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I'm taking the week off to work on the house. Coming back from Lowes w/ some hardiplank siding in trailer and a mustang pulls out in front of me from a shopping center on 42 hiway. Takes his time getting up to speed and then is not going the speed limit. I'm pushing them along a little bit and they brake check me . I throw up my hands in frustration and then they pull over to the side of the road and let me by. I thought that was a nice gesture. Of course I get the international 1 finger greeting as I go by.

So what happens now? They tail gate me and they're all pissed off. I find a lot of humor this type of behavior. The upside is I"m in front of them now, so they can do what ever they like now

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Rodney

'08 Bullitt mustang, CAM 7
Autox VP '09-'10, President '11-'12, interim President 2nd half of ‘14
proud recipient of the Bowie Grey service award '12
Now just a guy driving a mustang....

Wow Rodney, maybe you need to do Street Survival and learn about the dangers of tailgating.

My personal favorite was doing a shakedown after I replaced all the wheel bearings, hubs, and studs. I was 5-6 car lengths back from a minivan and I was just wiggling back and forth to see if I heard any horrifying noises. Dude stopped and then started to wave me on and made some remark about how crazy and irresponsible I was. O.... K.....

Common statement given by people I know who are brake checkers, "If they hit me it's their fault". OK, you now have a wrecked car because you were worried about someone behind you? Great...

Recently I passed a mini-van in a 45 zone (who was going 30) and he proceeded to chase me for about 3 miles in an attempt to get my license plate number I guess. Apparently he thought those solid yellow lines might keep me from passing him, but sorry they didn't. It was a curvey road, I was in the stiff-as-hell Z-24, which takes curves very well, and the mini-van not so much.

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Vincent Keene
'06 Ford Mustang GT (track rat)
'15 Dodge Charger R/T (yeah, it's got a HEMI!)
'07 Ford Fusion SE (205,000 miles and counting)
'98 Chevy Z-24 (retired)
'93 Acura Integra (Team SWB 24HOL Car)

My most recent trip to the mountains on my bike, I was stuck behind a mini-van on a great stretch of 4 lane road (220 south of Roanoke) for 10 miles as he was traveling the exact same speed (speed limit) as the guy in the right lane and exactly next to him. My wife finally start waving her arms at him and he moved over. Thought I was through with him as I continued down the road at a rather quick pass. Nope he caught me in about 15 miles, not sure what the hell he was doing.

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2002 MCS, 2003 MCS Track Rat, 2003 Generic White Yukon, 2003 BMWk1200rs, 1973 CB350F, 02 996. 08 Cayenne Turbo
http://www.clinehallagency.com

Yeah, there's a special level in hell for people who ride along in the left lane. Pass and GTFO already.

VK: and what did they think they could do with your tag number? Cops don't write tickets for shit they didn't see. (And I think we're all proof they don't write up some of the stuff they do see. *grin*)

I have a name for those people. I call them "Virginians".

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2001 Honda S2000 - SOLD
2012 Boss 302
2003 BMW 330i

Hurrumph! Sam the Eagle here:

Rodney & Vincent, if you can find where this book http://ncdot.gov/download/dmv/handbooks_NCDL_English.pdf says that you're supposed to tailgate or pass against a solid yellow line, I'll pay your next autocross entry fee.

And Michael - my mother is from Virginia. No more cookies for you!

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Art McDonald
Premier Amateur #518
2008 Dishman Cup
Pivot Cone Snob

Rodney is a waxer (but in a good way)

Nothing is illegal unless you get caught. Besides if I can see my way clear, they could paint the whole road yellow and I'll still pass you if you're driving like an old lady.

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Vincent Keene
'06 Ford Mustang GT (track rat)
'15 Dodge Charger R/T (yeah, it's got a HEMI!)
'07 Ford Fusion SE (205,000 miles and counting)
'98 Chevy Z-24 (retired)
'93 Acura Integra (Team SWB 24HOL Car)

I will remember that the next time im in the truck.3 ton diesel vs 1 ton mustang. Anyhow, in Germany there is a rule...Rechts fahren, drive right. You are not allowed to drive n the left lane all thetime in the autobahn. You pass, and get over. sometimes I think having some different laws would make America a better country.

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hey yall,watch this...

Pete, we have the same "law" here. It's never enforced. (maybe you've noticed the rare "Slow Traffic Keep Right" signs?)

(Passing on the right is illegal, too, but they don't enforce that either.)

