I've noticed that I glance at the speedo every 5 or 6 seconds. Is this an obsession that I should try to conquer? I regularly exceed the limit by an indicated 3 or 4 mph (hangs head in shame), so it's not because of a desire to be squeaky clean.
How often do you glance at your speedo?
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L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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Not sure how often I glance at speedo. However, when I am on a motorway, I always assume that when my speedo is reading 80, I am really only doing 73-75mph due to inaccuracies.
However, every time I pass a speed camera, I suddenly decide that my speedo is 100% accurate and keep to exactly 50, 40 or whatever the limit is!
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I've noticed that I glance at the speedo every 5 or 6 seconds.
Not taking a dig at you, but surely it's time that speedos were fitted with a head-up display to remove the need to glance around to catch the speedo.
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>> I've noticed that I glance at the speedo every 5 or >> 6 seconds. Not taking a dig at you, but surely it's time that speedos were fitted with a head-up display to remove the need to glance around to catch the speedo.
Interesting idea, but while fighter pilots etc are trianed in the use of the HUD, I think the average motorist might find information laid across their view of the road a bit distracting.
I think the biggest problem with looking down at the instruments isn't the glance away from the road, it's the re-focussing your eyes have to perform before and after. I wonder if there would be a way to give the eyes the impression the speedo was at a much longer distance, thereby stopping the eyes from changing focus?
Probably a terrible idea, just thinking aloud really...
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Good idea, I guess that a HUD would go a long way to achieving this (depending how it was set-up).
Personally, I'd like a HUD showing fuel, temp and speed which could be programmed to display for 1 or 2 seconds at a pre-determined interval.
Anything that avoids being distracted from looking ahead is a bonus, incidents can happen so fast a split second can make a world of difference.
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Good idea, I guess that a HUD would go a long way to achieving this (depending how it was set-up). Personally, I'd like a HUD showing fuel, temp and speed which could be programmed to display for 1 or 2 seconds at a pre-determined interval. Anything that avoids being distracted from looking ahead is a bonus, incidents can happen so fast a split second can make a world of difference.
Can I be the first to comment on the apparent contradiction between paragraphs 2 and 3?! If a HUD suddenly appears in front of you, this would immediately distract you from the road ahead.
Personally, I think with the amount of people who fail to hazard spot through a perfectly clear windscreen, the last thing we want is them being further distracted!!
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Personally, I'd like a HUD showing fuel, temp and speed which could be programmed to display for 1 or 2 seconds at a pre-determined interval.
too much info, surely. Temp and fuel are needed much more rarely than speed.
An intelligent HUD would only show temp and fuel levels if they was troublesome, and othewise not distract the driver with non-critical info.
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I wonder if there would be a way to give the eyes the impression the speedo was at a much longer distance, thereby stopping the eyes from changing focus?
Sorry, but Toyota beat you to it by about 5 years... The Yaris has system of mirrors whereby the digital readout appears to be much further away than it actually is so your eyes don't need to refocus as far. The position (central, rather than behind the steering wheel) also helps as you glance across rather than down.
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Sorry, but Toyota beat you to it by about 5 years... The Yaris has system of mirrors whereby the digital readout appears to be much further away than it actually is so your eyes don't need to refocus as far. The position (central, rather than behind the steering wheel) also helps as you glance across rather than down.
I had a Yaris for a week while my Corolla was in for waranty work. I hated the central speedo. It should be in front of the driver.
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I had a Yaris for a week while my Corolla was in for waranty work. I hated the central speedo. It should be in front of the driver.
Why? Having it central means it can be higher without obstructing forward visibility, it's not partially hidden behind the wheel, the trip counter buttons etc are easier to get at, I'd imagine it's easier to replace should it come to that as there will be less dismantling to get to it. Might take a while to get used to but I can see nothing about it that makes it worthy of hate. Not sure I could even go back to a stone-age speedo now.
