AN astonishing video shows a reckless driver in a tiny car doing battle with a 60-tonne, 16-wheeled crane.
The clip shows the one-tonne Hyundai i10 desperately trying to overtake the 70ft-long crane as a two lane road narrows to a single carriageway.
The impatient car driver, doing an estimated 40mph, sneaks between the crane and a keep left sign with inches to spare but clips the crane on the way past.
The impact sends debris showering across the carriageway, and the dash cam vehicle which filmed the incident is forced to emergency brake.
The heart-stopping video was filmed on the A96 just east of Inverness on January 21.
The road, which carries traffic between the Highland capital and Aberdeen, is considered Scotland’s third most dangerous road. Between 2013 and 2015, 55 road users were seriously injured and seven killed on the road.
The start of video shows an escort van with flashing lights driving ahead with the huge construction vehicle following one car behind.
The crane can be seen approaching the end of the dual carriageway as the silver car pulls out and begins to accelerate past.
As it starts to overtake, the heavy lifter flashes its lights and the car clips the side of the crane, throwing debris into oncoming traffic.
The dash-cam car is forced to pull over to the far left of its lane to avoid a near head-on collision.
Its is unclear what damage was done to the car, but it appears the wing mirror was smashed off during the collision.
At the end of the 22 second clip, obtained by road safety website Scotland’s Worst Drivers, the car filming comes to a stop as the crane and Hyundai carry on heading eastwards.
The dash-cam, who driver wishes to remain anonymous, said: “The crane and car were both heading east and it was at the end of a short dual carriageway section with the car trying to squeeze past the crane before it became single carriageway.
“Bits of the car fly through the air and land in front of my car. I went round the roundabout to double back and offer the video to the crane driver in case the car driver tried to claim it was his fault.
“The crane had stopped but pulled away again before I could stop and as far as I could tell the motorist didn’t stop at all.”
