Inconsiderate Drivers (share your stories, etc.)

imidazol97

To me it seems some BMW drivers bought the car to boost their ego and self concept; it shows in how they drive them to be sure they get noticed and to display some domination actions. I thought about that as I thought also of Fintail when an S63 passed me on an curving flyover interstate ramp. I was slowing to the recommended 40 so I was at about 50 in my stable and capable Buick. The other driver of the relatively new looking S63 passed on the outside lane without a show of tailgating nor pushing. He held it at about 52 on his 30 profile 20 inch wheels (I'm guessing) and very carefully followed his lane. He did not cut back over as the merge with lanes and traffic from the right from other ramps and then from the left onto the new interstate. His S63 held the lane beautifully and the driver was spot on driving rather than showing. He speeded up at the end of the curve and the machine looked impressive.

Some cars that are very capable don't have to be driven in a showy manner to garner respect.

detroit2013

No point to make, and nothing to prove. One thing for certain, that is one
M5 driver that will never tangle with another $50K BOSS 302.
Buy AMERICAN!

fintail

MB drivers, like their cars, tend to be a little more conservative and restrained than their Audi and BMW counterparts. Not that plenty of jerks don't exist - but they aren't as flamboyant.

I find yellow signed ramps to be woefully underposted, around here. There are corners posted at 35 that a 1952 London double decker bus with a drunk driver could easily handle at that speed. I've taken them at ~70 (empty road) without anything more than some extra g forces.

xrunner2

I find yellow signed ramps to be woefully underposted, around here.

Watch out for cloverleaf ramps if driving an interstate segment ramp for the first time. There is a decreasing radius ramp near an I90 interstate in my area that would be a challenge for an out of area hot-foot M5, or any other sporty, car driver.

imidazol97

This is the ramp. It seems to me that it should have more slope to be safer at higher than 40 mph. I suspect in icing conditions a slope might be problematic so they keep it relatively horizontal.

IN one forum folks with cars that are indeed capable said they do ramps at double the posting. I'd like to see someone do this at 80 mph. It's the northbound ramp to westbound--top of pic is north.

Curve has claimed a Budweiser semi which dumped lots of cartons of cans onto the westbound lane below, damaging a few cars, several other semis have tipped over, a motorcycle rider went over the concrete rail landing 50 or so feet below on ground.

fintail

Luckily very few true cloverleafs in this region. Usually off ramps and on ramps in my area don't share the same patch of road - people here get confused as many can barely handle merging or exiting without having to look for other cars doing the opposite.

stever

There's a flying one like that around Austin that got my attention in a rental car a couple of years ago. Not only was it a decreasing radius curve, it felt like it was 150' in the air. I was just tooling along in tourist mode (but close to the "edge" in the right lane) and it woke me up a bit.

Only inconsiderate driver today was a sedate old beater with a loud stereo.

snakeweasel

I have to ask what engine was in the Horizon. I had the Omni with the 2.2 and that was pretty peppy. IIRC it was a little under 100 HP pushing a 2300 pound car. After someone made a left turn infront of me I got an Omni GLH (and yeah it did go like hell something like 145 HP). For the mid 80's that was a pretty decent car in off the line acceleration. I do believe that Shelby put out a 175 HP varient of the Omni one year.

fintail

My dad's was older, maybe around a 1980...I guess that would be the smaller (1.9?) engine. At least it was a stick. He liked that car a lot, he'd drive it hard and it didn't falter, he raved about how it drove in the snow. I remember he test drove a later Horizon - one that was very plush compared to his car, but he didn't buy it...eventually getting an S-10 Blazer instead, something he didn't like nearly as much. GLH would have been pretty cool back in the day.

andre1969

One of my friends had one of the final Horizons (1989 or 1990, I forget now), with the 2.2/automatic, and sadly, that thing was a dog. His was a total stripper. No a/c, no power steering/brakes. I put a stereo with a tape player in for him, but I can't remember if it came with an AM radio, or just a face plate, but pre-wiring.

