Safe Speed Forums

I consistantly get 50mpg out of my Smart roadster without even trying, if most of the tank is used on the motorway I get 55mpg at a cruise speed of 63 - 65mph, if I need to accelerate to say 75mph to get a clean overtake then I do. I can get close to 40mpg out of a 2.5L petrol cruising at 70mph, on one occasion driving from Swansea M4 to M25 jnc 4 I got 39mpg at an average speed of 70mph using a cruise speed of 72mph. That with two passengers, a dog and holiday luggage in the car, I did remove the effect of a couple of stops to water the dog etc.. While I would not call that hyper-mileing I would consider it very reasonable for the car in question (technically a gas-guzzler) all without holding other road users up or getting precious about my right to drive at the speed I wanted to.

If you want to max out your mpg then go for it, I suspect it means you apply excellent forward observation, however you have to be aware that this is an extreme performance method which it may be inappropriate to practice in certain conditions. Just as a driver should not drive at high speeds where this will compromise safety, hyper-mileing should not be practised where it will do the same.

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Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May

It takes two to tango; if there were no SlowAPs, there'd be no-one to overtake.



So, every single driver that you hold up, calls you names, tailgates you, and ultimately gets in to road rage with you? No wonder you've got so much anger to vent on the internet! Go for a nice fast drive, you'll find it very relaxing!

Strangely though, I find really slow drivers like Abercrombie less annoying than the 1 mph below the limit brigade, as at least you can more easily overtake them!

Lesson here, A: if you want to really annoy me, drive a bit faster!

I'm glad it gives you a sense of accomplishment - some people are very easily satisfied, it seems.

that's not accomplishment... that's progress!


(similar scenario i encounter in the pool, its alot better to swim in a lane with a mix of slow and fast people, the passes are easy and quickly accomplished with minimum risk of collisions and without expending too much extra energy..... as opposed to someone who's only a few seconds a length slower than you who takes alot more time and energy to pass. then again lane swimming ettiquette suggests pausing at the end of a length to allow a faster swimmer through, toe tapping from the swimmer behind is even used to indicate they want to get past, pushing off ahead of a faster swimmer is also frowned upon as it's clear you're just going to impede them anyway. sadly you always get the (often male) pride and those that don't understand the ettiquette pushing off doing breaststroke ahead of you or speeding up when they realise they're being passed or repeatedly not pausing at the turn.)

I've been there for some time, it is you who can agree so readily with this statement, and yet has trouble applying that empathy to those you wilfully impede.



This is rather inconsistent with your earlier standpoint. Do you suffer from multiple personality disorder? (serious question)

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Regulation without education merely creates more criminals.

Do you mean on a dual c/way ?
Where most of the time I would be at 60 and on the inside lane ?
In that case I would not need to: So, no.
On a m/way ?
Same as above.
On a sc/way ?
Where most of the time I would be at 50 max....with trucks at 40 ?
No need to go slow[er] or give way, or pull-in.
On a sc/way with no lead traffic and me at 50 max....and a line of cars behind ?
That would depend on various factors....in the dark, with wet weather...no.
In daylight, any weather: Probably.
Mind you, I could do with a bit of consideration from car drivers. The vast majority do not even KNOW that trucks and vans have separate speed limits, and they expect both to accelerate at the same rate as a m/cycle.
I suppose I could consider pulling-in when I'm driving up a hill and the speed drops a bit....but to what end ?
And I'm not going to be prosecuted for inconsiderate driving when I'm at 10 below the posted max....and the trucks are in front of me !
Going by experience, the cars passing me then slow down to a speed the same as mine....and THEY do not bother to pull ahead of me to leave sufficient room for another to overtake INTO !
Inconsiderate works both ways.

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The world runs on oil, period. No other substance can compete when it comes to energy density, flexibility, ease of handling, ease of transportation. If oil didn’t exist we would have to invent it.”

56 years after it was decided it was needed, the Bedford Bypass is nearing completion. The last single carriageway length of it.We have the most photogenic mayor though, always being photographed doing nothing

I must admit that one thing I find frustrating when I am driving a twisty NSL road is the "staright line speeders", they can keep to the limit (or above it) in a straight line but brake madly at the slightest bend when most experienced drivers would keep their speed up or just ease off the throttle a bit. You have no chance of overtaking them on the straights but they hold you up on anything that isn't a "motorway straight". I suppose it's lack of experience but you do get some older drivers who are just as bad.

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.

Some, apparently, get satisfaction from holding other drivers up, it seems. At least my satisfaction is not at the expense of others.

Maybe that depends on the nature of the corner in question? The limit point of the corner may be moving away from you (suggesting that it's ok to apply power), but forward vision may dictate that holding back is the better course of action. Lots of Salop roads are like this (the one between Ludlow and Seifton being a case in point).

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Simon

My late boss in a previous job epitomised the breed! He had a relativley powerful big Merc and would drive at a snail's pace on any kind of twisty section, then boot it on every straight. You could sense the frustration and rage in the queue of frustrated drivers behind him almost FEEL the teeth marks in their steering wheels!

