damage from speed bumps
Discussion
Driving along a 30mph road with plenty of those speed bumps that you can just about drive over the middle of and not really tell they are there. Doing about 20mph when I saw the white arrows painted on the road indicating a full road width speed hump. As I drove up it was obvious this one was quite steep. It's one of those long ones where you travel about two full car distances before dropping down the other side. So, as I approach the other side, it becomes obvious that the drop is even steeper than the incline. Dilemma - brake harder ( remember though only doing by now about 15 mph ) thus forcing the front end down or just keep going and hope. I decided to apply light brake pressure but sure enough as the front end came down it slammed into the tarmac. Crunch followed by a metallic rattle as something ripped off the underneath and rolled along the road behind. What appears to have come off is a thin strip of angled metal that was rivotted to the front of the car ( along the width ) just beneath the radiator where the body work comes to an end -looks like some kind of small aerofoil but far too small for that I think - any ideas what it is and whether it matters if it is not there? Fortunately the rivots appeared to have sheared so limited damage to body and out of sight anyway - damn those humps. Surely they should only be high enough to keep you within the 30 limit - how slow do they want you to drive?
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looks like some kind of small aerofoil but far too small for that I think - any ideas what it is and whether it matters if it is not there? Fortunately the rivots appeared to have sheared so limited damage to body and out of sight anyway - damn those humps. Surely they should only be high enough to keep you within the 30 limit - how slow do they want you to drive?
Pretty common occurance I'm afraid - it's an angled stip of aluminium that is designed to help airflow through the radiator & improve cooling. It is also supposed to improve high speed handling (opinions differ)
Did you manage to retrieve it?
If not it'll probably cost you £30 or so to get another one put on.
You should write to the council & send them a bill & also your MP to complain about the dangerous design of the roads.
cheers,
Craig
I find that speed humps seem to catch out the rear end of my car (chimaera 450). Going up them seems fine but the back end (exhaust I think) catches when comming off them (metalic ring / ching sound). As with any car, it pays to have your speed and breaking under control, before you get to the bump to keep the balance of the car right (clearly braking or accelerating over bumps will cause the suspension to react). Good luck, I hope the damage does not cost to much to put right.
The lastest craze (and I use the word in all its meanings) in my local area is for speed cusions. These are deadly for low slung cars, and completely pointless for numptymobiles and mondeos (which they have no effect on).
The best way I have found to traverse them is put the left wheel over the middle and the other wheel in the gap. The trouble with this is when they combine the cusion with the single lane traffic calming reducing your possible angles. The last time I was forced in this situation I took a nice chunk out of the splitter under the Griff.
Of course the other method is to get the locals so p*ssed off they demand that these anti car devices are removed. To do this simply pull up to an almost standstill before the offending device, put 5ltr V8 car into first gear, take up as much road as possible whilst trying not to rip off any of the cars undercarriage, when safely clear 'large it' in first gear to the next offending item.
This combined with the continuous slap of mondeo tyres as they hit them at 60mph will soon have the locals up in arms
Cheers Dan
The best way I have found to traverse them is put the left wheel over the middle and the other wheel in the gap. The trouble with this is when they combine the cusion with the single lane traffic calming reducing your possible angles. The last time I was forced in this situation I took a nice chunk out of the splitter under the Griff.
Of course the other method is to get the locals so p*ssed off they demand that these anti car devices are removed. To do this simply pull up to an almost standstill before the offending device, put 5ltr V8 car into first gear, take up as much road as possible whilst trying not to rip off any of the cars undercarriage, when safely clear 'large it' in first gear to the next offending item.
This combined with the continuous slap of mondeo tyres as they hit them at 60mph will soon have the locals up in arms
Cheers Dan
Yep, that's the front splitter. I live on a new estate where they've just finished putting the tarmac topcoat on, and they have spent the last 2 months putting big speed tables at every junction (bricked ramp up/down and a level bricked area inbetween). Going at -1mph I managed to bash and bend the corner of my splitter the other morning. Had to take it off and adjust - luckily GRP cars are tougher than steel as the impact would have bent a steel car's underpanel - in my case it elongated the end screw hole.