Anyway, he tried to drag race me one time, back when I had my '69 Dart GT. Now, my Dart had the 225-1bbl slant six, which was 145 hp gross, 110 net. Weighed about 2900 lb. Had a/c and power steering, which would rob some power. 3-speed Torqueflite.

The 2.2 had 96 hp, and in theory, I'd think that a 2200-2300 lb car with that engine and no a/c or power steering to sap the power, would be able to take my Dart. But, somehow, I walked him like a dog.

And, to add insult to injury, a couple days later, he tried to blame me for messing up his car! He said that, ever since he tried to drag race me, it wasn't running right!

FWIW, Consumer Reports tested a '68 Dart 270 with the same powertrain as mine, and got 0-60 in 14 seconds (don't remember if it had a/c or not). Consumer Guide tested a 1985 Reliant with the 2.2 and a/c, automatic, and got 0-60 in 13.5 seconds. And you'd think and Omni/Horizon with the same engine but without a/c and a few hundred less pounds, would be quicker than that. :confuse:

Actually, just looked, and my'85 Consumer Guide tested an '85 Horizon wit the 2.2 and a stick, and got 0-60 in 10.2 seconds. They also tested an '85 Omni GLH with the slightly hotter 110 hp (versus 96 hp) 2.2 and a stick, and it wasn't much quicker...10.1 seconds.

146 and 175 are actually turbo 2.2 hp numbers. Did they ever put the turbo in the Omni/Horizon? I had an '88 LeBaron turbo with the 146 hp version, which I think they called the Turbo I. 175 hp was the Turbo II I think, and I believe the Turbo III was the 224 hp engine that went in the Dodge Spirit R/T.

As for the Omni GLH, there were several versions over the years. I think the '85 only had around

snakeweasel

They also tested an '85 Omni GLH with the slightly hotter 110 hp (versus 96 hp) 2.2 and a stick, and it wasn't much quicker...10.1 seconds.

The '85 GLH was a modified (tuned) 2.2 liter. in '86 and later the GLH had a turbo 2.2. IIRC the 0-60 time was around 8 seconds +/-. One year they did a GLHs which was around 6 seconds 0-60, only 500 of those were built.

backy

Had another occurrence of one of my pet peeves this morning. I was backing out of a parking lot space, big SUV to my right so I couldn't see anything that direction. I backed very slowly so the rear of my car was sticking out to be visible with its backup lamps, waited for a warning honk, there was none, so kept backing out slowly until I could see the traffic lane. This black pickup is speeding down the lane much faster than they should be in a busy parking lot. No warning honk, doesn't slow/stop when he sees me backing blindly, just keeps going. I saw him and slammed on my brakes just in time.

This happens all the time, people blasting through parking lots without regard who might be trying to back out, with poor visibility due to all the trucks/vans/SUVs out there. They probably are just as oblivious on the open road. That is a chilling thought.

This was about 10 am on the 4th. No doubt the guy had a very important appointment on the holiday. :P

imidazol97

We need to outlaw the large vehicles. I hate pulling up next to one at a multiple lane exit or stop sign and having to look for traffic with a big honking hunk of metal next to me much larger than a car.

backy

Or maybe we could get bumper stickers like, "Start seeing around SUVs!"

fintail

Key reason I hate SUVs and CUVs, aside from their usually oblivious drivers - impossible to see around them. Most seem to have tinted windows as well, almost like they are doing it on purpose. There is no vehicle less considerate to surrounding motorists.

stever

I'll take 'em any day over a lifted 4x4 pickemup truck with an aggressive leadfoot trying to crawl up my tailpipe.

At least SUVs nowadays have mostly compatible bumper heights.

fintail

I kind of lump those with larger SUVs...as a Suburban or Expy is just a Silverado or F-series with a built in canopy anyway.

What is it with lifted trucks and jerky driving? It's really time for licenses to be based on vehicle size and weight. But that probably wouldn't be "business friendly", or support "freedom".

stever

My Suburban friends have always been boaters or hook and bullet guys. The Expy I identify with families (like my niece who wanted a tank when her kids were in car seats). Neither crowd seems into reckless driving.

