whats your safeguard while driving?

Pottler

TrailerBob wrote: »

Always felt safer in the jeep as its so big. (2 tons of big) until one day I was parked in front of a Nissan 200sx... I looked and realised that in a head on collision with the Nissan, the first part of the cruiser to hit it ( or any low fronted car) would be the tyres.. the thought has made me think a little more since then.

I've a well off mate who bought his daughter a new Trooper to ensure she would be safe driving. She had a drunk in a Peugeot run head on into her on her way to work - he walked away unharmed, she was absolutely destroyed - often the extra mass/momentum of the heavier 4*4 will work against you. Another two mates were killed when their Landcruiser hit a car, car driver walked away. Another two I know died in a landcruiser when a bus hit them. Another guy I know well lost his arm when his jeep rolled and arm went through window. Don't assume you are invulnerable just because you drive a 4*4, often the opposite is the case.:)

RED PASSION

legal thread depth is 1.6mm
not sure what mm a brand new tyre is. i think once they go below 3mm maybe you should be thinking about replacing them but still legal.

fasttalkerchat

RED PASSION wrote: »

legal thread depth is 1.6mm
not sure what mm a brand new tyre is. i think once they go below 3mm maybe you should be thinking about replacing them but still legal.

Sorry I had the 0.4 figure in my head for some reason! That question should have read... can you feel a difference between 1.8 and 2.0 in that case.

Pottler

RED PASSION wrote: »

legal thread depth is 1.6mm
not sure what mm a brand new tyre is. i think once they go below 3mm maybe you should be thinking about replacing them but still legal.

Thread depth is one thing, but if you've got 4 Gung-ho Ditchfinders fitted, all the thread in the world is not enough. De rubbah is not pukkah.

TrailerBob

Pottler wrote: »

I've a well off mate who bought his daughter a new Trooper to ensure she would be safe driving. She had a drunk in a Peugeot run head on into her on her way to work - he walked away unharmed, she was absolutely destroyed - often the extra mass/momentum of the heavier 4*4 will work against you. Another two mates were killed when their Landcruiser hit a car, car driver walked away. Another two I know died in a landcruiser when a bus hit them. Another guy I know well lost his arm when his jeep rolled and arm went through window. Don't assume you are invulnerable just because you drive a 4*4, often the opposite is the case.:)

That's my point, I don't.... It struck me that in the hypothetical collision, the cruiser would likely be launched over a ditch meaning no more TrailerBob.. Maybe that didn't come across. Big isn't always best for sure.

Sorry to hear of so many jeep related horror stories close to you.

Have seen plenty of opposite scenario too, such as a completely destroyed focus that hit a 100 series cruiser, but so many factors at play.

puzzle factory

a fake name while im driving that hammer home.

Pottler

TrailerBob wrote: »

That's my point, I don't.... It struck me that in the hypothetical collision, the cruiser would likely be launched over a ditch meaning no more TrailerBob.. Maybe that didn't come across. Big isn't always best for sure.

Sorry to hear of so many jeep related horror stories close to you.

Have seen plenty of opposite scenario too, such as a completely destroyed focus that hit a 100 series cruiser, but so many factors at play.

I drive both, a jeep and a car. Always felt safer in the jeep, but I doubt if the facts back it up. I had a 99 Landcuiser though, rounded a bend going pretty hard, to be greeted by a low loader reversing across the road 60m in front of me, and the fecking cruiser stopped! With meters to spare. I also though, had a new Cinquecento(I bought it for the missus(gf then), and a stolen golf with the gards in hot pursuit lost it on a bend,struck a tree - coming head on at me, and literally took off, sailing over the roof of my car, clearing it by inches. I had my two kids in the car with me and it's about the closest I've come. I doubt that whatever I was driving would have made a difference if that Golf had come in through the windscreen instead of clearing the roof and it took me about an hour to steady the auld knees. I never thought I'd be looking up at the wheels of a car passing over the top of my own. So, lucks important too! If I'd been in the jeep, the higher roofline would have meant the Golf would have taken my head off and probably killed us all. Best of all, the scummers in the golf got out and ran off! Not a mark. Golf was utterly destroyed..

sdanseo

Observation. I know what's going on around my car. And of course, a seat belt. In general, a sensible, pro-active, practical style of driving to suit the conditions.

