My usual response to turn on the rear fog lamp for a while.
About a month ago, at a T-junction I turned right from a minor road onto the major road. Some car approaching that was miles away wasn’t happy, but I definitely had enough time and space. Anyway when I looked in the rear view mirror she would stick her middle finger up in protest (pathetically funny), anyway I then carried on driving as normal and stopped looking at her in the mirror (until I manoeuvred at a junction) I can’t remember if I even made a point of moving my rear view mirror to the side.
By ignoring her and carrying on as normal I see it as ME 1 - HER 0
Niseko1945 * If you ignore them and carry on driving as normal, they are having to change their driving to you. Then you win on the moral grounds and can sleep easy knowing you did not stoop to their level. The worst case scenario… you get hit from behind, then legally you’re in the right and it’s them who pay out.
- Where have I seen the word Niseko before? I’m now off to look it up.
Hi The Niseko was named after the Japanese skiing resort.I think only about 800 Niseko’s were made in 2008 550 odd in ice blue metallic as is mine and the rest in silver.Mine has the 2.0 litre engine and the retractable roof and is quite fast.So how the hell I get tail gaters I do not know.
Understand that you sitting much lower than you are in a normal saloon car, or most other cars for that matter so you are looking up at far more bonnet, it just makes things seem closer.
I got this most days in my last toy, mainly people right up my arse filming.
It was much easier to lose people in that toy, not so much in my Kia Rio
This.
I know it’s bad to generalise, but the worst tailgaters either drive an Audi or are Mums taking their little darlings about town in a people carriers. I’m extra vigilant when a Vauxhall Zafira gets within 100 yards.
Not sure about you all, but I always drive defensively in the 5, as it’ll be us that’ll come off worse.
If being tailgated to slow up gradually and/or kiss the brakes post installing a LED bright third brake light usually makes the penny drop.
For ten years I used to commute around the M25, J15 <-> J8. The Gatso speed control cameras (before average speed was introduced) were infrequent, but we all knew where they were. The regulars would routinely cruise at +10 and lift at the right time to ease down to correct speed as they passed though the active camera view. Of course there was always an arrogant tailigator muddying the smooth commuter flow, and it was interesting to watch how the regulars dealt with them.
It usually happened in the right hand lane. Something like this:
There is an active camera maybe ten to fifteen seconds ahead,
the regular eases back slightly more than normally required so a bigger than usual gap appears,
someone in the lane to his left who has seen what is about to happen makes room,
and the regular moves over to clear the way for his tailigator to go past.
Tailigator sees the empty road, says “Yesss!” and the Pavlovian reflex dictates that he floors it; Flash! Flash! “Sh!t!” Three points.
Satisfied regulars exchange discreet nods for a well timed manoeuvre and carry on as if nothing had happened.
I must have watched this play out at least a couple of dozen times. It was so very satisfying, totally relieving all stress.
Heading west on Wednesday I stopped for breakfast at M4 Chippenham services. When I was about to rejoin the MW but still on the services road I could see very close behind me filling all three mirrors was a large black Mercedes van, aaarrrggghh.
So, seeing a suitable slot in the traffic I floored it, expecting the van to shrink away as usual. Not a bit of it. It was like he was glued to the bumper. When I reached the standard motorway over-speed, the van then passed me with ease and rapidly disappeared into the distance, probably doing well over a ton. I just had time to see AMG on the back and notice it was wearing enormous ali wheels with incredibly wide very low profile tyres.
So what was it? What sort of engine is in one of those? And how many gallons per mile? And why?
The Mx-5 is great for country lanes and trackdays, also undeniable fun factor. BUT it is not the best thing to cruise motorways. It seems fast as you are low.
The sprinter could be a camper, and will turn in about 30mpg on the motorway. I’d rather run motorways in my 200bhp VW Amarok than my mx5, much more relaxing and the same mpg. Also the same 0-60 as a 1.8 MK3…horses for courses
It is truly amazing how everyone who drives an MX5 is such a good driver and all others on the road such bad ones .
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Christmas Eve was such a nice sunny day here that we could not resist going for a little top-down burn (woolly hats and heated seats necessary) around some local roads in Bucks.
We left the roundabout where the A404 joins the A413, heading uphill along the dual carriageway towards Missenden, and I noticed a large black Audi keeping station about ten feet behind as we enjoyed an all too brief moment of full throttle up to 70. I held it at a mere 70 and watched as the A6 quattro estate then went past, and was rewarded by a thumbs up and big grin from the passenger wearing her Hi-Vis Police jacket.
I can’t belive such a thread exists, it’s like reading a load of posts on the local church pinboard.
My advice is that if somebody is tailgaiting you it means they wish to drive faster on that particular piece of road than you are currently driving. Whether thats allowed by law or not isn’t your problem.
So for the sake of everybody involved, let them pass, less stress for you and less stress for them.
Surely its that simple?
And by the way, people tailgate you no matter what you drive, I can assure you all it’s not just an MX-5 thing!
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Ninja59’s post about aggressive vs passive tailgaters struck a chord with me. If someone is an aggressive tailgater then they’ll pass you as soon as they can. It’s the passive ones who aren’t concentrating and just drift up behind you and sit there which are the bigger problem. They can see past you because you are in a small car, so they’re looking at the empty road in front of you, not the tiny space between you and them.
