Folks get shot here, and quite often it all started with 'the finger'. You simply can't afford to take that chance, and what does flipping someone off say about you anyway? Having a normally asprirated wagon, I know slow. You really have to plan for onramps, and you even have to keep a non-turbo high on revs to have any chance to merge. I'll be glad when mine is drivable again, as I enjoy the art of driving an anvil.
JL

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Jimmy L.
'05 Acura TL 6MT
2001 ML430 My Spare

Gone:
'95 E300 188K "Batmobile" Texas Unfriendly Black
'85 300TD 235K "The Wagon" Texas Friendly White
'80 240D 154K "China" Scar engine installed
'81 300TD 240K "Smash"
'80 240D 230K "The Squash"
'81 240D 293K"Scar" Rear ended harder than Elton John

Man you're giving me idea's, what better car to do this on than a NA 123 240 or 300. I smoked a kid Friday that was tailgating me while the engine was cold. I was able to get him twice before he learned his lesson. Neighbor kid with decked out little ricer.

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'10 Chrysler T&C Stow-N-Go White. Grandpa's ride.

'13 Chrysler 200 Touring Candy Red. Grandma's ride.

Age and cunning will always over come youth and vigor.

I know I shouldn't laugh, but.....

I'm very cautious about flipping the bird nowadays, after an encounter I had Christmas Eve 2003. I was driving up a two-lane residential feeder street when my line of traffic stopped to allow someone to turn left into a neighborhood. I looked to my right, and there was literally a little old lady in a big old land-yacht trying to turn left out of the post office, and obviously having a hard time. When my line of traffic resumed movement, I remained stopped in an attempt (futile, it turns out) to let the old lady turn out in front of me. However, the woman behind me went absolutely apes__t at my failure to immediately proceed -- she's back there honking her horn, banging her steering wheel, and screaming. Ah, the Christmas spirit. Somewhat irritated, I accelerated, but couldn't resist flipping her off as I went.

This was obviously the wrong thing to do. She stayed on my ass for the mile it took to reach my neighborhood, and when I turned into my own neighborhood (thinking she'd blast on by), she turned in right behind me, zipped around, and blocked me just inside the entrance to my own neighborhood!

I'm generally speaking a calm and nonconfrontational person, but now I'm pissed and fully prepared to have a screaming match with this psychotic *****. Apparently she feels about the same -- as I'm rolling down my window, prepared to launch a verbal tirade, she, to my shock, gets out of her vehicle screaming at me to get out and fight her -- I f_cked with the wrong person today, she's screaming at me.

If I had a brain in my head and the wherewithal to use it, I would have squealed out of there in reverse right about then. But I was still sitting there, shocked and awed so to speak, window down like an idiot, possibly even slack-jawed, when she comes right up to me and pops me in the nose.

Finally, urged perhaps by the specter of actual, physical violence at the hands of someone far crazier than myself, I had the sense to put my old Saturn in reverse and get out of her reach by backing around her now-abandoned car. I did manage to memorize her license plate before zipping past her and heading right home, where I called the police. (Had I been thinking right, I would have driven anywhere but my home...I claim shock.)

Two weeks later, the police kindly looked her up and called her to see what her side of the story was. Amazingly enough, she seconded my version of the story, cried (yes, cried) to the detective that she had 'never done anything like that before!', and got him to call me to ask if I really wanted to press charges 'even though she apologized and said it will never happen again.' Sigh.

I'm still amazed that someone would be stupid enough to approach another person's car in anger, threatening violence. I mean, she's lucky I was the level-headed (um, chicken) person I am... had I been a crazy person with a concealed carry permit, she may have ended up far worse off than embarrassed. As it happens, I'm a relatively sane person with a concealed carry permit who just doesn't carry as a matter of routine Although, after that, I started carrying more regularly (after purchasing a more suitable carry weapon, a small Glock, than my old shiny-showy silver Taurus) and I now keep my middle-finger to myself. Unless, you know, someone really, really pisses me off

My Volvo had a built-in "cure" for tailgaters when I first got it -- floor it on the highway and downshift it, and a HUGE cloud of inky smoke poured out. Stayed thick and black as long as you had the pedal down, too. Never got a horn or finger on that! Obvious I was trying, I suppose.

The screaming ninnies will all be gone in a few years when they are sidelined due to lack of fuel, while your 240 will still be cruising along on biodiesel.

Colorado is currently full of boomers taking huge testosterone supplements trying to stay "young", along with all the other ex-hippes who now run dot-coms and can't make the house payment. It's a huge PITA, but this, too will pass.

Keep your cool and wave nicely as they go past. You can also get someone to turn the IP up a bit to make more smoke. Not very ecologically appropriate, but it will let anyone behind you know you giving all the engine has!

Peter

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1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!

I'm not. It has happened to me as well. Apparently I was not going fast enough on an exit ramp for a pickup truck directly behind me, and the fact that I hit the brakes for the turn rather hard, causes him to pass me on the grass, stop the truck at the top of the ramp, and head out of the truck running toward my vehicle.

I now carry a good sized can of pepper spray for these circumstances. Perfect solution. If you had a 9mm with you, and the dork runs to punch you in the face, you cannot use the weapon. That is why carrying a handgun is so dangerous. Most of the time you cannot use it. The one time that you can use it you probably don't have the time to pull it out!

