Dubliners less likely to stop for stranded female motorists

seamus

Tough love from the Dubliners, and rightly so.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/2005/08/22/story217148.html

Dubliners are less likely to stop and help a stranded female driver, according to a study conducted by the tyre manufacturer Semperit.

The company said a roadside experiment it conducted found one-in-30 male drivers stopped to help a stranded female change a wheel in a rural area.

This compares to just one-in-70 male motorists who stopped to help the woman in Dublin.

Semperit said the study showed that women could not rely on other motorists and should learn simple car maintenance like how to change a wheel.

That last line sums it up for me. I'm always at the gf to learn how to change a wheel on her own, and she's willing, but ultimately relying on myself or her Dad to be available should this ever happen.

Seth Brundle

I saw a woman a few months back who had a flat (she hadn't noticed it whilst driving :rolleyes: ). The two of us pulled in and i ended up changing her wheel. In fairness, she was very appreciative. I did it because if my mother/wife was in a similar situation I wouldn't want them to be stranded (I got my wife a bottle of puncture sealant stuff - I know, Im an old romantic ).
Anyhow, the wheel nuts on the womans car were well stuck on. With tyre centres insisting on using pneumatic guns to tighten nuts, they render it impossible for most folk to take them off.
In the end she wanted me to take some money but I declined (despite getting a clean white shirt dirty and also getting myself wet)!

prospect

Same happened here. The wife and her friend got a puncture in her friends car. The were near our house, so i went out. The nuts were on so tight, that the inside of the 'cheap' wheel brace actually rounded.
I got her fixed up, and gave her husband a hard time for letting her drive around in a car with ultra-tightened wheel nuts, and a sh1tty wheel brace.

Got my missus a '4 spoke' iron wheel brace (another romantic here). There is a better chance of opening tight buggers with these as you can apply a push and pull force on them.

mike65

I would always stop for young woman stranded on the side of the road!

Seriously though us commercial drivers are most considerate when it comes to helping out others who have come to grief.

Mike.

shakenbake

I'd only stop if she was good lookin

No fat chicks!

ando

^^^^^ Diddo, depends how good looking they are. Leave the whale beached

themole

i think that the article is more indicative of how people behave in built up areas than the differences in the people themselves.

o wouldn't be inclined to stop on a busy road in the city but may on a quiet road.

hmmm

I'm shocked by the 70-1 figure. I don't believe it frankly - did anyone like the AA or the RAC co-sponsor this study?

LegacyUser

I got a flat going over O Connel Bridge a few months ago. Pulled over at the bus stop and hardly got out of the car .. and a pure 100% gentleman was over in a shot. He was waiting for a bus. He changed the wheel for me. If he is reading this thread .. thank you!! Again!

I don't believe those stats at all. I'm not saying us girlies cannot change wheels - I can - but this fellow had the wheel off and the new one on in what seemed like minutes. Fair play.

I heard a girl on the radio today moaning "I was standing around for 20 minutes and nobody stopped - I had to get my fella ".

To that girl - learn to change a wheel ffs!! If you drive a car - its in your own interest to learn - and as quickly as possible. What if you were in a dodgey area and got a flat? Still wait for a decent passer by - that might never arrive!

Fair play to any guy who help a gal out with changing a wheel - but all girls should learn to do this for themselves!!

Calibos

Theres nothing like full body weight to loosen a wheel nut. Torque figures for tightening nuts??? Pah!! Stand on the wheel brace to tighten and stand on the wheel brace when it comes time to loosen the buggers. Easy peasy.

As for why blokes in Dublin are less likely to stop? Busier roads as someone else mentioned as well as the fact that the there is a higher chance of the damsel in distress having her skanger boyfriend hiding behind the bush ready to lamp you over the head with his wheel brace and rob your wallet, house keys and car!! ie if the road is quiet enough or the traffic is slow enough for me to slow down and/or stop to suss the situation out without getting out of my car then I will. If the situation seems kosher I'll offer to help, If it looks a bit dodgey, I'm off.

Of course it could just be that on a busy road with constant traffic Dublin lads assume the next fella will stop whereas on some deserted road 'Down da country' the lads know it could be a while before the next fella comes along to rescue the damsel.

Funxy

Well its not a worry for me, theres no room for a spare in my car so no need to be able to change it