Driver blames car's electronics for 100mph chase on motorway

A car which careered at more than 100mph along 120 miles of motorway through central France after the driver said its speed-control system jammed is being checked by Renault engineers.

A car which careered at more than 100mph along 120 miles of motorway through central France after the driver said its speed-control system jammed is being checked by Renault engineers.

Gendarmes cleared traffic from the A71 motorway north of Clermont Ferrand after Hicham Dequiedt, 29, owner of the Renault Vel Satis, told them on his mobile phone that he could not reduce speed.

Eventually, after near-collisions with police cars and a lorry, M. Dequiedt managed to slow the car and steered on to the grass verge. "I accelerated to overtake a lorry and the speed controller pushed the car up to 190kph (114mph)," M. Dequeidt said. "Nothing would bring the speed down, not even pushing hard on the brakes."

The head of Renault, Louis Shweitzer, called his story "improbable". There has been a flood of complaints in recent months about electrical faults in top-of-the-range Renault cars, which are heavily equipped with electronic and computerised gadgetry.