No respect to small cars

na01 · 01-01-2006, 10:40 AM

Is it just me but it seems that bigger cars on road (most other cars when you're in Fiesta) think they can push you around cuase you drive a small car?
I swear I don't think if I was driving a V8 I'd get that many idiot drivers suddenly cut in front of you or acting like they own you.
Before you say anything about my driving, No, I don't drive like a grandma nor drive like an idiot.

There's been few times I wanted to get out the car and (well I have once) and told them what they deserve and surprise surprise they shut up once they are confronted by person and not the size of their car.

I've never driven a V8 or bigger car on road so I could not say if it is the same experience regardless what car you drive but I am starting to think peoples (drivers) perception on small cars are you're either a girl or a little wimp behind the wheel.

I've always liked small cars because of their looks, fuel economy and convenience driving in the city but starting to have second thought of getting a small car in the future...

What are your thoughts?

jonbays · 01-01-2006, 10:46 AM

Ever riden a motor bike or a bicycle a lot on busy city roads?

Without being too unkind its kind of like this; the size and speed of an object are proportional to how early your brain not just sees it but acknowledges it as a threat to be considered and dealt with.

How close do you drive behind a Truck, bus, 4WD, car and motorcyle?

It should be the same safe stopping distance for the speed you are travelling at but it isn't is it.

Just human nature nothing really sinister. Not very nice either.

na01 · 01-01-2006, 10:54 AM

So true what you say but the attitude that comes with it from other drivers are starting to p me off. I don't have that much tolerance with idiots especially when they get aggressive.
I guess I need heaps of chill pills in my car and learn to live with it as long as I drive a small car...

Casper · 01-01-2006, 11:00 AM

I've seen it enough to know small cars get treated like dirt by bigger cars. I try not to do it myself as I know it must be infuriating.
One tip (at least in my car) is when I'm going for a long drive (not peak hour) I always turn my headlights on. May not seem like much but I did a test on the ring road one day. Lights off on the way out, lights on when I returned. The difference was remarkable. It worked to a point that with the lights on I actually sqw people do stupid things to actually get out of my lane before I was even behind them.. was almost dangerous in its own right.

xurbanx · 01-01-2006, 11:55 AM

Point agreed.
Especially on the Fiesta, theres other cars you see on the freeway that cut in front of you but I guess thats alright; since 100km on the freeway isn't that fast on a small car compared to those v8's. But yeah it does happen :] And those mums on the 4wd's >.<

mitch_lx · 01-01-2006, 01:16 PM

yep ive found this problem too, had a few eye opening moments.

One was a drunk driver swerving over into my lane when he was passing me, and if i hadnt stepped on the anchors and steered away my car would have been written off. so i sat behind him the whole way into town (because thats where i needed to go) i kept my distance. then at a set of lights they got out of their car and started walking towards my car. my gf was in the car at the time and i was just about ready to get out and try my luck against 3 drunk guys.

another time was when i was sitting in the left lane, doing bout 5kmph over the speed limit (naughty naughty) i was just keeping up traffic flow thats all, and this stupid red p plater cow in a 4wd just rides up the rear end of my car flashing her lights, beeping and screaming out the window at me. i was like WTF theres a right lane with noone in it, use it :P
anyway we get to a round about and she almost ran up the back of me, i hammered it through the round about, got into the right lane and slowed down till she was next to me, i told her i got her plates and im reporting her to the cops :P

since these two incidents ive carried a massive phat black piece of wood in the car. cant be too carefull hey.

tinex · 01-01-2006, 04:51 PM

3 drunk guyes?just go with the car strait on them,thats what all do.

mitch_lx · 01-01-2006, 04:57 PM

id rather be charged with self defence than with reckless driving endangering life, attempted murder etc etc :P

Pieoter · 01-01-2006, 05:52 PM

I find the best thing to do is be assertive. Once these people realise that the little fiesta they wanna push around isn't gonna take it then stop trying. You have insurance for a reason.

Mitch, Best thing to do if someone is takegating you is to first lightly tap the brakes so only the lights come on but no speed taken off, If they keep tailgating slam the brakes. Works every time and they NEVER come back for more.

galaxy xr8 · 01-01-2006, 05:59 PM

I sometimes find this to be a problem in the Laser, tradesman or young fella's in 4wd's with big bullbar's that think they own the road.

Gammaboy · 01-01-2006, 06:02 PM

Funnily enough, I seem to see the opposite effect, retards in small cars (damn excells with the rear fog light on!) carving infront of the big v8 and giving me no room to avoid knocking their a$$ into next week.... oh, and when you're on a motorbike, *everyone* is trying to kill you, mainly through innatention. And yes, i have spent alot of time driving small cars, big v8s, motorbikes and bicycles to experience it all.

outback_ute · 01-01-2006, 09:23 PM

I had an experience on Xmas Eve that belongs in this thread, I learnt that a BA Falcon at 105km/h is actually faster than a Mitsi Sigma at 105km/h! How I discovered this anomaly in the laws of physics is I was traveling up to the country with my sister, & an intelligent P plater in a VK Commodore (who we had passed sitting on the side of the road 5min earlier) overtook my sister in a risky move with oncoming traffic, then sat behind me for the next 40km! There were plenty of opportunities to overtake as well. At one point we came across a car doing 80km/h, I had the perfect opportunity almost straight away & went past, then the VK squandered a kilometre or so long straight before passing, with my sister following straight after (after he had finished overtaking that is). The Sigma is a 2.6 5sp so it is not that slow.

