Two seriously injured after two-car crash in Rancho Santa Fe

RANCHO SANTA FE (CNS) – The driver and passenger of a speeding high-end sports racer suffered major injuries Wednesday in crash with an SUV in Rancho Santa Fe that left the other driver and his passenger less severely hurt.

The driver of an Ariel Atom sports car, a distinctive street-legal racer designed in Great Britain, lost control and spun into a 2006 Ford Expedition in the 4400 block of La Orilla, east of El Camino Real, shortly after 2 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

The racer’s driver, a 21-year-old Rancho Santa Fe man, suffered life-threatening injuries and was airlifted to Palomar Medical Center along with his passenger, a 21-year-old Mira Mesa man who sustained major injuries, CHP Officer Jim Bettencourt said.

The 62-year-old San Diego man driving the SUV and his female passenger whose age and city of residence were not immediately available were taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla with minor to moderate injuries, Bettencourt said.

Investigators were working to determine if drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash, Bettencourt said.

Firefighters and the CHP closed La Orilla in the vicinity of the crash. CHP officials said it was expected to reopen around 5:40 p.m.nder investigation.