Hiromu Naruse Lexus Test Driver dies, debate continues on for high speed autobahn testing

From Lexus Enthusiast.
It was just less barely a month ago when we talked about Naruse-san's FR Hot Hatch project. We also briefly linked to Gazoo Racing's article on Toyota's very own Meister, master test driver who was responsible for many iconic Toyota high performance vehicles. The late Enzo Ferrari once acknowledged his talent and called him “Nur Meister (One and Only Master Craftsman)” and refers to him as “man who knows all the world’s roads.” It was some recognition because the late il commendatore of Ferrari is not known to be a very generous nor a nice man.


Yesterday, Hiromu Naruse was killed while testing the Lexus LF-A Nurburgring Edition on the L94 road in Boos/Nürburgring, near the famed Green Hell circuit of Nurburgring Northern Loop or Nordschleife in the German Eifel region. Details were still sketchy pending police investigation, but somehow Naruse-san's LF-A veered to the oncoming traffic lane and collided with a production model BMW 3-series, also under testing by two BMW staffs. The passeger of the BMW was critically injured and had to be airlifted by a rescue helicopter to a hospital in Bonn while the BMW driver suffered serious but not life threatening injuries, was transported to a hospital in Daun. Naruse-san was killed on the spot and his body was trapped inside the wrecked LF-A. His body could only be removed once police prosecuters closed off the L94 and reviewed the accident scene. The Lexus LF-A is estimated to be worth around 1.5 million Euros and is limited to 500 units. But more precious than the Lexus, there is only one Hiromu Naruse, said to be Japan's most experienced Ring Meister.


Note this is left-hand drive Germany. The Lexus have no business facing that direction on the left side of the road. Notice the skid marks left by the BMW.




The accident will provide further impetus to factions of the German government who are keen to impose stricter speed limits on German roads. Contrary to popular perception, only very few stretches of the autobahn still remain speed limit free. The former Chancellor of Germany Gerhard Schroder once called Germany an "Autofahrernation," meaning a nation of drivers, in objecting the first calls to impose speed limits. The debate on imposing speed limit is a very controversial topic to the German public, who see their autobahns as one of the few remaining spaces of civil liberty, in a country famous for its very strict policing. Germans are always being told that they made the best cars in the world, they have the best highway networks, and to be able to drive fast with no speed limit is considered as a birth right of all Germans. But growing eco-consciousness amongst the German public have led to a growing support to impose speed limits of 130 km/h, in a bid to cap vehicular CO2 emission. Modern cars are also a lot faster than what they used to be 20 or 30 years ago. A top end Volkswagen Golf R today easily matches the power of an average Ferrari road car 25 years ago.

Although in deregulated stretches of the autobahn, there are no speed limits imposed, but the recommended speed is 130km/h. If you are involved in an accident at above that speed, you could be jailed.

Cases of high performance test cars being involved in fatal accidents have also angered certain factions of the German public.

Just a few months ago, on April 23rd, a 52-year old test driver of a 2012 Mercedes-Benz M-Class prototype crashed into a Mazda which had broken down at the side of the road. The driver of the Mazda was getting out of his vehicle when the prototype M-class struck and killed him. The M-class prototype flipped over, travelled for another 250 feet before landing on its roof, seriously injuring the Mercedes test driver. One can imagine how fast was it going. The accident happened on A81 autobahn, connecting Singen and Stuttgart.


On an early morning at around 2.45am of Feb-13 2009, a Porsche test driver, in a pre-production Porsche 911 Cabriolet driving at the A5 autobahn lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a roadside barrier, instantly killing him. Another Porsche Panamera was travelling behind it managed to avoid the crash. Police investigation however later ruled out speed / technical defect as the cause and pinned it down to purely driver error. The two test drivers have been working together in a 10pm - 6am test drive shift. The police determined the crashed 911 was only travelling between 110km/h to 120km/h at the time of the accident. The pictures below showed that it was a very gruesome death. Can't imagine the remains of the body.


