Simon Hi,
My experience with forest wires dates back to 1995 when I bought my first ex
Camel Trophy evented Discovery 200Tdi (also have a second one since year
2000) and started using it (them) as daily drivers (apart from using the
first one for the selection of the Greek CT teams for 1996, 1997 and 1998)
Forest wires ARE dangerous to pedestrians. I still have them on the second
camel which I have kept totally genuine (as a future classic vehicle and
collector's item) but I have removed them from the first one which is now
highly modified.
Forest wires are extremely helpful on dense medium to high level vegetation
(such as high bush or forest driving) BUT the human body is much more
sensitive than trees and branches. If you hit a pedestrian's hand (and there
are a lot of people who tend to try to pass the road and do not look left
and/or right first or point their hands while they walk etc) or worse still
if you hit a pedestrian and knock him/her on your bonnet it is definately
sure that you will inflict serious wounds and possible mutilation to his/her
body.
On the other hand the European Union directive which governs national road
standards legislations clearly states that the items which may be considered
dangerous for pedestrians or occupants of other vehicles HAVE to extrude
(point out) from the outer dimensions of the vehicle.
In this sense forest wires are WITHIN the vehicle's standard factory outer
dimensions since they start from the bonnet and finish on the roofline or
within the specified by law and allowed margin of 5 cm (if I remember well)
Take care
Pantelis Giamarellos
(who had won a court case against him for the standard factory fitted
equipment on his Camel Trophy Discovery 200Tdi, fitted with forest wires)
"SimonJ" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:
[email protected]...
> >
> > I guess "if" you were to have an "accident" and something horrid
happened
> > due to them being in place at the time - you would give a solicitor and
> his
> > law firm a field day! All insurance null and void to start with...etc.
> >
> But I still cant see how they are dangerous.
> For a pedestrian to come in contact with them, the pedestrian needs to be
> suspended about 3 feet in the air across the road, and in this case the
> wires will probably help him as they will guide him over the roof rather
> than letting him smash into the windscreen.
> And how the hell would anyone end up in that position anyway!
>
>