Stuff About Cars

Every pub has its characters, and most probably have at least one grumpy old man. Ours is a chap who can only be adequately (and accurately) described as an old git.

I won’t name him, as some people who know him read this blog, but he is a menace. He comes in three nights a week and has two glasses of red wine. As the landlord pours the wine, this fellow blatantly crouches at the bar, peering over his glasses to make sure that the level of his drink reaches the line on the glass. Nothing discreet about it… it is actually very rude.

Most annoyingly, part of his ritual upon arrival is to check the expiry dates on the tax discs on the cars in the car park. He then gleefully assails any unfortunate person whose disc has expired, and gives a very, very annoying countdown to those for whom renewal is imminent.

One of these days I’m gonna…

I know 4×4’s get some bad press these days, and justifiably so in many cases, but some of these vehicles don’t deserve criticism - they deserve a medal!

I wouldn’t be without my cheap little Japanese 4×4. I drive it with a clear conscience because it has a very small engine (about 1300cc), and it is driven mostly out in the countryside - not for urban posing. Anyway, who in their right mind would pose in a Suzuki Jimny?

The snow yesterday was a nuisance. Our village is always one of the first to get cut off, and this year the roads were treacherous as always. Trying to get up the hill that I have to tackle to get into town was a bit dodgy, and a number of cars in front of me gave up and turned round. With all four wheels driving, and taking it slowly, I managed to get up there.

A little later, as I got near the office, I had to drop a colleague at a house on a street where the snow lay deep, almost undisturbed, and very slippery indeed. As I progressed (again, very slowly) I saw a car up ahead hit a particularly slidey patch. The rear slid round and gently struck one of the cars parked along the kerb. Once again, having power to all four wheels allowed me to go over the same patch without mishap, while the other chap was still checking to see if he’s damaged the car he’d hit.

The big 4×4s might be a menace, but these little ones save so much bother.

In a comment on the previous post, a visitor asked if I was one of those people to whom one of today’s media reports refers. The topic in question is that of road rage, and it has indeed been in the news today.

Below is a press release from Green Flag, who have conducted a survey.

* * * * *

2 February 2007

A third admit being affected by road rage once a week or more often

Most drivers admit driving while angry or stressed at other road users, reveals a survey by Brake and breakdown specialist, Green Flag.

The survey of more than 1,000 drivers also shows that a startlingly high number drive while dangerously distracted by stress and anger at least once a week – almost a third.

Key findings of the survey:
Eight in ten drivers (78%) drive while angry or stressed about other road users, with one in three (31%) doing so once a week or more often
More than six in ten drivers (63%) drive while feeling angry or stressed at something unrelated to driving
Three-quarters of drivers (74%) drive while thinking about something other than work such as personal issues
More than nine in ten (95%) drivers agree that it is important to keep calm and focused while driving for safety reasons

Driving while stressed or angry can be extremely distracting and affect the way you drive. Research has shown that angry drivers are more likely to take risks such as speeding, rapidly switching lanes, tailgating and jumping red lights. Driving in this way increases your chance of being involved in a crash.(1)

Stress is a constant theme in our lives. It the second biggest cause of time off work, and is estimated to cost the country £13bn a year.(2) Research has shown that around 12 million adults see their GP with mental health problems each year and many of these are stress-related.(3)

Most drivers realise the dangers of driving while angry or stressed, and yet the vast majority still drive while distracted by stress or anger at other road users or something unrelated to driving.

Driving requires your full attention, and Brake advises all drivers who are feeling particularly angry or stressed to pull over at a safe place and allow time to calm down. You should only begin driving again once you are able to give your full attention to the road. You should take regular breaks at least every two hours to help concentration and should never jump into a car after an argument or if your mind is elsewhere.

Brake is calling on the Government to take urgent action to stop the daily carnage on our roads by introducing year-round, high-profile advertising campaigns to warn the public about the dangers of road rage and give advice on how to be a safer driver.