But the most dramatic car crash involving a test driver was the case involving Rolf Fischer, or more commonly known as "Turbo" Rolf, a former test driver for Daimler AG. On July 14, 2003, Turbo Rolf was driving a prototype Mercedes CL 600 at over 230km/h along the deregulated A5 autobahn. His speed was far too high when he came up behind a small Kia driven by a 21-year old mother and her 2-year old daughter. The mother, known only as Jasmin A., panicked at the Mercedes who kept flashing her to move aside, at extremely high speeds, she tried to move over to the right (Germany is left hand drive) but lost control of her vehicle. The Kia left the road, skidded to a ditch and then crashed into the two trees, killing her and her daughter. Turbo Rolf however speed off and would later denied knowledge of anything related to the crash. It took the police months to track down the offending vehicle. The prosecutor would also later critise Daimler's staffs for being very uncooperative. Witnesses also noted that the Mercedes could have touched the Kia when Turbo Rolf tried to force the Kia out of the road. Rolf was sentenced to 18-years in jail but his conviction was later appealed and reduced to 1 year suspension. He was however dismissed by Daimler AG as a test driver.


Note however that under the German regulation, when driving on deregulated speed limit free stretches of the autobahn, faster cars are allowed to request slower cars on the fast lane to move aside by flashing their headlamps not more than 3 times, at a distance no closer than 300 metres. Tailgating laws is strictly enforced and there are random unmarked police cars armed with video cameras patrolling the autobahn. Likewise, it is illegal for cars to drive below a minimum speed limit, depending on the lanes they are in.

When I was younger, I used to think that speed is not the main cause of accidents. I like to point out that German autobahns with no speed limits have some of the lowest accident rates. But the older (hopefully wiser) and the more kms on the road you clock, you start to realise that it's all about being sensible. Speed does indeed kills. Speed limit free or not anything above 110km/h is starting to border on dangerous. Of course it's not just about the absolute figure, but rather it's about relative speed. Doing 140 km/h on a crowded highway when everyone else is pulling 110km/h is just as stupid as doing 70km/h at a housing neighbourhood. But driving at 130km/h on a clear stretch with clear visibility is just as sensible.

I used to take pride that I drive fast but I speed responsibly, and was always in control. But now I think anyone who thinks so is only kidding themselves. There is no such thing as being in total control when you are driving on public roads / uncontrolled environment. There are always third party factors that is beyond your control. Not everyone drive with the same level of alertness or skill. It's called public roads for a reason. The simple fact that our mind is not wired to react that quickly, and our bodies simply cannot take that sort of G-force should the inevitable happen, though the car's structure might remain in tact, as shown by the images of Naruse-san's LF-A and the BMW he crashed into. The car's cabin still looked fairly intact. The fact that these very highly experienced test drivers who can drive a lot better and have a lot more high performance driving training and experience than all you readers combined, they too can misjudge and cause a fatal accident, proves this. What more about us. Sometimes it's your own ego that gets in the way, to think that your "supercar" has more right to the road than a smaller car - as shown by Turbo Rolf's fatal mistake.

German Federal Transport Minister Peter Ramsauer have expressed his displeasure at the recent incidences, by saying "Test pilots are professional drivers. You must not behave like Rambos, but must still drive as good as any other and respect the traffic regulations. German roads are not the Nürburgring! I appeal to the auto companies to adopt a test driver for a specific code of conduct with strict rules."


Naruse-san is a close friend of Toyota Motor Corp. president Akio Toyoda. They are both true blue petrol heads and they raced together in the Nurburgring 24 Hours. He was also a personal driving mentor to Akio Toyoda, long before Akio assumed his current role. Naruse-san is no doubt a very important partner in Akio Toyoda's quest to produce more fun to drive and emotionally captivating cars - something which is sorely lacking Toyota's present day line-up after more than a decade of neglect by the previous management under past president Katsuaki Watanabe. But Akio Toyoda posted a very well worded message in his blog, that he wow to continue Naruse-san's dream of building better fun to drive cars.

Much have been written and said about Hiromu Naruse, but spare a thought and prayer for the other two seriously injured BMW test drivers. Their lives are just as valuable as that of Naruse-san. They were just going about their work as they always do when a yellow supercar suddenly swerved into their path.