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Your gauges light up!
I still say they take the option out of headlight switches.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Might have been the late 50's. Think that early 60's for sure. The 63 Pontiac Grand Prix had large parking lights with clear lens I think with amber bulbs/reflectors. Remember that these lamps (and esp the Grand Prixs) were very cool when they came out.
Remember also that the parking lights/front turn signals were white until the 1963 model year, and that it wasn't until the 1968 model year that the parking lights were required to stay on with the headlights (safety feature so you could tell if that one-eyed car heading toward you was a motorcycle or had its left or right headlight burned out.)
I always give people the benefit of the doubt. If someone has their lights off when they really should (or must) be on and I feel that my safety is/could be threatened, I will always give a quick flash (turn lights off, then on (repeat twice), not brights!). If it is dark, the no-headlighters will usually turn them on, but the parking lighters (1) often times do not or (2) they flash their brights at me and then drop back down to just parking lights. In those situations, I either give them a quick flash of the driving lights (in case the driver did not notice my first signal) or a full shot (to thank the other driver for its lack of consideration), depending on if it was 1 or 2, respectively.
Admittedly, I sometimes like to drive by winter moonlight on my back roads if it is late at night and the road is deserted. When it is Nov/Dec/Jan/Feb and the sky is clear with a full moon, the light reflecting off the snow is just stunningly serene and it lights up the road far better than headlights ever could. I drop down to the parking lights (for safety, just in case!), slow to about 30 or so, and just enjoy it. If I see any other cars, though, I flip the lights back on until I'm all alone again.
I mean don't those who buy those massive SUV's realize the limitations on those things? This area that I was going through was very wooded and deer do run across this road. It is not a road to follow someone to close.
I actually had to slow down to give me more distance between me and the guy in front of me just in case.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Also, two days ago some idiot driving in a white Mitsubishi Galant cuts off two lanes in a 80kph zone, and narrowly misses another car.....only to be stopped at the traffic signal with us right beside him. Where did you go, Mr. Idrivedangerously?
I'm not saying people should pass the cop at the usual 5-10 over. But if the cop's going 30 in a 35, you can still go 35!
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
That's a good point, fin. Heck, just read the police "blotter" every day and you can see how many folks get snagged on this one. "Pulled over for having no front license plate" or something equally mundane, but ended up going to jail for 900# of methamphetamine in the trunk! Talk about irony.....
The only time I had a police officer give me grief about passing him was last winter on the Parks during a snowstorm. I was driving about 50 and came up on a string of three rigs driving about 35... they were led by a Dodge dually (which probably should have been doing 35 in those conditions). The second vehicle was some '80s RWD sedan, and the third was an AK State Trooper in a Ford Expedition. I never even bothered slowing down, I just approached them, and then starting passing them. But, as I pulled alongside the Trooper, he flipped on his lights (which made it real hard to see in a snowstorm) and pointed behind him (indicating that he would prefer I did not pass?). I slowed up and pulled in behind..... proceeding to be stuck behind them for about 30 miles of 30-35 speeds when I could have been safely driving 20 mph faster and not be sucking kicked up white-out. I finally decided that I was either going to pass them and take my chances with the Trooper or I had to stop. I went ahead and stopped for 20 minutes or so to give me some space and then headed back out. Ironically, by that time the snowfall had become heavy enough that there was about 18 inches on the roadway and I couldn't even go 35! But, I did have the road to myself (within reason) at that point and that made it all the more pleasant. Eventually, the wind started blowing the snow off the road and I was able to pick it back up a bit, but I never did see any of those 3 rigs again. In the end, we made it home safely, and that's what matters the most.
I wonder if the person on the other end asks them why there are horns in the background so much of the time.
It has worked one time so far...
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I usually only tap my horn to wake up simps dozing off at red lights, or lay on it to prevent idiots from plowing into me.
Three or more lanes, the inside median lane, is off limits to vehicles over 10k lbs and any vehicle towing anything. While towing the boat at 60 mph, it didn't take long for the same cowboy to go by me using the forbidden lane to overtake the herd. The guard rail did it's damage, but didn't slow him down.
Yesterday on I5 south of Seattle I had the pleasure of driving alongside a couple of airheads in a big jacked up F250. She would wander around, but usually stay within her lane, so it was OK. She would also vary her speed between 50-75, which is always nice. Of course, as I got alongside her as she randomly slowed once again, she wandered into my lane, either through inattention or because of the criminally dangerous handling characteristics of her rig. I laid on my horn for about 20 seconds...she woke up. I shook my head, and her passenger gave me that brain-dead look typical of suburbanites who buy a big truck to go between the normal mall and the outlet mall.
Usually I don't mind two cars running through, but three is my limit. If I happen to be in "pole position", I'll lurch forward and lay on the horn.
The road they turned onto is a residential street with a speed limit of around 30 mph, and while it's a wide road, there's parking at the curb. After about a quarter mile though, it becomes a bit more country, with a shoulder on either side. Along here, there are a few houses set way back from the road, in the woods, with driveways that come out onto the shoulder.
