War on cars

[Thoglette]

, and police survey the area to make sure people aren't speeding.

They hope to save as many lives as Operation Pedro

[mikesbytes]

[Thoglette]

Worth six minutes to watch that one. Thanks Mike!

[brumby33]

This is very relevant in Sydney recently after many vehicles seem to be making house or building calls. Most people get their licence not long after their 17th Birthday and unless they have their license upgraded to a heavier vehicle type, never get tested again ever until they reach the age of 85 and they have to be tested every 12 Months.

brumby33

[Comedian]

Mandatory speed limiters for EU vehicles in 2022...but surprise surprise pushing the accelerator down is the override this article suggests will come to Aus' by default

https://www.carsales.com.au/editorial/d ... eu-117707/

Meanwhile my local shopping strip complete with bus stops community centre and rail station has a 60km/hr limit anyway

That's good news. I can't see the manufacturers wanting it. People pay big money to have the fastest car they can buy. Of course it's all like "drive responsibly.. yes I know you've just paid an extra $30,000 dollars to have a car that can get you to 250kph 10 seconds quicker .. but we know you'll only use this on the race track".

Someone needs to call this out. It's just bull!

[MichaelB]

Cheers, very interesting !!

[opik_bidin]

Need more true review on cars like this

https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2 ... ssion=true

The 2021 Escalade is nearly 18 feet long bumper to bumper, and almost six-and-a-half feet tall. Or, as Cadillac’s own marketing materials boast, “the largest and longest Escalade ever.”

Sitting in the driver’s seat, it’s easy to feel disconnected from the outside world — mostly because you can’t see a lot of it. An entire kindergarten class could be lined up in front of this vehicle and I wouldn’t see them.


The Escalade had the largest front blind spot of 10 feet, two inches, with the driver sitting in a natural, relaxed position. It took 13 children seated in a line in front of the Escalade before the driver could see the tops of their heads.

[AdelaidePeter]

I love that SUV review!

On a different topic, this excerpt from ABC's "Utopia" is a not-so-subtle dig at grand freeway plans. It's exaggerated for the sake of comedy, but there is also a lot of truth in it. It's on Facebook but you don't need an account to watch it: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1100585110397789

[g-boaf]

Need more true review on cars like this

https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2 ... ssion=true

The 2021 Escalade is nearly 18 feet long bumper to bumper, and almost six-and-a-half feet tall. Or, as Cadillac’s own marketing materials boast, “the largest and longest Escalade ever.”

Sitting in the driver’s seat, it’s easy to feel disconnected from the outside world — mostly because you can’t see a lot of it. An entire kindergarten class could be lined up in front of this vehicle and I wouldn’t see them.


The Escalade had the largest front blind spot of 10 feet, two inches, with the driver sitting in a natural, relaxed position. It took 13 children seated in a line in front of the Escalade before the driver could see the tops of their heads.

I think people keep buying these just to upset all the naysayers, much like people modify their diesel trucks for rolling-coal, especially used against cyclists.

[human909]

Be careful there are plenty of folks on this forum who will defend how much they NEED their large SUV or US style ute/truck..... Normally people spend years before and after their purchase justifying why they NEED it. Hard to convince them otherwise.

[Comedian]

Be careful there are plenty of folks on this forum who will defend how much they NEED their large SUV or US style ute/truck..... Normally people spend years before and after their purchase justifying why they NEED it. Hard to convince them otherwise.

Buy a Dodge Ram. Be the most popular nomads in the caravan park.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAjvsJuIVA8

[brumby33]

Have you seen the size and weight on some of those Caravans lately? You need a monster truck to legally tow them coz the Mrs wants everything in the caravan that her house does like full ensuite and washing machine and full gourmet kitchen. Some of those vans tare weight over 2.8 tonne.
But i guess when one retires and wants to travel a bit while he can.....you only live once!!

Good on them for fulfilling their dreams seeing our big land, at least their retirement dollars are mostly staying in Australia except of course the Imported Truck/SUV.
I see many of those vans with a couple of bikes on the the rear racks.

brumby33

[g-boaf]

Be careful there are plenty of folks on this forum who will defend how much they NEED their large SUV or US style ute/truck..... Normally people spend years before and after their purchase justifying why they NEED it. Hard to convince them otherwise.

Buy a Dodge Ram. Be the most popular nomads in the caravan park.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAjvsJuIVA8

Hummer EV - 736kW, 2000Nm, gigantic and 0-100km/h in 3.0 seconds. Probably needs a smoke generator fitted in the back so you can smoke out lesser road users.

[Bunged Knee]

Polluting motor vehicles needed for free car wash....

