Dr Local's driving clinic
Discussion
vonhosen said:
rsvmilly said:
Thanks for your comments VH. I'll certainly take your advice on board about overtaking
The gap I went into certainly wasn't small. There was no cutting in on the gap - everything felt relaxed and calm. I believe he overreacted. Maybe I startled him?
Maybe he just didn't like being overtaken. Some people get very offended at being passed and can react very badly.
That leads on to my second question. There are plenty of people just like this. As someone who probably spends a lot of time overtaking, and often without outward police identification on the car, how do you manage this situation? Have you ever had to stop and have a word with anyone like this?
The gap I went into certainly wasn't small. There was no cutting in on the gap - everything felt relaxed and calm. I believe he overreacted. Maybe I startled him?
Maybe he just didn't like being overtaken. Some people get very offended at being passed and can react very badly.
That leads on to my second question. There are plenty of people just like this. As someone who probably spends a lot of time overtaking, and often without outward police identification on the car, how do you manage this situation? Have you ever had to stop and have a word with anyone like this?
To be honest, I don't get that response & I do a lot of overtaking.
(That may be because they take a look at the car with four lumps of lard in it & decide better about getting shirty even if they didn't like being overtaken.)
Edited by vonhosen on Sunday 8th April 14:27
Apart from the potential menace presented by the four generously proportioned
gentlemen on board, does the car not have a small sign on the back to identify it as a Police vehicle being used for training purposes? In your own private motoring I don't suppose the problem arises much, as I get the impression very little overtaking goes on anyhow - at least on SC roads.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
TripleS said:
vonhosen said:
rsvmilly said:
Thanks for your comments VH. I'll certainly take your advice on board about overtaking
The gap I went into certainly wasn't small. There was no cutting in on the gap - everything felt relaxed and calm. I believe he overreacted. Maybe I startled him?
Maybe he just didn't like being overtaken. Some people get very offended at being passed and can react very badly.
That leads on to my second question. There are plenty of people just like this. As someone who probably spends a lot of time overtaking, and often without outward police identification on the car, how do you manage this situation? Have you ever had to stop and have a word with anyone like this?
The gap I went into certainly wasn't small. There was no cutting in on the gap - everything felt relaxed and calm. I believe he overreacted. Maybe I startled him?
Maybe he just didn't like being overtaken. Some people get very offended at being passed and can react very badly.
That leads on to my second question. There are plenty of people just like this. As someone who probably spends a lot of time overtaking, and often without outward police identification on the car, how do you manage this situation? Have you ever had to stop and have a word with anyone like this?
To be honest, I don't get that response & I do a lot of overtaking.
(That may be because they take a look at the car with four lumps of lard in it & decide better about getting shirty even if they didn't like being overtaken.)
Edited by vonhosen on Sunday 8th April 14:27
Apart from the potential menace presented by the four generously proportioned
gentlemen on board, does the car not have a small sign on the back to identify it as a Police vehicle being used for training purposes? In your own private motoring I don't suppose the problem arises much, as I get the impression very little overtaking goes on anyhow - at least on SC roads.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
No markings & no I rarely have to overtake in my own time.
R_U_LOCAL said:
Dibble said:
I was once driving along a "fast" A road in North Wales, which was nice and straight, but had several hidden dips. There was also the "shimmery" heat haze/water mirage thing going on.
I decided to go for an overtake, but hadn't looked properly, and hadn't realised how deep the dip was, and that there was a bit of a blind spot in the trough... which was effectively hiding the car heading towards me (I was on the offside for the overtake, so in his lane).
I'm led to believe that this manoeuvre has been described as "that suicidal fcuking overtake in North Wales"...
It took the wind out of my sails for a couple of days...
I decided to go for an overtake, but hadn't looked properly, and hadn't realised how deep the dip was, and that there was a bit of a blind spot in the trough... which was effectively hiding the car heading towards me (I was on the offside for the overtake, so in his lane).
I'm led to believe that this manoeuvre has been described as "that suicidal fcuking overtake in North Wales"...
It took the wind out of my sails for a couple of days...
