Anyone notice like 99% drive slow on the highways and getting worse over the years?


On the way to work, I fly pass like 100 cars, might only have 1 or 2 cars overtake me and I'd be doing 108-110 with 0.2km/h speedo error.


Interestingly I drove few other cars before and most were out 5-10km reading faster, making you drive slower than you think. My sister's car is so far out at 110km people were up my ass and getting angry. I have to drive 118km/h to get to 110km/h and then only I would flow with the traffic.

The other thing is no newer cars seem to have high res speedo, typically having either 5 or 10k graduations where my car has 2k graduations but very sharp needle so you can read to about 0.5k with good accuracy.

The digital speedo of the late 80s early 90s were stupidly accurate as well.

discussion begin!

I agree!!!

There is so much danger in people being obstructions by not achieving the speed limit on SE-QLD roads, including them right-lane snail bandits. I curse them when i loose my momentum in the tired old baja. No excuse in that their mod con car can't reach the limit when my ol' truck can 'eventually' make it.

Enough of the safety messages through promoting 'slowing down', we require road side motivational's for safety in doing the speed limit!

Maybe i should hire a billboard with some hot chick racer saying the following:

"Com'on! You can do it!! Reach that speed limit! - A safety message brought to you by people whom think you drive like a twat".

Or maybe a road transport safety car with giant padded arms that extend three lanes to help shove them forward, similar to the japanese train staff that load the people into the over crowded carriages.

I had a a-hole in a BF falcon going like 95-100 and sitting in the right lane the whole way. grrr! got past eventually in the left lane.

the other things I can't understand is>

1. people driving ok speed then slow down when overtaking someone to the point they are no longer overtaking. wtf is with that! then they block the lanes for ks and ks.

2. you over taking at blazing speed compared to them and they all of the sudden speed up not letting you over take, you slowly get ahead of them and have to got bit over the limit to do so, all the sudden the when you get a 1m ahead of them, they hit the anchors and fly back like they hit a concrete wall. LOL 30 sec later they are like 2km back. I get this ALL of the time and can not understand for the life of me why?

I should get a dash cam, some of the strange behaviors are a pisser but annoying at the same time.

NONE SHALL PASS!!!!

Quote:

Originally posted by modnrod NONE SHALL PASS!!!!

Hi

I think everybody is so scared of being booked that they just drive slow to be sure.

I have a reasonably new Hi Lux for work and its about 10 kph optimistic.

I really try to keep left unless overtaking, but time and time again I move over to left only to find people who were behind me in right lane slow down when they get next to me, then the traffic builds up behind them causing a bankup.

I also find people slow down when near trucks which does the same thing on multi lane roads.

It was so good driving in LA where speed limits seemed to be a rough guide and the driver were so courteous, I guess its the shoot or take legal action mentality.

Steve

Most speedos read 5-10% optomistic to comply with ADRs.

Guilty on all accounts

I'm never in a hurry to get any where. Even if I do overtake its only because the person in front has slowed down so they can take a photo of my car, then speed off anyways.

So I just sit in the left lane doing what ever traffic allows.

I'm with you nils, though I drive by GPS speedo I still go with the flow, the posted speed limit is the maximum permissible not the speed that you MUST drive at, if you are courteous and predictable that's all you and other road users need. Not all road users are competent or confident at higher speeds or their vehicle safe for one reason or another at the higher speeds

Driving to the conditions doesn't mean it's a sunny day I'll blast along at the maximum permissible speed!

The speed limit is a "limit" a "Maximum limit" that's why it's called a "limit" not "a challenge."

Driving to conditions means ALL conditions, your capability (not everyone is Schumacher's cousin, the condition of your vehicle, the road, etc.

Totally agree with the road hogs, hogging the right hand lane though. Pity they can't read English. "Keep left unless overtaking." applies on any multiple lane road with a speed limit of more than 80kph.

Ken

The signposted speed limit is 85% of the maximum safe speed for all roads in Australia (excluding school zones).

A law is open to interpretation by those who enforce it.
A rule must be enforced.
Are speed limits road rules or laws? (methinks they are laws).

Slow drivers and road hogs should be penalised!!!

Quote:

Originally posted by MY68VW The signposted speed limit is 85% of the maximum safe speed for all roads in Australia (excluding school zones). A law is open to interpretation by those who enforce it. A rule must be enforced. Are speed limits road rules or laws? (methinks they are laws). Slow drivers and road hogs should be penalised!!!

I normally stay in the left lane and follow the traffic.
IN the case of single lane highways I do the speed limit when someone is behind me. When I'm all alone I'll back off 10kmh or so. When I hit a overtaking lane I will slow down to let people past,.. especially if I'm dragging the trailer with some crappy vw on it.
Both our daily drives are perfectly safe but they are old and are not suited to sitting at 110kmh for long periods.

However it annoys me when I leave a safe distance to the car in front the number of people behind me that go around to jump in front then slow down then get off at the next exit. Crazy

I think perhaps that's why some people hog the right lane.

and don't get me started about merging,.. that's a whole new topic.

I take my hat off to big truck drivers. They deal with this crap every day.
I think in the case of 3 or more laned roads they should get their own lane. Keep everyone else out of it. I think that would be safer for everyone, and give the truck drivers a break from idiot car drivers who have no idea especially ones with caravans.

When a big truck passes me,.. I flash my lights twice when they are past so they know it's safe to cut in front.
Most flash their indicators right then left to say thanks.

This is common practice in the USA. I think it's a good one.

Yep done it since new, Holden reckon its not an issue and they all do it.

Quote:

Originally posted by Carl and Emily However it annoys me when I leave a safe distance to the car in front the number of people behind me that go around to jump in front then slow down then get off at the next exit. Crazy I think perhaps that's why some people hog the right lane. and don't get me started about merging,.. that's a whole new topic.

