Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

One of the first things I realised when I arrived in Australia was the horrendous amount of tailgating that goes on. Not just 'white van man' or 'sales rep' like in England, but people of any age or sex. Thought I had gotten used to it, and started to accept that that is just how people drive here but an episode the other day really aggravated me. I left work after my afternoon shift and was driving home on the Sunshine Motorway at about 10.15pm. I set off cruising along on the nice, quiet road doing the speed limit. All was well until some clown decided he would drive hanging off my bumper for the whole duration:curse:. What made it worse was the road was so quiet, he/she had ample opportunity to overtake, but insisted on tailgating instead. What is the point? If you want to go faster than the speed limit, just bloody overtake and leave the rest of us alone!! Is it any wonder why the death toll on the Sunshine Coast roads is so high. Rant over, feel better getting that off my chest.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Its slipstreaming... they think it says them fuel. ;)

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Well, we don't live on the sunshine coast, but I hear you!!!! It's terrible- have spent many journeys being followed up the bum. It's dangerous to do and I am considerate- if I'm on a road in the hills and am not familiar with it, then I pull in when I get the opportunity.

:curse::curse::curse:

Funny story though- once when I was a kid, my dad was driving along a one way road, being tailgated by the car behind and all of a sudden stopped the car, and opened our car boot. The guy in the car behind (totally blocked) starts shouting- "what's going on"-my dad replies with- "oh I'm sorry, I thought you wanted to get in my boot!!!"

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

It wasn't funny at the time (when you are eight years old:D) and my mum had me quicksharp out of the car as there was looking to be a bit of a barny!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

They:

1) Have unbelievably fast reactions and the most advanced brakes in the world

or

2) Have absolutely no concept of thinking time, momentum or tyre grip.

Choose 1 or 2.

However, the 75% of the drivers who tailgate are beaten by the 99% who don't have left-hand indicators, so indicate that they are continuing around the roundabout even though they are exiting. And just when you get used to them, and enter the roundabout in front of a car with the usual right indicator flashing you discover you've met the other 1%................

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

What pisses me of is when you are doing the max 110kph on the motorway and some dick brain comes up fast and tailgates you. Then when you pull over to let him pass at the earliest opportunity, expecting the dick brain to overtake and start speeding again, he just sits there forcing you to slow down when you reach the car in front that is doing 105 kph.

Dick Brains the lot of 'em.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

The technique my dad taught me has never failed yet.... don't brake at all, not sharply, not slowly... just take your foot off the gas, and allow the car to slow. If it doesn't get rid of them the first time, keep doing it. It's pretty safe for you and your passengers & they invariably get fed up & go past.

I guess the only downside would be if you got a road rage merchant - but if they're tailgating you I would think the chances are against that, they'd be past & gone!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

That might work in Malaga when its a Seat Panda behind you... here it will be some nutter in a V8 who probably wouldn't even notice you slowing and drive right over the top of you.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

:rofl: except the Spanish don't actually understand the concept of leaving a space in front of you..... leave a gap any longer than a motorbike & a car will fill it!
(anyway I didn't mean here, I meant UK motorways, A roads & dual carriageways...)

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Doesn't work here: the tailgaters will 90% of the time just slow down behind you - even coming to a complete halt if you do. Overtaking doesn't seem to be an option.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I just slow right down, that usually does the trick!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

in the UK I used to speed up, here I just slow down. I love having a tailgater behind me, then find a car/truck doing 80 or less up a big hill on the dual carriageway. I just slow down and sit next to the truck. Its great watching them get annoyed.

Also in the housing estates I pull up abruptly near the houses with a for sale sign and point. Tailgater are always too close to pull out and have to reverse.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I was told by a friend of mine that if you indicate on entering or exiting a roundabout (as per traffic laws), you'll confuse the other drivers....... go figure.:rolleyes:...... and most will enter just in front of vehicles on the roundabout. The police don't seem to care, as I have seen plenty of marked general duties cars not indicating themselves.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Me too, just brush the brake pedal to illuminate the lights - seems to give them a hint.:thumbsup:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

The driver behind needs to catch up with you otherwise they won't know what the speed limit is. They can't overtake as they wouldn't know what the speed limit is any more*.


