I drive a vw camper (when not on my motorbike, also a ducati) and 65mph is a comfortable limit with a following wind or a great curry the night before! I agree with your confusion Peter, but I will raise you with the need of overtaking vehicles(mostly vauxhall , Audi and BMW drivers) to violently swing back into my current lane with no apparent gap between their rear and my nose. As though damaging their own car, followed by being t boned by a 2.5 ton vw camper will really teach me a lesson.
I give up!
In the wise words of peanuts... Good grief
Points gun
@PeterPoddy, well most lorry drivers drive roughly 60 mph on the inside lane while you are Mr 65mph driver, I can guess it will take you 5 miles to pass a lorry on the middle lane and that will build up traffic behind you, maybe you should speed up a bit to pass the lorry and then go back to your 65 mph or slow down and stay behind the lorries, going 5 mph slower of your max limit shouldnt be a problem.
Off topic, I hate middle lane hoggers, they are a menace on the road, simply bad drivers. 😡
@PeterPoddy, well most lorry drivers drive roughly 60 mph on the inside lane while you are Mr 65mph driver, I can guess it will take you 5 miles to pass a lorry on the middle lane and that will build up traffic behind you, maybe you should speed up a bit to pass the lorry and then go back to your 65 mph or slow down and stay behind the lorries, going 5 mph slower of your max limit shouldnt be a problem.
No, no, no! Peterpoddy has a [i]right[/i] to drive at that speed - it's everyone else who's a bad driver...
most lorry drivers drive roughly 60 mph on the inside lane while you are Mr 65mph driver, I can guess it will take you 5 miles to pass a lorry on the middle lane
Erm care to show your working on that one?
Lets say the lorry plus suitable braking distances behind and in front of it takes up 100 yards. At a 5mph closing speed that would take Peter [url= http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=100+yards+at+5mph ]just over 40 seconds[/url] to cover, during which time he'll [url= http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=40.91+seconds+at+65mph ]drive about 1300 yards[/url], not 5 miles!
maybe you should speed up a bit to pass the lorry and then go back to your 65 mph or slow down and stay behind the lorries
Why? If there is another lane available and he is making good progress then what is the problem?
user-removed: "I did three miles on the dual carriageway at 50 mph during my test - sat behind a lorry.
The tester asked me afterwards why I hadn't speeded up to 60 and I told him the truth - had a bit of a 'moment' and forgot the legal speed limit, so played it safe!
I passed...."
Lucky you.I sat behind a lorry instead of passing it and i failed.for going 50ish in a 70 instead of getting past it and keeping a decent speed.I think it was because i knew we were turning off at the next junction and i didnt fancy putting the brakes on in front of the lorry.
(pretty sure this happened half way up drumossie heading south of Inverness,about to pull off the slip road at the top)
Bah, when I am blasting down the outside lane in my BMW, I regularly flash the peasants to get out of my way.
OK. Please all of you who think I'm wrong for driving at 65, go back and re-read my OP for a start.
Done that?
No, I thought not.
@PeterPoddy, well most lorry drivers drive roughly 60 mph on the inside lane while you are Mr 65mph driver, I can guess it will take you 5 miles to pass a lorry on the middle lane and that will build up traffic behind you, maybe you should speed up a bit to pass the lorry and then go back to your 65 mph or slow down and stay behind the lorries, going 5 mph slower of your max limit shouldnt be a problem.
Wrong. Lorries are limited to 56mph for a start. But I digress.
It doesn't take 5 miles to pass one. It's clear you have no experience of this though.
To flip this on it's head, why should I speed up to stop someone tailgating me, which us in effect what is happening?!
Or should I pull into the empty outside lane to the idle tailgater can undertake me?
If someone is tailgating, the correct course if action is to slow down until the gap they are leaving is appropitate for the speed you are doing, in case you didn't know.....
Also, to flip the problem over again, the day I wrote this thread I was on the motorbike (plenty of time to think on a bike!) and I'd been cruising around the 90-95mph mark..... Not once had I got stuck behind someone in any lane, plenty of people had pulled out in front of me, but a quick glance in the mirror and a lane change, and they're history. That's what I'm trying to get to the bottom of: why can't people change lanes??
