nonthaburi

Always anticipate, that is key to driving here.

JohnRFulton

Don't get me wrong, in daylight I probably would have anticipated it, but it happened around 6.30am, so still dark. I'm fairly certain I'd have looked in my mirrors to check I had cleared the trucks, I just didn't expect that car to appear there.

The front truck was carrying a bit of plant machinery, so I had slowed a bit below 100kmph as it was a bit of a wide load and the road is narrow, I'd have been accelerating back up to 100kmph.

I've been driving that road between Ghayathi and the E11 for a couple of time a week for a few months now. There is a lot of commercial traffic and a lot of construction works stretching for maybe 10-15km. It is the craziest bit of road in the country I've came across so far.

I just don't really feel that one is my fault, but that is what the police deemed it.

Gavtek

If it was one of those old Lexus saloons, he probably only had his sidelights on also, that's the "cool" style seemingly.

scrubbedexpat141

In future, if anything like this happens again just refuse the decision by the side of the road. I was with a friend and she was getting stiffed by the police for an accident that was so obviously the other person's fault it was mind blowing that he tried to give both drivers a red slip. She just refused, ended up going to the station, talking to a rozzer with a brain and he was astounded she'd been apportioned any blame. Immediately gave her a green and the driver at fault a red. Job done.

jam25mack

It probably wasn't but you're not a local so it was.

I had a local lady hit me when I was reversing out of a space and she tried to nip through the gap behind me. I was half out and saw her coming and stopped. She hit me while stationary but it was still deemed my fault as she was a) female and b) local. I even had two local witnesses who were pissing themselves laughing at how crazy this bint was.

When calmly 'discussing' it with the fat sweaty filth prick and explaining how it would not be deemed my fault anywhere else in the world I was threatened with additional fines if I didn't accept it.

Best to just write it up to the shitty culture and move on. It's an argument you're never going to win.

On the plus side, if you do something similar to someone lower downing the pecking order its likely to go against them.... horses for courses!

JohnRFulton

It was - not an old, old one - but a more modern version of the model you are describing. Would still be a 2012 car maybe.

What is it with the circa 2000-2010 era big Lexus cars out in the Western region?

Saudi plated big SUV's on the E11, and old pre-2010 Lexus saloons in the Western region are the 2 cars I have come to associate with really bad/aggressive/unpredictable driving standards.

reddiva

Why not do what i do. Drive in the second to slow lane. You end up passing the fast lane every time.

carcajou

That bit of road between Ghayathi and the E-11, does it still have that rugged and unpainted (and therefore invisible) speed hump near the E-11 end? No matter how many times I drove that road it would always get me.

I am astonished the Lexus was black and not white. The pre-2010 Lexus cars will be driven by Arab expats, not locals. They want the luxury car but can't afford the new models so buy old ones.

I had something a bit similar to your incident once, that was near Mirfa. You need to ring an Arab colleague and have them talk to the Police for you.

nonthaburi

With all of the vehicles mentioned below the dick to vehicle ratio must be well higher than normal.

This would be my list.
1: For pure IDGAFness it has to be the hilux.

Then for tailgating at high speed lights flashing in no particular order...
2: Lexus lx 570
3: Nissan Patrol
4: fj

And not so many of them around but also for IDGAFness..

5: 2 door Toyota Landcruiser

And special mention to the Hyundai Elantra, because you see some of those things really shifting on the highway. I would never ever buy a 2nd hand Elantra in Saudi.

carcajou

Having just re-read your post, are you sure it was a local Bedouin from Ghayathi, and not an Arab Expat wearing the kandoora (sometimes they do, especially outside of work)? Seems odd to me a local from Ghayathi would be driving a car that old, and something black.

JohnRFulton

Racist as it sounds. I can't tell them apart. I'm assuming he was Bedouin and local, but he could well have been another GCC. You do get a lot of Emirati Bedouin in older vehicles, although usually 4x4's.

And yes, the road there is a nightmare - they seem to be upgrading the road from 2 to 4 lanes, but it's currently a narrow dual carriageway with the concrete barriers. protecting the parts under construction - it is a tight squeeze getting past a lorry or bus at some points. Then you have the bizarre Arab trait of driving a 4x4 down the middle of the carriageway, blocking the whole road off, and the Sub Continent trait of staying in the outside lane whilst turning left or a full 180 at a roundabout - very nearly had collisions a couple of times with that. Then just the general driving on that road. A couple of times I've been forced off by people.

The speed bumps in this area are ridiculous, I'd imagine some of the small cars bottom out on them (my work car is a 2 door Pajero - and it doesn't like them). The paint has worn off most of them, so you can't really see them. There is a particularly bad one about midway between the E11 and Ghayathi (heading towards Ghayathi). I hammered it hard about a month back - rain and darkness, it was pretty much invisible.

Cypselos

I've been getting a big uptick on this from A-Class Mercedes between dxb and AD recently.

jam25mack

The stupid yank 'performance cars' Stangs, Chevys etc) have been rising up the ranks lately...

For me:

1. Old lexi
2. Locals - the old standards - 4x4's LC's, Patrols etc....
3. Expats - Golf GTis, all Audis, Cayannes
3. Other GCC - Jeep Wranglers, FJ's, Pajeros

It's quite interesting that 'generally' the wankerfactor decreases as the car gets quicker.... like you hardly see proper pricks in Porkers (not including Cayannes), Raris etc

Maxima

That is absolutely not true for the pre-2010 lexuses

Yes, its true for Pre-2010 german cars and certain chevies/GMC's

But the pre-2010 Lexus were and are popular with the natives in northern Emirates as well as the western regions, for certain reasons

Maxima

Lol, I just got an A- Class (2018 shape), and while it is really zippy on the highways, the suspension is rock-hard, and I am getting back aches every other day