Case study:
Tara Bradshaw, aged seven weeks
Seven-week-old Tara Bradshaw died when the car she and her parents were in was forced into the path of an oncoming van. David Waterman, 24, of Harlow, Essex, lost his temper and drove his Vauxhall Cavalier into the car Tara Bradshaw was in, forcing it into the oncoming lane, Chelmsford Crown Court heard. Waterman was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and sentenced to tenyears in prison.
BBC News Online, 15 April 2005

Jools Townsend, head of education at Brake, says: “Driving is the most dangerous activity most of us do on a daily basis, and requires complete concentration. The demands of modern life often leads to stress and frustrations - and research shows that many of us succumb to stress on a regular basis. Driving while distracted by worries or frustrations can lead to fatal errors, or even dangerous, aggressive driving of the kind that killed Tara Bradshaw. We need to see drivers taking responsibility for their own safety and that of others, and not allowing themselves to drive if they’re not fully calm and focused. We also urge the Government to address this issue by introducing advertising campaigns warning drivers of the dangers they face, and giving advice on how to deal with anger and stress on the road.”

Nigel Charlesworth, spokesperson for Green Flag, commented: “It is worrying that so many people admit to driving while feeling stressed putting themselves and others at risk. Motorists should remain calm when driving to ensure they are concentrating fully on the road and if very stressed, should think twice about getting behind the wheel.”

I mean it. More tempers fray at those spots where two lanes of traffic filter into one lane than anywhere else on the face of the planet.

There is a place in Dunstable on the A505 where two lanes filter into one as one heads into the town centre past Wickes and Sainsbury’s. I endure this dreadful spot every day on my way to the office, and have seen untold mayhem, carnage and screaming grotesque death caused by the filter there.

Ok, the screaming death bit was a slight exaggeration, but it really does bring out the worst in some people - including me.

The principle that one needs to observe in order for traffic lane filtering to work smoothly and without violence couldn’t be simpler: each car in lane 1 allows one car from lane 2 to filter in front of him. They alternate: one car from lane 1 goes through then one car from lane 2, then another from lane 1 and then another from lane 2 etc etc etc.

How much simpler does it need to be?

But one of two things will always happen:

1) Driver in lane 1 drives right up the arse of the car in front of him leaving about 1cm space between them. He’ll be damned if he’s letting anyone in front of him. This knobhead makes enemies of the driver of the car in front (to whom he is driving too close), and of the driver in the car beside him, who just wants to be allowed to take his place in the flow of traffic.

2) The alternative scenario is that a driver in lane 2 has seen the car in front of him successfully move over in front of a considerate lane 1 driver who is allowing him to filter. Ah ha! he thinks. I’ll have some of that… and he promptly tries to barge across in front of that same considerate car instead of waiting his turn and filtering in behind it.

These rude and obnoxious people make me *so* mad. I make it policy not to chicken out. I WILL filter as is my right according to the rules I set out above. If I am in lane 1 then I will let one car filter across in front of me. If I am in lane 2 I will filter across in front of the first car that doesn’t already have a lane 2 vehicle filtering in front of it.

I will give no quarter and take no prisoners. Anyone stubborn enough to push it and call my bluff will get a dented car.

You have been warned. That is all.

Grrrr…

Or at least that is what I tell my daughters, my wife and a lady colleague. I don’t necessarily believe it, but it’s one of those things one says to tease, with tongue firmly in cheek. The mild outrage it sometimes provokes is gratifying, and usually harmless.

Yesterday I encountered what was either a disproof of the theory of female parking deficiency syndrome, or an exception that proves it as a rule.

I finally felt compelled to pop into town to pay the late credit card bills over which I had been procrastinating since the beginning of the month. I pulled into the car park and paused to look for a space. I spotted one - it was a bit tight, but just about doable, so I made for it. Just as I approached, a red Nissan hatchback shot past me, and reversed smartly into the space. The driver emerged, smiled, and locked up her car before vanishing into the shopping precinct.

To add insult to injury, when I finally found a free space, another tight one, it took me three attempts before I got in neatly.

Bugger.