On my B road commute some of the left hand corners give a good overtaking opportunity. By positioning well to the right you get a good view from the apex of the subsequent short straight and can begin ovetaking immediately you establish that the road ahead is clear

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

"Aggressive teenager"? If only I were still that young!

I turned 31 a couple of months back - and I don't do aggressive, only assertive.

Now, things I look for when buying a car:

Comfort.
Performance.
Reliability.
After-sales service (my local garage is brilliant actually).

More specifically:

Comfort - yesterday I spent nearly 11 hours behind the wheel on a trip from where I live north of Bristol to Plymouth, then to Barnstaple, then to Two Bridges (on Dartmoor) then back to Plymouth, then back home again. Whatever car I have the driving seat has to be a pleasant place to be.

Performance - I would not even consider buying a car with a 0-60 time in double figures. While 0-60 isn't something you do very often this figure gives a good indication of how quickly you can accelerate from, say 35mph to 70mph to overtake the likes of Abercrombie in an NSL (then obviously drop back to 60 once you've overtaken safely, as we don't condone breaking speed limits, oh no!). My current car will do 0-60mph in around 6.5 seconds (was 7.5 before I chipped it) - so clearly from a rolling start will go from SlowAP speed of 35mph up to safe overtaking speed in a couple of seconds.

Also I certainly wouldn't want to go back to a FWD car. In a way I wish Audi did a choice between RWD and AWD on the A4 and above, the FWD A4 is just about ok but not a patch on a Merc C-class (RWD). The FWD A6 just doesn't feel "right", a car that big needs RWD. However comparing the A4 Quattro to the FWD version (as discussed in another thread) the AWD version is a totally different animal to drive. It feels much more sure-footed than the FWD, it doesn't understeer, it doesn't torque steer, it just sticks to the road like glue even in the wet, goes where you point it and will out-corner most stuff. To paraphrase what was said in the thread I started a while back on preferred drive layouts "AWD can achieve entry speeds into a bend that will thoroughly embarrass a RWD car, never mind FWD".

Reliability - I do around 35,000 miles a year so I need something that isn't going to break down. I guess that rules out Alfa-Romeo then!

After-sales - I've been using the local Audi centre for the last 4-5 years, I'm on first name terms with pretty much all the staff and whenever I pop in for something (booking a service, accessories etc) the girl on reception always says "can I get you a coffee or are you going self-service today?" I was considering going for a C-class when I next changed the car just for a change but with the level of service I get from the local garage I've decided I'm sticking with Audi. I did once use another franchised dealer (not my usual one) and while the service could be described as "fairly good" there's only really my usual place that I could describe as "excellent".

Plus they let me sit in their R8 and make "brum brum" noises! Haven't convinced them to let me have the keys yet though...

So Aber - take my advice and trade up to a proper car. Something like an R8.

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Magistrates rule #1: "Never let justice get in the way of a conviction."

The problem is your exit speed may need to be zero and for that AWD has no advantage, though granted your options for changing your line mid corner are better if you do not have to stop.

Sorry if my posts always seem to be sniping at you, that is not my intention. It is more a case that I have been there, done it and thought the same, then realised I might not be right. You obviously think about your driving so my comments are aimed at supplying extra ideas for you to consider and make your own conclusions from.



I have had a full license for 27 years as of last month.

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Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May

And I got mine 7 years before squirrel was born - not that makes me a better driver, just a luckier one

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

ah.. a welcome diversion.

how often in everyday driving on public road is entry speed into a corner actually dictated by grip/handling ?
quite rarely i expect.

Agree - but unfortunately there is a large minority of road users whose attitude is obvious from their aggressive (sorry - assertive ) behaviour. They feel entitled to treat the road as their playground because they've got a grey diesel german car, or they do a lot of miles, or they pay "road tax", or whatever. Anyone else using the road for their own purposes is just a hindrance. It can be amusing seeing the pent-up fury of some of these drivers when they inevitably get stuck at the next traffic lights, or at the back of another line of traffic. It is just a shame that this attitude is so dangerous when it is allowed in charge of a 2-ton machine in a public space.

Ideally never

Besides AWD only gets really interesting when you have run out of grip, i.e. high slip angle, but not handling and ability

Strictly off road stuff when done deliberately, but very useful to be able to do if it happens unplanned on the road. If anything learning how to do it made me drive slower, something to do with how easily you can get it wrong.

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Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May

intersting, just doing our corporate online 'safe driving awareness' course....

it claims 'The majority of all accidents are caused by distracted drivers.' (i wont pass comment on that).. and then later 'Watch out for these signs of distracted drivers on the road........ Driving at least 10 miles under the speed limit'.

certainly i find another driver's speed in a given context can give alot of hints about their likely future behaviour & responses.

Yes, I've just followed someone at the head of a queue following a tow truck at 30MPH in a NSL limit, not overtaking even though they had a few chances, then when they got to the next roundabout they turned left without signalling (or using a mirror, I would bet). It's afact that the drivers who drive at 40MPH in a NSL always get closer scrutiny from me for doing the unexpected.

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.