* Note: this is why people overtake on dual carriageways and then slow down to a speed slower than what you were doing when they overtook you. They've lost their point of reference.

:D

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

:rofl::rofl::rofl: Sounds about right.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I so want to wire something up to my brake lights so that I can get them to come on even if I don't brake....:D

Sometimes I just slam all on, that wakes the buggers up :rofl:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

You've only got to touch the Brake pedal, same thing really.

Best thing is pull on the handbrake, not too quick of course.... no lights just brakes.... now that does cause problems.

I never get a problem with this these days though, so I'm not Bovvered ;)

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Yeah, I do that now. Doesn't seem to bother half of them :confused: well not the first time anyway, after the second and third they do tend to give you some room :D

My favorite thing is slowing right down to about 20k less than the limit :sneaky:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Does that count as one of the 19 pct Wendy ? :p

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

love it! good stuff

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I like it!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I love teh school run:curse: your in a 50 or 60 zone, police stick speed cams there and every day some wanker will be on your tail trying to get you to go faster, then they overtake at some dangerous speed dodging kids on pushbikes only to catch up with them at the next set of traffic ligjhts. I comment daily on the moronic drivers. Was the same in brisbane, melbourne, gold coast....

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I have been on this forum ranting about the Sunshine Motorway before too.. I think it is seriously one of the most dangerous places to drive around here.. people are mad, seriously mad.. tailgating aside, the ridiculous places that they overtake are pure insanity!

They just are not used to sharing the road with anyone else.. and they don't give a flying crap about anyone elses lives... they leave everything to the last second and they allow no margin for errors, either of their own or other peoples... I seriously hate driving on that road and I will not drive it at night ..

Of course I am generalising on a massive scale here...

Em x

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

What can I say...I'm a P Plater! :rofl:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I passed my test donkeys years ago and just discovered I hate driving.

Anyway, I had a refresher lesson in Perth not so long ago and my instructor said the UK sets the highest driving standards for its test in the world and in his opinion, Australia is the worst.

He has taught driving in his own country - Egypt and he said he is continutally shocked and appalled at how people think it is acceptable to tailgate, speed in built up areas not giving a shit if they hit someone or cause an accident, and most of all - drink/drive.

Last week I saw some twit driving along my street in a Ute with a bottle of beer in one hand.

Seriously, I have seen gypsies drive better than some of the people in Perth.

I had people tailgate me on my driving lesson and it really got on my nerves to the point I actually felt I wanted to stop the car.

'Oh I can control a car if I drive fast' or 'I can drink and drive and Im in control' or 'I can just drive like a complete and utter knob head and its fine'.

Perth drivers - it isnt fine, it makes you look even more stupid than you already do.

Passing your driving test in Perth is no biggy, nothing to be proud of - it is how you decide to drive afterwards that makes you what you are in the drivers seat.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

They're very good drivers in Egypt. I like the way they complement each other's driving by blowing the horn all the time :blink: :lol:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I've never been to Egypt but I have been to Tunisia and they were bad, but Perth is another thing entirely.:lol:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Australians (particularly male) appear to undergo a complete character transplant once they get behind the wheel of a car. Gone is the easy going, larrikin- enter the reckless bully boy!
I hate tailgating - it's intimidating and downright dangerous. As a result, I rarely ever drive in Australia, I just don't feel that safe around other drivers. I had more confidence on the busy roads of the UK, I felt I could trust the ability of other drivers there.
Of course there are bad drivers in every country but for a country with a small population like OZ....makes you wonder where it comes from???:frown:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Oh but I prefer the stamp on good old toyota power assisted brakes and watch the Commodore/Ford driver behind suddenly loose both

• bowel movments and
• that illusion that there street car is the same performance vehicle on bathurst.

"Officer I think it was a cat running across the road":sneaky:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I honestly felt safer on the U.K roads than I do here in this particular part of Australia.