Just easing off a little bit seems to work quite well to make them wake up and either drop back or pass.
I used to commute with an ex-colleague who was the worst tailgater I’ve ever known despite his being the meekest man on the planet. He would prattle on about whatever topic he was fretting about that day and just drift closer and closer to the car in front until I would eventually snap and tell him to back off. He was aware he had the tendency to do it, but when his concentration slipped… It was just one more thing to fret about. I must have left quite a dent in the passenger footwell of his car from pushing the imaginary brake pedal.
I must admit I have found it to be one of the better written pieces on dealing with tailgaters.
Part of the problem is they wind you up so much and then you yourself put yourself at risk. I must admit it took me sometime to get used to the position of the MX5 but so many morons get to close I mean one I had this week pouring rain few foot off my bumper. Eventually I just decided to slow down and pull over, two cars behind him had the audacity to toot like I was holding them up - end of the day the speed limit is there for multiple but reasons but ultimately also speed needs to be judged by the conditions.
Clearly the fact there had been pouring rain all night meaning the roads were in no fit state to be driving at high speed did not correlate with them.
Around here I think I barely go a week without having some brainless twerp too close (I mean not seeing number plate and headlights stuff) and just pulling over and letting them get on with their journey at some insane rate (rather tellingly as there approx 3-4 camera on my route to work and yes I see them brake sharply nearly every time maybe that should tell you all you need to know) usually in 90% of cases with me sticking to the limit gently cruising up behind them at the next set of lights it is downright stupid.
Part of the problem is some of the cars themselves in making them with this that and the other then the process and skill of driving has diminished IMO.
The other factor around here is people brake far to late and get to close to the car in front when at a standstill, having been rear ended twice and once in a queue the extra gap formed by the tyres and tarmac principle stopped what was a 3 car collision into more. It is a basic basic piece of advice braking more progressively and leaving more gap allows you error room and should the worst happen minimise to a degree the chances of rear ending the car in front.
I drive from Colchester to Chelmsford A12 everyday in my 5 and if given the chance and big enough balls I could get out of my via the roof ( that is Down) and step on to the car behind me then walk on to the car behind that and the car behind that. But I have come up with the solution, move into the Inside lane as no one is in it as they do not want to leave the precious outside lane, (I have driven from Colchester to Witham Junction on the so called slow lane with out touching my brake and not having 1 person infront nor behind me BLISS)
If the police actually done something about it then it may be a thing of the past but once agian the police do not do anything about it just like lane hoggers, which if i am correct is against the law to sit in the outside lane, I may be wrong and please put me right if I am,.
Surely if you drive so close to the car in front you can see what colour eyes they have it is dangerous driving and driving without due care and attention and if I am correct that is against the law o yeah that word the Law which is supposed to be upheld be the police… are the upholding the LAW I ask you.
Rant over…
Careless driving more than dangerous as they can FPN for the careless driving. As for lane usage yes they can, tailgating is the same. Barely see one cop around here for traffic as for speeding i have seen the van once in over a year on my route to work and back.
I’ve only driven my MX5 on the motorway for about 120 miles when I was driving home after the purchase. It’s currently on a SORN until probably March.
As it was an unfamiliar car and after dark I was in no hurry and just kept to the left hand lane, pulling out to overtake lories and then pulling back in again.
I had no tailgaters and the drive home was utterly stress free.
My current daily is an E46 BMW M3, 343bhp and will top out at over 160mph. If you select Sport mode it’ll hit sixty from a standstill in five seconds dead, and it handles superbly with the M Sport suspension.
Some of my previous cars have been Impreza Turbos, ST24 Mondeo, GSi Cavalier, RS Turbo Escort, RS2000 Escort, even a tuned Cooper S as an 18 year old. I’ve always had a penchant for performance cars.
Can I also add that in over thirty years of driving, I’ve never had one accident.
The bottom line is I know exactly how my cars can perform. I do not feel the need to prove it to every acne riddled youth in a Corsa or deranged Mercedes van driver who wants to sit a few feet from my back bumper.
Sometimes I take great pleasure in perversely slowing down and watching them getting more and more frustrated.
Oh the joys of driving!!
Everybody on forums are driving saint’s, untill the day they are not, then the police were all born out of wedlock.
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Tuesday evening I drove back from the West Country on the new tyres and was enjoying how much better was the grip and comfort and how quiet they were - now I can hear the radio and the exhaust. The 150 miles were great until the last two roundabouts before home when an old Porsche was tailgating me, despite me giving him two opportunities to overtake on the bits of empty dual carriageway. But no, he just sat there. Oh well, ignore him.
However there was one last sharp right from under the A40 to go up the slip road to join it and as I went round and accelerated (one of my favourite drag-strips) the back felt very squirmy, almost as if the tyres were losing pressure. No worries (being only half a mile from home), and I was up to 70 well before the A40 and able to slot in nicely. But what gave me the real satisfaction was seeing in my mirror the old Porsche shrinking into the distance while fishtailing from side to side and using the whole of the two lanes desperately trying to keep it on the slip road.
Today before washing off the grime I checked the tyres and they were at the right pressure, but the underneath of the left side of the car stank of diesel. My guess is that the ESC, TC and LSD all helped to keep me on track without me even realising that I was driving through a large diesel spill. I do remember the road looked a bit wet, but then there were odd puddles all over the place from the earlier rain anyway.
Happy driving.