Making turns

[Highway Man]

Here's a subject that probably everyone has seen or maybe has even done themselves. I have noticed a lot of people when driving their cars when making a turn will swing wide as if they were pulling a trailer. I suspect this behavior has been picked up by people who have observed an eighteen-wheeler or similiar large vehicle swing wide to insure the rear of the vehicle they were driving/pulling successfully made the turn. Having a CDL myself and being familiar with these large vehicles I know the sometimes necessity of making these wide turns however what I don't understand is why some people will take a car and do the same thing even to the point of getting over into another lane when it is entirely unnecessary. They are not only putting themselves but also others and their vehicles in harms way. I'm going to get real objective here and state that for those of you who think it looks cool-it doesn't. What it looks like is someone who is posing as if they were driving some big rig that needed the entire road and commanded attention. There is a reason for those lines on the road and yes sometimes the big rig drivers need all the room they can get and a little more but for cars and pickups to do this is entirely unneccessary. Yeah, if there is something in the road and you have to go around it you gotta do whatcha gotta do but do it safely and don't put yourself, others, and your vehicle at risk doing it. Thoughts/comments?

 

[boomdriver]

Here's a subject that probably everyone has seen or maybe has even done themselves. I have noticed a lot of people when driving their cars when making a turn will swing wide as if they were pulling a trailer. I suspect this behavior has been picked up by people who have observed an eighteen-wheeler or similiar large vehicle swing wide to insure the rear of the vehicle they were driving/pulling successfully made the turn. Having a CDL myself and being familiar with these large vehicles I know the sometimes necessity of making these wide turns however what I don't understand is why some people will take a car and do the same thing even to the point of getting over into another lane when it is entirely unnecessary. They are not only putting themselves but also others and their vehicles in harms way. I'm going to get real objective here and state that for those of you who think it looks cool-it doesn't. What it looks like is someone who is posing as if they were driving some big rig that needed the entire road and commanded attention. There is a reason for those lines on the road and yes sometimes the big rig drivers need all the room they can get and a little more but for cars and pickups to do this is entirely unneccessary. Yeah, if there is something in the road and you have to go around it you gotta do whatcha gotta do but do it safely and don't put yourself, others, and your vehicle at risk doing it. Thoughts/comments?

I absolutely agree...people do that because they are LAZY...too lazy to turn the wheel soon enough, fast enough to negotiate a 90* corner/turn at the speed they are moving. Makes me crazy.

I drove big equipment (used to) that often was not trailer, but 60+ft long on 4 to 9 axles straight frame. If I can make it around a corner in something the size of a double-wide mobile home, I would think a soccer mom could in a Nissan.

Law varies state to state,. Some say to turn into the 1st available lane while others say to swing into the perpendicular flow and make your way into the 1st lane....being vague about where or how to negotiate the turn.
Some state that a truck should swing into thier 2nd lane prior to turning so that arrival in the 1st lane is possible, to avoid ending up facing oncoming traffic while the next state says DO NOT stray out of your lane of traffic as you approach a turn, forcing you to go past, then turn late and quickly. This slows the rear/trailer speed to nothing as the tractor is still moving in turns. Kind of dangerous in its own way.
Most class C drivers do not see those rules, but most act as if they had.
I know our Vettes have at least 2 times the steer response or ratio of the avg car, but having to reach up and use a little more effort with the steering wheel just don;t seem all that difficult to me. They do the same s*** in parking lots, and they way the drive a dang grocery cart.

Does spending some time driving a Corvette make you a better or more attentive driver? It would seem so. The Vette, especially the Z51 steering ratio MAKES me pay attention. Yes, it gets tiring on long drives, but I have learned to stay focused in the Vette because blinking twice is enough time to wander across 2 lanes as sensitive as that steering is.

I laugh everytime I drive a buddies big duelly Ford P/U...The steering is so soft and easy that its seems as responsive as a row boat compared to my car.

 

[jamescp1]

Just the Opposite

I have to say that I really don't see people swinging wide very much at all. What I see ALL the time is people cutting corners (e.g., on a 90-degree turn) or taking the apex of a curve so far so as to either crowd or cross the inside line. Doing that on the inside lane is one thing, but what really bothers me is when I'm on the inside lane on a curve the the guy/girl coming the other way crosses the line into my lane. It's ironic that the best thing to do to avoid a head-on is to drive as badly as others do and either take the curve too far to the inside to avoid those coming the opposite way, or stop at least a car-length too short of the intersection to avoid getting your left front clipped by someone making a left turn.