My mom drove a GMC pickup for years in the 70s and my brother has had Tacomas or F-150s forever. Neither lifted their rigs or drove/drive like idiots either (although my mom was notorious for speeding).

Someone should fund a study for us; we may be totally in left field. But I bet we could come up with something in a couple of three years. :shades:

fintail

Different customer groups maybe...but both present challenges to the drivers of actual cars. Maybe not reckless driving, but they seem prone to distraction and poor parking - and you never want to park by one. Driving such things as everyday commuters when they are used for their intended purpose maybe a dozen times a year is kind of sketchy, but I guess that's for the old SUV hater thread :shades:

I doubt there is anything left field about a correlation between lifted trucks and jerky driving. Same thing is true for customized small import cars and similar driving.

roadburner

There were two new Fords at the last HPDE that I instructed at- a Boss 302 and a Taurus SHO(equipped with the so-called "Performance Package"). Both belonged to instructors. The Boss never stayed out for a full 30 minute session because it would invariably begin to overheat. The SHO only completed a grand total of five laps- at which point the "high performance brake pads" were smoking so bad that some corner workers thought the big sled was on fire.

snakeweasel

Saw some idiot in a Toyota MR-2 convertible pull out in front of a F-350 about a second later than he should have. The F-350 locked its brakes but that little MR-2 didn't have the pep the driver thought he had and the F-350 hit him. SL was 50 MPH and the F-350 was in traffic doing a bit under the limit.

The F-350 didn't look to bad after contact but the MR-2 was heavily damaged.

Another witness and myself stayed until the police arrived and gave our report of what happened which likely helped out the driver of the truck.

gogogodzilla

I've long noticed that there are far too many drivers who seems to think that, when merging into the passing lane, that they are only supposed to accelerate to meet that lane's increased speed *AFTER* they enter it.

(Well, if they even bother to do that!)

I've always increased my speed to match that of the passing lane *BEFORE* I'd enter it. Sometimes that involved slowing down enough to create a large enough gap between me and the car in front of me so that I could then punch the gas pedal and catapult myself up to speed before entering.

ronsteve

At one intersection, even...

This past weekend, at a strange little intersection about a mile and a half from my place. It's a signal light, with the stop line just short of a railroad track that parallels the intersecting road. Just before the tracks is another road that runs parallel to them, and that is a "Don't Stop In The Box" intersection, so there is only room for one car to pull all the way up to the stop line. Oh, and it's also "No Turn On Red."

So I'm approaching the intersection and the light changes to red. The old-school Ford Exploder in front of me is very casual about the stop line, and then spends several seconds creeping his way across the tracks. Can't remember if he completed his prohibited right on red, because I was looking at my mirror then, to see a 20-something in an older Camry, with his cigarette hanging out the window, pull right up behind me, squarely in the box. And while I'm looking at that, my wife points out to me the cyclist waiting on the other side of the intersection... with no helmet, just a Bob Roll cap.

I guess if there's one little victory in that scene, it's that the cyclist did wait for green, rather than doing anything that would piss off another motorist to make them want to go headhunting next time I have the bike on the road.

ronsteve

I've long noticed that there are far too many drivers who seems to think that, when merging into the passing lane, that they are only supposed to accelerate to meet that lane's increased speed *AFTER* they enter it.

It's really bad around Louisville, because there seems to be no urgency in getting on the Interstate. The last curve on a lot of these on-ramps here tends to be a decreasing radius, or otherwise a little tricky, and people take that around 45mph. But they seem content to hold 45mph until they're all the way into the lane of traffic, and then speed up.

And the other pet-peeve is 4-way stop signs. A lot of folks here don't seem to grasp that 2 cars making non-conflicting moves CAN be in the intersection at the same time.

imidazol97

>that they are only supposed to accelerate to meet that lane's increased speed *AFTER* they enter it.

I'd be happy if many of those merging drivers would even use their mirrors or turn their head to check for traffic on the interstate or freeway in the lane into which they are merging. They seem oblivious to the cars already traveling. They get to the end of the ramp and then expect just to move over into the freeway. They often seem stunned that there is a car in the lane already.