Danny · 01-01-2006, 10:10 PM

Turn on the rear fog when someone tailgates you, look at t he in the rearview with a wild look on your face and slam on the anchors. They dont ever come back, or they pass you.

RedStar71 · 01-01-2006, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny

Turn on the rear fog when someone tailgates you, look at t he in the rearview with a wild look on your face and slam on the anchors. They dont ever come back, or they pass you.

I Love it! Great idea!
I have seen it for years as I love small cars and have always driven them. You always see the idiots going around you for no reason other than your car is smaller than theirs.
All I can say is most big car drivers are compensating for something....and their driving reflects it.
Look at how many girls you see in big 4X4s now!
I am about to drive my Fiesta 2000km from Brisbane to Melbourne and I bet I will see a lot of idiots who will just have to go around my Fiesta because they cannot have a small car in the way.

Gammaboy · 01-01-2006, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny

Turn on the rear fog when someone tailgates you, look at t he in the rearview with a wild look on your face and slam on the anchors. They dont ever come back, or they pass you.

Or they will climb out of their car at the next lights and club the bejesus out of your foglight with a golf club.....

As for the compensating for something comment, grow up.

Danny · 02-01-2006, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gammaboy

Or they will climb out of their car at the next lights and club the bejesus out of your foglight with a golf club.....

As for the compensating for something comment, grow up.

LOL

I never said anything about compensating. I've had big cars in the past, so have the benefit of being part of both crowds.

joshf2 · 02-01-2006, 12:35 PM

i dont think the compensating comment was for you danny, read red's post..... (i had to look for it too ;))

as for the restecp, im not in any position to comment. im far too much of a road rager, and will continue to be until i attend my anger management sessions.

Gammaboy · 02-01-2006, 02:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny

LOL

I never said anything about compensating. I've had big cars in the past, so have the benefit of being part of both crowds.

Yer, sorry, should have made that clearer... it was directed at RedStar71

RedStar71 · 03-01-2006, 01:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gammaboy

Yer, sorry, should have made that clearer... it was directed at RedStar71

C'mon Gammaboy you trying to tell me that girls are buying big 4x4's because they think they are cute?

Gammaboy · 03-01-2006, 02:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedStar71

C'mon Gammaboy you trying to tell me that girls are buying big 4x4's because they think they are cute?

That's not what your comment implied:

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedStar71

All I can say is most big car drivers are compensating for something....and their driving reflects it.

mitch_lx · 03-01-2006, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gammaboy

That's not what your comment implied:

to a degree i think it is true..
i see so many men in their mid 40's driving big big cars with raised suspension and they just look CRANKY as ! and seem to target the car they are most likely able to bully.
seems as though if they have a bad day next time they drive they compensate for their lack of ability in dealing with their problems and instead target other innocent drivers. so to a degree, i think redstars comment is entirely true.

Outbackjack · 03-01-2006, 11:29 AM

Interesting posts here. I live in lil old Alice Springs, things here are quite a bit differenet on the road. Just about every one owns a 4X4, there are probably just as many of them on the road at any one time as any other car. No body has any problem with them. And people own them because they go bush often. Not because they tow the family caravan 100k's out of town once a year!! I own a Nissan Patrol. I often drive it down to MLB ( I use it to tow my small sports car). The issue I have with car drivers in MLB, or any other city, is their obsession with getting in front of me. I always leave heaps of stopping room in front of me, and can ya guess what happens, every man and his dog, usually in small pocket rockets (the girls are the worst) , bust their foo foo's to get past me. I have more than once had the trailer brakes locked up trying not to write of their tiny cars with my huge bull bar!! I can usually see the colour drain out of their face in their rear view mirror when this happens. Once I have calmed down it usually makes me smile. I often wonder if they learn a lesson after this. I actually bumped into a small hyundai in this exact situation. I needed 3inches more stopping room than I had. It was driven by a P plate girlie. She didnt pull over after wards and as she drove off I could see that every piece of plastic tail light was lieing on the road in front of me. No damage to my truck.
I guess we all need to try and anticipate the needs of all the other road users out there. We also need to learn not to get up set by the hords of ****ers on the road as well. Just my 2 cents.

Cheers all, Brian. :baby bott

naughtyfalcon · 03-01-2006, 08:15 PM

i totally disagree with the main thread here,,i've seen alot of these small cars dive in and out of traffic with out looking or indicating,driveing like bats out of hell(especially single female p platers).because they are small they think they can do as they please,,i've been driving the firetruck with lights and siren and those little puss box excel things pull in front and don't indicate when turning(mind you a lot of people think a 15 ton fire truck can stop on a dime)so it happens just as much in reverse so don't go claiming that people driving big cars are the only ones doing it,,and i to have ridden motor bikes,push bikes and driven small cars,buses and trucks,,and all drivers are capable of being idiots.

Danny · 03-01-2006, 09:15 PM

Its really a case of each individual driver, and each individual attitude. It's not really about what they drive, I've had many cars tailgate me and push in from Other Fiesta's to Hyundais, and Hino Trucks. It probably should be left at that.

na01 · 03-01-2006, 09:25 PM

Reading back to my own first post sounds like I was calling all other large vehicle drivers an idiot or dangerous drivers but I actually didn't mean that. I didn't word my thoughts well but what I was trying to say was I feel that you are more likely to be bullied or picked on because you're in a small car. Almost like "ahh little car, outta ma way!" kinda attitude. Or maybe this just applies to Fiesta as it looks kinda cute...
There are definitely idiots on road that drives without much care for others regardless the size of their car or bike but that’s a different story...
I just feel if you're in a sedan or coupe you do not get the same attitude from other drivers compared to if you're in small cars.