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>> I had a Yaris for a week while my Corolla was >> in for waranty work. I hated the central speedo. >> It should be in front of the driver. Why? Having it central means it can be higher without obstructing forward visibility, it's not partially hidden behind the wheel, the trip counter buttons etc are easier to get at, I'd imagine it's easier to replace should it come to that as there will be less dismantling to get to it. Might take a while to get used to but I can see nothing about it that makes it worthy of hate. Not sure I could even go back to a stone-age speedo now.
Two reasons I can think of off the top of my head:
1) It's taking it further out of your line of sight
2) It would allow the rev counter (also known as SWMBO) to keep an even closer eye on my speed, eliciting much tutting and sighing ;)
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1) It's taking it further out of your line of sight
No, it's actually easier to glance across to where it is rather than look down. You'd need to see one to appreciate it, but it is less of a distraction to look at.
2) It would allow the rev counter (also known as SWMBO) to keep an even closer eye on my speed, eliciting much tutting and sighing ;)
Ah, but that's where you are wrong! It's angled towards the driver so the passenger can't see it at all - indeed, the only other occupant that can see it is the rear passenger behind the driver. ;)
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>> 1) It's taking it further out of your line of sight No, it's actually easier to glance across to where it is rather than look down. You'd need to see one to appreciate it, but it is less of a distraction to look at. >> 2) It would allow the rev counter (also known as SWMBO) >> to keep an even closer eye on my speed, eliciting much >> tutting and sighing ;) Ah, but that's where you are wrong! It's angled towards the driver so the passenger can't see it at all - indeed, the only other occupant that can see it is the rear passenger behind the driver. ;)
Well I'm sold. Shame I can't stand the car it's attached to ;)
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"I hated the central speedo. It should be in front of the driver."
I'm for instruments in front of the driver, too. Central speedos used to be found in commercials and basic cars. Goodnes only knows why the trend has surfaced again. With any luck fashion will eventually restore instruments to where they belong; visible through the steering wheel.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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"I hated the central speedo. It should be in front of the driver." I'm for instruments in front of the driver, too. Central speedos used to be found in commercials and basic cars. Goodnes only knows why the trend has surfaced again. With any luck fashion will eventually restore instruments to where they belong; visible through the steering wheel. Hawkeye ----------------------------- Stranger in a strange land
Try the scenic 2 its entire instrument cluster is centrally positioned and not angled for the driver,one reason could be that it is the same position for left or right hand drive versions. Also the speedo is a digital read out, ie big digits.The temp, fuel and rev counter are bar readouts it takes getting used to.
rustbucket (the original)
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Yup, a glance (1/2 second?) about every 5 seconds is both safe and adequate.
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Yup, a glance (1/2 second?) about every 5 seconds is both safe and adequate.
Hey, this implies that 10% of the time whilst driving is spent looking down at the speedo. Dangerous, surely? (Mind you, it probably takes less tha 0.5 sec to glance at the speedo.)
I'd say that 99% of time should be spent on keen observation. And that's probably as appropriate for a motorway as it is for busy suburbia. Maybe there's a tendency for people to look at the speedo more in built-up areas, not least because of the possibility of cameras.
I really think it's daft that people are even more concerned about exactly matching their speed to the posted limit (and thus being distracted by the speedo) instead of matching it to conditions and being vigilant for hazards. Roll on head-up devices as standard.
BTW, quite like the Yaris's high-dash display on the left.
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Agreed MM, appropriate speed is more important than legal speed.
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Yup, a glance (1/2 second?) about every 5 seconds is both safe and adequate.
But is it more than is necessary?
I've tried forcing myself to not look at the speedo, but after about 10 seconds invariably I give in and I'm back to the instinctive 5 to 6 seconds. I can't remember being taught to do it that often, it's just a habit that I have acquired. What do driving schools currently recommend?
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L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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>"But is it more than is necessary?"
Well, it's what I (and quite a few other people) advocate.
Some of the "other people" are:-
www.cadence.uk.com/index.htm
www.high-performance-course.co.uk/faq.htm
www.ridedrive.co.uk/
All the above are highly recommended.
The following are "starters" - that act as entry points to the 3 really good ones:-
www.iam.org.uk/
www.roada.freeserve.co.uk/
(Oh, and BTW, I hate the Yaris display - ergomically disastrous not having it in direct line of sight)
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Sounds about right.
