Worn brakes part of Qld Raceway crash

Worn brakes contributed to a fiery crash at a Brisbane racing circuit that killed promising British motor racer Sean Edwards, an inquest has heard.

Edwards, 26, was a passenger in the Porsche GT3 when it ploughed into a barrier and burst into flames at Queensland Raceway on October 15, 2013.

He had been instructing Will Holzheimer, then aged 20, how to drive.

Holzheimer was cut from the wreckage and his legs were so severely injured he had to learn how to walk again.

A four-day inquest investigating Edwards' death began in Brisbane on Monday.

It is examining why the car left the track and whether safety standards at the Willowbank circuit were up to scratch.

Police mechanic Sergeant Bradley Dieckmann inspected the Porsche after the crash and said its pads were worn down to replacement level for a racing car.

"In the conditions the vehicle was used for, the (brake) pads were too thin," he said.

The lawyers for a tyre company questioned whether the subsequent fire could have caused damage to the car, but Sgt Dieckmann said the brakes were designed to withstand heat up to 500 degrees.

The crash was captured on a GoPro camera and appeared to show Holzheimer hitting the brake pedal hard.

"He was pumping the brake furiously," Sgt Dieckmann said of the footage.

The Porsche was completing its 13th and final lap when it crashed into a tyre barrier and concrete wall at high speed.

Witness Joshua Kong said the back of the car appeared to be unstable as it was braking.

"The next thing you knew the car was pretty much in the wall," he told the inquest.

Earlier, Sergeant Darryl Morrison said a police investigation had ruled out the accelerator sticking as a cause of the crash.

He also said the racetrack corner where the crash happened had been altered after the incident.

Questions were also raised about whether the ABS locked up, if the throttle jammed and the amount of "flex" in the passenger seat.

The Porsche's owner, David Holzheimer, was confident the car had been maintained properly.

He said his son was wearing more protective gear than Edwards, who had worn an open-face helmet.

When asked whether the throttle might have jammed, he said he couldn't be sure.

"In motor racing anything can happen," he added.

His son is due to give evidence on Thursday, the final day of the inquest before Coroner John Lock.

Arrangements have been made for Edwards' family to listen from the UK to proceedings.

The young driver appeared in the movie Rush as his father, former Formula One driver Guy Edwards.