The drivers only needed to assess earlier to see if cars were coming and at what relative speed. Then the driver could have applied brakes to wait til car is past or they could have used that accelerator pedal to speed up and merge at closer to traffic speed.

jg88

I drive a 4x4 expy and while I'd mostly prefer to drive something smaller and more nimble around town, I do use it for long family trips, hauling items/people or both and going off-road for certain sports. Even in a large SUV, I too experience the same things as smaller rides for seeing ahead, backing out of a parking spot with one blocking my view or not being able to see around one at an intersection. So I hate those other large vehicle drivers! OK, just kidding. The problem with getting rid of it after 8 years and 125,000 miles is that it's much more valuable to me to keep it than get something else and the something else while being smaller would still require decent ground clearance so it's a minimum a jeep gc or a 4-runner.

I'd not lump large suv drivers in the same box as with jacked-up pick-ups or anything that shouts "look at me!". Now my neighbor who drives an xk convertible totally has it out for what he calls "Oddyssey drivers". His take is that they are slow, never off the phone and block out the sun.

roadburner

It's really bad around Louisville, because there seems to be no urgency in getting on the Interstate. The last curve on a lot of these on-ramps here tends to be a decreasing radius, or otherwise a little tricky, and people take that around 45mph. But they seem content to hold 45mph until they're all the way into the lane of traffic, and then speed up.

I live in Louisville and have noticed the same thing for decades. I love the mullet-heads and ricers who tailgate me when I enter a ramp; I leave them WAY behind because those morons pee their pants at the thought of generating over 0.005G of lateral acceleration...

fintail

Sunny day here, and sun is another thing that makes WA state drivers go even slower than actual drivers. Winners today: Lexus RX, driver I won't describe but will say was of the fairer gender and was short (and probably didn't buy that thing). I am approaching on a 40mph road, no cars behind me for the line of sight, she makes a California stop, pulls out right in front of me, and then proceeds to go 5 under. Luckily the road split about half a mile later, or I would have performed a pit maneuver on her - I wonder how easy it is to roll one of those,and how many rolls would scare her away from driving again. Second place goes to a Mini with "Palm Beach" plate frames and another fun driver. Going about 30 in a 35, had a line of about 5 cars held up, probably resulted in us actual drivers missing a light. Then after we waste gas and time, lurches away from the light - shuddering like it is in the wrong gear, driver distracted by something in the car. Finally gets going, punches it, then slows up again...thankfully I had to turn or I was going to call it in as a suspected drunk. These simps deserve the hassle.

While out jogging saw an old guy in a Corolla blindly pull out into 35mph traffic - got screeching brakes and horns in reply, buthe made it unscathed, luck favors the ignorant. Two crosswalk crowders - woman in a Grand Cherokee who I yelled at, and man in an Escape who I yelled at. Also saw a woman on a sportbike, obvious new rider - wouldn't shift it, and went through a corner in a hilariously upright and slow fashion. That's not going to end well. It's scary that bikes have become trendy when lax licensing standards allow the same test that permits a glorified moped to also permit a motogp-quality superbike.

snakeweasel

That happened to me yesterday. I was on I-355 going south near the end of the tollway, needed to exit on get on I-80. I was going to exit onto east bound I-80 and the ramp is an easy curve with two lanes.

Well just as I am approaching the split in the road (one way to west bound I-80 and one way to east bound I-80) a 911 flys by me. Now I was doing slightly more than 70 and knew well that my car could easley do that curve at that speed so I kept it at just over 70. Well on this curve I passed that 911 who slowed way down to take the curve.

A good sized pickup truck also passed him up :confuse:

snakeweasel

I am on a side street stopped at an intersection at a major road waiting to make a right turn. Now two cars are approaching from my left. The first car is not signaling a turn the second car is signaling a right turn.