I could be wrong, but late autumn and winter seem like stupid times to repair the roads - at least to the low standard of many of the repairs I see.

It seems that they come along and shove heaps of tarmac into the potholes then stomp it down flat. Maybe it’s more technical than that, but I don’t see it. Anyway, the way it’s usually done, you can bet that it’ll pour with rain the next day. The water seeps down under the fresh tarmac and the next day a hard frost freezes it, thus lifting and cracking the tarmac. It’s crap, and needs redoing withing weeks.

On the other hand, more rarely, I see repairs where a much smoother kind of tarmac is used, and these repairs seem to have neat edges that have been (apparently) melted into place. Water can clearly not get in underneath, and the whole job lasts a lot longer.

If they’re going to do it the cheap way, why do it in winter when the shortcomings of their shoddy job get exposed so soon? Madness.

…If I wasn’t so lazy, that is.

I shoved the car through a car was yesterday. I had to, the dirt was so thick that all the extra weight was costing me a fortune in fuel…

Why do I do it? Every time I have the same list of gripes. It’s bloody expensive, it bends my radio aerial if I forget to put it down beforehand and, most annoying, it doesn’t clean the back of my car properly. The car is a small, Japanese 4×4 with the spare wheel mounted on the rear tailgate. These car wash thingies, for some reason, cannot get their electronic brains around the contours of a vehicle with a rear mounted spare. All goes ok until the wash brushes get to the top of the spare tyre, then the machine loses it altogether. When I get it outside and take a look, most of the back of the car, including the number plate, hasn’t been washed, and is still covered in crap.
The most annoying thing is that other 4×4 owners know the signs of someone who can’t be bothered to clean his own car by hand. Oh, the humiliation of it. Yes, I know I could clean it myself, but that just ain’t gonna happen… at least not more than a couple of times a year.

A while back that stupid little engine light came on in my car. Anyway, as I reported here, I asked my friendly local mechanic about it and he said “If it’s running ok then don’t panic”. So I didn’t. A week or so later he took the car into the workshop and put some kind of cleaning stuff through the catalytic convertor. All fine, the light went out and I was happy.

Well, now the damned thing has come on again. I haven’t spoken to Andrew yet. I’m hoping he’s going to say that everything’s alright again, but I think I recall him saying that, if it came back on, a more substantial solution to the issue might have to be found.

Oddly enough, I’m not actually complaining about the car. It’s been great for 80,000 miles, and never let me down despite being driven across bumpy, snow-covered fields and up Irish mountains. But it is reaching that stage where things become worn, and it’s getting to feel like as soon as one worn out bearing, or whatever, gets replaced, something else starts to creak.

If I had any money I’d buy a new car. But I can’t afford Guinness AND a new car, so the choice is clear. Looks like I’ll be walking soon…

I read an online article last weekend (which I now cannot find) which highlighted some possible health issues that may affect those who drive for long distances or for long periods of time. I’m really annoyed that I didn’t bookmark it, because I wanted to write about it here.

Never mind, I’ll cover it briefly from memory as well as I can.

Apparently driving can be pretty bad for you.

• The lack of exercise means it can contribute to obesity and possibly heart disease.
• Extended immobility in sitting position can increase the likelihood of blood clots. It can also cause or aggravate back problems
• Driving can be stressful and can aggravate stress related conditions and raise blood pressure
• There is a significant risk of accident and injury

There was more, but these I clearly recall being listed.

No wonder people love their cars so much…

Anyone here suffered any ill effects they blame on driving?

I was quite pleased to see that legislation has been introduced that will shift the cost burden of scrapping cars from the driver to the car makers.

This story (click to read) tells how scrapping a car properly can cost the owner up to £50. A new scheme means that the car manufacturers will now foot the bill.

The idea is that if owners don’t have to pay to scrap their vehicles, then fewer cars should get abandoned in cities, towns and rural areas. If cars should are scrapped properly, there is an opportunity for a large percentage of the component material to be recycled.

I hope it works. The idea seems sound to me.