Tailgated....and then subject of road rage!
 

I had a very long drive home tonight, as did most people who live in and around Bristol due to the M5 being shut. A half hour drive home took about 4 hours!!

Anyway, as I was out of the traffic and 10 mins from home there was a most bizzar incident. I had been following a car out of Bristol, which had been driving close to the limit in a 40mph area. As the speed limit dropped to 30, I slowed, whereas the car in front carried on at 40 :rolleyes:

Up to this point, everything was completely normal.

I carried on through the 30, and part way through, down hill, there is one of those flashing "This is a 30mph limit" type signs. I normally brake to keep the car under 30 so the sign doesn't light up (ie; like you're supposed to!). I did the same this evening, but for some reason, the Merc behind me seemed to take exception to me maintaining 30mph :confused:
He drew ever closer to the rear of my car, until we got into a 50 limit, and I sped up. I then noticed that there was a long train of traffic ahead all doing 30 - 40mph (they had also been caught up in all the traffic chaos in Bristol) so I backed off ever so slightly. However, Mr Merc was now so close behind that I couldn't see his n/s front light and he was hovering towards the middle of the road as if to overtake. This would have been ok, but there was on-coming traffic, so he had nowhere to go, and anyway, there was a whole queue of traffic 100 yards ahead of us.

In order to show Mr Merc that I didn't like him being so close, I lightly pressed on the brake pedal with my left foot (just enough to illuminate the brake lights), while gently accelerating away. I didn't stamp on the brakes, or even slow down, I merely illuminated the lights. This seemed to be a red rag, and the car appeared to get even closer (of that was possible). We were now approachinig the other cars, so I backed off to about 35 very gently to leave a suitable gap in front, but the Merc decided to try and overtake on some hatchings for a right turn. He had to pull up to avoid hitting a car that was waiting to turn right at the junction, but then immediatelly overtook me approaching a blind bend.

A car was approaching from the other direction, so drew to a complete stop to let the tw@t past. He then stopped in the road, and tried to beckon me to pull over and gave me a w@nker sign. He then drove forward for 100 yds before stopping again, expecting me to pull in behind. I didn't, obviously. He then drove into the next layby a few yards furhter down the road, but I carried on my way home.

It was quite frightening that this plonker put other people at risk just because I had driven to a 30 mph limit, and then showed him my brakelights when he was inches of the rear of my car at 50mph in heavy traffic in the wet. All this happened within the space of two miles!! It's the scaryest moment I've had like that for quite some time....although I was also quite scared when another tailgater almost ploughed into the back of me on Tuesday on the M5, and they had to resort to the hard shoulder to avoid me when I stopped in traffic!!

I can imagine the first replies, so I'll state again that at no point did I perform any sudden braking or anything else to aggravate this guy - I just stuck to the limits, and showed him my brakelights when I considered he was following too close. When I first lit the brakelights, I was actually trying to accelerate away from this guy, but he still kept close.

That's probably a very boring read, but I feel better for it!

Flashing your brake lights probably wasnt the brightest move. Like you said, red rag to a bull.

Are you sure it was a bloke and not an old lady :D

I had one yesterday morning, so close to my bum end I was sure she wanted to get her little Nissan into my boot for a lift to wherever she was going

There are some right weirdos on the road, always best to ignore and rise above it. Saying that, I detest tailgaters :mad:

If it was me i would have slammed ma brakes on and had a nice whiplash claim put in. He wouldnt do it again would he!! lol

Should of smiled and waved as you passed :)

may i first of all congratulate you on such an intellegent post stu2 your my hero :notworthy

some people would rather not have the pride and joy that they work long and hard to maintain kept in prime condition smashed into , even if for a little compo !

whiplash claim wouldnt come from him anyway it would come from the insurers wich would then push up our insurance prices even more than it is already .:cry:




but then again how much you reckon he would get , theres a bird in my work got smashed into had a sore neck for like a couple of days but played on it just got 10 bloody grand ! :( :brickwall

I'd love to have a blue flashing light fitted to my car, which I would turn on after letting the tail-gaiter over take me ;)

Dave just thinking is this Merc driver an oldish guy in a silver C class or S class because i had the same problem on the M6 whilst going through roadworks.

i had a whiplash claim a year ago didnt get that much like only 3 grand but was worth more than the car i was driving at he time. Dont think he would of been the happiest of geezers if he wrote his big nice merc off tho would he :Suspiciou. It wouldnt be the end of the world if someone went into the back of your pride and joy at least you could put it back to normal at no extra cost:norty:

It would be if it was an uninsured driver who had just bent your pride and joy. :o

never ceases to amaze me how many people (of all generations) think that you;re a boy racer if you drive a powerful car. in my experience, it's these people who are are outspoken about this stereotype that tend to be the ones who don;t give a toss about 30mph speed limits.

i've seen so many people drive through national speed limit areas at 40mph or sometimes 50mph (as they think that's the limit - a former driving instructor in here even tried to argue that the national speed limit on a single carriagway a road is 50mph a few month IIRC) and then carry on at the same speed when they get to a 30 zone.

there are a lot of ignorant and selfish people on the roads, but that's just part of driving these days unfortunately.

if its a merc it probably wasnt his car, probably a company car!