PP, I'm sure you're a great driver but don't see why you need to put such effort into telling us all
IMO/E Just as many 55-65mph motorway drivers are passive-aggressive sanctimonious tossers as there are 75-95mph drivers who are aggressive hyped-up dickheads
The only group that outweighs these are those who have no bloody idea what they're doing and whether or not it's correct
I'm sure you're a great driver but don't see why you need to put such effort into telling us all
To be fair, that's got bugger all to do with it. I don't get bothered by those going slower than me (Ever) and nor do I hassle them to go faster. I might moan to myself if it's 40mph on a twisty 60 limit, but I don't give them a hard time.
If I wanna do 65, I will. And I do. And I'll carry on doing it. I just find it bizzare that people who are obviously going faster will slow and sit behind me rather than glance behind and sweep past without slowing.
That said, most people do do that IME, but you've got to be in cloud-cuckoo land to not come past, or think it's somehow my fault that people behave like that! 🙂
PP is perfectly right. It is not unreasonable to drive at 65 mph on a motorway!
I cannot believe some of the guff being posted.
zokes - Deliberately driving slower than the conditions and speed limit allow inconveniences everyone else. Those who think this isn't the case are, as you so eloquently put, retarded.
What a incredibly stupid viewpoint even if you ignore the offensive use of "retarded" 🙄
i often drive at 65mph the motorway too and yes people zoom up behind you on the inside lane and overtake at the last possible chance. I think people are too lazy to use their mirrors / brains for lane changing.
Also why the hell when i am driving at the speed limit in a controlled average speed zone are a few cars flying through these sections at 70 to 80mph, despite cameras being in position and signs etc.
i think to be fair if your car doesn't have much power then a change from middle lane to outside can be a bit scary as it may be harder for the driver to judge a car's speed when it's approaching in the outside lane with no power if a hill approaches to pass the middle lane traffic and accelerate with a fast car approaching. However all that driver needs to do is stay in lane and slow down to the car infront. Not saying this applies to me, but just a thought.
worst i've seen is a car reversing back down the motorway slip lane from halfway up. I was on a normal road at lights, before going around a roundabout as i passed 😯 Fast flowing mway too.
My biggest bug bear is on A roads on my motorbike. I ride to police driving school rules- stick to posted limits and make progress in nationals. I constantly catch and pass grey hair beware Sunday drivers who do 45 on a nice rural road, only for them to close right up on me thru a village as they try to stay at their constant one speed fits all 45mph... I also believe 2 wheel experience teaches far more anticipation and observation than the average car driver. I spotted stuff on my advanced car course that my instructor missed as 20 years of bike riding had made paranoid hazard scanning automatic.
Brave riding a ducati in the outside lane, means you have a lot of traffic to cross to get to the hard shoulder 😉
What a incredibly stupid viewpoint even if you ignore the offensive use of "retarded"
Can you not read, TJ? I was quoting someone else (TheBrick), hence the [i]"...as you so eloquently put it"[/i] bit. But if the cap fits...
And why is it a stupid viewpoint? Did you not read all the first-hand experience about how easy it is to fail your driving test for deliberately driving slower than the conditions allow, or did you just choose to ignore it so you could pick a fight on a thread you have had no previous input on?
best i've seen is a convey of jap high powered cars. Guess what lane they were in 🙂
and a harley biker convey , cruising the middle lane 🙂
maybe people don't like changing lane or speed because of cruise control, although tbh i have no experience of such modern things..
No zokes - I just point out your incredibly stupid viewpoint. Yes you can fail your test for failure to make normal progress but that is not the same thing as having to drive at the speed limit at all times.
Its not common courtesy to drive at the speed limit at all times. Its not necessary and its not sensible.
I suggest you go and read the highway code
TBH only tread the first few posts, but the pattern here is a bit different though equally confusing.
I really can't be ***ed to speed, even when no ones looking. So I use the inside lane most of the time. But why does everyone joining the motorway cut across all the lanes to be in the outside lane? This often means I have to slow down to 60 or less so as not to undertake, and the inside and middle lanes are empty?
Three years ago I was talking to self confessed petrolhead, an upper management chap who didn't know about the 60/70mph rules on various roads.