Maybe your instructor thought you were doing quite well on the course, but that you were getting a little overconfident. It's possible that he saw the situation arising, realised what was going on, and knew that, actually, you'd easily make the overtake, but that it would probably make you feel a little uncomfortable.
It's more than likely that allowing you to continue with that overtake had the desired effect on you for the rest of the course, made you think a bit more carefully, and tempered your driving with a bit more restraint, which was just what you needed to help you get a good pass.
Your instructor sounds like a top bloke.
He was OK. Fairly average really...
I was always confident that he'd never let me, or Des and Dave, do anything dangerous, but would let us get towards situations that we'd have been better avoiding in the first place (and without putting ourself, or any other road user, in danger or inconvenience).
Unfortunately, now I'm out of that role, I have found I've got deskilled. I may have to get some refresher training.
Dibble said:
R_U_LOCAL said:
Dibble said:
I was once driving along a "fast" A road in North Wales, which was nice and straight, but had several hidden dips. There was also the "shimmery" heat haze/water mirage thing going on.
I decided to go for an overtake, but hadn't looked properly, and hadn't realised how deep the dip was, and that there was a bit of a blind spot in the trough... which was effectively hiding the car heading towards me (I was on the offside for the overtake, so in his lane).
I'm led to believe that this manoeuvre has been described as "that suicidal fcuking overtake in North Wales"...
It took the wind out of my sails for a couple of days...
I decided to go for an overtake, but hadn't looked properly, and hadn't realised how deep the dip was, and that there was a bit of a blind spot in the trough... which was effectively hiding the car heading towards me (I was on the offside for the overtake, so in his lane).
I'm led to believe that this manoeuvre has been described as "that suicidal fcuking overtake in North Wales"...
It took the wind out of my sails for a couple of days...
Maybe your instructor thought you were doing quite well on the course, but that you were getting a little overconfident. It's possible that he saw the situation arising, realised what was going on, and knew that, actually, you'd easily make the overtake, but that it would probably make you feel a little uncomfortable.
It's more than likely that allowing you to continue with that overtake had the desired effect on you for the rest of the course, made you think a bit more carefully, and tempered your driving with a bit more restraint, which was just what you needed to help you get a good pass.
Your instructor sounds like a top bloke.
He was OK. Fairly average really...
I was always confident that he'd never let me, or Des and Dave, do anything dangerous, but would let us get towards situations that we'd have been better avoiding in the first place (and without putting ourself, or any other road user, in danger or inconvenience).
Unfortunately, now I'm out of that role, I have found I've got deskilled. I may have to get some refresher training.
Well maybe you ought to nip along to see Reg - which is what Mr Whippy and I are supposed to be doing when we've arranged a suitable date.
Dave - any thoughts yet? Best wishes all,
Dave.
TripleS said:
...maybe you ought to nip along to see Reg...
...pssst. Reg may have been in the car at the same time as me in North Wales...
And if you do get chance for a run out with Reg, ask him about the village near Shrewsbury on the A49, and the 40 limit signs...
Edited by Dibble on Monday 9th April 11:35
Dibble said:
TripleS said:
...maybe you ought to nip along to see Reg...
[small]...pssst. Reg may have been in the car at the same time as me in North Wales...
[small] And if you do get chance for a run out with Reg, ask him about the village near Shrewsbury on the A49, and the 40 limit signs...
Oh yes, a bit slow again here.
I should have twigged that. Best wishes all,
Dave.
ok, my turn.
while pressing on in unpopulated countryside I come to a left hand bend that also dips downhill. From a combination of both knowing and reading the road, I know in terms of grip levels the bend can be taken pretty much at NSL. However while to the right of the road there are uninterrupted views across fields, to the left, there is a grassy bank which combined with the descent limits the view of the road. Now as I rounded the corner, probably too fast for how far I can see, I come across a jogger coming towards me on my side of the road as there was no footpath. There was no traffic, so I was able to drive around them, but had I needed to stop in time I probably could not.