The two places are comparable, I lived in Lincolnshire U.K., the A180/M180 was a notorious road for fatalities. A boring long drive to nowhere on a noisy concrete surface was attributed to lulling drivers to sleep.
Here I live close to the most notorious stretch of road in Australia. The Bruce highway Cooroy to Curra section has been long established as a fatality blackspot. The speed limit has just been dropped from 100kph to 90kph for that entire stretch. It allegedly accounts for the majority of road deaths in S.E Qld.
Speeding accounts for the majority of deaths here closely followed by dangerous driving & tired drivers.
We've had our local paper full of stats on deaths for a while & Australian roads are more dangerous than their U.K counterparts.
The only stats I could find [sorry Eric I'm doing your job;)] are from 2007 when there were officially 1616 deaths on Australian roads [source] Same year the U.K figures dropped to below 3000 [source] Per capita Australia is a far more dangerous place to drive.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Most drivers here assume that the speed limit is a lower limit. Somehow they haven't worked out that it is an upper limit.

Tailgating is very common from women here, which I found quite strange, since it's an aggressive and dangerous thing to do and not what one would expect from someone not under the influence of testosterone. I have a theory though. I think women who tailgate are trying to stay in a group. They are uncomfortable with the idea of being 200m away from everyone (a consequence of the empty roads) and feel much happier when they are up close. This is why they don't want to overtake.

My method for dealing with this is that if the driver behind can't maintain a safe following distance then I provide it for them. Travelling 10m behind me at 100kph is dangerous. Travelling 10m behind me at 30kph is safer. If they want to travel at 100kph they need to drop back to 200m. Almost none of the drivers here seem to be able to work this out, and there are a lot of roads round here where overtaking isn't possible... :)

I'm beginning to wonder if I really do have to have an operation to become a citizen.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

What about the rednecks who have been out on the lash Sean? ;)
Bet they make up a big number too. I know around here the further country you get, the more lawless it is..:sneaky:
Driving here really does suck, theres no courtesy and no forward thinking whatsoever. For example if you are waiting to pull out onto a duel carriageway and the outside lane is clear does anyone think to pull out into it to let traffic enter? No friggin way...that would involve courtesy AND forward thinking...:eek: The lack of road awreness is shocking, it really is!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

There is no patience. To me that is the root of the problem. I think there's a kind of national small man's syndrome in Australia, where they are always trying to prove they are just as good as everyone else. All you have to do to confirm this is to look at the size of the cars they drive.

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

[QUOTE=cresta57;7209744]I honestly felt safer on the U.K roads than I do here in this particular part of Australia.

I don't. I feel much safer on motorways here than I ever did in the UK, hardly any tailgating compared to what I experienced in the UK. The only thing I don't like is the Semi Trailers not having to stay in the left hand lane - that freaks me out slightly. One thing I have noticed here, I have never been flashed by an idiot coming up behind me to shift me out of the way here (probably because I'm not aware of tailgating). It was a constant in the UK - like they had a greater right to be in the lane than I did. :mad:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

>>For example if you are waiting to pull out onto a duel carriageway and the outside lane is clear does anyone think to pull out into it to let traffic enter?<<

What an appropriate Freudian slip! But dead right (Pun not intended...)

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I drove around Rome and all over Italy ... now *that* is a hair-raising experience! :eek:

Em x

PS When they flash the lights at you in Italy it means "I AM COMING THRU".. when they put the hazard lights on it means "I AM SLOWING DOWN".. when they do a hand gesture of raising the fist with your pinkie and your 1st finger up, it means your wifes a whore and I am going to kill you.... (examples of Road Etiquette in Italy).. :lol:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

:o:lol:

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

I don't think it is the done thing here, but was pretty normal back in the UK. I remember being told off for doing just that, by a NSW Policeman, but then, I had just flashed him to get out of my way !!

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

[QUOTE=moneypen20;7209837]Errrm, Pen? Read Seans post again....;)

Re: Tailgating!!! What is the point?
 

Agree - i think alot of the problem are also because of tunnell vision and focusing on objects straight ahead versus activities behind and beside you.

Frustrates me the way people follow through red lights because they are only watching the car in front. Not just talking running red lights I mean the red is well and truly on as well as my green light.