 

[Highway Man]

Responses

Well I know this Boomdriver since I got my vette it sure has made me a more attentive driver and I thought I was pretty attentive having also been riding motorcycles for the last 37 years! The steering on my vette is so fast I can be in another lane in the blink of an eye. Don't ask me how I know. The steering on mine probably isn't as fast as yours. Fortunately it was without incident but it sure let me know that I was not piloting a ma and pa lets go get some groceries type car.
I must admit that I am kinda surprised that this thread is not drawing more comments. Makes me wonder if I got close to home. To those who have read or will read this thread let me assure you that I am not out to bad-mouth anyone but I am pointing out a real safety issue. This is one that could keep you, someone else, or your vehicle from harm. Bad habits are not easily broken but they can be if a person is aware that they may be doing something that can be potentially dangerous. Happy trails!

 

[Highway Man]

Good one

I have to say that I really don't see people swinging wide very much at all. What I see ALL the time is people cutting corners (e.g., on a 90-degree turn) or taking the apex of a curve so far so as to either crowd or cross the inside line. Doing that on the inside lane is one thing, but what really bothers me is when I'm on the inside lane on a curve the the guy/girl coming the other way crosses the line into my lane. It's ironic that the best thing to do to avoid a head-on is to drive as badly as others do and either take the curve too far to the inside to avoid those coming the opposite way, or stop at least a car-length too short of the intersection to avoid getting your left front clipped by someone making a left turn.

Yeah. That's a good observation to. I see that quite a bit here also. I remember we used to observe "rules of the road" now it seems more like the law of the jungle. Thanks for your input. Anybody else want to chime in?

 

[Highway Man]

Another one

Here's one that bothers me even more than the first observation and that is for someone to get on my rear bumper and stay there. I have had people get so close to me after dark that I couldn't see their headlights in the rear view mirror! Talk about annoying. I usually will just pull off the road and let them have it rather than stay in a potentially dangerous situation. We have a lot of white-tailed deer here where I live. Can you imagine hitting one of them or something else with some inconsiderate motorist on your tail? We recently had a young man driving a pickup killed because he slowed behind a truck that had stopped in the road and before he could go around the truck a school bus driver plowed into the back of him driving him into the truck killing him. As if that wasn't bad enough another school bus driver behing the first school bus hit it in the rear driving it into the rear of the truck which already had a pickup with a dead driver smashed into the rear of it. Totally unneccessary. In my opinion it was all because people weren't paying attention to what they were doing. If you've ever been involved in an accident then you know how fast it can happen. If you are fortunate and haven't I can assure it can happen in the blink of an eye. Sad but oh so true.

 

[Florida Guy]

I live in northwest Florida and I see it all the time. That's the way they drive here. And they do not care if you are approaching them in the other lane, they are going to cross the line to make a wide turn and you better get out of the way.

If the wide right turns bother you come visit this area. Traffic may be moving at 60 mph, but when they see a green light, they slow to about 45 mph when approaching . But if the light is red, the brake lights come on about a quarter mile before. Then they continue to slow down. Finally they are at walking speed for the final 200 feet. Some finally stop and leave a 50 foot space between them and the next car. I have not figured out why. Drives me up the wall. And it is rare to see a turn signal in use. When it is my turn to go, I'm sure it will be an auto accident in NW Florida.

 

[Highway Man]

I thought it was bad here!

I live in northwest Florida and I see it all the time. That's the way they drive here. And they do not care if you are approaching them in the other lane, they are going to cross the line to make a wide turn and you better get out of the way.

If the wide right turns bother you come visit this area. Traffic may be moving at 60 mph, but when they see a green light, they slow to about 45 mph when approaching . But if the light is red, the brake lights come on about a quarter mile before. Then they continue to slow down. Finally they are at walking speed for the final 200 feet. Some finally stop and leave a 50 foot space between them and the next car. I have not figured out why. Drives me up the wall. And it is rare to see a turn signal in use. When it is my turn to go, I'm sure it will be an auto accident in NW Florida.

I thought it was bad here but I think you've got it worse there! It seems like a lot of people when they get behind the wheel have got their mind on everything but driving. :W I've seen everything from people reading the paper to looking for some object either on the seat next to them or on the floor while they are driving. We have had state troopers during traffic stops run over by people who weren't paying attention. That's why in Missouri if you hit a police officer or road construction worker or anyone with an occupation concerning the highway it is a $10,000.00 fine and loss of license. Anyone else got something they would like to share? Now is your chance to download. If nothing else maybe we can elevate awareness.

 

[ex-x-fire]

Yeah I hate tailgaters, up here in Wi. this time of the year you see alot of moving deers. So if someone is gating me, I'll pull over & let 'em blaze the trail.
Anotherthing about turning, people think they have to be close to the curb when turning into a lot. Its like they are trying to give you room to pass. But you can't without going in the other lane alittle. And it takes them longer to pull in because their inside rear tire has to go over the curb.
I like those wide roads in industrial parks, people think they are 4 lanes (no painted lines except the middle lines), passing you on the right & blocking your view at an intersection because you're going straight & the other guy is going right & he can't wait to go.
I like those people who pull way out in an intersection (without a arrow for turning left), they almost have to make a U turn to get back in line with the other road. I call that the foot in the door intersection manuver.