Given that there was 'nothing but fields' and no concealed entrances I made the decision that the likelihood of something being around the corner would be low. My question is, although I obviously failed to adhere to the principle of matching speed to vision, is where do you draw the line?
while pressing on in unpopulated countryside I come to a left hand bend that also dips downhill. From a combination of both knowing and reading the road, I know in terms of grip levels the bend can be taken pretty much at NSL. However while to the right of the road there are uninterrupted views across fields, to the left, there is a grassy bank which combined with the descent limits the view of the road. Now as I rounded the corner, probably too fast for how far I can see, I come across a jogger coming towards me on my side of the road as there was no footpath. There was no traffic, so I was able to drive around them, but had I needed to stop in time I probably could not.
Given that there was 'nothing but fields' and no concealed entrances I made the decision that the likelihood of something being around the corner would be low. My question is, although I obviously failed to adhere to the principle of matching speed to vision, is where do you draw the line?
Dibble said:
Stuff about an overtake that turned out a bit marginal
Had one of these once too, back when I had my first car, a rather gutless Subaru Leone. I was quite inexperienced at the time(had been driving probably less than 2 years I guess) and also pretty tired, following an MGBGT along the main road, coming up to (a)A combine harvester doing probably around 40-50km/h and (b)A gentle right-hand bend which can easily be taken at 1+ Leptons (so I'm told occifer) but curves up and over a crest mid-corner.
Anyway, we catch up on this harvester just before the apex of the bend, slow a little as we close on it but not down to its speed, part-way round the MG drops a gear or 2 and pulls out to pass. I assumed he could see from his position that the road was clear ahead, and not wanting to lose too much momentum I pulled out to follow him. About the time I got right alongside the harvester I see the MG duck back in front of it, and the van coming round the corner the other way that had been hidden by the crest and the MG.
Turns out it takes a long long time to go from accelerating alongside a 50km/h vehicle at ~70-80km/h (rough guess, it was too long ago to remember speed difference clearly) to on the brakes and back to less than its speed and waiting for it to come past enough to get back in behind it.Got back in and avoided the van with enough space, but boy did I give myself a fright!
Lesson Learnt: Never assume that because a car pulls out for an overtake (even on an extremely slow vehicle) you have enough space to follow it, especially if its faster than you. Seems a complete no-brainer now and would have back then too if I'd taken the time to think about it before acting, but you don't tend to do that so much when you're young and bulletproof.
Edited by GravelBen on Friday 13th April 11:54
I had one lucky "accident" a while back. It was on a duel carriage way, two lanes in each direction with a big roundabout every half mile or so. I braked down to a stop from about 60 to one of the roundabouts, no problems so far, then I pulled out onto the roundabout, accelerating up to about 20mph when suddenly the back end snapped out. I span, miraculously staying roughly in my own lane (there was traffic in the lanes on both sides of me), and eventually came to a stop facing the wrong way down the road...
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
sato said:
ok, my turn.
while pressing on in unpopulated countryside I come to a left hand bend that also dips downhill. From a combination of both knowing and reading the road, I know in terms of grip levels the bend can be taken pretty much at NSL. However while to the right of the road there are uninterrupted views across fields, to the left, there is a grassy bank which combined with the descent limits the view of the road. Now as I rounded the corner, probably too fast for how far I can see, I come across a jogger coming towards me on my side of the road as there was no footpath. There was no traffic, so I was able to drive around them, but had I needed to stop in time I probably could not.
Given that there was 'nothing but fields' and no concealed entrances I made the decision that the likelihood of something being around the corner would be low. My question is, although I obviously failed to adhere to the principle of matching speed to vision, is where do you draw the line?
while pressing on in unpopulated countryside I come to a left hand bend that also dips downhill. From a combination of both knowing and reading the road, I know in terms of grip levels the bend can be taken pretty much at NSL. However while to the right of the road there are uninterrupted views across fields, to the left, there is a grassy bank which combined with the descent limits the view of the road. Now as I rounded the corner, probably too fast for how far I can see, I come across a jogger coming towards me on my side of the road as there was no footpath. There was no traffic, so I was able to drive around them, but had I needed to stop in time I probably could not.