TrailerBob

Pottler wrote: »

I drive both, a jeep and a car. Always felt safer in the jeep, but I doubt if the facts back it up.

Spot on there, didn't 5th gear test it with an espace and a discovery, and the Renault scored better. Still I'd prefer to be in the landcruiser than a cinquecento in any situation... There'd only be one winner methinks

101sean

Depends what I'm driving, the 101 with it's drum brakes and huge knobbly tyres makes you drive predictively (especially in the wet) leaving plenty of room. Anything else modern you tend to get complacent about how well it stops or handle. Definitely happier driving something bigger though.

Luck still plays a huge part, had a near miss recently going round a bend to be confronted by an Evo on the wrong side of the road doing a runner from a garda car, definite brown trouser moment!

Recall seeing a poster in a bus back in the 60s when I was a kid - "Don't drink and drive!", turned to my mother and said out loud " but Daddy doesn't drink and drive, he stops at a pub!"

challengemaster

Knowing how to drive generally keeps me safe while driving... Gremlins and leprechauns too

In all honesty, what sort of question is that. :rolleyes:

nacimroc

fasttalkerchat wrote: »

Sorry I had the 0.4 figure in my head for some reason! That question should have read... can you feel a difference between 1.8 and 2.0 in that case.

Thats a bit of an pointless question. Can people tell the difference between good tyres and worn, of course. Even slightly worn. All your thinking of when you think of tyres is regular driving. Its when you have to slam on hard to avoid something you will appreciate the hell out of your extra 0.2mm! That could be the difference between stopping at a wall or 2 feet past it!

Cookie_Monster

Single most important thing my driving instructor taught me was to lift my vision and look as far down the road as possible for anything that may affect you. May sound obvious enough but when learning I was always much to focused on my immediate surroundings rather than taking the opportunity to observe both them and what's coming up.

Rich11

i never ever drink and drive............. you always end up spilling it and making a mess, so i pull over and drink then drive:cool::pac:

toastedpickles

I was told to always expect the most stupid person to be around you and then expect them to do the most stupid thing you can imagine, so you can guess my reaction when I seen a lad driving in the hard shoulder of the m50 :pac:

hattoncracker

Always try and aim to be wherever it is that I'm going ten minutes early, so I have no reason or excuse to speed or panic about being late
. Use my mirrors check them every 15 seconds, keep an eye on the speedometer too...
On roundabouts I never move off until I'm absolutely sure what the cars to the right are doing..

corktina

Always put your head between your knees when overtaking, in case you need kiss your ass goodbye.

_Kaiser_

toastedpickles wrote: »

I was told to always expect the most stupid person to be around you and then expect them to do the most stupid thing you can imagine, so you can guess my reaction when I seen a lad driving in the hard shoulder of the m50 :pac:

Nah I can beat that On the M3 last year and just before Dunshaughlin I spot a Garda car ahead of me - in the hard shoulder, coming TOWARDS me :eek:

(supposedly they were chasing another car but given I joined the M3 from the M50 it must have been invisible!)


Anyway...

It's kind of all been covered already. Good observation and the assumption that the car ahead of or beside you will do something stupid at any moment.
I do a lot of mileage (urban, country and motorways) and I've seen some crazy things in my time. I'm also a big believer that it's better to have folk like that behind you than in front of you.

A good car definitely helps with good tyres and a decent engine with enough power to overtake quickly etc. There's a massive difference to driving a motorway in say my current 2L TDI Passat and the 1.3 Colt I started off in.

Also, I'm also not overly concerned about the arbitrary speed limits on most of our roads. Not to say I tear around at 150 km/h everywhere but I'll drive at a speed appropriate to the conditions and have no problem exceeding it briefly if I deem it necessary to keep myself, my passengers and my car safe.

If it's a clear dry day and I'm on a motorway or wide N-road, I'll do the posted limit but if it's bucketing rain I'll drop the speed accordingly (danger of aquaplaning is particularly a problem on parts of the M3 and M7 for example). Similarly if I'm driving around town and it's busy I have no issues driving under 50 as needed.
Always have my lights on too, even if the sun is splitting the stones as I've found it helps prevent others taking silly chances (cars coming out from side roads at the last minute or pedestrians darting out in front of you etc)