 

[Dad]

Driving in the rain with no lights.

Driving on a clear night with fog lights on.

Just plain not paying attention to driving and ignoring the fact that two vehicles can't occupy the same space.

I've been hit 3 times while stopped at a stop sign, T-boned, side swiped, and rear-ended. What that tells me is, keep moving if at all possible and never stop on an active highway. If you have a flat tire drive to the end of a guardrail and tuck in behind it or invest a rim in driving to an exit.

 

[boomdriver]

Driving in the rain with no lights.

Driving on a clear night with fog lights on.

Just plain not paying attention to driving and ignoring the fact that two vehicles can't occupy the same space.

I've been hit 3 times while stopped at a stop sign, T-boned, side swiped, and rear-ended. What that tells me is, keep moving if at all possible and never stop on an active highway. If you have a flat tire drive to the end of a guardrail and tuck in behind it or invest a rim in driving to an exit.

Yep....."D"...all of the above !

I have had people say to me that they don;t turn on thier headlights in the rain because they have good eyesight, and can see just fine !
I am usually unable to find the words that would be appropiate to pure, intense self centered stupidity. I guess they never figured out that everyone else, or at least some others might have trouble seeing them? Too narrow minded, too simple.

tail gaters?
I don;t pull over, I slow down and continue to slow down until THEY figure it out. That may be risky, but I've been nailed before and it was because some over confident idiot was unable to understand that IF anything happened to me or in front of me, that they would not see or know about it until they had hit me. They are incapable of understanding reaction time.
It makes me want to whip someones A$$ when they try to justify following that close. I see mom-mobiles full of kids tailgating on the freeway. I see people holding the phone, with one hand and trying to push their way thru traffic or write things down while they get within 5' of the next car at 70 mph.
One good car length for each 10 mph is minimal following distance in good conditions. Do they actually believe that using their safety margin will get them to their destination ANY sooner? seriously?

The classic in stupid driving is driving at usual speeds in the rain. People will tell you that they have rain tires, and that makes it ok, or that they can see fine or that being late justifys the obvious hazard. Some are just too dang dumb to be allowed out of their cage when its wet.

Because I now have to drive defensively AT ALL times, I always stop so I can see the tires on the car in front of me, so I can go around if necessary, or not be pushed into the next car, and so the idiot in front of me does not hit me in case he puts his car in reverse....its happened.
Whenever I have right of way, I proceed as if I did'nt, because legally I may have the right of way, but the clown coming around the bend has not figured that out yet...

I rememeber being rear-ended in Dallas yrs ago, sitting in the turnout for the left turn on a 2 lane country road with my flasher on and had been sitting there 30 seconds at least. I am watching the pickup in the mirror approach as I wait for a break in oncoming traffic so I can make my left. I realize that the fool driving up behind me is LOOKING IN HIS passenger seat as he approaches and he has not even begun to slow down or move to avoid hitting me ! I jumped on the gas at the last possible second and try to accellerate straight ahead to avoid the impact, but this moron looks up as I'm trying to accellerate from a dead stop and he has a friggin chicken leg in his mouth ! I'm seeing all this in the rear view mirror......and he hits me anyway. The impact should have been lots worse. The real damage came from the other guys mouth as we exit out of our bent vehicles...
He has the stones to ask..."why did you stop in front of me??"
Needless to say he got the tickets and was liable for all the damages. That left an impression. People have the attention span of a knat and when you add a 3000 lb chunk of steel and plastic thats moving, its like giving a 3 yr old a loaded handgun to play with.

If you want to survive the trip to the grocery store these days, you have to see everything they don't AND watch for them and every dumb move they might make. They make me tired having to do their job and mine at the same time.

 

[tonylong]

All of your comments re-inforce my belief that most people shouldn't drive .... or vote!

 

[Dukeallen]

All of your comments re-inforce my belief that most people shouldn't drive .... or vote!

What he said. It's scary out there.

 

[Smmmokin']

Well, as far as the right turn thing, I stay in my lane but use all of it, I don't cut the corner. This was probably ingrained years ago driving in NJ in the winter. Sharp turns cause you to possibly skid/slide, but by increasing the arc causes the force of turning to be lessened. What bugs me though are people that have to slow down to 5 mph to make a turn like the damn thing is going to tip over if they go any faster. Make the turn quickly and help avoid some jerk plowing into your rear.