Given that there was 'nothing but fields' and no concealed entrances I made the decision that the likelihood of something being around the corner would be low. My question is, although I obviously failed to adhere to the principle of matching speed to vision, is where do you draw the line?
You’ve made a couple of common errors – falling into the comfort zone of knowing the road and failing to take account of the safe stopping rule.
A lot of the stuff I teach about cornering is based around assessing the severity of the bend, but when you drive along a road regularly, this becomes somewhat redundant. It’s easy to become complacent about corners and start doing what you did – thinking that the primary concern is how fast you can take the bend.
The safe stopping rule is “you should always be able to stop on your own side of the road in the distance you can see to be clear”. Bearing in mind that you should base your driving plans on what you can see and what you can’t see, one of the most potentially dangerous areas are zones of invisibility created by crests in the road.
Imagine that, rather than a jogger, there was a parked car, or a tractor around that corner. Combining that possibility with the chance that there might be oncoming vehicles which would take away any opportunity to pass the hazard shows how relevant the safe stopping rule is.
I’m sure, in future, when you drive that road, you’ll have that possibility at the back of your mind when you reach that corner.
kambites said:
I had one lucky "accident" a while back. It was on a duel carriage way, two lanes in each direction with a big roundabout every half mile or so. I braked down to a stop from about 60 to one of the roundabouts, no problems so far, then I pulled out onto the roundabout, accelerating up to about 20mph when suddenly the back end snapped out. I span, miraculously staying roughly in my own lane (there was traffic in the lanes on both sides of me), and eventually came to a stop facing the wrong way down the road...
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
There are three things you should bear in mind if you get a tyre failure at speed.
1. Don’t brake
2. Don’t brake, and
3. DON’T BRAKE!
If a tyre has deflated suddenly, or blown out, and you brake, then the car will steer very sharply away from the flat tyre (the brakes won’t be working efficiently on the side of the flat, so it’ll pull towards the tyre that’s still inflated).
A sudden tyre deflation will make the car feel unsettled diagonally, and the car will very quickly “crab”, as the flat tyre holds one corner of the car back. It’s very easy to brake at this point, and it’s most people’s natural reaction – evn those who’ve been trained not to will still have a natural tendency to press the brakes…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUWJrBm3L2k
As you can see, once you’ve braked, there’s no going back, and these two bobbies were very lucky.
Rather than brake, try to concentrate on steering the car in the direction you want to go, lose speed through deceleration only, and if you’re on the motorway, try to gently steer towards the hard shoulder.
And remember,
Don’t brake.
This will probably seem a bit trivial, but it's bugging the hell out of me, because I don't know if it's just me or if it's the car.
90-odd percent of the time, I drive the MR2, but just occasionally I climb into the Beemer, because I need the boot space, or more than one passenger. The thing with the Beemer (it's an '03 318i, BTW), is that the clutch bite point seems very high, certainly compared to the MR2, and I have great difficulty not kangarooing it in first and second. It's almost as if there are two bite points - a grab near the top of the travel, and a second one as you finally release the pedal. It's embarrassing as much as anything - I normally have no trouble accelerating smoothly, but this is quite painful - I feel like a learner. Now I'm tempted to believe that it's me being daft, since SWMBO doesn't complain of it, but I'm a bit worried that I should get the dealer to have a look at it, since such a high bite point doesn't seem right to me (it's fully disengaged about halfway down). Any comments? Am I just being a pranny and suffering for not driving it very often? Any tips for adjusting between the two cars?
One other point - I do wonder if the bite point is deliberately set high, since I find that the outside of my left foot catches the foot rest when I push the clutch in fully. Perhaps it's set so that you only have to dip it as far as the rest, rather than all the way to the floor.
