On the way to work this morning and the car in front is being driven by someone who has no concept of indicators or what they are for.... the following conversation took place at the set of traffic lights when Ipulled up next to the driver and wound window down....

'hey - how are you? nice car, my mate has one just like that'

'oh yeah - pretty cool isn't it?'

'Yeah - hey do you know where the indicators are on?'

' yeah' (and proceeded to point to where they are saying 'why?'

'then ****ing learn how to use the things then!!!!!!!'

- I have sooo wanted to do that some days

Oh yeah, absolutely. I overheard a great conversation a couple of years ago, went something like this:
'Nice car mate. How much did that set you back?'
'80K mate.'
'Yeah, that much eh? And the ******* indicators don't even work!'
Classic. Wish I was that quick of mind when it comes to slick insults.

Up here I'm sure that the local BMW dealer sells indicators as an optional upgrade. I used to think it was just the odd one or two but recently it's almost every one I see. Is it a trait that if you can afford a prestige marque you don't need to use them because every one else is below you in the car stakes? Or is it that they simply don't work lol?

In all honesty being driven mad by other drivers makes people bad drivers in themselves IMO.

I mean that too... No smugness or smartarse about that comment intended.

Put another way, those that react badly to people making simple mistakes or being forgetful are a far worse menace on the roads than those making the mistakes.

I am just back from a weekend break in Canberra.

I was driving back to the hotel up Northbourne Avenue in the middle lane and I needed to turn to the right so indicated to move across a lane. Some total idiot in the lane I wanted to move in to took offence to this for a reason I cannot work out.

I was clearly indicating but he wouldn't either drop back to let me in or move on to get past and seemed intent on matching my speed to stop me moving over. On drawing level with me I could see the problem, two of the ***** ugliest looking teenage boys thinking they are rock hard when they have a car to hide in ***** me around, they were playing up to a couple of girls in the back. Full window down and middle finger raised from them, little ****ers. I let them see clearly my point of view and I think they were a little surprised They went a bit quieter and moved on and let me over put it that way, I think they thought they were messing around with an older couple perhaps.

I am glad my wife was in the car actually as I have a very low threshold for little shits like that, she keeps me in check. In my younger days I would have had em.

My answer to bad and ignorant drivers is to let them just get on with it.
Can't be bothered to raise my blood pressure to retaliate as karma will get them. Driving up through Perth today from the south to the north on the Kwinana and Mitchell Freeway, I came across a pillock in a Pajero who obviously thought he was totally invincible and was driving like a maniac and changing lanes without indicators, even using the breakdown lane to undertake and gain speed. All through a 60kph road work section I might add. I just sat on the 60kph and then came across him further up the freeway wrapped around another car on the breakdown lane by the emergency phone. Behind him was a police car... ... looks like the other car was in the breakdown lane by the emergency phone and this prick had run straight up the back of him. I feel sorry for the owner of the car he hit and I hope no-one was hurt. For the very young male driving the Pajero... well I hope it was yours and not your parents vehicle.... and maybe you need to learn from this.

I suffered this in Adelaide with a car full of teenagers. My elderly mother was alongside me and quite frightened. When I got home I went to the house where they lived diagonally opposite mine, and angrily told their father how dangerous they had made it for me with traffic behind. I was astonished that he was most uncaring, and said it was normal teenage behaviour and I should live with it! He and his wife and the teenagers then circled and harrassed me.

I knew the father very well, a security officer for Telstra and a keen neighbourhood watch committee member, and knew that he didn’t put up with crap by teenagers, yet for his own family the rules of decent behaviour and road safety could apparently be thrown aside.

Trying to make other drivers do the correct thing by "holding your ground" will lead to an accident sooner or later...

Knowing there are wankers on the roads, idiots, "foreigners" who come from different sets of road rules...the elderly, in experienced and youngsters pumped up on teenage hormones..as well as those DUI ing.... And driving more aware and less angry/frustrated is really the only sensible option....

My experience of the roads this weekend:

A taxi pulled out in front of me near Fed Square yesterday and I was tempted to just let him go into me....my car is so old it would not have made much difference to me....fortunately he breaked.

On the way into town, someone cut me up a fraction, no big deal.

It gets harder to ignore when you are teaching a nervous learner to drive, and the idiots who are right up her bumper start beeping at her when she stalls at the lights.

There is a big L plate on the car- BACK OFF AND GIVE HER SOME ROOM.

I had to try to calmly get her to restart the car and ignore the tossers, who then sped round her as she turned right and cut in front, slamming on their brakes as they did so. Poor DD was really shaken by that incident and consequently drove very jerkily for a while until she had calmed down. She hasn't been in the driving seat since.

What did he breaked?

just my spirit, and my relaxed sunday mood....for all of 2 seconds..

That's pretty much it. I used to rant and rave and perform all manner of hand signals not in the road rules.

These days I am more Zen about it, it's not a personal insult to me, it's just stuff that happens. Everyone has their own frame of reference, they aren't trying to kill anyone, just unaware of the consequences of their behaviour.

Backing off and not being part of the potential accident/incident is not a sign of personal weakness.

I agree 100%