 

[Highway Man]

Its a dangerous world

No doubt its a dangerous world we live in. Thanks in part to all of those who either don't know how to drive or simply don't care. I know that everybody is going to pull some stunt sooner or later-I know I have pulled a few myself. I know in motorcycling it doesn't matter if you have the right-of-way or not you give it to the other person anyway. A person may have been right but it is going to do them little good if they are dead. Hey boomdriver what that guy was looking for in the seat next to him was his biscuit to go with that chicken leg! Its funny and its not-what are you going to do? It has been interesting to hear some of you alls experiences. Keep those eyes sharp and I hope all of you have many enjoyable miles ahead of you.

 

[tonylong]

This post reminds of the best driving advice I ever got. It was from a PA State Trooper teaching a AAA class in driver safety:
1. Assume you are invisible.
2. Assume every other driver is Blind, Deaf, Dumb and Insane.
Maybe you'll survive this trip.

 

[Dad]

Driving in the rain with no lights.

Driving on a clear night with fog lights on.

Got to add yesterdays trip to this thread.

Got out early to head out for Thanksgiving dinner still just a bit dark and heavy fog. Within the first 10 miles I met at least 6 cars/suvs with no lights what so ever, not even running lights. Even flashed my lights at a few and had no response. Did notice that one driver was able to make her phone calls but not able to pay enough attention to driving to turn on the headlights.

Made it to Michigan with no problems and started back just before dark in a heavy rain. Got dark before I got out of Michigan and ran onto two Amish buggies with no lights on one. I was within 3 car lengths of meeting the first one before I figured out what lay ahead. I saw a strange pattern in the on coming headlights which were the wet horse legs flashing off the vehicle lights behind the buggy. Had he turned in front of me like the second one did I would have hit them for sure. The next was 2 miles further down the road and had lights but he was side ways to me and they were not visable until he turning left across my path.

Thanksgiving now has a new meaning for me; I'm thankful for making it home safely and was blessed with the dumb luck that allowed me to do so.

 

[Highway Man]

Maybe just maybe

I live in northwest Florida and I see it all the time. That's the way they drive here. And they do not care if you are approaching them in the other lane, they are going to cross the line to make a wide turn and you better get out of the way.

If the wide right turns bother you come visit this area. Traffic may be moving at 60 mph, but when they see a green light, they slow to about 45 mph when approaching . But if the light is red, the brake lights come on about a quarter mile before. Then they continue to slow down. Finally they are at walking speed for the final 200 feet. Some finally stop and leave a 50 foot space between them and the next car. I have not figured out why. Drives me up the wall. And it is rare to see a turn signal in use. When it is my turn to go, I'm sure it will be an auto accident in NW Florida.

I recently observed this behavior in my hometown and it suddenly occurred to me what might be happing with people slowing down way before they get to a stop and then creeping in. Could it be because they are trying to avoid coming to a complete stop? If so then that is one of the dumbest things I have ever heard of. What they don't realize is the danger they are putting themselves in by a motorist coming up behind them and ramming them in the rearend. I've seen that happen here to! A lot of people don't realize the danger behind them when they are stopped or are slowly moving on the roadway. I have seen people get the sweet-by-golly knocked out of them by a motorist hitting them in the rear-end. Just a thought.

 

[Schrade]

I drove myself through college - literally - reading, taking notes, eating, flossing - even once got up out of the seat and went to the BACK of the van - new '02 Express 1-ton, to get a can of beer, while going 65 mph, no one else in the van, or on the road. 4-lane divided, straight highway.

I don't worry about me - I worry about the other guy - like the drinker who took me down in '06. Head on, square, about 110mph combined (it's ALL on the report, in case you can't believe it). I limp, and he's doing the same thing Beethoven is doing now - de-composing (not my fault tho').

I still don't worry about my direction - only the OTHER guys'...

A little faith in divinity goes a long way too...

 

[LLC5]

Here's a subject that probably everyone has seen or maybe has even done themselves. I have noticed a lot of people when driving their cars when making a turn will swing wide as if they were pulling a trailer. I suspect this behavior has been picked up by people who have observed an eighteen-wheeler or similiar large vehicle swing wide to insure the rear of the vehicle they were driving/pulling successfully made the turn. Having a CDL myself and being familiar with these large vehicles I know the sometimes necessity of making these wide turns however what I don't understand is why some people will take a car and do the same thing even to the point of getting over into another lane when it is entirely unnecessary. They are not only putting themselves but also others and their vehicles in harms way. I'm going to get real objective here and state that for those of you who think it looks cool-it doesn't. What it looks like is someone who is posing as if they were driving some big rig that needed the entire road and commanded attention. There is a reason for those lines on the road and yes sometimes the big rig drivers need all the room they can get and a little more but for cars and pickups to do this is entirely unneccessary. Yeah, if there is something in the road and you have to go around it you gotta do whatcha gotta do but do it safely and don't put yourself, others, and your vehicle at risk doing it. Thoughts/comments?

Are you referring to taking a right turn at a stop light (or stop sign) and not being in the right lane after the turn?