I called Berkeley Homes when I got to work and they're now lowering 2 of the 'ramps' which are much steeper than the rest.
I still give it a bit of welly to make lots of noise between all these obstacles though (as long as there are no kids around). What waste of bl00dy time, it's not a through road and there are only around 50 houses in the whole estate. I guess Berkeley Homes think it look posh.
Trefor/.
I called Berkeley Homes when I got to work and they're now lowering 2 of the 'ramps' which are much steeper than the rest.
I still give it a bit of welly to make lots of noise between all these obstacles though (as long as there are no kids around). What waste of bl00dy time, it's not a through road and there are only around 50 houses in the whole estate. I guess Berkeley Homes think it look posh.
Trefor/.
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looks like some kind of small aerofoil but far too small for that I think - any ideas what it is and whether it matters if it is not there? Fortunately the rivots appeared to have sheared so limited damage to body and out of sight anyway - damn those humps. Surely they should only be high enough to keep you within the 30 limit - how slow do they want you to drive?
Pretty common occurance I'm afraid - it's an angled stip of aluminium that is designed to help airflow through the radiator & improve cooling. It is also supposed to improve high speed handling (opinions differ)
Did you manage to retrieve it?
If not it'll probably cost you £30 or so to get another one put on.
You should write to the council & send them a bill & also your MP to complain about the dangerous design of the roads.
cheers,
Craig
Craig
Yes - I stopped to pick it up - took some time while I also inspected the underneath of the car too - 'fraid that held some of the locals up stuck behind me!
I will write to the council but they won't do anything. Last time I wrote after hitting a major pothole ( unavoidable ) and wrote off both alloy wheels on the passenger side. Three other cars behind also had damage. I went to photograph it next day and it had already been filled in - apparently the council said after a random inspection. They argued they had done there duty as required so tough. Just gets me more stressed dealing with the council - maybe like you say the MP is worth writing to.
I agree with Dan. If you have to go over these things at 1mph make yourself as much of a nuisance to every one else as possible. Hold up all the traffic for as long a possible, then make as much noise as you can between them (which isn't hard in a Trev!). Going to have to move out of London before they throw me out
I encountered a set of speed bumps in Grays, Essex around Christmas time last year. They are situated such that it is possible to drive with your wheels either side of them and so avoiding the bumps altogether - problem is when so doing, you tend to drive towards the centre of the road, and so you risk hitting oncoming cars as they do the same thing!
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I agree with Dan. If you have to go over these things at 1mph make yourself as much of a nuisance to every one else as possible. Hold up all the traffic for as long a possible, then make as much noise as you can between them (which isn't hard in a Trev!). Going to have to move out of London before they throw me out
I also agree - there's a road I go down quite regularly in Croxley. The first three are vicious! I take them at <1 mph and still hit underside and exhaust at rear. What's funny is the Company Car Drivels that overtake on the blind bend
at high speed and ground everything on their BMWs!!! Like wise, on and off the "table tops" I always ensure that the locals know I have arrived/left - it's the "how many metres before I'm braking the speed limit again game".
(Not if there are kiddies or wrinklies or other numpties to hurt though.)
As you will have probably gather speed cusions are a pet hate of mine.
I really do not think these things improve road safety, it is impossible to judge the speed of traffic when pulling out of a side road, as some people (like me) praticaly stop, whereas some people (normally in firms cars, people carriers of 4X4s) drive over them at full speed.
The only purpose these things have is to line the pocket of so called Highways consultants, who are rubbing thier hands together with glee knowing full well that in 12 months time they will be contracted in to remove them and install some equally hairbrains and ineffective means of improving road safety.
...And the worst thing is it's you and I that pay for these 'ing abominations!!!
Councils should be made liable for the damage speed cusions cause as well as all the loss of earnings etc. That would make the buggers think twice!!
There I feel better now... thanks for listening.