90-odd percent of the time, I drive the MR2, but just occasionally I climb into the Beemer, because I need the boot space, or more than one passenger. The thing with the Beemer (it's an '03 318i, BTW), is that the clutch bite point seems very high, certainly compared to the MR2, and I have great difficulty not kangarooing it in first and second. It's almost as if there are two bite points - a grab near the top of the travel, and a second one as you finally release the pedal. It's embarrassing as much as anything - I normally have no trouble accelerating smoothly, but this is quite painful - I feel like a learner. Now I'm tempted to believe that it's me being daft, since SWMBO doesn't complain of it, but I'm a bit worried that I should get the dealer to have a look at it, since such a high bite point doesn't seem right to me (it's fully disengaged about halfway down). Any comments? Am I just being a pranny and suffering for not driving it very often? Any tips for adjusting between the two cars?
One other point - I do wonder if the bite point is deliberately set high, since I find that the outside of my left foot catches the foot rest when I push the clutch in fully. Perhaps it's set so that you only have to dip it as far as the rest, rather than all the way to the floor.
R_U_LOCAL said:
kambites said:
I had one lucky "accident" a while back. It was on a duel carriage way, two lanes in each direction with a big roundabout every half mile or so. I braked down to a stop from about 60 to one of the roundabouts, no problems so far, then I pulled out onto the roundabout, accelerating up to about 20mph when suddenly the back end snapped out. I span, miraculously staying roughly in my own lane (there was traffic in the lanes on both sides of me), and eventually came to a stop facing the wrong way down the road...
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
When I got out of the car my nearside rear tyre was no longer on the wheel. I had checked the pressure less than half an hour before, the tyre was only two weeks old. There was no fault found with the wheel or the tyre when they were investigated afterwards.
Had the failure happened on the road I had been driving on just before hand, I probably would have gone backwards into a field at 50mph.
What, if anything, can one do to avoid writing a car off if something like this happens at the wrong moment?
There are three things you should bear in mind if you get a tyre failure at speed.
1. Don’t brake
2. Don’t brake, and
3. DON’T BRAKE!
If a tyre has deflated suddenly, or blown out, and you brake, then the car will steer very sharply away from the flat tyre (the brakes won’t be working efficiently on the side of the flat, so it’ll pull towards the tyre that’s still inflated).
A sudden tyre deflation will make the car feel unsettled diagonally, and the car will very quickly “crab”, as the flat tyre holds one corner of the car back. It’s very easy to brake at this point, and it’s most people’s natural reaction – evn those who’ve been trained not to will still have a natural tendency to press the brakes…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUWJrBm3L2k
As you can see, once you’ve braked, there’s no going back, and these two bobbies were very lucky.
Rather than brake, try to concentrate on steering the car in the direction you want to go, lose speed through deceleration only, and if you’re on the motorway, try to gently steer towards the hard shoulder.
And remember,
Don’t brake.
I didn't brake, or indeed do anything except whack it round to opposite lock... which the car completely ignored.
R_U_LOCAL said:
There are three things you should bear in mind if you get a tyre failure at speed.
1. Don’t brake
2. Don’t brake, and
3. DON’T BRAKE!
If a tyre has deflated suddenly, or blown out, and you brake, then the car will steer very sharply away from the flat tyre (the brakes won’t be working efficiently on the side of the flat, so it’ll pull towards the tyre that’s still inflated).
A sudden tyre deflation will make the car feel unsettled diagonally, and the car will very quickly “crab”, as the flat tyre holds one corner of the car back. It’s very easy to brake at this point, and it’s most people’s natural reaction – evn those who’ve been trained not to will still have a natural tendency to press the brakes…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUWJrBm3L2k
As you can see, once you’ve braked, there’s no going back, and these two bobbies were very lucky.
Rather than brake, try to concentrate on steering the car in the direction you want to go, lose speed through deceleration only, and if you’re on the motorway, try to gently steer towards the hard shoulder.
And remember,
Don’t brake.
Maybe PC Langley felt he had to brake because of the vehicle in lane 2 just ahead of him, which he was catching rapidly, and the vehicle in lane 1 a bit further on. I know the car appeared to do two 360 degree spins, but I was surprised that it seemed to more or less confine itself to lanes 2 and 3, without veering off to the hard shoulder or central reservation, which is what I feared would happen.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
TripleS said:
R_U_LOCAL said:
There are three things you should bear in mind if you get a tyre failure at speed.