What an ar5e head anyway!

Now it seems cocks are driving Mercs, they go from one make to another very quickly but nonetheless still cocks so makes 0 difference.Also i was driving a Landcruiser so not about to have a race with him.

not really the person who crashes into you pays it if there not insured, a none insured insurance company pays it untill they pay it back, ive been there lol so really you dont lose out at all:)

until you try to sell your car and it flashes up as being previously bent.

Dim witted answer imo

Nice write up, the red mist would of descended long before I could of remembered what happened. :D

i'm waiting to watch what happens when a c0ck like the Merc driver does the same thing to another car thats also being driven by a violent idiot with a small d1ck

fireworks i suspect

Horses for courses, not all of us are keen to jump on the compensation bandwagon by creating an accident. in the end we all pay for this sort of behaviour and are doing so...

You assume the other driver would not want his car smashed up or even care - maybe the other driver is just 'nuts' there are some strange people out there who do all sorts of things for all sorts of reasons

It takes all types.
Personally I just flick the mirror and drive in such a way that I will not have to use the brake pedal.
ie keep a bit of distance up front and try to match traffic speed.:thumb:

There really are some obnoxious people on the roads nowadays.I don't know why everyone has become so rude,angry and inconsiderate.

Wife told me about a car in a line of traffic hopping in and out and generally annoying everyone and had been hassling her too,when yes,an unmarked police car decided enough was enough,pulled out the line of traffic and lit up like a Christmas tree behind him.

Not often they are there when you want them,but nice when they are:thumb:

That's exactly what I did. :)

That's pretty much what I did. The only other thing I did was flash the brake lights, but as I did this I was slightly accelerating away. Never had that response before - people usually either get the message or take no notice. This guy was inches off my rear bumper - had he not overtaken me so dangerously, I would have been quite happy to let him sit on the bumper of the car in front!
I've no idea what his initial problem was to make him sit so close - if he'd been able to overtake me, he would have just sat behind the next car in the line of traffic, maybe get home 2 seconds quicker?

I just blow kisses at any drivers like that, it confuses them and shows I dont give a toss. Once one such idiot did get out and start knocking on my window. I broke his nose and carried on my merry way. Its helps being a big fella though :D

Chop

I can't stand tailgaters. Had the same type of situation last week. Car behind in a 30mph zone (town centre) inches off my rear bumper and half way over the other side as though going for an overtake.

I touched the brake too. Just enough to make the glow. When that had no effect, I backed down to 20-25mph.

Any one who overtakes me, stops, and jumps out to have a fight with me, will be run over.

These don't seem like the normal bitter and twisted rantings of the collective. What happened to stopping and f**king him up and then getting a convoy together and going round to his house en masse and burning down his house. He was probably a paedophile anyway if he drove a merc and deserves everything he gets :lol1:

:thumb: ;)

I consider tailgaters even more of a "threat" than someone trying to fight me in the street.
Absolutely no need for it ever ever.

Small Mercs and Audis have very much taken over small BMWs as the to55ers car of choice it seems.

lmfao i agree with that 1 like:lol:

but really does everyone check these things????:wonder:
your car could even get written of which means a new 1 so no flashing up bent car:) so imo you dont have a clue:cuckoo: lol

a friend of mine drives a 318ci and my word its embarrassing being in the passenger seat:lol1:

I think that you could not have been more reasonable with the prat Merc driver. I had a similar experience and it really is very annoying as well as a worry since he is so close behind.

You were also sensible not to stop as well, that would only have given him satisfaction anyway unless you had bent his nose for him! If he could stop for a bit of road rage then he had no possiible excuse for trying to make you go faster.

Les

It was good you kept cool,alot wouldn't.Think tailgating is probably the one thing that gets motorists angry more than most other dum manouvers.I still think that alot of these motorists when driving,the actual thought of driving is the last thing on their mind,and are unaware of how stupid they are driving.All they care about is where they need to get,and sensible drivers like yourself are pressured into going faster,and made to fee guilty for driving at the correct speed..