Deal with tailgating drivers on NZ roads.

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#690648 24-Sep-2012 14:45

gmball: The most frustrating example of NZ driving habits are all the people who drive below or at the posted speed limit in the right hand lane (where two lanes exist), while driving at the same speed as those in the left lane.

This often results in tailgating out of shear frustration.

They are usually the ones that will give you the fingers etc when you flash the brights at them to get them to move over.

Richard rich.ms

D1023319

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#690649 24-Sep-2012 14:48

mattwnz:
I believe the signs on curved roads are the safe wet road speeds to turn the corner at.

As one size fits all - I think the corner limits are set conservatively for vehicles high sided vans and laden trucks which are not applicable for most modern cars hence why they are only guidelines and not mandated.

mattwnz:
I am just wondering why people believe they can go 10km over the speed limit. I though these speed cameras were now going to get people going 5kms over the limit, even if you are overtaking.

As said here already - most vehicles speedos are 10% out so when it says 100kph you are only going just over 90pkh.

hobsonlea

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#690651 24-Sep-2012 14:49

John2010: As well as what nakedmolerat says, check your speedo with a GPS.?Speedos?often read 5-10% low so you may be driving much slower than you think you are.

I have calibrated all the vehicles I have driven recently (last 4 years) in NZ - with several different GPS units.
All cars I have measured, had speedometers that overstated the speed the vehicle it is travelling at by 5-10%

I was surprised however that in the USA - most of the cars I have hired have had more accurate Speedo's. May just be coincidence - but some have had no difference between GPS and Speedo.

Wikipedia has a good summary of the accuracy of Speedo's...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedometer

hobsonlea

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#690652 24-Sep-2012 14:49

John2010: As well as what nakedmolerat says, check your speedo with a GPS.?Speedos?often read 5-10% low so you may be driving much slower than you think you are.

I have calibrated all the vehicles I have driven recently (last 4 years) in NZ - with several different GPS units.
All cars I have measured, had speedometers that overstated the speed the vehicle is travelling at by 5-10%

I was surprised however that in the USA - most of the cars I have hired have had more accurate Speedo's. May just be coincidence - but some have had no difference between GPS and Speedo.

Wikipedia has a good summary of the accuracy of Speedo's...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedometer

mckenndk

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#690653 24-Sep-2012 14:52

D1023319:
mattwnz:
I believe the signs on curved roads are the safe wet road speeds to turn the corner at.

As one size fits all - I think the corner limits are set conservatively for vehicles high sided vans and laden trucks which are not applicable for most modern cars hence why they are only guidelines and not mandated.

mattwnz:
I am just wondering why people believe they can go 10km over the speed limit. I though these speed cameras were now going to get people going 5kms over the limit, even if you are overtaking.

As said here already - most vehicles speedos are 10% out so when it says 100kph you are only going just over 90pkh.

I share the same point of view on the recommended speed signs as I can usually go around 20kmh faster comfortably around the corners that have these signs, but if I have never been down the particular road before I usually follow them so there are no surprises.

A bit off topic but how accurate do you think the signs are that display what speed you are going as 90% of the time I find they are 5KM slower than what my speedo shows, for example my car will show 85kmh when it shows 80kmh.

Dion

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#690655 24-Sep-2012 14:56

D1023319: As said here already - most vehicles speedos are 10% out so when it says 100kph you are only going just over 90pkh.

I think that is 'up to 10%. They could also be out the otherway, where you are going say 105km/h when the speedo only shows 100km/h. that doesn't mean that people should be going up to 110km/h to compensate for speedo margins of error.

I think NZ has a bigger problem with the quality of the roads, intersections and signage. A thread about one of Christchurchs intersections I think shows how bad some of our intersections are.

stevenz

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#690666 24-Sep-2012 15:17

In my experience, the speedo error seems to average about 8%. The last time I got new wheels/tyres, the diameter was very slightly bigger which corrected my current car to about 4%. On top of that, I have my phone mounted for speedo purposes as it's easier to read and at least as accurate.

I had a motorbike once that was out by 15% - but I think that was due to someone replacing something with an incorrect part in the past.

Tailgating pisses me off. If I believe someone is doing it to me in a dangerous fashion, and it's not inconveniencing anyone else, and I can't safely pull over, then I'll just start going slower and slower until they eventually do a rage-overtake. I usually travel a roughly the speed limit, or at a speed I feel is safe (which around Wellington suburbs is often more like 40Km as people seem to like coming around opposing corners partially on the wrong side of the road etc). I'm not going to risk crashing by speeding up, or them crashing into me if I have to stop in a hurry. If they crash later on, then it's natural selection at work.