Contrast my wife. When I drove her car once after a long gap, I asked her how long the speedo had not been working for. She hadn't noticed it wasn't.
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I had better clarify - "a glance (1/2 second?) about every 5 seconds" does refer to straight road, contant speed.
Hazard(s) requires mirror check before signalling and before changing speed.
(mind you, I was "brainwashed" into that "diddly-dum" years ago)
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God - I'm getting senile.
The mirror check being the other glance/check about every 5 seconds.
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Depending on the road conditions, I often use cruise control, which means I can ignore the speedo altogether. On the occasions when I have to slow down, press the resume button and it accelerates back to the last preset speed. Gives me more time to concentrate on what's going on around me.
Andy
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Don't really glance at the speedo much, both with car and bike I pretty much have an instinctive feel for speed, but it's the mileometer that gets me. I know that my Ford Lynx is showing 4014km as of today, my partner's new one is on 740km (time for first service) and my Harley is on 11,514 miles.
...pause while Google look-up for definition anal retention......
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If you get a BMW they have a new Speedo and it's very easy to read. It simply says "Not fast enough".
BMW have also adopted a new and revolutionary braking system. You use the rear bumper of the car in front to slow you down.
This post is aimed at the biscuit case in the 745i on the A303 this morning but could equally be applied to half the Right Hand lane on the M3 at pretty much any time.
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If you get a BMW they have a new Speedo and it's very easy to read. It simply says "Not fast enough".
I don't think that either this or the barking sustem are proprietary technology -- it seems to be fitted to a growing number of VW Passats.
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Interesting typo.....
Think I'll leave it :o)
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I have noticed myself glancing quite a lot at the speedo when around town - I guess i'm just trying to reduce the number of times I break the law each day
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Interesting typo..... Think I'll leave it :o)
I noticed it myself just after I'd pushed the go button.
I thought of posting a please-fixit followup, but I think I reached the same conclusion as you apparently did -- barking might not be a totally inappropriate word in this situation!
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Depends. Cruising gently, if in no particular hurry, engine tone provides sufficient information. On the other hand, if I'm (horribly) late, hard as I might try to cruise at a sensible 75-80 along with the rest of the world, this new supercar of mine is quite capable of reaching a ton before I realise it... cue repentant slackening off and thinking of bank balance...
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ok the reason or blame with me as to why we glance at the speedo quite often lies with 'some' of the manufactuers making it difficult to actually tell how fast you are going with a quick glance.
It's an old chesnut with me that irritates me no end, it's why do manufactuers like Mercedes, Rover, Volkswagen, Renault BMW etc etc insist on having increments of 20mph on the speedo and just a line for anything in between. This gives you just 3 marker points in the whole speed limit range in this country ie 20, 40, 60 and thats it.
I'm sure this is a trade off of cars that are principally designed for the kph scale in units of 20 by continental Europeans and they can't be bothered to give us mph drivers increments of 10.
Mercedes i think are the worst culprits, if you look at the current C class or E class there is plenty of space for the 10mph increments to be placed probably more than other speedo's i've seen.
Thank heavens for manufactuers like Ford,Vauxhall,Citreon, Kia Daewoo etc and virtually all American companies who have the common sense to give us 10,20,30 etc.
Incidentally Daewoo like the Americans have1mph lines in between the 10mph markings, common sense indeed.
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imagos, explicit labels for 20, 30, 40, 50etc makes sense to me, 'cos those are all limits which we are supposed to obey. I'm not so sure, tho, about the merits of the 1mph markings. If the driver has decided to exceed the limit, I don't see how it matters to her that she is exactly 1mph over it rather than 3mph.
Sems to me that the extra ticks on the dial are just visual clutter.
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About 6 maybe more years ago I remember program about some car show on the continent and one of the Japanese manufacturers had prototype with additional HUD with digital speedo semi transparently displayed in bottom half of the windshield. The interesting part was that it would become more visible and distinctively change colour when reaching certain speeds.