1. Don’t brake
2. Don’t brake, and
3. DON’T BRAKE!
If a tyre has deflated suddenly, or blown out, and you brake, then the car will steer very sharply away from the flat tyre (the brakes won’t be working efficiently on the side of the flat, so it’ll pull towards the tyre that’s still inflated).
A sudden tyre deflation will make the car feel unsettled diagonally, and the car will very quickly “crab”, as the flat tyre holds one corner of the car back. It’s very easy to brake at this point, and it’s most people’s natural reaction – evn those who’ve been trained not to will still have a natural tendency to press the brakes…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUWJrBm3L2k
As you can see, once you’ve braked, there’s no going back, and these two bobbies were very lucky.
Rather than brake, try to concentrate on steering the car in the direction you want to go, lose speed through deceleration only, and if you’re on the motorway, try to gently steer towards the hard shoulder.
And remember,
Don’t brake.
Maybe PC Langley felt he had to brake because of the vehicle in lane 2 just ahead of him, which he was catching rapidly, and the vehicle in lane 1 a bit further on. I know the car appeared to do two 360 degree spins, but I was surprised that it seemed to more or less confine itself to lanes 2 and 3, without veering off to the hard shoulder or central reservation, which is what I feared would happen.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
The car doing one or more 360's is not much of a surprise, I have in the past had chance to experiment with a little known theory that I have,
If you are travelling in a straight line on a wet road (it doesn't need to be wet but it works better that way) and you where to jink the steering wheel first to the left, then jink it slightly more to the right whilst slamming on the brakes (don't try this with ABS) the momentum of the car is moving straight ahead and with your wheels locked up you will spin down the road in a straight line, this should only alter if you come off the brakes, then you will fire off in the direction that your now moving wheels are facing. As long as there isn't a bend in the road or another vehicle or object in front of you it would be better to just slam on and wait until you are travelling slow enough to crawl to a stop in a safe manner.
Thats why the Police car didn't total itself, If you are travelling that fast that you spin down the road without even braking it's only a question of time before you lose enough speed to regain grip, then fire off into the undergrowth, unless of course you keep it locked up until to are nearly stationary.
I would be quite prepared to demonstrate this technique but in your car if you don't mind.
Edited by slowly slowly on Friday 13th April 19:22
Dear Dr Local
I have a problem when driving on the motorway. All those nasty people in the middle lane drive me bonkers! I try to do the right thing and keep left where ever possible. Now when the traffic is light, it isn't that bad to move out from lane 1 to lane 3 and overtake. However when the traffic is anything above medium in volume, I find that moving into the inside lane is an invite for some lovely chappy to come and sit in my blind spot preventing me from moving out to overtake once the next lorry comes along. Sometimes getting stuck there for quite a while.
Now I know I should just calm down and take my medicine, but I can't. What should I do? I find that when driving with in the limits and using proper lane discipline I get a continual stream of tailgaters and the like causing me blood pressure to go through the roof.
Yours,
Exasperated of Cardiff
I have a problem when driving on the motorway. All those nasty people in the middle lane drive me bonkers! I try to do the right thing and keep left where ever possible. Now when the traffic is light, it isn't that bad to move out from lane 1 to lane 3 and overtake. However when the traffic is anything above medium in volume, I find that moving into the inside lane is an invite for some lovely chappy to come and sit in my blind spot preventing me from moving out to overtake once the next lorry comes along. Sometimes getting stuck there for quite a while.
Now I know I should just calm down and take my medicine, but I can't. What should I do? I find that when driving with in the limits and using proper lane discipline I get a continual stream of tailgaters and the like causing me blood pressure to go through the roof.
Yours,
Exasperated of Cardiff
Hello Dr Local,
Recently I decided to show off with a 911 (996 shape for reference) behind me, I entered the roundabout and proceeded to nail it, hoping to exit sideways and in a blaze of glory thus wowing the Porsche driver and making him wish he was as good as me, I have done this many times before but alas only with lesser vehicles following me.