As for flipping somebody off, you must ask yourself a serious question:

What do I hope to accomplish here? Do I want to make the other person, who is probably unstable to begin with, go totally ballistic? Is that my goal? Well if it is, then I had better have both the gun and the pepper spray locked and loaded. Or is it my goal to just let the other person know that I am upset with him because of his driving habits? Is that my goal? Well if it is, then I must presume that the person is an individual with some intelligence and will respond to my obscene gesture by reviewing his driving habits in his mind and maybe correct his poor habits in the future.

You really should have a goal when you flip someone off. However, I fail to see what it is.

I rather like to avoid any gestures. I may follow the vehicle in question, at a safe distance, to their destination. Then I will remove the valves from their valve stems and return the caps to the valve stems. The tires will go flat after several hours. Now, that is very satisfying and incurs minimal risk.

The next plan I have is to get some of those very sticky self adhesive labels, in a size of about 8 x 12 with the words " Be careful, I drive like an a**hole".
I then will stick this on their back and side windows. It is very difficult to remove without a scraper and some solvent. Also quite satisfying

I'm afraid that part of the tailgating problems we have is the that car we drive tends to pi$$ people off. When I pull out on hwy 50 here in Illinois in the MB and the oncoming car/truck (most likely truck) sees my car they rapidly accelerate (smoke out the stack) and they will get right on my azz no matter HOW fast I go to keep out of their way. Occasionally this happens when I'm driving the Dodge pickup or wife's Subie but not NEARLY as often.

The other day I accelerated the MB out in traffic and about 1/4 mile down the road here comes a coal bucket empty and smoke a rollin'. He gets right on my azz and I'm going 70 in a 55. He's trying to intimmidate me ...a retired over the road truck driver w/ over 3 million miles. It ain't gonna work! I slow down to 25 and hold him there for a while as oncoming traffic won't allow him to pass. He's blowin the air horn and going berserk back there. When traffic clears I accelerate and leave him behind...laughing to myself all the way into town.

I have often pondered " Why, is this jerk in such a hurry?"
There's a saying in the industrial safety world that , " Nothing is worth a 30 second risk". It came about as a result of studies of workplace accidents showing that many accidents occur because someone puts himself in jepordy " for just 30 seconds"
I have also learned, ( Actually, "am learning") to pull over and let those in such a hurry pass. It never pays to have an agitated, angry driver on your bumper.

Now that is what I need to learn. Excellent solution

I have to say that I have been very lucky so far and have not had any problems with other people. The pepper spray is a good idea Brian, if someone comes up to your door you can spray than leave. I might purchase some.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I find this dangerous too.
You have to make unnecessary manouvers which increase the
chance of having an accident.
Especially pulling back into traffic can be/is dangerous.


I for one do not move aside unless it is a multi lane highway
and the lane next to me is clear.

On a secondary road I slow down and the closer the person behind
me gets, the slower I go.
If the person is in such a hurry, then he can pass me and I let
him get the ticket.
As he passes me he'll see me waving at him.

Just my take on the subject.

Louis.

Hello,
I do think that driving a Mercedes has got something to do with the tailgating,
I have this observation:
USAUs and small Jap cars with gigantic mufflers almost always tangled with the W124 260E on I-40 and I-95, sometimes I could not let the guys pass, already up to 85-90 in a 70 zone. If I tucked into the right lane, I would have to mix it with the trucks, on I-85, the trucks are in the left(passing)lane, so this *problem* does not occur I did get up to 125 on I-40 just for a lark to see if Mitsu*****ie something or the other could keep up, it kept up for a few minutes, then fell back quickly W123 240D that I borrowed for a few months was driven around Raleigh and I did not experience tailgating, but a few SUVs got uncomfortably close on 440, I just slowed down to force them to pass
Malaysia: In the W115 200, most cars do not follow too close or push me around, they are intimidated by what is to them a *tank*, so I can push my way thru traffic in the city and highways relatively easily.The W107 500SL is another matter, the 500SL badge on the trunklid has a *red rag to a bull* effect on the million valve four bangers but it can reduce most cars to a speck in the rearview mirror, including the fake BMW M3s(318s tarted up to look like M3)that roam the roads here. I did have to hold off a V-12 W140(well, it had the V-12 badges)and he kept up up to 135 indicated, then gave up
Tailgating I never experienced when driving a Volvo 240, mostly, I was given plenty of room

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Nachi11744

According to your location, you're living in Boulder. Well, Boulder is considered screwed up even by the rest of the Colorado residents. Add to that, your California plates, AND a diesel (in the town of Boulder), and you have every self righeous self proclaimed environut wanting a piece of you.

I grew up in Denver, and hated it when my job took me into that city. It's been the only place that I've ever seen the behaviour that you are describing.

I like the smoke idea!

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'83 240D with 617.952 and 2.88
'01 VW Beetle TDI
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD
'89 Toyota 4x4, needs 2L-T
'78 280Z with L28ET - 12.86@110
Oil Burner Kartel #35

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b1...oD/bioclip.jpg

Reading this makes me all the happier that I don't live in the high traffic areas anymore. The one comment I have is that driving courteously is a two-way street: turning on the flashers helps, especially on those uphill short ramps. Smoke and flashing lights means they back off or go around. I did see a bumper sticker last month: "Horn Broke Watch Finger".

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daBenz - 1970 220D