Hmm.. police cars doing speed checks are usually positioned in a prominent position at the side of a road, which is a very important place to spot cars as those are ones that tend to pull out.

I don’t think the colour argument holds up. I don’t think ‘ooh there’s a white car must be a police car’ I think ‘police car’ as soon as it’s seen. The colour and the car are not separate. It’s hard wired into my brain just like people in hi viz vests are.

I think its a bit OTT to know the number of people, age and sex ov ervery member of every car around you on the road.

If youre driving along a motorway there are numerous cars around you at any point that could potentially affect your driving and to look for all the attributes of the people in the car would require you to take your mind off the driving youre actaully doing. Theres no way you could just glance at every car around you an know.

I do understand the rough sentiment of it though.

Do people really look out for police cars? Why?

that’s just bollocks, sorry, I can remember a car driving up my arse, but wtf has it’s colour or make got to do with anything?

I was merely making the point that the brain involuntarily records information and used that example to try to get my point across.

For example, this morning a white Skoda Felicia pulled away very slowly behind me at some traffic lights. It went on to turn right at the next junction. Shortly afterwards I turned right in front of a blue Audi Q5 (which had its side lights on). This information didn’t help me in any way, it is just information I stored and can now recall it. Coffeeking is suggesting that he doesn’t ever remember the colours of cars around him at all because he is too busy focussing on their driving as that is the only important factor. I think he is either unaware of the information he does (involuntarily) record or he is a spectacularly unobservant driver.

Mol – wasn’t talking about ones parked up doing speed checks, I was talking about ones following you a few cars back, the sort that would catch you for tailgating on a motorway or driving aggressively.

The colour and the car are not separate. It’s hard wired into my brain just like people in hi viz vests are.

Your head works differently to mine then. Mind you, I know this anyway – once in an interesting lecture about image processing we were all asked to look at two sequential images which were then removed and note what changed between them. Not a single person in the glass spotted what changed apart from me, who spotted a tree moved in the background. When the image was shown again it was two people in the foreground, everyone else had said they saw a young guy and a girl sat on a bench, some mentioned their clothes, I had no idea of this info, I just saw what moved. I guess I’d be no good reporting crime to the police, but probably make a good hunter lol 🙂

I think he is either unaware of the information he does (involuntarily) record or he is a spectacularly unobservant driver.

I don’t think I record it, at least not that I can consciously recall. I suppose I must as I can generally know what car is about to pass me on the motorway without watching it like a hawk, but generally I think I go off shape and movement, not colour. I certainly don’t distinguish between their “threat” levels by colour as it makes no difference with 99.99% of vehicles, they’re all equal and even if it was a police car I’m usually not driving illegally so would have no need to have it raise any flags in my head. Hence I reckon if I were to drive like a nut I’d probably not spot the cop car some way back. I’d spot the one miles up front, I always do spot cop cars ahead before anyone else I know, but mainly because, as you say, they’re often parked perpendicular to the road in a position that would be a threat.

I miss Smurfmat’s awesome wisdom on these matters.

The colour is just another piece of information (although statistically aren’t red cars more likely to be involved in accidents than any other?)

But there is much more than the colour to help you identify a police car anyway.

I miss Smurfmat’s awesome wisdom on these matters.

LOL…He’s pre-occupied spouting his AWESOME shite over on Pistonheads.

But there is much more than the colour to help you identify a police car anyway.

Not with modern low-profile LED light units and the propensity of everyone to drive around with roofracks permanently fitted through laziness. Unless they turn on the blues 😀

But there is much more than the colour to help you identify a police car anyway.

What about the traffic police patrolling the roads in their unmarked cars then? How do you spot them?

Don’t get me started on roofracks please. We have had one fitted for the last 2 years (initially out of need, but we simply don’t have anywhere to put it until we don’t need it at all and can sell it/put it into storage).

Teh reason for knowing the colour for me is to know if the car behind me has been replaced by another.

What about the traffic police patrolling the roads in their unmarked cars then? How do you spot them?

That is an entirely different matter unfortunately.

Gary_C – Member

What about the traffic police patrolling the roads in their unmarked cars then? How do you spot them?

Arials, no retailers stickers, a few other visual clues

Teh reason for knowing the colour for me is to know if the car behind me has been replaced by another.

Indeed, I can see that. Since I generally appear to know on a motorway when a car has moved out and is passing without needing to check the right hand mirror, and generally can count cars passed me and know who’s left behind I presume on some level I must record the colour, but it’s not a conscious one.

Arials, no retailers stickers, a few other visual clues

Indeed, if you’re behind them as that’s where most of the items of note are. If you’re in front you can often see the lights under the grille too, but it takes an inordinate amount of looking. When driving my “nippy” car on the motorway I’ve been tailgated by undercover cars dozens of times, to the point where I couldn’t see bumper. I have friends who’ve been had for speeding by undercover cars that they claim goaded them into driving faster and while they shouldn’t react and drive faster it can be a bit un-nerving having a car sat on your ass.

That is an entirely different matter unfortunately.

Indeed. Just thought i’d throw that into the mix.

A guy I know was a sergeant on the local traffic police, & I remember him telling me that when he was patrolling in the fully marked Vectra, he very rarely, if at all, saw any examples of bad/dangerous driving happening first hand. If he was out in one of the unmarked cars, however, he’d have a very busy shift shall we say.

Perhaps if the ‘new rules’ are passed we will see more unmarked cars patrolling the roads.

best thing to do if a vehicle is sat right up close to your bumber is squirt the windscreen washer for a long time, several times. They soon get the message.

PS. I was nicked for speeding by a traffic cop in a black Skoda last week. Pretty stealth he was, I first noticed the ‘black’ car when it was about 500yds behind me. Figured it was someone else making use of the clear road. Just a few seconds later he was ten foot off my bumper & flicked on the lights behind the grill.