Where in the US is passing on the right illegal? (when you are on a multi-lane highway of course with dashed white lines).

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Current stable:
2019 BMW M2 Competition slicktop 6MT
2011 BMW M3 sedan slicktop 6MT
2007 BMW 328i wagon (slushbox for now)
1975 CanAm 125MX2

I was thinking about this recently myself and it was triggered by my trip to Germany where I absolutely noticed the driving habits are much better than here in the US (generally due to lack of real drivers education in the US in my opinion). Anyhow, I used to really frown on passing on the right. And still do IF you have the ability to pass on the left (i.e. the passing lane is flowing). Sometimes I would sit in the passing lane with slower traffic in front of me, but with no (or little) traffic in the right lanes (I would still be passing someone to my immediate right).

But my new strategy (not sure if I am right) is that I drive (plus or minus) in the right most lane at all times. If that allows me to continue forward and I happen to pass traffic to my left, then so be it. But if I encounter slower traffic in front of me (and I am already as far right as I can get) then I pass on the left. In short, I am not going to refuse to pass traffic to my left just because they are driving slower than traffic on the right (i.e. me). In medium heavy traffic however, this can result in me looking like the jerk weaving through traffic. But I am just following my algorithm and mostly ignoring traffic to the left of me.

Opinions?

Richard

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Richard Casto
1972 Porsche 914
2013 Honda Fit Sport
2015 Honda Fit EX
http://motorsport.zyyz.com
Money can't buy happiness, but somehow it's more comfortable to cry in a Porsche than a Kia.

like

Having just driven back from SC on I-85 Monday, in the 3 or 4 lane sections, as usual, it was common to see drivers enter the freeway and immediately move to the 2nd most left lane. People are scared of the right lanes it seems. Often the two left lanes were packed with dangerous tailgating occurring, etc, while the right lane or two lanes were open to move around the pack. Just insane.

Driving in Germany is phenomenal and not just when seeing that unlimited sign on the Autobahn. In all the mileage we drove there, I was only once passed on the right and that was when we were just approaching a traffic jam and was not really anything significant. One of the thing I LOVE about the Germans is that they have unmarked cars on the Autobahn with video cameras specifically looking for tailgating. If you're caught following too closely (and they have strict rules based on speed), your license is suspended automatically for 3 months on the first offense. Imagine how many people would be walking here in the USA if we actually enforced tailgating laws with penalties like that.

The other thing I noticed there directly on this topic is that when a German driver "pulls out in front of you", they hammer the throttle and come up to speed immediately, no goofing around. I was never held up by anyone pulling out in front of me on secondary roads. Everybody "moves" there it seems.

One other example of the great drivers there is that everyone seems to be focused on efficient and safe driving as opposed to here in the US where people seem to be focused on "what people are doing to me" when driving and drive to prevent others from achieving whatever demented thing the driver is thinking some other driver is attempting to do.

Another example: We were going about 160kph in the middle of three lanes in an unlimited section of the Autobahn (Audi A4 Avant 1.8turbo 6MT), when I was presented with a car doing maybe 120kph up ahead that moved into the middle lane to pass a truck that just entered while a car in the left lane behind me perhaps closing at 200kph as I glanced in my mirror. I was just about to lift and brake hard when I noticed in my mirror that the fast closing car had matched my speed about 8-10 car lengths back. I intuitively signaled, moved left, passed the dude in front of me, signaled, moved right, and the BMW (debaged 5-series) accelerated on past. Safe. Efficient. Looking out for others and allowing everyone to safely travel quickly. Reminded me of a track event or something.

The above example in the US would likely be met with an approaching driver either asleep and having no idea of the potential predicament up ahead, or worse, sees what is happening is damn determined to screw the guy needing relief as it's "his damn problem". Sigh. We need serious revamping of driver training not to mention emotional state control training methinks.

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Current stable:
2019 BMW M2 Competition slicktop 6MT
2011 BMW M3 sedan slicktop 6MT
2007 BMW 328i wagon (slushbox for now)
1975 CanAm 125MX2

Answer: NONE. They'd all be driving without a license.

EU driving is a very different world. It's a lot of work to get a license, so they don't do shit that will get it taken away. In the US, it's trivial, and mostly optional. (when's the last time you heard of a license checkpoint, much less drove through one? The last I went through was on my learners permit, in my grandfather's car in the hills around Lake Lure.)