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oxnsox

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#690673 24-Sep-2012 15:25

NZer's are on the whole poor drivers.

There is a tendency to 'flock'; speed up till you're on the tail of the car in front and be content with the speed they're doing... saves you concentrating too hard on your speedo and what's up ahead. You'll then get a flock of half a dozen cars all travelling too close together to let others pass comfortably.

Speed restriction signs for for corners are 'recommendations' of a safe speed for the corner. The indicated speeds are for Trucks (heavy and high sided vehicles) and you should use them as a guide. As you get more experienced you'll learn how to interpret these signs and the conditions for your driving style.

Trucks. Many forget that trucks are legally restricted to 90kph, and that when you come up behind one you should follow at a greater distance as this allows you to see past it easier and better prepare/execute any overtake. Too often drivers tailgate trucks, the truck driver doesn't know they're there (because he can't see them) and they can't see past without actually moving well out into the oncoming lane. Folk also forget Truck (and Bus) drivers are on the road everyday and have a lot more experience behind the wheel than most car drivers. Often they travel the routes regularly so know them well, they're driving professionals. But it's easy for flocking drivers and others to blame their poor driving skills on truckies by sniping at them.

The key to better driving is consistency. Anticipating what you're going to be doing and using the accelerator to control your speed rather than the brake. (its more economical too.) Look well ahead, anticipate where you want to be and what speed you need to be at. Drive smoothly.

It doesn't matter if you want to drive at 90 or 120, you'll go where you look.

Klipspringer

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#690674 24-Sep-2012 15:25

richms:
gmball: The most frustrating example of NZ driving habits are all the people who drive below or at the posted speed limit in the right hand lane (where two lanes exist), while driving at the same speed as those in the left lane.

This often results in tailgating out of shear frustration.

They are usually the ones that will give you the fingers etc when you flash the brights at them to get them to move over.

Yea notice this a lot. Nobody understands keep left, pass right ...
Many people just asume its their right to drive in the right hand lane.

John2010

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#690678 24-Sep-2012 15:29

mattwnz:
D1023319: As said here already - most vehicles speedos are 10% out so when it says 100kph you are only going just over 90pkh.

I think that is 'up to 10%. They could also be out the otherway, where you are going say 105km/h when the speedo only shows 100km/h...

Extremely unlikely, in fact one need not worry about that at all.

I don't know what the NZ standard is but in many other countries the speedo is not allowed to understate the car's speed at all, but may overstate it by, typically, up to 10%.

scuwp

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#690686 24-Sep-2012 15:41

NZ uses the Euro standard of +8 km/h on all speedometers. But it depends on tyre inflation pressures (which varies) and/or that can be sent completely off-wack if someone plays with the wheels or tyre sizes.

Best place for a tailgater is in front of you!

Corner advisory signs are an indication of the 'safe and comfortable' rate at which a corner can be taken by a passenger car by following the centre of the lane. The occupants inside the vehicle should not feel uncomfortable sideways forces. They are geared towards the lowest denominator (i.e. wet road) and equate to a lateral acceleration rate of about 0.25 g's. Given that a reasonable road surface can provide on average up to around 0.7 G's there is a fair bit of scope to go around the corners faster than stated before loss of traction is possible. Trucks are recommended to travel at 10 km/h below the stated advisory speed as they are prone to rollover.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

John2010

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#690693 24-Sep-2012 15:51

scuwp: NZ uses the Euro standard of +8 km/h on all speedometers...

Ok, tnx for that. Means they are not allowed to understate the vehicle's speed here too then.

scuwp

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#690705 24-Sep-2012 16:25

Unfortunately in NZ once the car is allowed on the road the only WOF requirement is that:

"The speedometer must be in good working order and operate while the vehicle is moving forward"

...so no mention that it is actually needs to be accurate!

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

MikeB4

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#690711 24-Sep-2012 16:32

I will slow down and let a tailgater by, I would rather be late to my destination than 'dead' on time.

richms

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#690712 24-Sep-2012 16:36

The other thing that might be happening is that the OP is interpreting an ok but not great following distance as tailgating because they have poor rear visibility out of their car.

I hardly ever see actual tailgating on the roads here, just like you never see actual cutting off of people despite what some people will tell you.

Richard rich.ms

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