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Seems to me that the extra ticks on the dial are just visual clutter.
Take a look at the current Daewoo Tacuma speedo if you can, this has these and is IMO the clearest and best designed dials in a current car i've seen. Ideal for quick glances and to know 'exactly' how fast you're going.
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Indeed. 5mph "marks" would appear to be adequate.
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>> If you get a BMW they have a new Speedo and it's >> very easy to read. It simply says "Not fast enough". I don't think that either this or the barking sustem are proprietary technology -- it seems to be fitted to a growing number of VW Passats.
VW have it as an option on to the Toeurag or whatever that 4x4 thingy is as well. Inches from my bumper 'cos I stuck to 30 on the A508 thru' Grafton Regis.
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Am I alone in hardly ever glancing at my speedo? Probably a couple of times a minute. I'd rather keep my eye on what is going on around me, and once I have set my speed I can tell if I am accelerating or not.
If you have left a decent gap between yourself and the car infront, what does the brief millisecond it takes to refocus to he distance matter? Granted, you may have someone or something suddenly get in your path, but if you have an awareness of what is around you, you will not have been looking at your speedo at that moment in time.
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Not very often on a busy motorway, as there's no need to. You (I) keep up with the ebb & flow of the traffic. Speed is pretty much irrelevant.
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I seems do to glance at the speedo that often. The needle is in my peripheral vision and 30 is at 3 o'clock so I don't actually glance at the speedo. I seem to chack more often in a 40 and rarely on a motorway in fifth as the speedo and rev counter are synchonous and the needles are even more into my peripferal vision. Regards Peter
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Entirely agree about peripheral vision - which is what makes some setups (like Yaris) so bad.
Most speedos have 70 at vertical - dead easy to see.
But - a pedantic point - do you not mean "9 o'clock" for 30 mph?
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Am I alone in hardly ever glancing at my speedo?
No, like you once I've set my speed I can judge if/when and how much it changes.
I check my speed as I approach a speed limit change only.
JaB
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Since I read your post a week ago I've been paying attention to how much I glance at the speedo. Like you I seem to look every few seconds. This is fine when i'm trying to keep to a 30 limit on an empty road, but I found myself looking at the speedo while doing 15 mph in second gear, in heavily congested traffic. This is clearly unnecessary. I have to conclude that I look at the speedo out of habit, not because I need to.
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I have to conclude that I look at the speedo out of habit, not because I need to.
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But isn't it better to be in the habit of looking at your speedo when you don't need to than not looking at it when you do?
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there is an article in this months PCFormat which shows how to make your own in car HUD. It costs around £1200, and that includes GPS too.
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The comment about the time spent glancing at the speedo reminds me of the time in the dark ages when "Wing" mirrors were gradually replaced with door mirrors.
I remember when I had my first car with door mirrors, thinking that it was a retrograde step. The wing mirrors were almost in your line of vision, whereas to look in door mirrors you have to turn your head.
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I think that HUD technology is something to be welcomed. I can imagine that in the future, all cars will have radar with can tell you what objects are around you. No need for shoulder checks anymore. you just keep looking forward, through the HUD projected radar display.
The car will also be able to calculate how far the car infront/behind is, both in distance and time, and will allow us all to keep the 2 second rule. Tailgaters will be greeted with a head up image of a muppet.
And to relieve any stress that may arise, you could have a button installed ontop of the gearstick, and pressing it would simulate a missile being fired at whatever target you were locked on to.
Hang on, why simulate?
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All available now or shortly in a mish mash of cars. MB with active cruise availble now, Volvos shortly with radar sensing door mirrors, BMW's with hud options, various cars with cameras instead of rear view mirrors... times they are a changing.
My ideal would be thus
Sat nav with speed limit database on all roads, updateable via GPRS for roadwork limits etc. This then feeds the hud. Normally the hud displays nothing, if you exceed the limit - the speed comes up on the hud. Same for temp and fuel, dont need to know unless it becomes important, then it displays on the hud.
Information by exception.
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All available now or shortly
but what about the car mounted ASRAAM?
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NO good, you need an ASRSSM
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