I find most people generally don't pay attention to what they're doing or what is around them when driving on motorways. The amount of times I see people drive up to the ar$e of the vehicle in front of them then hit the brakes as they suddenly realise at the last second what they've just done - then it still takes another five seconds to notice that they could actually pull out and overtake it using the clear lane next to them, which they usually do without indicating 🙄
Kev
think to be fair if your car doesn't have much power then a change from middle lane to outside can be a bit scary as it may be harder for the driver to judge a car's speed when it's approaching in the outside lane
The power of my car affects my ability to judge spped?How exactly does that work?
However all that driver needs to do is stay in lane and slow down to the car infront.
or just pull out and overtake as you are going faster than them
maybe people don't like changing lane or speed because of cruise control
Not for me. If I've switched the cruise on then I usually try to keep it on as long as possible, which means looking ahead, anticipating, and changing lanes smoothly as required.
Drive safely and ignore anyone on your bumper unless it has blue flashing lights 😉
@PeterPoddy, do you happen to drive a BMW or Mercedes by any chance?
Ford Focus
or
Ducati ST3s
or
Vespa GT200
🙂
Only the Duke [s]regualarly[/s] always cruises above 70. Mainly becasue 6th gear is useless below that....It's just ticking over at 4000rpm at 70mph 🙂
My fave is indication as decoration - turning the indicator on AS YOU CHANGE LANE rather than a few seconds in advance to advertise one's intentions. Mouth breathers, the lot of em.
My fave is indication as decoration - turning the indicator on AS YOU CHANGE LANE rather than a few seconds in advance to advertise one's intentions. Mouth breathers, the lot of em.
Is that becasue you like to speed up and block people who want to pull out? 😉
Also, to flip the problem over again, the day I wrote this thread I was on the motorbike (plenty of time to think on a bike!) and I'd been cruising around the 90-95mph mark..... Not once had I got stuck behind someone in any lane, plenty of people had pulled out in front of me, but a quick glance in the mirror and a lane change, and they're history. That's what I'm trying to get to the bottom of: why can't people change lanes??
So I'm reading this right. You come up behind someone at 90-95mph on your motorbike. They are going slower than you and you undertake them? I've seen two motorbikers killed in the last 10yrs on our motorways doing this. Have you got some nice MTB's? Can you put me in your will?
You seem a very sensible car driver and less so on a motorbike
So I'm reading this right. You come up behind someone at 90-95mph on your motorbike. They are going slower than you and you undertake them?
Ahh. Bad explanation. I'm in the middle lane, overtaking in the outside lane, that was what I meant. It could have been read either way, if you wanted an argument I suppose... 😉
The thing with a bike is that there's no rush to pass. Becasue you WILL pass if you want to.
Ride fast but sensible and don't draw attention to yourself and you'll go unnoticed. 🙂
Damn and I was hoping for those bikes in the will! Take care on the bike please.
I do plenty of motorway driving and I always have a little shiver when I see motorbikes undertaking in faster traffic. Horrible consequences if the cars don't see them and make a lane change.
I had a great one last week. Round the M25 - not going too quick (about 70mph) in 3rd lane and coming up to a van in the 2nd land (of four), driver in the outside lane of me and the van pulls right out in front of me with no indication, a fair dab of the brakes and round him on the outside lane. Only to find him swearing at me and giving me the finger. Ahh angry people!
I do plenty of motorway driving and I always have a little shiver when I see motorbikes undertaking in faster traffic. Horrible consequences if the cars don't see them and make a lane change.
See, there's a point where 'filtering' becomes 'undertaking' and it's a very grey area, almost impossible to quantify IMO. I've seen bikes in heavy 70+ mph traffic dodging in and out, but there's no point really, it's too dodgy at that speed. Again, it attractts too much attention.
I've filtered 2-up for 10 miles or more down the M3 once. Cars probably doing 20-30mph, me 40+ish and that's one shitload of concentration (and horn use, used CORRECTLY) let me tell you! 🙂
Yep agreed. Filtering through slower traffic is dodgy. Obviously it nice to get somewhere quicker that car drivers but I don't envy you. Filtering is dodgy enough at roadbike (not on the M-way obviously!) speeds in traffic.
I think most tailgaters are darkside riders trying to steal your tow. the polite thing to do is to pull out, let them undertake you then tuck in behind them for a bit isn't it?