Blacked out rear windows.

[snailracer]

Do you have the same opinion on riders of Harley's? Or perhaps certain Supercars? Are they bad drivers too then?

Yes I do. And yes they are. Being richer (or, rather, more ostentatious) does not excuse their naughty behaviour.

...
And I'm sure there will be things they have done/are doing that I won't appreciate.

So, some people are a nuisance. How does that justify making a nuisance of yourself to others?

 

[snailracer]

Not the group of people on the road I find to be a hazard.

How is there 'a good chance the will be' a bad driver? What are you basing this assumption on, the fact that they have a different exhaust to standard?

So who do YOU find to be a hazard? And what are you basing your assumption on?

 

[HLaB]

Not the group of people on the road I find to be a hazard.

How is there 'a good chance the will be' a bad driver? What are you basing this assumption on, the fact that they have a different exhaust to standard?

Its not 100% scientific but I'm basing it on my experience of road users and again I'd rather be safe than sorry. Fitting an illegal exhaust etc generally means those folk have little respect for the law and are likely to have less respect for me. They may however, be perfectly rational drivers but it doesn't hurt to be alert in fact it may hurt not to be

 

[Hawkeye]

...

anyone that leaves valuables in their car deserves to lose them

I hope not. That's like saying anyone who cycles deserves to get knocked off.

My MPV has tints and window blinds because it's often full of tools and equipment during the day; it's my works van as well as the family hack.

As an ex-coach driver I know how to use the door mirrors.

 

[GrasB]

HLaB, I assume you mean loud not illegal.

I say this as how did you determine the legality of the exhaust, poke your head under the car to see if it has a de-cat pipe? 'Illegal' car exhausts in terms of noise is an interesting subject because for cars the definition is notoriously vague. The wording is something like "excessively loud for the type of vehicle", my old rally Cinq the MoT inspector would let pass because it was inherently a motorsport car & his judgment was it wasn't "excessively loud" for a rally car that was effectively useless for normal road use (try 5700 rpm at 70mph) . This same inspector was very dubious about letting my 'road going' Exige pass on exhaust noise, the only way I got him to pass the car was showing him that the exhaust was actually factory fitted, even though it was quieter than the Cinq. Personally I'd like to see motorbike style exhaust laws applied to UK cars, these give clearer definitions on what can & can't be installed & also non-fuzzy limits on noise levels.

As for modified car drivers, there seems to be 2 clear camps, the a**e holes & those who are more careful than the typical driver because of their passion for the vehicle & driving. I do agree with you on the 'better safe than sorry' message, I remember being told by one of my AD tutors "expect the worst from other drivers, that way you can only be pleasantly surprised".

 

[Chrismawa]

Yes I do. And yes they are. Being richer (or, rather, more ostentatious) does not excuse their naughty behaviour.


So, some people are a nuisance. How does that justify making a nuisance of yourself to others?

Theres plenty of things that happen on a daily basis that you could class as a nuisance because they are 'noisey', not just a car with an aftermarket exhaust.

And I didn't say I was a nuisance to others...

So who do YOU find to be a hazard? And what are you basing your assumption on?

Basing it on the countless times I have been cut up, pulled out on, nealry hit, driving up the wrong way of a street etc..

Its not 100% scientific but I'm basing it on my experience of road users and again I'd rather be safe than sorry. Fitting an illegal exhaust etc generally means those folk have little respect for the law and are likely to have less respect for me. They may however, be perfectly rational drivers but it doesn't hurt to be alert in fact it may hurt not to be

You seem to have an obsession with illegal exhausts. Why is this? There are ones that will be illegal (De-Catted) for example but there's plenty that are legal.

 

[Chrismawa]

HLaB, I assume you mean loud not illegal.

As for modified car drivers, there seems to be 2 clear camps, the a**e holes & those who are more careful than the typical driver because of their passion for the vehicle & driving. I do agree with you on the 'better safe than sorry' message, I remember being told by one of my AD tutors "expect the worst from other drivers, that way you can only be pleasantly surprised".

Someone who speaks sense. Yes not all people who have modified cars drive like twats, there are plenty who have good road manners.

 

[HLaB]

Someone who speaks sense. Yes not all people who have modified cars drive like twats, there are plenty who have good road manners.

That sense is what I've been saying all along there may be some good driver but if they are bad drivers I'd rather not take the risk.

 

[Chrismawa]

Yeah it looks like it...

Fitting an illegal exhaust etc generally means those folk have little respect for the law and are likely to have less respect for me.

 

[HLaB]

Yeah it looks like it...

Generally means exactly that generally ie not 100%

 

[Chrismawa]

Generally means most of the time!

 

[HLaB]

Generally means most of the time!

If you want to read it that way so be it; no mater what though it doesn't say 100% of them are bad.

 

[Chrismawa]

It's not the way you were implying it to read.

Anyway the point is just because someone has a slightly modified car or has a non-stock exhaust doesn't always mean they are going to be the worst driver on the road and knock you off your bike. Just the way it seemed most on here were thinking..

 

[gambatte]

Don’t know if its the same for you, but I tend to remember the drivers who show most courtesy to me on the road. The two for me are a Range Rover, who stayed behind be for about quarter of a mile, before passing wide and the same with a flashy, souped up, Impreza.

I hate to generalise, but similar to a previous poster, my 1st motorbike instructors first bit of advice was “assume every other road user is a D**k, if they can pull out of a junction, they will”

Read an article in a magazine a couple of years ago (not a daily mail reader!) about moslem women and the whole ‘covering up’, burqa/niqab interpretations and impact on modern life. Went through how it was implemented in Africa, Saudi etc.

There was then a section on the UK. It mentioned UK private drivers and a UK womens moslem taxi service. They would take non moslem and male passengers, but the vehicles had tinted windows or even curtains, so that the female passengers could remove their head coverings and remain true to their religion. Obviously at this point they had a female driver.

So we have privacy reasons for women, children, valuables. Comfort, in that it reduces solar loading on the vehicle and therefore could be considered more environmentally friendly as aircon is used to a lesser degree.

 

[snailracer]

It's not the way you were implying it to read.

Anyway the point is just because someone has a slightly modified car or has a non-stock exhaust doesn't always mean they are going to be the worst driver on the road and knock you off your bike. Just the way it seemed most on here were thinking..

I think the vast majority of drivers of any sort of vehicle are as considerate as can be reasonably expected. However, as easily-squashed cyclists, we are rightly ultrasensitive about identifying those who may be even very-slightly-more likely to squash us.