Sounds like an interesting technique Jerrykew..
Mild tailgating doesnt bother me and I seem to only rarely experience the so-close-its-uncomfortable/ annoying type.
I normally pay them little attention and on motorways move over at the earliest convenience so they can go and hassle someone else. If that means me speeding up slightly then I don't mind doing that depending on the circumstances, I dont want to be considered a rolling road-block.
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We used to be able to switch off the ignition, and then back on again. The resulting 'rifle shot' would deter most. I once saw the circle of soot this left on the front of a car. Unfortunately this no longer works with injection.
I also had a washer pump pushing oil into the carb' - quite a smoke screen. Not recommended with cats.
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I distinguish between the 2 types:
- those who want to overtake
- those who, apparently, just want to sit on your tail.
With the former, I 'encourage' them to overtake or make it as easy as possible, depending upon
circumstances, i.e. dual carraigeway means simply moving over as quickly & safely as possible, on
single carraigeway, keep well to left & don't speed up (..even slow slighlty)
The latter, well, they're clearly poor drivers and/or have something to prove. In those circumstances,
I must admit, I slip into 'mimsy touring mode'. The aim of which is to convey to them idea that I'm unaware of them &
slightly dozy - 'Look at him, big fast car & 'e can't even drive it ..' so make them feel superior to, & 'sorry' for, me.
I've found any other action, for the aformentioned type, either stokes their misguided passions or stokes mine -
which isn't good. It usually transpires , oddly, that they start to leave a more sensible gap - perhaps a psychologist
here could explain..
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One method that seems to work when required is to get a companion to ostentatiously hold a mobile phone up, and pretend to call for help. Did this when in lines of traffic through Staffordshire, when Saxo boy was driving 6" from the rear. Everyone was doing 40 in monitored roadworks. He backed off. Otherwise, I try to let them get ahead to pester someone else.
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Simplest method of all is to ignore them, complete your overtake, then move aside and let them go and have their accident somewhere else.
These people are unhinged enough to be sitting an unsafe distance off your tail. They are not interested in safety or anyone else's opinion on their driving. They want everything in front of them out of the way, because they are late/impatient/angry/idiotic [delete as applicable]. They are not reasonable people. Therefore, doing anything to provoke them is pointless, not to say plain daft.
Before anyone accuses me of sanctimony, in the past I've brake-tested such people, washed the windscreen at them, gesticulated at them, wound the window down and shouted abuse at them, chased after them flashing headlights and all the rest of it. All I ever succeeded in doing was winding myself up to the point of apoplexy and making myself look even more of a prat than the person who had riled me. A couple of times I was lucky not to get thumped (or worse) - there are plenty of people in my area who carry implements of one sort or another in their vehicles for "protection".
Cue Growlette quote: "Whatever his/her problem is, why do you want to be a part of it?"
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Paulb: been there, done that and 100% agree. I gave up trying to "teach people a lesson" after nearly coming to blows with one guy and a passing police patrol got involved. It's really not worth trying to punish/respond in any fashion, move over when possible, leave a nice safe gap in front and try not to let the pink fluffy dice get you down! :)
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I used to drive a Fiat Tipo turbo diesel which had a manual cold start knob (I assume to retard the point of injection). Change down, floor the throttle and simmultaneously pull out the cold start knob. Result: a thick cloud of greasy, stinking black smoke enough to discourage even the most dedicated tailgater. I still think affectionately of that car when I get an idiot too close behind.
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Get yourself a bloomin' great 4x4. They can tailgate me until the cows come home and I couldn't give a monkey's. If they want to test the long-established laws of kinetic energy by driving into 2.7tonnes of 4x4 with a towbar on the back they are welcome to it.
Numpty in an Avensis tried to squeeze his car through a gap exactly 6" narrower than his car recently, after spectacularly undertaking a load of people queuing on a busy slip road to join a contra-flowed dual carriageway. Sadly the gap had an unyielding stretch of Armco on one side and my equally unyielding and stationary Disco on the other. End result for him was the need for a new door, wing and mirror while I just took a sharp blade to the small scuff on the wheelarch and it looked like new.
Best bit? He initially wasn't stopping, so I made it fairly clear with my headlights and an insistent point to the left that he pull over. On doing so he called the police and told them I had run him off the road..... They turned up, took one look at the tyre marks on the road and the damage to his car and told him if he persisted in talking such utter Horlicks they'd do him for wasting police time. I rather struggled to not chuckle out loud.
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On a motorway I race ahead, and lose them, then slow down.
Off a motorway I pull over and let them pass. They are a menace and they can bully someone else.
Colleagues would tell me that gentle braking worked. I was once on a motorway, overtaking in lane 3, with Charlie Boy behind sniffing my exhaust. It was quite scary how close he was. I first tried to see if I could move left, requiring a bit of braking to equalise my speed with the cars in lane 2, but there was not room. So I continued, and then pulled in when safe. Charlie Boy zoomed past, then just after clearing me, he swerved in, and slammed on his brakes. Clearly intended as 'punishment'. We nearly collided. It was a terrifying experience.
