Community Forums

jodann · 05-28-2005, 12:23 PM

OR - keep back at least one car-length for every 10 mph of vehicle speed. Don't they teach this in drivers ed. anymore?

I've been rear-ended twice in a period of 5 years. The last time by a 17 yr. old driving her mom's Blazer while talking on a cell phone.I've not been the same since then. In an instant I sustained more physical damage than in 28 years as a NYC firefighter.

Guess I've become somewhat paranoid but I seem to be a magnet for tail-gaters. Please keep your distance. I sue! jodann

jodann · 05-28-2005, 12:23 PM

OR - keep back at least one car-length for every 10 mph of vehicle speed. Don't they teach this in drivers ed. anymore?

I've been rear-ended twice in a period of 5 years. The last time by a 17 yr. old driving her mom's Blazer while talking on a cell phone.I've not been the same since then. In an instant I sustained more physical damage than in 28 years as a NYC firefighter.

Guess I've become somewhat paranoid but I seem to be a magnet for tail-gaters. Please keep your distance. I sue! jodann

Allegro Happy · 05-28-2005, 01:54 PM

Sorry to hear of your problem. It really is ashame, the kids now have.....
1. cell phones
2. CD's to put in
3. Loud banging music? so they can't even hear a horn
4. At least 3 in a car.
No wonder their insurance is so high

What happened to the good old days, when all you had to worry about was your raido...only on AM mind you.

6MISFITZ · 05-29-2005, 04:58 PM

Sorry to hear about your accident jodann.
Until they learn or you find a way to persuade them to stay back far enough, keep your lawyers number on speed dial!

I found that each time I left my W/D hitch head on our last minivan, the less close everyone seemed to follow. The one time we were rear ended, it was my wife driving the van and NO trailer hitch (we stopped for a red light, and they used us to stop against) and from that day on, 1 of my 3 draw bars is always in. Now, if they hit me, it will cost them at least a bumper cover, grille(s), rad and maybe even an A/C condenser before they get to my bumper!

Same rule for this van and so far it hasn't happened but if someone is distracted or on a cell phone, my visial deterrent may not be enough!

Mike.

jodann · 05-30-2005, 05:27 AM

Great idea Mike !!! Hitch will be permanently installed as of tomorrow. I'd do it today but don't have access to trailer because of the Memorial Day holiday. Thanks, jodann

Cold Iron · 05-30-2005, 07:56 AM

About two years ago I took a professional drivers course, and one of the things taught was to follow at a four second interval. I do have a lot of drivers cut in front of me, but I'm ready for that. Two seconds don't allow quite enough time to stop in most cases.

Mike, I can verify that leaving the hitch in is a good idea. A few years ago I was the lead vehicle in a five car chain accident. I was fully stopped behind a school bus when the guy in back didn't notice everyone else was stopped. I was the only one without damage, the van behind me hit the trailer hitch on my truck and caved in his bumper and part of his grille.

Jim

jodann · 05-30-2005, 02:37 PM

Jim.
You've got to be kidding me! A 4 second delay? Here in the NY-NJ area you'd have to be driving in reverse in order to keep that distance. jodann

Cold Iron · 05-31-2005, 05:32 AM

Jodann,
You're right, there is a lot of people in a hurry out there. Before I took that course I, like most, people thought 2 seconds was plenty of space to leave. But as it was explained to me, at 60 MPH you travel 87.99 FT/sec so in two seconds you travel 175.98 FT. The coefficient of friction between good tires and a good road is 0.8 assuming everything else is in good condition. This figures out to a stopping distance of 150.53 FT. So far so good, but the reaction time between seeing what is going on and getting your foot on the brake will figure about a half second which means another 43.99 ft. so it will take 194.52 ft. to stop. 18.52 ft. more than you had.

The course I took was to learn to avoid accidents by drivers of larger vehicles. The four second rule gives a extra margin of safety that is needed. Another thing that was brought up is to stop no closer that 15 ft. behind the vehicle in front of you at a red light. If the people behind me had done that in that chain accident that I was in, only two or maybe three cars would have been bent.

Overall, all it takes is some common sense to drive. But that is in such short supply!
Go and enjoy the ride, just don't meet anyone by accident.

Jim

RustyJC · 05-31-2005, 06:16 AM

Especially when we're towing the 5th wheel, I try to leave lots of buffer space between us and the vehicle in front of us. Unfortunately, especially the closer we get to home (the Houston area), the more that open space becomes a target that other drivers just insist on occupying. This really gets frustrating when we're approaching a traffic light and have adjusted our deceleration to the available stopping distance - only to have someone dive into our buffer space from an adjoining lane so that he can move up 1 or 2 vehicle lengths when he stops at the light.

It makes me wonder if they teach physics in our public schools any more.

Rusty

bobnkathleen hartman · 05-31-2005, 06:17 AM

Many years ago, in another lifetime, I worked developing a safety program for a fleet of commericial delivery vans. One of our big issues was the following distance; we used the same 4 second rule if in perfect weather conditions. Meantime, our daughter got her drivers license ( and they way our state passes those out to teenagers is in itself a whole new thread!), and notwithstanding Mom and Dad's good intentions, became one of those "following too close, loud radio" type teenage girl drivers. It was so bad, I refused to ride in a car if she was driving. (At this point, she had purchased her own car and insurance.) Sure enough, she re-ended someone when she was followiing too close. Her car was totalled, no one was injured; and she learned a lesson: "Dad, you were right about following distances." Now, I don't have a problem with her driving! But it was an expensive lesson for her to learn the hard way. Fact is, she even likes to pull the TT!