The 1600GT. Another one. Every iteration of the Celica. The AE86. The first and third generation MR2s. The Supra. The Altezza [1st gen. Lexus IS]. And yes, even the second-generation Prius.

RIP, Naruse-san.
June 24, 2010 12:33 a.m. gamby SuperDork

Wow.
June 24, 2010 1:24 a.m. Wally SuperDork

Oversized floormat?
June 24, 2010 7:10 a.m. John Brown SuperDork

I will bet they find he died BEFORE the accident, while the impact looks bad it dos not look "deadly" compared to accidents Wally has been in.

It would explain a lot as well.
June 24, 2010 7:52 a.m. pinchvalve SuperDork

Seems a bit elderly to be testing something so wicked fast. I am sure he was a master behind the wheel, but human reflexes generally slow with age. Regardless, sad story.
June 24, 2010 11:00 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork

his reactions were probably better than most people's.

Rest in piece
June 24, 2010 12:18 p.m. Duke SuperDork

John Brown wrote:

I will bet they find he died BEFORE the accident, while the impact looks bad it dos not look "deadly" compared to accidents Wally has been in.

It would explain a lot as well.

I've heard he crossed the center line and nailed the BMW head on. I suspect you're probably right.
June 24, 2010 12:54 p.m. 93celicaGT2 SuperDork

mad_machine wrote:

Rest in piece

Yikes.
June 24, 2010 1:16 p.m. 81gtv6 HalfDork

He is too ocupied with his job prospects to worry about a little spelling.
June 24, 2010 7:03 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

oops... as if my spelling was not suspect enough. Often times my brain works so much faster than my fingers (and I am a fast typer) that whole words go missing.

I do mean, "rest in peace"

Some things you do not joke about
June 24, 2010 9:40 p.m. Wally SuperDork

Next time be a little more sensitive please
June 28, 2010 12:38 p.m. procainestart Dork

BMW says their car not speeding:

Cliffs Notes: Our car not speeding, our drivers not wearing helmets, as earlier reported, and our drivers have been released from the hospital.

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/28/bmw-says-its-driver-in-lexus-lfa-crash-...

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