People who tailgate demonstrate that they are dangerous maniacs with little concern for their own safety, so I now avoid any form of provocation, and try to get them away from me, with as little aggro as possible. I think that is the best approach. You can't argue with someone who either does not know they are dangerous, or is psychotic.
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You can lose tailgaters by going fast. Driving in company with another car, even one driven by a total stranger, is quite different. Under those circumstances no one feels annoyed or threatened, quite the contrary. It doesn't happen all that often though. Most people haven't got the brains for it.
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You can lose tailgaters by going fast. Driving in company with another car, even one driven by a total stranger, is quite different. Under those circumstances no one feels annoyed or threatened, quite the contrary. It doesn't happen all that often though. Most people haven't got the brains for it.
When I'm in Germany this is exactly what I do. A quick burn up to 260kph soon sees them a dot in the rear view mirror. Sadly I don't drive there as often as I do in countries with very low speed limits.
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An A4 driver slagging of BMW drivers, oh the irony :-)))))
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The problem with allowing tailgaters to get their way by letting them pass you is that it reinforces to them that bullying works. After several occurrences they will begin to expect that others will move out of the way for them and will genuinely believe that anyone who doesn't move out of the way is in the wrong.
Also, I see a lot of cases where tailgaters effectively push drivers over into the 'slow' lane before they are ready. I can imagine that these slower drivers are not comfortable with this and are liable to make mistakes because they feel under pressure. As an example, the slower driver may change lane without checking if it is clear to do so because they allow the tailgater to intimidate them to the point where they are only thinking about the tailgater.
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The problem with allowing tailgaters to get their way by letting them pass you is that it reinforces to them that bullying works. After several occurrences they will begin to expect that others will move out of the way for them and will genuinely believe that anyone who doesn't move out of the way is in the wrong. Also, I see a lot of cases where tailgaters effectively push drivers over into the 'slow' lane before they are ready. I can imagine that these slower drivers are not comfortable with this and are liable to make mistakes because they feel under pressure. As an example, the slower driver may change lane without checking if it is clear to do so because they allow the tailgater to intimidate them to the point where they are only thinking about the tailgater.
A case in point
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004...l
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> You can lose tailgaters by going fast. Driving in company with another car, even one driven by a total stranger, is quite different. Under those circumstances no one >feels annoyed or threatened, quite the contrary. It doesn't happen all that often though. Most people haven't got the brains for it.
Let & live live and all that, but this sounds like a recipe for disaster. Perhaps it's a small mercy , that "Most people haven't got the brains for it." -
what unwitting 3rd party might have to pay the price?
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Let & live live and all that, but this sounds like a recipe for disaster. Perhaps it's a small mercy , that "Most people haven't got the brains for it." - what unwitting 3rd party might have to pay the price?
No offence woodbines, but what could you be talking about?
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An A4 driver slagging of BMW drivers, oh the irony :-)))))
Where have any A4 drivers slagged off BMW drivers? If you mean me as I also have a 635 sat in the garage I think your argument is a bit poleaxed. The problem I have is with tailgaiters, the fact many of them seem to drive 4 cylinder petrol and diesel poverty spec BMWs is merely a matter of fact rather than prejudice.
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Calm down Oldhand, I just can't believe there's not a few A4 1.9 TDIs/Merc C200 CDIs tailgating you too. Maybe they can see a faint outline of the RS4 badge and are just checking it out :-)
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>>The problem I have is with tailgaiters, the fact many of them seem to drive 4 cylinder petrol and >>diesel poverty spec BMWs is merely a matter of fact rather than prejudice.
The last person to tailgate me was a 60 plus male driving an expensive looking Volvo. I was quite suprised.
Clk Sec
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I used to drive a Fiat Tipo turbo diesel which had a manual cold start knob (I assume to retard the point of injection). Change down, floor the throttle and simmultaneously pull out the cold start knob. Result: a thick cloud of greasy, stinking black smoke enough to discourage even the most dedicated tailgater. I still think affectionately of that car when I get an idiot too close behind.
I used to drive a Renault 18 2.1d Estate and even without a cold start knob used to be able to pull the same trick.
These modern diesels are just no fun, are they?
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" The problem with allowing tailgaters to get their way by letting them pass you is that it reinforces to them that bullying works."
Well yes, but so it goes. They potentially endanger me by tailgating, and my aim is to get rid of them safely and quickly. If they have an accident elsewhere, well, what can I do.
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" The problem with allowing tailgaters to get their way by letting them pass you is that it reinforces to them that bullying works." Well yes, but so it goes. They potentially endanger me by tailgating, and my aim is to get rid of them safely and quickly. If they have an accident elsewhere, well, what can I do.
Exactly, Leif. A car journey is not a contest; the idea is to get from one place to another in one piece and keeping aggravation to a minimum, as far as possible.