Well, when my roommie gets to where he has to make the left turn onto our street, he said this dude suddenly sped up and tried to pass on the right, on the shoulder, before it was really safe to...and had to slam on his brakes when somone coming out of their driveway nosed out onto the shoulder!
People speeding through these back streets with limited visibility, and residential streets, have always irritated me. But with the way gas prices are these days, it really bugs me!
Oh yeah, I've also noticed some other examples of idiocy lately. I'm in the process of having some construction done at my place, having a garage built and a new driveway that the county's making me put in. Before, I just had some old gravel that had been thrown down, and a lot of it was actually grown over with grass. But now that they've cut through it and laid new gravel down, the driveway really stands out. Well, I've had people pull into my driveway, just a little bit, and then BACK out onto the road! My house sits on a blind hill, where people regularly fly over it at 40 mph or more!
They used to turn around in my neighbor's driveway, who's to the right of me, at the crest of the hill. And here it's just as dangerous as my driveway, but these buffoons will just pull in and back right out onto the road! It's only a matter of time before one of them gets creamed! FWIW, when I pull out of my yard, I usually roll the window down and turn off the radio, because while you can't always see them coming in time, you can always hear 'em!
The fact that these drivers were rewarded with mammoth traffic jams and probably spent six hours' total commuting today doesn't let them off the hook, imo. Their failure to cooperate prevented emergency vehicles and motorcades from reaching their destinations in a timely fashion and wasted millions of gallons of gasoline. Heck, it was a chore to *walk* anywhere today as the intersections and crosswalks were choked with clueless, selfish drivers.
There are no excuses -- mass transit options abound here. I wouldn't be as dismayed and angered if it weren't for the sheer number of non-cooperators. Is it really that tough to give up the cocoon for a day or two and take a nice, clean, fast, on-time commuter train or similarly appointed express bus? :confuse:
You're on a two lane on-ramp, the kind that lets the slowpokes have their right lane and us speed demons go around. You're on the left beside a 1979 MB 240D, and I'm behind you. You initially take off OK, but by the time you hit 35mph the old diesel snail is dusting you. You hit I5 at all of 45mph, even the old diesel has left you. I flash my lights as I zip around, you keep your head dead straight ahead, oblivious to the world around you. You were so far behind by the next exit, with EVERY vehicle passing you, that I couldn't see you anymore. Get off the road, or someone will remove you.
And a note to the punk in a beat up old Jetta that floored it on NE 8th when I passed you - you need a valve job bad, you really don't have a right to keep that old deathtrap on the road. My fintail had a broken piston ring and wasn't smoking that badly. Oh, and don't bother speeding up, as you learned, you get ahead for about 1 second.
are starting to migrate across the roads here in PA. Not that I'm anti-wooly bear (or wooly worm, or whatever your local name for them might be), but...
Driving back home this morning, one vehicle about 6 car lengths ahead of me at about 45 mph, no traffic on the two lane road as far as we can see. Out of nowhere, they slam on their brakes and swerve, almost losing control of the car. And as far as I can determine, short of some drug induced flashback, they did it to avoid running over a caterpillar! My heart did NOT need that jump start :sick:
Makes me feel bad about my eyesight.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
An aggressive attitude behind the wheel of a broken ring on a fintail will be easy to spot in a conversation with the WSP.
Insurance premiums for speed demons are increasing faster than any other class of driver and couple that with DWI - ooowee!
The WSP is good only for speedtrapping and blatantly lying about their patrols. Like in Marysville, where theres a huge new outlet mall complex/casino/WallyWorld etc right off the highway. This causes atrocious backups and crashes quite often, to the point where logically the land developers should have had to contribute an extra lane onto the highway. Then the WSP comes on and lowers the speed limit (not a bad thing - but it was usually hard to hit the limit there anyway due to the traffic) and claims they'll be increasing patrols - but they insist it has nothing to do with crashes! They've been wanting to do it for a long time...right.
"Insurance premiums for speed demons are increasing faster than any other class of driver"
Only those who get caught
Strange as it seems you rarely see dead geese on the side of the road.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Now of course she has the nerve to blow her horn yell at me and make some rude jesters in my direction.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
As my heart stopped, I slammed on the brakes and went as far right as I could without hitting the trees on the side of the road, barely missing this car.
I didn't get the memo about the new rules of the road that states cars can use the double yellow line as a third lane. :sick
Glad you were able to come out of it okay.
I am sure I will be posting more than my share after that......
Now that's funny. One of the best replies this year. Thank you.
Next up: We have a short little highway called the 143. It links I-10 to the 202. Going west on the 143 (heading towards I-10) is a awful at rush hour. Traffic backs up from I-10 into the I-10 exit only lane on the 143. People who are trying to get into the exit only lane moving all of 0 MPH will cruise through the next lane over at around 10MPH, slam on the brakes, see they can't fit in, and then floor it to the next open spot. When they do find an open spot, they hog both lanes because they don't seem to understand that they can turn their steering wheel enough to get their car in the lane. See that thing on your dashboard? Circular shaped? Has an emblem of your car's manufacturer? Its called a steering wheel and it turns more than 45 degrees in either direction. USE IT!
