Those darned tailgaters

Driving is not a game to see how many mpgs you are getting, you are sharing the road with others, be polite drive the speed limit at least even if it means you get .1 mpg less.

 

i hear you blister! driving the speed limit does not help as most people drive 10-20+ over. this morning, on the way home from church we were passed twice by vehicles crossing the double yellow line while we were doing the speed limit. i never even got a chance to fake the pullover. the worst part? second car was a prius v!

 

You do know the "speed limit" is supposed to be the upper limit, in good conditions? And you're supposed to take it a little easy in less than ideal conditions, say dead of night, raining, and so on?

At least it was, once upon a time.

And drivers suddenly remember, when there's a cop in view.

I appreciate there's some instances when the speed limit seems frustratingly low, but just saying.

 

I agree completely. There is no reason to alienate other drivers by driving under the speed limit on a clear road and to take dramatic measures to squeeze every ion of energy from fuel. Drive smoothly, consistently and legally and you will still get excellent fuel mileage.

The speedometer in our Prius v reads particularly higher than the car's true speed. If the speedometer reads 35 mph, the car is really traveling between 32 and 33 mph.

I have noticed that the automatic braking on down hill stretches when using cruise control or when the radar senses a car ahead tends to surprise drivers following behind and I notice them sometimes sharply applying their brakes. I think it would be better if the automatic braking feature lit up the brake lights which I assume it does not - has anyone checked?

It seems to help drivers following behind me if I set the following distance of the radar cruise control to the medium or shortest distance setting. If it is set for the longest following distance, the car can start braking or otherwise slow down while the car in front of me is quite a long distance away which seems to be disconcerting for drivers following behind me.

I almost always drive the speed limit at a vehicle's true speed when conditions allow it. Doing that has never seemed to bother other drivers and I often sense it encourages other drivers to slow down. Maybe they think I know something they don't - like a speed trap just around the bend.

 

my speedo is spot on when i go by a traffic radar sign.

 

Is it a Prius v you have? Your profile says Prius Plug-in.

 

In areas with multiple speed limits for different classes of vehicles, can you be polite enough to allow me to choose a slower limit?

 

Maybe the SUV was trying to draft after you. Gee. That's why he was upset when you let him pass.

SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 ? 2

 

yes, plug in. not referring to your post, i don't know if speedo's are accurate or inaccurate by model, or individual car.

 

Naaah.
Not all the way.
You have to remember that EVERYBODY is SOMEBODY'S jerk. That's just what happens when you cram a bunch of human animals together on the same road.

You would have gotten bonus points for not honking, and you have to be really careful about doing that these days anyway.
I've seen people on this very forum loft a 500-word tear-stained, invective riddled profanely angry post about those %&$#@# JERKS on the roads picking on Priuses.
Hypocrisy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You did the right thing, and if you REALLY wanna torque off somebody that's in a bad mood?
Just smile and wave!

Works every time!
THAT's because jerks trend to be self-punishing.

 

Agree...he is being a jerk.
SCH-I535 ? 2

 

Here's another agle. Of all the drivers we run across on our daily commutes, it's only one out several hundred that feels the need to be the tailgating jerk. That means that the other 99% were reasonable people just trying to get to work without any personal agendas.

The best way to deal with the obvious Prius tail gating hater (we are excluding the clueless tailgating lemings here) is to just ignore them. It really pisses them of ever more if you don't give a rats a$$ about them. Just drive the speed limit (or maintain your speed if travelling faster) and don't show any signs that their actions bother you (even if it does). They are looking for a reaction from you as confirmation that what they are doing is working. Stay in control of the situation. Resist tapping on the brakes. Just keep driving. Eventually they will give up and go tailgate the CMax driver. You will feel better about having the upper hand all along.

Again, in general most people on the road do not have an agenda against Prius drivers.

 

Oh. Almost forgot. Don't forget to display your NRA bumper stickers or "Guns don't kill people. People kill people" sticker.

 

I've gotten that rudeness going up a hill from a red light where I didn't attain the 45 limit within 2 seconds. Guy pulled up beside me, started cussing me out, and demanded I pull over for a chat. Humorously, right before that I was thinking about how sluggish I felt going into work and in getting my blood boiling it woke me right up.

 

Those tailgaters are actually well meaning NASCAR fans trying to help you hypermile. It is well known by fans of the sport that having a drafter decreases the energy expenditure of the lead car. Always slow down so that they can get as close as possible. They will no doubt appreciate the fuel savings themselves.

I do feel like the lowest overall coefficient of drag could be achieved if the larger vehicle went in front but I appreciate their enthusiasm for protecting our environment and I always give them a friendly wave and smile as they pass.

 

Stupid is what stupid does.


When tailgaters honk for me to go faster, I just act stupid like I'm in a daydream world.

I act like I'm startled with their ire, step on the brakes and look all around, like they are trying to warn me of "impending danger."

Then, I ignore them.


By honking at me, they have caused me to slow down even more.