[Ross]

How Oslo Achieved Zero Pedestrian and Bicycle Fatalities, and How Others Can Apply What Worked

https://thecityfix.com/blog/how-oslo-ac ... at-worked/

[opik_bidin]

winning 1 back is good

from the comments on GCN video :

Blair Easdon

Partly because of lockdowns, this year I’ve discovered how much more relaxing it is to drive slow or at least at the speed limit. It’s so fascinating to watch every car speed past me, only to end up sitting right next to me at the lights, over and over again. Even on the bike, the lights mean I often catch up to cars again. So many drivers are absolutely determined to get everywhere as fast as possible, and anything that causes even the slightest delay is anathema - especially cyclists.

I wish more drivers could realise that driving fast actually very seldom gets you anywhere faster in a city, and getting angry at hindrances such as cyclists or roadworks achieves nothing but to leave you feeling grumpier. I say this as a person who used to be one of those driver, who had to beat every other driver no matter what. Patience is an absent virtue on the roads; perhaps if we all realised this, hatred toward cyclists might decrease...

[opik_bidin]

From AAA, the australian automonile association, with a white haired old driver raising his fist

I yhink being too long in a vehicle causes rages to increase
https://www.facebook.com/16524207740931 ... 724775774/

Australian motorists are being urged to manage their rage through mindful behaviours as part of a new road safety campaign.

[antigee]

In The Netherlands, 30km/h will be the norm on all streets in built-up areas. On Tuesday, 27 October 2020, a majority in the House of Representatives approved a plan to introduce a standard limit of 30km/h in built-up areas, instead of 50km/h being currently the norm. The objective is to reduce road casualties, specifically in areas with schools and strong concentration of children.

https://ecf.com/news-and-events/news/30 ... ation-wide

one thing I noticed cycling during the Melbourne lockdown was that driving speeds in residential areas seemed much higher as drivers seem to simply assume that there wouldn't be oncoming traffic between parked vehicles and 50km/hr on residential streets doesn't allow much margin for inattention...just drove to get tyres changed on car and school zone signs where on...cue speeding drivers weaving in and out of vehicles near the 40km/hr limit on multilane roads

Worked in the Netherlands 4-5 days per month for a couple of years....most of the employees cycled to work not that The Netherlands doesn't have high speed interurban roads or freeways...it's that cars definitely aren't king in residential and shopping areas...one argument I've seen for higher vehicular speeds being essential is that it contributes to economic growth...google tells me The Netherlands and Australia have very similar GDP per head if very different geography and resources

[Thoglette]

From the you're not safe even if you stay off the roads files

A 19-year-old woman has died after a car mounted a kerb and struck four pedestrians in Wollongong last night. (ABC)

[mikesbytes]

From the you're not safe even if you stay off the roads files

A 19-year-old woman has died after a car mounted a kerb and struck four pedestrians in Wollongong last night. (ABC)

Was there a motorist controlling the car or did the car do it by itself? Oh it was the passenger

[fat and old]

From the you're not safe even if you stay off the roads files

A 19-year-old woman has died after a car mounted a kerb and struck four pedestrians in Wollongong last night. (ABC)

Was there a motorist controlling the car or did the car do it by itself? Oh it was the passenger

Yes indeed. Note the Deja vu

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-09/ ... h/12862688

[find_bruce]

Something is not adding up with the stories - passenger is alleged to have pulled the handbrake, while "CCTV footage from further up the road recorded the car's front wheel's locking which caused the vehicle to fishtail"

Be the first time I have heard of a handbrake operating on the front wheels

[DavidS]

Something is not adding up with the stories - passenger is alleged to have pulled the handbrake, while "CCTV footage from further up the road recorded the car's front wheel's locking which caused the vehicle to fishtail"

Be the first time I have heard of a handbrake operating on the front wheels

A couple of cars have had front wheel hand brakes - Citroen, Saab, but, yes, exceedingly rare. Somehow I doubt that was the case here.

I am amazed that a car has hit a pedestrian on a footpath, surely this cannot happen, the car is registered and has number plates, does this not prevent such things ever happening??

DS

[MichaelB]

I am amazed that a car has hit a pedestrian on a footpath, surely this cannot happen, the car is registered and has number plates, does this not prevent such things ever happening??

DS

Nope, not unusual. No handbrake involved though - out-of-control-lamborghini-hits-two-teenage-girls-at-glengowrie-killing-sophia-naismith

Still in the courts, and latest news on the defence is

Outside court, Mr Caldicott said his client intended to plead not guilty if the case progressed.
"On the basis of no alcohol, no drugs, no inexperience, no revving, no inattention," he said.
"It was just an accident, every day of the week people have accidents."

Yeah right, driving along a straight road in a 60km/hr zone just causes the car to veer off the road . Been down that specific road many times and never had an issue going straight .....

[outnabike]

My old Nissan Patrol made in 1989 had the hand brake on the drive shaft. Designed so it could be used on down hill slippery hills with out locking up the rear wheels.
I knew you fellas would need to know that, liking 4x4s as you do....