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It was 1972 and gas was 33 cents a gallon...who cared!
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Boy that rings a bell. My buddy was a Firestone fan. In our case the treads came off like a bad retread. They were brand new tires though, I think less than a week old.
My friend was really mad that the expensive tires he had just bought fell apart after only 200 miles at high speed. I think he complained and got a new set free.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
IIRC Firestone "stone"-walled until most tires had been replaced before they gave in to a recall. Set a precedent for automakers to stonewall as long as they can; never admit a problem.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Even if they didn't tires back then that weren't designed for high performance probably didn't do well at a 100 plus MPH for nearly two hours straight.
Funny, I do remember. It was a 302, the same engine I have in my Ford F-150. Hard to believe they've been making them that long.
My dad had a 1965 LTD with the 351 engine that seemed fast to me as a kid. To bad the transmission was junk.
Just to get back on topic I guess I was an "inconsiderate driver" as a teen with all the nonsense I pulled.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
That's about all we can do, HOPE. When you are young and feel immortal you will do dumb things to test your limits. The fact that they are dumb doesn't seem to enter your thinking.
Perhaps that's the wisdom of hindsight.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
We ALL Thank you for that.
I am not a LLC anyway.
Speaking of that, I have noticed a new stereotypical slow vehicle. We all know Camrys have been replacing Buicks for the doddering/errant set...now my area seems to be seeing more slow moving Lexus. Just this morning - late model IS, 40mph road 4 lane, older woman driving...she was in the left lane and couldn't have been going over 30. Not a care in the world. Then I drove up to my beloved stoplight, which was stuck for the billionth time. So, I went through red after waiting a bit (the IS wasn't even close to catching up) and then got behind a current style RX on an on-ramp. Posted at 45, I came up behind him at about 45, when he was going maybe 35. He must have just been in a daze though, as I saw him notice me, and then he jumped on it and took off. Luckily he took another course so I did not have to merge following him.
I notice Lexus pylons are easy to spot in the dark, as they have reflectors low on the rear bumper.
I am too lazy to do it.
Shouldn't a Corsa Diesel be getting more like 47 MPG???
EDIT
Actually I've just tried to work this out and I make it about 45 mpg - but I'm no mathematician
At first I thought he was looking for an address but he passed all the houses and continued his slo-mo down the road. I couldn't pass due to a solid yellow line.
Finally after several miles he pulled into a rural church parking lot leaving me to think that he had some explaining to do with the man upstairs. :confuse:
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1 imperial gallon is the same as 4.546 liters.
1 US gallon equals 3.785 liters.
I am no mathematician either, just an accountant.
I spent a week in north-western Pennsylvania a few days ago, and frankly most of the speed limits were artificially high. "55 mph" roads were more like 40-45 roads, but even then, as I tooled along at 55 keeping a nervous lookout to all sides, I would get local yahoos tailgating me because they wanted to go 70... then they wonder why they tag a deer every other week. One gal, a 70+ year old lady in a Ford Fusion, came up to within inches of me at 55, so I slowed to 25 and drove two miles that way. She did not seem to get it. I had a rental Mercury Grand Marquis (we had originally reserved a compact, but they did not have one nor a mid-size when we arrived, so they did a "free upgrade" to a full size). Amazingly, that thing got some astounding mileage! 477.3 miles on 14.6 gallons - about 32 miles per gallon in mixed driving!
Anyway, flew back to Portland, OR and drove my '08 Outback to Pendleton right afterward. I had the cruise set at 70 on long, boring I-84, but I had it up to just over 100 for a moment while performing a quick passing maneuver right before a steep hill in order to not keep the big-rigs waiting as they jockeyed for position. It was so smooth, I was tempted to keep pushing it upward...
About 300 feet down the row another car started backing out and Mr. bully lays on the horn about 5 times longer than necessary and bulldozes his way past the backing vehicle. Obviously he was an important person.
I followed him to the end of the row where he turned left while I was going right. As he swung out I yelled "How dare we think we can drive on YOUR road!".
As I drove away I could see him in my mirror sputtering and cursing. I waved him a "have a nice day" and continued on my way. Some times being pleasant is the nastiest thing you can do.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Same thing happens to us when we are hauling our horse trailer, people lose their brains when they see that coming. We've been passed, cut off, had brakes slammed on in front of us, pulled out in front of to where we had to brake harder than we wanted to in order to avoid a collision. Its not like we are driving slow! I never understand what some people are thinking.
That's probably one of the inconsiderate driving acts that infuriates me the most. I remember a few years back, driving my grandma's '85 LeSabre, some slow little car (I want to say it was a Dodge Colt, but I might be thinking of another instance where a Dodge colt ran a stop sign to "beat" me, and the woman driver stuck out her tongue and started laughing, giving me a triumphant "I beat you" look) actually ran a red light to make a right turn onto the road in front of me. There was nothing behind me, as far as the eye could see. Worse, this car didn't even TRY to speed up.
This was a two lane road, and nothing was coming the other way. So what I did could be considered unsafe, but I was covering myself. I laid into the horn, gunned it, and beared down on that little car. I was prepared to pass if I had to. But I didn't. Just as I figured, that driver really didn't want a Buick enema, so they cut over into the grass to let me pass.
Yeah, I guess I *could* have just slowed down. But that driver *could* have just waited until I passed. It would have taken mere seconds for me to go past. Besides, maybe it'll make that driver think twice before pulling a similar stunt again and causing an accident.
"What do you want on your Tombstone?" :surprise:
That would depend on if I was driving on a dangerous stretch of road--like the Surekill Expressway?
