Anyone has their car on this ship? Given where it's coming from and how many cars it has on board, I wouldn't be surprised if MINIs were stuck on this cargo.

http://gawker.com/listing-cargo-ship...e-o-1677394630

 

looks like there were 65 Minis on board - SOURCE

 

There are 65 MINIs onboard, but the ship was bound for Germany and the Middle East.

I'm pretty sure BMW will have already declared a total loss with those cars as their condition will be unknown for some time while the salvage operation completes. Its by no means certain at this stage they can get the vessel off the sandbank upright without drastic measures. She had a 9m draft and the next high spring tide in March will only be around 5m. She is stuck there pretty good. Looks like the current plan is to try dredging the sand bank. I'd imagine BMW will shift production around to prioritize building replacements. Smaller cars like MINIs will likely have stayed held in place by their tethers, but there is also heavy plant machinery on board bound for the Middle East so its likely to be a bit of a mess in there.

Most of the 1400 cars were Jaguar and Land Rover products.

See


http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hampshire-30677320

Running the ship aground was a deliberate act, due to a runaway condition with the ship's ballasting system. She's at least potentially recoverable to sail another day where she is now, away from the main shipping lanes, as opposed to capsizing in the middle of Southampton Water. The crew are to be commended for that, but probably still responsible for creating the problem in the first place - someone will be getting a right bollocking for sure!


Previous events like this have always resulted in the cargo being crushed and recycled regardless of the level of damage, due to product liability issues. If a customer later finds out their vehicle was part of this incident then it opens up the manufacturer for all sorts of potential litigation.

 

If anyone has seen a Hoegh Autoliner in the flesh, you won't be in a hurry to call the F56 nose ugly.



One other famous use of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bramble_Bank sand bar is an annual cricket match between two nearby sailing clubs when the tide is low enough - though some years it isn't and they have to play in six inches of water.

 

Cougar Ace a few years back in Alaska ... a boo boo while shifting ballast and then towed to calm waters for damage control. This ship had a bunch of Miata's ... and according to the press, Mazda trashed them all / replaced 'em even tho the tie downs held . . .

 

My MCS made it's way to the Port Hueneme on the Tricolor in June 2002. This cargo ship was later involved in a collision and sank in December 2002 with 2,871 BMW, Saab and Volvo cars on board.