What car/driving related urban myths have you heard of?

What car/driving related urban myths have you heard of?

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Discussion

Thin White Duke

Original Poster:

2,337 posts

161 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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http://www.snopes.com/autos/dream/rolls.asp

The above link tells of the classic 'Rolls Royces don't break down' myth that my Dad told me.

What myths have you heard of, and have you found any to actually be the truth?

AndyBrew

2,774 posts

220 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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I've seen taxi drivers flash their lights at night when approaching traffic lights with the belief that this act turns them to green?

Fish981

1,441 posts

186 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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Petrol pump symbol on the fuel guage has the handle on the same side as the filler cap. Busted.

m3jappa

6,439 posts

219 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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'yea my mates dad always chucks a fivers worth of petrol in when he fills up with diesel, makes it run better'

Yea right hehe

LukeSi

5,753 posts

162 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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Got a good story about RR and breaking down actually.

Someone my Grandad knew had a Rolls Royce, A Shadow I believe. Went to the continent in it and it broke down. Called RR and they sent a technician who repaired it and told him to not bother paying until he got back to the UK. So he gets back and phones RR who then proceed to tell him they have no record of the incident, I believe he was eventually told by someone (management at RR possibly) that they don't charge for repairs if it breaks down on the condition that the owners don't tell anyone about the breakdown.

Gad-Westy

14,578 posts

214 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
Thin White Duke said:
http://www.snopes.com/autos/dream/rolls.asp

The above link tells of the classic 'Rolls Royces don't break down' myth that my Dad told me.

What myths have you heard of, and have you found any to actually be the truth?
"he called the Rolls plant in London". All you need to read to realise the story is balls!

I'm a big fan of the myth that states that 'no Honda vtec engine has ever failed'.

Gad-Westy

14,578 posts

214 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
LukeSi said:
Got a good story about RR and breaking down actually.

Someone my Grandad knew had a Rolls Royce, A Shadow I believe. Went to the continent in it and it broke down. Called RR and they sent a technician who repaired it and told him to not bother paying until he got back to the UK. So he gets back and phones RR who then proceed to tell him they have no record of the incident, I believe he was eventually told by someone (management at RR possibly) that they don't charge for repairs if it breaks down on the condition that the owners don't tell anyone about the breakdown.
No way! wink

shovelheadrob

1,564 posts

172 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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I once told my passenger that the chime which lets you know the low fuel light has come on was so that blind people did not run out of petrol.

LukeSi

5,753 posts

162 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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Gad-Westy said:
No way!
Guess its an old story then. hehe Grandad... you told me you knew the bloke.

k15tox

1,680 posts

182 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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All german cars are reliable

k15tox

1,680 posts

182 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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All german cars are reliable

Gad-Westy

14,578 posts

214 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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LukeSi said:
Guess its an old story then. hehe Grandad... you told me you knew the bloke.
Maybe he did. You never know! Did he ever describe any of his mates as London Plurorcrats? smile

Alfanatic

9,339 posts

220 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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I've heard this one a few times:

"If you're driving at night and see a car being driven around without its lights on, don't flash the driver to alert them! It's a gangster / gang / etc initiation in progress. The new gangster has to prove that they have the guts to kill, they find a target by driving around at night without their lights on. The first person to flash them nominates themselves as the random victim, so if you flash them they'll follow you home and murder you!!"

Uh huh. Brilliant. Let them carry on driving around with no lights on and crash, because they're more likely to be a gangster looking for a meaningless victim in a peculiarly complicated way than they are to be someone who has forgotten to turn their lights on and has not yet noticed.

LukeSi

5,753 posts

162 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
Gad-Westy said:
Maybe he did. You never know! Did he ever describe any of his mates as London Plurorcrats? smile
Well he was a sales rep so you never know.

FreeLitres

6,051 posts

178 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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That all cars have to queue up behind stupid people to pay around £60 to pour smelly liquid into your car to make it go.

Not for me thanks! tongue out

JonnyFive

29,401 posts

190 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
LukeSi said:
Got a good story about RR and breaking down actually.

Someone my Grandad knew had a Rolls Royce, A Shadow I believe. Went to the continent in it and it broke down. Called RR and they sent a technician who repaired it and told him to not bother paying until he got back to the UK. So he gets back and phones RR who then proceed to tell him they have no record of the incident, I believe he was eventually told by someone (management at RR possibly) that they don't charge for repairs if it breaks down on the condition that the owners don't tell anyone about the breakdown.
We were told by a chap at RR on a PHSS one time.. Rolls Royce don't break down, they 'cease to proceed' (IIRC, it was 2 years ago!) hehe

Thin White Duke

Original Poster:

2,337 posts

161 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
Alfanatic said:
I've heard this one a few times:

"If you're driving at night and see a car being driven around without its lights on, don't flash the driver to alert them! It's a gangster / gang / etc initiation in progress. The new gangster has to prove that they have the guts to kill, they find a target by driving around at night without their lights on. The first person to flash them nominates themselves as the random victim, so if you flash them they'll follow you home and murder you!!"

Uh huh. Brilliant. Let them carry on driving around with no lights on and crash, because they're more likely to be a gangster looking for a meaningless victim in a peculiarly complicated way than they are to be someone who has forgotten to turn their lights on and has not yet noticed.
Isn't it under the road traffic act or some such legislation that you can actually drive around in a street light lit area with only your side lights on?

Gad-Westy

14,578 posts

214 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
Alfanatic said:
I've heard this one a few times:

"If you're driving at night and see a car being driven around without its lights on, don't flash the driver to alert them! It's a gangster / gang / etc initiation in progress. The new gangster has to prove that they have the guts to kill, they find a target by driving around at night without their lights on. The first person to flash them nominates themselves as the random victim, so if you flash them they'll follow you home and murder you!!"

Uh huh. Brilliant. Let them carry on driving around with no lights on and crash, because they're more likely to be a gangster looking for a meaningless victim in a peculiarly complicated way than they are to be someone who has forgotten to turn their lights on and has not yet noticed.
Was this not a plot from a horror film? I think it was maybe it was maybe even called urban myth

JonnyFive

29,401 posts

190 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
quotequote all
Thin White Duke said:
Isn't it under the road traffic act or some such legislation that you can actually drive around in a street light lit area with only your side lights on?
Yeah, it's legal to drive around in street lamp lit areas at 30mph limit IIRC.

maxdb

1,537 posts

158 months

Thursday 3rd November 2011
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If you put the back seats down on your car it will go faster as you reduce the centre of gravity..

Hmmmmm..