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I'll often just gun it and pass when people pull out in front of me here, even on residential streets.
Oh, yesterday when going up a long 35mph hill, I got behind an old Isuzu Stylus (how many of those could be left?) going about 23mph in the left lane, so I passed on the right. Like clockwork, the hag driving it gunned it when I was passing. Yeah, that didn't work for her...I had to gently accelerate for about 2 seconds to be well ahead...and then she backed off.
How dare you passing the one who owns the road. :P
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Yesterday I almost got hit by some phone-yapping aging trophy wife in a Lexus RX (what else?) who didn't seem to think her lane was quite big enough. Luckily, I have a loud horn and an evil glare. She looked back at me like I had kicked the pope. You are what you drive...
36 million drivers would flunk drivers tests (CNN)
"We believe that the adoption of a uniform driver curriculum will significantly improve the driving skills of Americans"
---
Pepperoni!!!
:P
While stopped a red light, I have a habit of watching the light for the cross traffic... it turns yellow, then red. I glance to the left. Here comes a dump truck with a trailer and he clearly has no plan to stop. He's making a left turn, so we get to wait nearly 30 seconds for his trailer to clear the light. I'm first in line, so I overtake quickly and give him a brief honk-honk, to indicate that I witnessed his transgression. He gives back a blast in reply. I can only speculate what message that was meant to convey... perhaps he was saying: "sorry to inconvenience you, hope you have a pleasant day."
james
When we get real snow, I stay home...these people create too much risk.
I usually leave for work about 0530, and often see cars with only parking lights on, even at that hour. I'll usually blink my lights or flash them...I've only had one person actually notice what I was meaning.
I tell you though, those Toyota pickup/SUV drivers are amazingly cool with their huge amber marker lights. I have even had a couple of them flash their lights on, then back off again when reminded their lights are off! :sick:
Do not even get me started regarding slick roads. Actually, it is not so bad. I just have to remind myself that every driver & vehicle combination is different. As long as they keep within their comfort zone and are not causing roadway pinball, they are doing just fine.
I've never understood the 'cool' aspect of parking lights either...but I have heard there's something to it.
At least your roads are actually slick when people slow down, and it isn't just paranoia. I remember during our big snow last year, I got behind an Acura MDX going up a hill, nobody in front of it, and the woman driving it decided to hit her brakes and slow way down to a crawl. I hope she eventually stopped and couldn't move again - I used the turn lane as a passing lane and went around, to retain momentum. A lot of this I will admit is from drivers who are likely new to driving in a first world nation, if not to driving as a whole.
And about the wind - it's worse today! I'm glad I'm able to be at home today, and my car is nice and dry in its garage. Lots of flooding and some other damage with today's storm.
I agree that it is incredibly frustrating to be "stuck" behind drivers going inexplicably slow or doing things contrary to common sense.
On my way down to Oregon driving that rig I mentioned above, I had just come out of Williams Lake, BC headed south on 97. There was a white pickup driving ahead of me, with a blue pickup behind that one. Now, keep in mind, I am driving a vehicle towing 14,000#. All through the "slow" speed limit zones, this driver is going about 10 mph over (not 10 kph, or 6.2 mph!), which is how he came to be ahead of me in the first place. We hit the open, relatively flat road, and he will not go faster than 55 mph (90 kph) in a 100 kph (62 mph) speed zone. Eventually, I caught back up to him even though I was slowed by some hills and was only going 3 mph over the speed limit. Frustrated that my already cumbersome trip was being slowed further by some yahoo, I made the decision to pass assuming I ever came to an area appropriate to do so. On this road, a two-laner, the only passing lanes tended to be on uphills, where I was slowed down by the load of the trailer.
Anyway, by some miracle a passing zone came up that was on only a minor slope, so I took the left lane to pass. Wouldn't you know it, this monkey speeds up - to about 75 mph! Regardless of his ill-directed efforts, I still managed to put him about even with the front of my trailer when his lane ran out and he was forced to hit the brakes or eat weeds. Ironically, he rode the back of my trailer for the next mile or so (even though I was going 65 mph, 10 faster than he thought appropriate only 2 miles back) until we came to a large hill with a passing lane. He passed again on that hill as my truck slowed to about 45 mph and luckily I never saw him again.
Driving I-5 with 40+ mph broadside gusts was a trip. And, of course, the traffic was fairly heavy. So, as the truckers and I are working hard to keep from bouncing off each other, here are all these tiny cars darting in and out all over the place. There was a crash near downtown Seattle involving a tractor-trailer and a couple cars that sent everyone into their blind start-stop mode. I put about 150' in front of me to the next vehicle and drove at about 10-15 mph the whole time. I only had to hit the brakes twice during excessively long stops where I simply ran out of road. I am not sure how the other vehicles fared, but my fuel economy was actually pretty decent through there!
I assumed that wind storm was an unusual occurrence for Seattle; sorry to hear there are more storms, but at least you need not deal with them today!
A person speeding up when being passed is probably the most inconsiderate act possible. I can't even imagine the mentality behind it - I've had it happen a couple times too. I'm a jerk and I won't give into them either...luckily my car is faster than anything most any non-exotic, so I don't have to worry about much. Drivers licenses are too easy to get.
I've never had to pull a big trailer...and I don't want to! Seattle traffic is a nightmare, I avoid the place whenever I can. I've never seen such bad traffic management, especially on side roads. No sequenced lights, random speed limit changes, illogical speed traps, it's heaven.
We had a pretty bad snow storm here saturday, had a lot of idiots driving way to slow. Was in one 50 MPH zone behind someone going 20. Sure we were having snow and rain so going slow was a good ideal but 20?
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D