Now which of these two cars turned right?

fintail

Around here, it would be the car signaling a left turn :shades:

Nothing exceptionally bad here today. Had a young woman in a rental Corolla pull up beside me at a light, floor it to get around me, then immediately turned off the road - to go to Starbucks, which is like a beacon for bad drivers. Also a couple of slow turners - people who exit a 30mph road at 5mph. Most annoying thing was more negligently managed lights: car pulls up on a side street intersecting with a busy primary road. Light changes within 10 seconds, 20 cars stop so one can stop without waiting. Almost seems like an intentional move to burn more gas (and get more tax revenue).

backy

Almost seems like an intentional move to burn more gas...

Wow, what a scary thought... maybe OPEC or the US oil industry is in cahoots with municipalities across America to rig traffic signals to burn more gas than is necessary, hence artificially pump up gas sales, and keep the price of oil higher than it needs to be.

Maybe 60 Minutes or 20-20 or the like should dig into this!

Or... maybe not.

fintail

Gas taxes have nothing to do with OPEC. Nice try though.

But yeah, maybe I give these overpaid underworked sucks too much credit, as if they could plan something so detailed. It's not like they can be fired...

backy

The idea of traffic signals being rigged to generate more gas taxes, which are at a state and federal level btw, is just as ridiculous as the OPEC conspiracy idea.

You want a gas-burner, how about all the brainless people who slow down to gawk at an accident--which is often on the OTHER side of the highway--causing a chain reaction that triggers huge traffic jams? Talk about inconsiderate driving...

fintail

Yes, everything is random, nothing does anything on purpose. Sensitive middle American hates to think anyone would willingly do anything unethical. Sadly, sensitive middle America couldn't be more detached from the real world.

In my area, counties and cities directly receive gas tax funds.

Yes, rubberneckers are inconsiderate.

backy

Yes, everything is random, nothing does anything on purpose.

Well, if that's what you believe, OK, but I don't. Lack of personal responsibility for one's actions is all too rampant today.

The idea of municipalities intentionally rigging traffic signals to generate more tax revenue is utter hogwash, however... as in, totally detached from the real world.

fintail

Lack of responsibility indeed..."traffic engineers" among the irresponsible.

You can call anything "hogwash", doesn't make it so. It is an interesting theory on irresponsibly managed traffic controls, however - although it might be giving those with their fingers on the button too much credit. But when you get red after red after red and see light changes that make no sense...something needs to be explained. You might not like the truth.

backy

If that "truth" is out there, go find it so we know it's not hogwash. Shouldn't be hard... think of how hard it would be to cover something like that up.

I think the "truth" is much more likely to be a case of bad programming. Maybe compounded by malfunctions, caused by storms, worn-out parts etc. Not as interesting as your conspiracy theory, but more realistic.

fintail

Yes, these people are very forthcoming with details. All one needs to do is ask nicely.

Storms? None within hours of here...not very "realistic". Worn out parts? I don't buy it. Programming? Certainly, although maybe not by error.

Funny that the mere hint that something might be rotten in the hallowed halls of well-paid unfireable civil servants draws some ire. Reminds me of a line about protesting too much. Maybe tomorrow I'll see something dumb on the roads committed by some bought their way in blood money type in a 150K car to really get things going :shades:

blh7068

I hear ya. I my area there are too many interchanges that are either poorly designed, or have a shared access lane where traffic entering the highway is supposed to yield. What happens all too often is some yahoo who is exiting the highway will speed up and pull ahead of the car thats in position to merge onto the highway. Considering the merging vehicle is the one that needs to get up to speed...it would make sense for the exiting vehicle to slow down and defer to the merging vehicle. Oh yeah, this is an aside to those who just dont know how to negotiate a merge! LOL.

backy

Funny that the mere hint that something might be rotten in the hallowed halls of well-paid unfireable civil servants draws some ire.

Not at all. More like draws rolling of eyes and laughter. Also fond memories of one of the best lines ever from a Presidential candidates debate, from Ronald Reagan.

tjc78

Saturday night in Atlantic City we saw an inconsiderate driver, however, it was not the normal. A lady in a scooter inside the casino came barreling through a pretty large group of people, grazing someone in the process. Everyone was pretty surprised. She didn't care, just kept on going.