Cheers Dan
I really do not think these things improve road safety, it is impossible to judge the speed of traffic when pulling out of a side road, as some people (like me) praticaly stop, whereas some people (normally in firms cars, people carriers of 4X4s) drive over them at full speed.
The only purpose these things have is to line the pocket of so called Highways consultants, who are rubbing thier hands together with glee knowing full well that in 12 months time they will be contracted in to remove them and install some equally hairbrains and ineffective means of improving road safety.
...And the worst thing is it's you and I that pay for these 'ing abominations!!!
Councils should be made liable for the damage speed cusions cause as well as all the loss of earnings etc. That would make the buggers think twice!!
There I feel better now... thanks for listening.
Cheers Dan
My Dad once lost a rather expensive exhaust to a speed bump once. No signs (they hadnt put them up yet) and the bump was hidden around the corner - lo and behold, missing exhaust.
Subsequently claimed against the council and won all costs and some inconvenience charges too. All well and dandy then. However, the problem was that it took another 6 weeks for the signs to appear at which point the council had racked up £100K worth of insurance claims against it..... Nice.
Unsuprisingly the bumps were removed before the sign appeared and they just had to swallow the costs. So, not only £100K insurance, but the laying and subsequent tearing up of the bumps ran the bill to over 1/4 mill.... Stunning.
What I suggest is that the council employees are made responsible for this. Because NO ONE lost their jobs over this. If I lost my company 1/4 million I would expect to not pass go and not collect £100! And I suspect that most of you agree. So you now have a bunch of numpties still working in the council making fcuk'ups cos they cant get rid of them.... and who pays...? We do..... aint a democracy great?
cheers,
Paul
Subsequently claimed against the council and won all costs and some inconvenience charges too. All well and dandy then. However, the problem was that it took another 6 weeks for the signs to appear at which point the council had racked up £100K worth of insurance claims against it..... Nice.
Unsuprisingly the bumps were removed before the sign appeared and they just had to swallow the costs. So, not only £100K insurance, but the laying and subsequent tearing up of the bumps ran the bill to over 1/4 mill.... Stunning.
What I suggest is that the council employees are made responsible for this. Because NO ONE lost their jobs over this. If I lost my company 1/4 million I would expect to not pass go and not collect £100! And I suspect that most of you agree. So you now have a bunch of numpties still working in the council making fcuk'ups cos they cant get rid of them.... and who pays...? We do..... aint a democracy great?
cheers,
Paul
Here is an interesting slant to the topic of speed bumps/cusions/tales etc. Do they really help road safety or do they make it worse? My opinion is that you spend so much time looking at the damm things trying to over/round/through them, that you have now distracted yourself from the traffic. I only say this as I nearly hit a cyclest the other day going down a speed bump cusion road, as he weaved out in front of me as I was positioning my wheels to stradle said object.
My thought is they can increase road risk, and car damage.
David M5 TVR
My thought is they can increase road risk, and car damage.
David M5 TVR
"My thought is they can increase road risk, and car damage. "
I agree, but when was the last time you saw a new road safety addition and thought "that's a good idea"?
In Chippenham a few years ago, a set of lights were installed around a large roundabout, resulting in severe hold-ups on all roads as the roundabout locked-up. A few weeks later, half of the lights were removed - who paid for that blunder I wonder?
You approach the said roundabout along a dual-carriageway, only to be forced into one lane for 100yds just before the roundabout. I'm not a road planner, but to my way of thinking, the dual-carriageway should have continued right up to the roundabout enabling better traffic flow.
I agree, but when was the last time you saw a new road safety addition and thought "that's a good idea"?
In Chippenham a few years ago, a set of lights were installed around a large roundabout, resulting in severe hold-ups on all roads as the roundabout locked-up. A few weeks later, half of the lights were removed - who paid for that blunder I wonder?
You approach the said roundabout along a dual-carriageway, only to be forced into one lane for 100yds just before the roundabout. I'm not a road planner, but to my way of thinking, the dual-carriageway should have continued right up to the roundabout enabling better traffic flow.
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