Quote:

Originally posted by Carl and Emily However it annoys me when I leave a safe distance to the car in front the number of people behind me that go around to jump in front then slow down then get off at the next exit. Crazy I think perhaps that's why some people hog the right lane.

Quote:

Originally posted by Joel Yep done it since new, Holden reckon its not an issue and they all do it. Quote: Originally posted by Carl and Emily However it annoys me when I leave a safe distance to the car in front the number of people behind me that go around to jump in front then slow down then get off at the next exit. Crazy I think perhaps that's why some people hog the right lane. and don't get me started about merging,.. that's a whole new topic. getting that 1-2 car lengths ahead is going to make all the difference, thought you knew probably wouldnt bug me so much if I lived in the city and had to put up with it daily.

Sorry misread what you wrote, speedo reads faster than actual speed.

Hi

The other weekend I went up to Newcastle, had a great run up on the Sunday morning, coming back I found the left lane quicker, just had to change lanes every now and again when someone was using the left lane for its intended purpose.

Steve

if everyone used the lanes correctly there wouldn't be so much trouble and traffic will flow better.

I often sit in the far left lane with the cruise control on 100 and get passed by virtually everyone. When I flick the computer on my dash to digital readout, it shows 100 and the analogue speedo is showing pretty much the same in our Golf.
I remember once sitting in the left lane going up a hill with a left hand curve at the top before it starts going downhill again. There was a clown roared up beside me in the right lane until beside me and then slowed down as we got close to the left lane ending. It wasn't even as though I had been holding him up (I was doing the speed limit). I was having to brake to get in behind him so I decided to teach him a lesson so I accelerated back up to the speed limit instead and merged in front of him (I had slowed a little to let him get in front before my lane stopped and he had started pacing me when he got beside me). Didn't seem happy about that at all but serves him right for being an inconsiderate idiot and not continuing at the same speed he was doing.

Yogie

GPS speed reading for me EVERY TIME!
I drive a lot, many kms a week, so if that's the speed limit I am on it, traffic permitting
my T5 and mk 6 golf are about 7% less than the GPS speed rate
I have a chuckle every time I hear that individual units are not calibrated, so are not reliable,
the only thing we need to know is that the US military have the gps satellites calibrated in unison, as if they were not, all the planes would basically fall out of the sky..
if you are not that confident in driving please stay in the left lane as I will be barreling past you..
not everyone passing you is 'actually' speeding..
if I was I wouldn't have a licence..
my 2c

from wiki below. What is not mentioned here is the satellite have on board atomic clocks and corrections for the local space/time that runs at a different rate dictated by the laws of general relativity.

Anyway, GPS receiver don't get calibrations, its all calculated against the know constant of the speed of light and basic mathematics.

"A GPS receiver calculates its position by precisely timing the signals sent by GPS satellites high above the Earth. Each satellite continually transmits messages that include:

the time the message was transmitted and,
satellite position at time of message transmission.

The receiver uses the messages it receives to determine the transit time of each message and computes the distance to each satellite using the speed of light. Each of these distances and satellites' locations defines a sphere. The receiver is on the surface of each of these spheres when the distances and the satellites' locations are correct. These distances and satellites' locations are used to compute the location of the receiver using the navigation equations. This location is then displayed, perhaps with a moving map display or latitude and longitude; elevation or altitude information may be included, based on height above the geoid (e.g. EGM96).

Basic GPS measurements yield only a position, and neither speed nor direction. However, most GPS units can automatically derive velocity and direction of movement from two or more position measurements. The disadvantage of this principle is that changes in speed or direction can only be computed with a delay, and that derived direction becomes inaccurate when the distance travelled between two position measurements drops below or near the random error of position measurement. GPS units can use measurements of the doppler shift of the signals received to compute velocity accurately.[47] More advanced navigation systems use additional sensors like a compass or an inertial navigation system to complement GPS.

In typical GPS operation, four or more satellites must be visible to obtain an accurate result. The solution of the navigation equations gives the position of the receiver along with the difference between the time kept by the receiver's on-board clock and the true time-of-day, thereby eliminating the need for a more precise and possibly impractical receiver based clock. Applications for GPS such as time transfer, traffic signal timing, and synchronization of cell phone base stations, make use of this cheap and highly accurate timing. Some GPS applications use this time for display, or, other than for the basic position calculations, do not use it at all.

Although four satellites are required for normal operation, fewer apply in special cases. If one variable is already known, a receiver can determine its position using only three satellites. For example, a ship or aircraft may have known elevation. Some GPS receivers may use additional clues or assumptions such as reusing the last known altitude, dead reckoning, inertial navigation, or including information from the vehicle computer, to give a (possibly degraded) position when fewer than four satellites are visible.[48][49][50]
Structure"

GPS, hhmmmm.
I work at a satellite tracking station, we also have (for those of you, like me, who disdain and despair of technology and electronics, please substitute for the following........."Blah, blah, blah, blah!") receivers and repeaters for DORIS, GNSS, VLBI, etc, etc. We can accurately plot our position on the earths crust to about a millimetre.
At a point along our gravel road leading into the station grounds, right near a breakaway consisting mostly of ironstone, your GPS unit will actually go "Huh?!?!", and try to tell itself it's in China. Takes about 4 seconds to get over itself and carry on looking rather embarrassed about the whole thing.
Just saying.

Speeds? Oh yeah. Whatever I feel reasonable for the conditions and whatever old pile of crap I happen to be driving at the time, so usually slow.
The Freeway is just the smoothest way that old POS can tow my dragbike to the dragstrip.........