My fiance was quick to notice that she had a beer in one hand. I just started laughing.

fintail

Yes, that's what I saw, laughter, not protests. How dare anyone even hint that something is rotten in the oh so accountable and responsible realm of civil "service"...

Saw a couple goodies while walking today: First was a typical greybeard on a loud Harley who nearly hit a couple of women in a crosswalk - they had a green walk symbol, of course. I would have loved to have been a witness to that one. And shortly later a kid and his female companion in a clapped out old Integra pull right in front of a woman in a Camry, who was moving at about 35-40 in a 35...she made some Italian style hand gestures, but no horn. Should have rammed that beigebox right into them, maybe in the hospital bed, better driving becomes a good idea.

andre1969

...a rare case of politeness today! One of my friends had to put his '06 Xterra in for servicing, and they gave him an Altima loaner. I rode with him back to the dealer to get his car. At one point on the highway, he backed off a bit to let a Sentra merge in. Once the Sentra got over, its taillights (not the brakelights) flashed three times.

My friend was like WTH? And it caught me off guard for a second. And then, I told him, that once upon a time, when the only way you had a phone in your car was if it was hard-wired and had a rotary dial, and had a boomerang antenna nestled in between the tailfins, that gesture was a way of saying "Thank you!" :P

backy

Great to see that kind of behavior! The sad thing is, it shocks us when we see it.

gogogodzilla

Same here. Only replace the mullet-heads and ricers with 50~ year olds in their BMWs/Mercedes/Toyota Avalons/Lexus ISwhotheeffcares.

I never understood the appeal of buying a BMW, only to drive it like it was a 1970's era Buick.

fintail

Today's winners: old man in a 90s Civic pulls out of a driveway onto a busy 35mph arterial - apparently without looking. After the actual drivers avoid him, he proceeds to go 29. 30 seconds after I passed, he was pretty much out of the line of sight. That was followed by a driver I won't describe in a C320 who merged onto an uncrowded highway with traffic moving at 60-65 - she was going about 47, and never sped up. Third and final gripe goes to a Volvo XC who merged going the other direction on the same highway, she got to about 49, and immediately made a beeline for the middle lane, causing others to go around. This is barely a first world location.

fintail

Rare sight today - got behind a car that merged onto a nice flowing 60mph highway at a speed matching the flow of traffic. Not an everyday sight here. It was a woman in a Legacy sedan...so maybe she was a little more with it than the typical Corolla/RX etc driver.

Weird one today - was on a 4 lane road, 40mph, going the speed limit in the right lane, as I saw a Focus in the left lane going slow. Lexus RX ahead of me, going the same speed. As the Lexus gets alongside the Focus, the Ford driver signals a lane change and begins to turn move over, then catches himself, panics and jerks back, and drives less than steadily. By this time I backed way off. Then he slows down and is eventually behind me. I didn't see a phone.

And while jogging I saw a typical local scene - white Corolla, undescribed driver, busy downtown street with 2 left turn lanes, 2 straight lanes, and a right turn lane. Corolla is in the right straight lane, veers left without a signal - luckily nobody behind it but then cuts very close to a 4Runner in the rightmost left turn lane (who lays on the horn), makes it over to the leftmost left turn lane, and keeps going like nothing happened.

fintail

This morning, 0540, 4 lane 40mph road, Camry stopped at a green light in the left lane, signal on, couldn't see why. Light had been green at least 20 or so seconds, which was the length of line of sight. I'll wager a phone was involved. A few minutes later I got to run a stuck light, too. Go engineers!

The Worst Drivers in America. A Dissertation. - the comments are even better than the story.

slorenzen

Went out to get the paper this morning, reached into the tube to pull it out, look left, I’m staring at an adult male cougar, maybe 35-40 feet away… :surprise:

We stared at each other for several seconds, then he calmly wandered away, looking over his shoulder at me, while I did the same and headed back into the house.

Then I had to change my shorts…