Through being an over excitable t
t I ended up stationary at 90 degrees to my intended direction of travel looking sheepishly at him through the side window. Do you have any tips on how to avoid this embarressing situation in the future and ensure that the souped up beetle drivers are left in no doubt as to how great I am?
Thanks.
Recently I decided to show off with a 911 (996 shape for reference) behind me, I entered the roundabout and proceeded to nail it, hoping to exit sideways and in a blaze of glory thus wowing the Porsche driver and making him wish he was as good as me, I have done this many times before but alas only with lesser vehicles following me.
Through being an over excitable t
t I ended up stationary at 90 degrees to my intended direction of travel looking sheepishly at him through the side window. Do you have any tips on how to avoid this embarressing situation in the future and ensure that the souped up beetle drivers are left in no doubt as to how great I am? Thanks.
slowly slowly said:
TripleS said:
R_U_LOCAL said:
There are three things you should bear in mind if you get a tyre failure at speed.
1. Don’t brake
2. Don’t brake, and
3. DON’T BRAKE!
If a tyre has deflated suddenly, or blown out, and you brake, then the car will steer very sharply away from the flat tyre (the brakes won’t be working efficiently on the side of the flat, so it’ll pull towards the tyre that’s still inflated).
A sudden tyre deflation will make the car feel unsettled diagonally, and the car will very quickly “crab”, as the flat tyre holds one corner of the car back. It’s very easy to brake at this point, and it’s most people’s natural reaction – evn those who’ve been trained not to will still have a natural tendency to press the brakes…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUWJrBm3L2k
As you can see, once you’ve braked, there’s no going back, and these two bobbies were very lucky.
Rather than brake, try to concentrate on steering the car in the direction you want to go, lose speed through deceleration only, and if you’re on the motorway, try to gently steer towards the hard shoulder.
And remember,
Don’t brake.
Maybe PC Langley felt he had to brake because of the vehicle in lane 2 just ahead of him, which he was catching rapidly, and the vehicle in lane 1 a bit further on. I know the car appeared to do two 360 degree spins, but I was surprised that it seemed to more or less confine itself to lanes 2 and 3, without veering off to the hard shoulder or central reservation, which is what I feared would happen.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
The car doing one or more 360's is not much of a surprise, I have in the past had chance to experiment with a little known theory that I have,
If you are travelling in a straight line on a wet road (it doesn't need to be wet but it works better that way) and you where to jink the steering wheel first to the left, then jink it slightly more to the right whilst slamming on the brakes (don't try this with ABS) the momentum of the car is moving straight ahead and with your wheels locked up you will spin down the road in a straight line, this should only alter if you come off the brakes, then you will fire off in the direction that your now moving wheels are facing. As long as there isn't a bend in the road or another vehicle or object in front of you it would be better to just slam on and wait until you are travelling slow enough to crawl to a stop in a safe manner.
Thats why the Police car didn't total itself, If you are travelling that fast that you spin down the road without even braking it's only a question of time before you lose enough speed to regain grip, then fire off into the undergrowth, unless of course you keep it locked up until to are nearly stationary.
This sort of thing has been mentioned previously, I think by GreenV8S, and perhaps others. Presumably the police car had ABS and therefore it would not have been possible to lock the wheels completely, in which case why did it not veer off quickly to the left or right while facing at, for example, 45 degrees to its line of travel? In order to continue sliding straight down the road surely the wheels must remain locked unless the car is facing the right way, or facing back the way it has come!
Best wishes all,
Dave.
mattrm said:
Dear Dr Local
I have a problem when driving on the motorway. All those nasty people in the middle lane drive me bonkers! I try to do the right thing and keep left where ever possible. Now when the traffic is light, it isn't that bad to move out from lane 1 to lane 3 and overtake. However when the traffic is anything above medium in volume, I find that moving into the inside lane is an invite for some lovely chappy to come and sit in my blind spot preventing me from moving out to overtake once the next lorry comes along. Sometimes getting stuck there for quite a while.
