Malibu Viper Crash Not Due to Racing, Sergeant Says

 involving a Viper and a Nissan Pathfinder on Pacific Coast Highway near Trancas Canyon Road did not involve drag racing, Sgt. Phil Brooks, traffic head at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff's Station, told the Malibu Public Safety Commission at its monthly meeting last week.

The Nov. 27 incident began with two Vipers moving eastbound on PCH. Witnesses said they were racing, but Brooks said, "There is no evidence at all these cars were racing."

Brooks said the driver of one of the Vipers, a Northridge resident, suddenly accelerated. He lost control of the vehicle, which went into oncoming traffic.

"The [Pathfinder] went up the Viper like a ramp, flipped over, and then we had a witness who stopped and pulled everyone out," Brooks said.

The Viper also caught fire.

The driver of the Pathfinder, a 30-year-old Los Angeles woman, injured her legs in the crash. Her two children—ages 4 and 7—were also in the vehicle and were not injured. The driver of the Viper did not suffer serious injuries.

The other Viper continued moving eastbound during the crash, Brooks said.

Brooks said Vipers are problematic because they are not built like most sports cars. While the weight of other vehicles is balanced, 70 percent of the Viper's weight is in the front.

"So when you accelerate that car, you instantly lose traction in the back," Brooks said.

Lt. Jim Royal told the commission that he had been misquoted in at least one news service, which he did not name, that claimed he had said the crash was due to a drag race. Royal said he had told reporters that witnesses had said there was a race. He said some news sources, including Malibu Patch, quoted him correctly.