If you (meant in the general sense, rather than aimed at anyone specific) deliberately try to obstruct these people (whether it be to show them that you won't be bullied or for any other reason) the most likely result is that they will do something really stupid to get past you which will place you in even greater danger than them sitting glued to your rear bumper.
And if moving out of their way means that they get their way, what of it? Does it diminish your stature in some way? Of course not. You have merely dealt with an irritant in a manner that causes you the least possible exertion, and the irritant is now someone else's problem.
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Who seriously thinks a tail gater is a serious threat to them? OK when I'm on the bike and sticking to limits the thought is there...but with 6 foot of seats, metal, boot space and crumple zones between me and them? Do be serious.
My usual tactic is - speed limits strictly adhered to, booting it when I get up to NSL limits to both cover them and smoke and 9/10 leave them floundering as the search for a gear (Or more likely dawdle through the NSL at 40mph, flashing all who dare to overtake them)
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Who seriously thinks a tail gater is a serious threat to them? OK when I'm on the bike and sticking to limits the thought is there...but with 6 foot of seats, metal, boot space and crumple zones between me and them? Do be serious.
OK if the tailgater is a car and the rear seats are unoccupied. We were four up in the Berlingo and tailgated through the Dartford tunnel by an artic so close SWMBO could not see him in the mirror.
Regrettably the letter of complaint to the well known haulier involved never got posted.
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Leave room to the car in front, if the artic nudges you then you have somewhere to go, Dartford tunnel must be under video
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>> " The problem with allowing tailgaters to get their way >>by letting them pass you is that it reinforces to them >>that bullying works." >> >> Well yes, but so it goes. They potentially endanger me >>by tailgating, and my aim is to get rid of them >>safely and quickly. If they have an accident elsewhere, well, what >>can I do. Exactly, Leif. A car journey is not a contest; the idea is to get from one place to another in one piece and keeping aggravation to a minimum, as far as possible.
[snip]And if moving out of their way means that they get their way, what of it? Does it diminish your stature in some way? Of course not. You have merely dealt with an irritant in a manner that causes you the least possible exertion, and the irritant is now someone else's problem.
If someone learns it's ok to tailgate they will do it to someone else, and someone else's bully will do it to you so the whole thing propagates. While I agree that you can diffuse the situation by moving out of their way, you can't eliminate the risk entirely - your safety is compromised every time this happens.
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Paulb: "If you (meant in the general sense, rather than aimed at anyone specific) deliberately try to obstruct these people (whether it be to show them that you won't be bullied or for any other reason) the most likely result is that they will do something really stupid to get past you which will place you in even greater danger than them sitting glued to your rear bumper. "
Exactly.
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>> These modern diesels are just no fun, are they?
Oh for a jet car (Rover 90 ?), give 'em a blast of the afterburner.
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I understand that in Germany cameras are set to capture tailgaters, just an adjustment to the software I suppose. Now there is a sensible use of technology! However, it is only about safety, not money, so we'll never see it over here!
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if its safe to do so I move out one lane, slam the brakes on, drop back in behind them and then laugh at them accelrate up to the next car in front and watch them do the same whileI happily keep my distance behind them. the ultimate satisfaction will come one day when one of these idiots goes into the back of a car after Ive dropped behind them to act as witness to their appalling driving.
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Talk of the devil, some loser in a BMW tailgated all through Chobham 30/40 zones, then disappeared in the NSL twisty bits...grrrrr...I would have a shred of admiration if they actually kept up, the fact they disappear as soon as it goes to being more than a straight line really winds me up!
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mss1tw : "Who seriously thinks a tail gater is a serious threat to them?"
Me do.
A few years back I was driving along the M4 near Maidenhead heading towards Slough. The car in front was carrying a large wooden door which fell off. The door hit the road, and broke up into long planks. These bounced around across all three lanes causing mayhem. I started emergency braking, and steered onto the hard shoulder, away from the debris. When I started braking I checked my rear view mirror and saw a large black Merc taking avoiding action by changing lanes. Eeeek.
Basically a very serious accident was avoided because a) I kept a good distance behind the vehicle in front which gave me time to avoid the debris and b) the Merc behind me kept his distance from me, allowing him to cope with my emergency braking.
Also imagine what happens when you come to a stop in a jam on the motorway, and a big truck behind you is too close and does not brake in time. You become pate. Splat. If you haven't seen film of a car being rear ended by a large truck, it is not nice.
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If you haven't seen film of a car being rear ended by a large truck, it is not nice.
Link me up!
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Install a switch on the dash which turns your brake lig hts on.
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Some very interesting comments, unfortunately tailgaters don't read this or the highway code. What i can't figure out is this; if I speed up which usually means breaking the law, get a good distance ahead, they simply speed up, catch up and tailgate again. After a couple of these I give up and just slow right down hoping they will overtake. They never get the message. Sometimes they seem to only want to tailgate for company. I have often overtaken to get away from them and they then happily sit on the tail of the vehicle i have just overtaken. Weird. Major offenders are white van man and young women drivers. Why? Concrete.
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