Now I know I should just calm down and take my medicine, but I can't. What should I do? I find that when driving with in the limits and using proper lane discipline I get a continual stream of tailgaters and the like causing me blood pressure to go through the roof.
Yours,
Exasperated of Cardiff
I have a problem when driving on the motorway. All those nasty people in the middle lane drive me bonkers! I try to do the right thing and keep left where ever possible. Now when the traffic is light, it isn't that bad to move out from lane 1 to lane 3 and overtake. However when the traffic is anything above medium in volume, I find that moving into the inside lane is an invite for some lovely chappy to come and sit in my blind spot preventing me from moving out to overtake once the next lorry comes along. Sometimes getting stuck there for quite a while.
Now I know I should just calm down and take my medicine, but I can't. What should I do? I find that when driving with in the limits and using proper lane discipline I get a continual stream of tailgaters and the like causing me blood pressure to go through the roof.
Yours,
Exasperated of Cardiff
Oh dear – you are getting yourself into a kerfuffle aren’t you?
Motorway driving, particularly at or below the speed limit requires extremely detailed planning and long forward observations. An ideal drive along the motorway should involve you getting up to your comfortable cruising speed, and not deviating from it at all. The drive shouldn’t require the application of brakes until you leave the motorway, or until traffic starts slowing e.g for roadworks.
It’s a bit like a game of chess – you need to think a few moves ahead. Particularly important are mirror checks, and how you interpret what you see in your mirror. If you’re in lane 1 and you see a vehicle approaching from behind in lane 2, and at the same time, you’re approaching a slower vehicle in lane 1, then make a move out to lane 2 nice and early to avoid getting blocked in behind the slower vehicle. “An early move’s a good move”. If there are slower moving HGVs in lane 1, even if they’re fairly well spaced, then there’s nothing wrong with staying out in lane 2, providing your speed is higher than theirs.
I’m planning a post on motorway driving in the next few weeks, so keep an eye on the forum for some other tips.
m12_nathan said:
Hello Dr Local,
Recently I decided to show off with a 911 (996 shape for reference) behind me, I entered the roundabout and proceeded to nail it, hoping to exit sideways and in a blaze of glory thus wowing the Porsche driver and making him wish he was as good as me, I have done this many times before but alas only with lesser vehicles following me.
Through being an over excitable tt I ended up stationary at 90 degrees to my intended direction of travel looking sheepishly at him through the side window. Do you have any tips on how to avoid this embarressing situation in the future and ensure that the souped up beetle drivers are left in no doubt as to how great I am?
Thanks.
Recently I decided to show off with a 911 (996 shape for reference) behind me, I entered the roundabout and proceeded to nail it, hoping to exit sideways and in a blaze of glory thus wowing the Porsche driver and making him wish he was as good as me, I have done this many times before but alas only with lesser vehicles following me.
Through being an over excitable t
t I ended up stationary at 90 degrees to my intended direction of travel looking sheepishly at him through the side window. Do you have any tips on how to avoid this embarressing situation in the future and ensure that the souped up beetle drivers are left in no doubt as to how great I am? Thanks.
*Looks at Nathan’s profile*
*Sees M3 CSL*
I don’t think you’ve anything to prove, have you?
Sideways fun is all well and good, but if you try it on the road, you run the risk of crashing or making an arse of yourself. Or both. I’d practice a bit more on the track if I were you.
Seriously though, as soon as a car is sliding, you’re losing speed and traction, so why not try impressing them with just how good the handling of your (obviously superior) car is, by driving through the roundabout in a nice smooth line, applying smooth but firm power and leaving the inferior machinery as a tiny dot in your mirror.
R_U_LOCAL said:
Sideways fun is all well and good, but if you try it on the road, you run the risk of crashing or making an arse of yourself. Or both.
There is also the possibility of incurring the displeasure of modern day BiB - who sound to be less understanding of these high jinks than the BiB of yesteryear. You could of course be lucky and find yourself discussing the matter fairly amiably with somebody like R U Local Esq. (or approved equivalent) or you could be having a bad day and find Von on your case.
Best wishes all,
Dave.
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