Kev

I reckon the best thing is to tap the brake pedal just enough to flash the lights with one’s left foot a few times.

Do people really look out for police cars? Why?

So you can predict the automatic 10 mph slowdown caused by the appearance of a police car or speed camera.

Teh reason for knowing the colour for me is to know if the car behind me has been replaced by another.

Really? So the well driven blue car behind you will never be replaced by an aggressively driven blue car, but your awesome observational abilities will leave you believing that nothing has changed because the car colour is the same? Or if the whte car driven by two white shited business gents changes to a white cop car, you won’t see that happening either?
Unless you now think believing in your own omniscience while reflecting on how to phrase your next devastating STW put-down will keep you safe.

EDIT two white shirted business gents
Sorry, reading too much TJ is having a subconcious effect

..and, just as a matter of interest, if you can routinely spot all this happening, how come you can’t spot your typos before hitting the POST button?

I reckon the best thing is to tap the brake pedal just enough to flash the lights with one’s left foot a few times.

😆

*i raise my carton of apple juice to you sir*

I reckon the best thing is to tap the brake pedal just enough to flash the lights with one’s left foot a few times.

My driving instructor told me that one 😯

Hmm this is interesting. What do I recall about today’s (car) journey into work?

Cop car near the second motorway junction I take – they are grey with a green stripe in Germany 🙂 I thought he had pulled some dark grey BMW over for speeding but he looked like he’d hit a.. blue corsa maybe? Crumpled off-side wing.

Foreign, poss. Slovenian lorry on the A99 in front of me, noticed because he was doing 90km/h unlike everyone else

Got onto the single carriageway road behind a blue fabric sided lorry and trailer, grey BMW 5 series tourer I think behind me who didn’t pass when I did.

White Audi overtaking towards me on the straight.. er.. that’s about it really. Possibly a blue Audi A4 estate pulling out nearly infront of me at the roundabout by work.

I reckon the best thing is to tap the brake pedal just enough to flash the lights with one’s left foot a few times.

DD is smurf-mat

I reckon the best thing is to tap the brake pedal just enough to flash the lights with one’s left foot a few times.

You are smurfhat in disguise AICMFP…

EDIT: Damn, too slow!!

DD is smurf-mat

😀

Surf-Mat has wasted more awesomeness than I can ever achieve. 8)

*wonders if he lurks sometimes*

of course he lurks, and he has log-ins under different names.

he’s just that god damn awesome.

Ya reckon? Nobody here even remotely sounds as awesome as him.

yeah… being as awesome as he is i know that his awesome-levels never get in the way of being supersexysmart… he knows not to mention the luminous bike light, the cars and his other signatures.

Unmarked cars, look at the roof, trend to have an extra aerial, look at the grill you can often see the lights, look for hi viz vests,

Not as easy to see but there are often signs to look out for.

I know glos pol have/had some midnight blue beemers,

Wow coffeeking – you describe classic adrenaline tunnel vision. Dangerous stuff.

So while people are stereotyping ditherers & boy racers, 19yr old Jonny who’s borrowed Dad’s grey Volvo S60 is about to pull out into your path while he’s trying to pick his Kanye West CD off the floor……..

Nice one.

most tailgaters ignore you when you dab the brake with your left foot these days.

I find slamming it down a gear and lifting off the accelerator much more effective in making them crap themselves.

and yes, it is dangerous but I get really pee’d off with them so if the dog and missus are not in the car they get the harsh response.

Had to nip out at lunch. I deliberately and very consciously looked at every car to make a mental note of make and model and indeed colour. I didn’t know what half of them were. Clearly someone on here spends too much time reading What Car.

Stilltortoise – it isn’t a test where you need to know makes, models, age, modifications etc – it is simply a case of being aware of what is going on around you. If I didn’t know makes and models I would still be able to recall colours, body shapes etc. I am sure the vast majority of drivers can.

I do wonder what level of information an F1 driver or a rally driver takes in though – I bet they will be able to process massive amounts of stuff as they tootle along.

Schoolboy error, you forgot to memorise the contents as well… You will surely die! Mwawahahahahahahah…. 🙂

<edit> I drove past a blue Mini Metro in 1987. Blimmin good thing I can recall that or Lordy knows what the ramifications would be… 😈

I expect F1 drivers are acutely aware of the colours of the cars around them 🙂

Anyone ever see that programme about F1 drivers where they tracked their eye movements as they scanned corners far ahead of them. Quite stunning really.

Anyway, back on topic, I like the Daily Mash take on this:

Crackdown on drivers who don’t vote

it isn’t a test where you need to know makes, models, age, modifications etc – it is simply a case of being aware of what is going on around you. If I didn’t know makes and models I would still be able to recall colours, body shapes etc. I am sure the vast majority of drivers can

Maybe some of us have a photographic memory for a certain level of detail and interpret that memory as being an important part of being observant. I watched a handful of vehicles go past me whilst I was waiting to pull out of a junction. Do I remember what those vehicles were (make, model, colour, shape, whatever)? No, although I suppose I might have been able to tell you at the time. Does that mean I wasn’t observant whilst waiting to pull out? No. It just means my short term memory is more selective. Being able to remember the 432 cars I passed on my journey yesterday does not make me a better driver. An impressive feat if I could do it though

That isn’t really the point that anyone was trying to make though really – it was merely that being observant about the cars around you help you make more informed decisions about your own actions. This was to counter someone’s claim that driving very quickly is safe even if it means they are travelling so quickly they are unable to process information enough to actually be able to recall car colours (specifically police cars).

It did get a bit silly granted.