While I'm at it: Same people above in my first rant are usually those who floor it off of a light when they are in front. Whats up with that? Are you trying intentionally to make other people upset?
Not sure if it fits here: All you so-called adults at ASU, go back to middle school english and learn the definition for "right-of-way". Pedestrians don't have it when they aren't in a crosswalk. Also look up "jaywalking". I'm not just referring to those who cross no where near a crosswalk, but those who can't walk two feet over to the crosswalk. I almost run them over as the lights around campus are hair-trigger. Light turns yellow and students are already crossing as much as 5 feet into my lane as I'm trying to haul my car down from 30MPH. It might throw your day off a litte to move over 5 feet but it would surely ruin it if I ran into you. Oh yes, bikes. I hate it when they are going the opposite direction of traffic in the bike lane. You're going to get run over one of these times, because if I'm pulling out of a side road turning right, I shouldn't have to look for oncoming traffic! :mad:
There, I feel better. Thanks for listening. :shades:
If the speed limit on this stretch of road is 60 mph, that means most drivers - at least the sentient ones - are probably travelling at 65 mph, given that most roads have underposted limits.
Entering a major roadway at 20 mph below the flow of traffic is neither prudent nor safe.
This is one reason why every vehicle is provided with an accelerator pedal. Good drivers know when to use it.
Patience is a virture . The best drivers know when to use it.
Sometimes anarchy is a necessary force
Responsibility and accountability are even better virtues. If you're driving at a speed that will cause every other vehicle on the road to rear-end you, you either need to speed up or pull over - end of story. A car travelling 20mph under the flow is just as dangerous as one travelling 20mph over the flow, limits can go to hell.
Lots of land barges in front of me get on the freeway at 45-50mph. Then they hit the hill and some of them have no trouble speeding up. But some don't care, so you have trucks slowing down, trucks trying to pass, me trying to squeeze in between the trucks...
Since it's uphill, you can't change lanes and then accelerate if you have a small-engined car. So a slow car ahead of me means I'm stuck in that mess for a brief but harrowing period of time.
On the rest of my commute, my latest peeve is turning on my signal to pass someone, only to have them change into the lane I'm turning into without signaling, after I've accelerated to 10mph faster than them. It's been happening a lot lately, both on the freeway and city streets... I think they're realizing that I've found an opening in traffic, and they want it too (but they never speed up).
And then there's the 45mph wide open road with the 30-35mph drivers... (when in this area, 45mph roads usually flow at 10 over).
Indeed. Whenever I have found it necessary to travel a road at speeds more than 15 under the flow, I will illuminate my hazards to warn approaching traffic well ahead of the need to brake for me (or rear end me). Also, if on the Parks Highway (two-lane 65mph road that is the only direct connection between Fairbanks and Anchorage) and traveling slowly, I will keep my load out of the way of other drivers so as to minimize the inconvenience presented to them.
Sure but it has to be a real tiny car.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
All the other vehicles have drivers who are to prevent their vehicles from rear ending you.
Slower drivers do not trigger or cause other vehicles to rear end them. It's the following driver's negligence in not keeping his car under control that causes the crash.
Your logic would make trailer parks responsible for hurricanes.
Or somehow when a road cop shows up and everyone is trying to beat everybody else to below the speed limit.
Drivers going slower than the flow cause lane changes and distractions, which lead to crashes. Not to mention road rage, which is judged by idiots to soley be the fault of the annoyed party. These snails are no less guilty than those weaving in and out of traffic at 20mph faster than the flow.
The "rear ending" part was more hyperbole...but the idea is the same. Overly slow drivers are as problematic as overly fast ones.
Well, for those whose depth of knowledge about driving consists of reading two numbers on a sign, that may be true. Other drivers - at least those who tend to be more experienced - realize that traffic flow is not to be ignored.
Apparently the Pennsylvania State Police aren't in on the program. I've passed them at 75 mph on roads posted 65 mph. Didn't get stopped...and neither did the other drivers around me.
euphonium: All other interpretations are the result of anarchy.
Add "In my opinion" to the beginning of that sentence, and it will be accurate.
euphonium: Patience is a virture . The best drivers know when to use it.
Entering a major artery at 20 mph slower than the flow of traffic is not a sign of patience. It's foolish at best, and stupid at worst. The display of either of those traits behind the wheel is not a virtue.
Actually your statement is "not true", even though I might even personally agree in some cases. My personal opinion aside, while there are some exceptions (i.e., unsafe lane changing, weaving etc) the overwhelming majority of those DOING the rear ending are found AT FAULT. There is plenty of precedent and case law and cases behind this observation.
"We" have an almost epidemic misunderstanding of: Keep Right Except To Pass, Slow Traffic Keep Rght, even the TEXAS dictum that I have seen on Interstate 10 E (and W also) left lane is for passing only, so how do you think the system can overcome something as complicated as a slower driver?