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Ever since I have embraced the use of cruise control, I've noticed a phenomenon:
Some jack ass that can't maintain a steady speed gives me a dirty look as he passes me for the fourth time. After he passes, he invariably begins slowing down again until I'm faced with the choice of passing him again
or slowing down. Of course, as I pull into the fast lane, he speeds up to match speeds. As drivers intent on exceeding the posted limit by scalar quantities hover mere inches off of my back bumper, I reluctantly speed up. The idiot on my left chooses to do so, as well, so now I am forced to turn on my left directional and slow down (assuming the line of cars behind me has not switched lanes to pass me on the right).
More than anything, I want to yell over a loudspeaker something along the lines of "You are the idiot, not me".
However, if cars were equipped with blue running lights that were activated by using the cruise control, it would be apparent to this idiot, and all the other idiots out there, that he was, indeed, the one incapable of maintaining a steady speed.
Blue light ...
http://en.wikipedia...Cherenkov_radiation
.... with side effects. [8th of 7, Nov 02 2008]
Blue Star Sapphire
http://jewelry-blog...-different-view.jpg
Another Cherenkov radiation-like stone. [MikeD, Nov 03 2008]
Trafficator
https://en.wikipedi...he%20door%20pillar.
For those who aren't old enough [bhumphrys, Apr 26 2025]
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Annotation:
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These lights are slung under the car? And neon? And pulse at a stately frequency somehow calibrated to your speed? So that a properly functioning highway is a pulsating vein of blue light? |
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I'm with you on some kind of indicator, but blue lights are generally reserved for law enforcement. Red is brakes and law enforcement, yellow is running or turn, white is for the night... |
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Green or purple. I vote purple. |
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Even more distinctive, green AND purple, alternating. |
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A pair of small green lights, one each side, high up in the rear windscreen. [+] |
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Green lights are often used by medics. |
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// green AND purple, alternating // |
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Guaranteed to cause nausea. |
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3 buns? Hmmm. It would appear that changes have been made. The breakdown zipper would appear to be setting new records. |
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I'm still partial to blue. I think there wouldn't be a problem as long as they weren't flashing. I was thinking also maybe an LED display in the rear windshield so other motorists can decide whether or not they want to cruise with you. |
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What if I leave cruise control on but use the cruise control buttons to increase and decrease my speed. You may start wondering if something is wrong with your speedometer or mine :) |
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My solution to the original problem is to bump up my cruise control speed by 1 mph for a while when I pass someone who is going nearly the same speed I'm going and to bump it down when someone passes me very slowly. It improves the situation quite a bit. |
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Having lights would be good too [+]. I wonder how many jerks might see them, pull in front, and intentionally slow down just to be jerks. |
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I like blue as well, but laws may vary by country and state. In California, always-on blue is used on the rear of police motorcycles. They frown strongly on it's use on civilian motorcycles. |
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But I've seen it's use ignored by law enforcement when it's between a tractor and a trailer. |
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I envy the cruise control users. My life style is more stop and go. |
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Green and purple are reserved for indicating, to the deaf, that you have a huge exhaust, a phat sound system, and no taste whatsoever. |
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OMG, I never get the chance to do this. |
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For the idea, a multibun. I do a lot of driving on wide, flat Western highways and I always use my control and inevitably this will happen to me. I would install a set of these on my car tomorrow if I thought it would help. |
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[+] I too am annoyed when someone is tailgating, especially
when there are cars in front of you and there is no place to
pass. What I do when they gets too close is slowdown
gradually, then I speed up quickly and create a good size gap
and hold the speed. When he catches up, if he tailgates
again I repeat the slowing down and speeding up and see how
long it takes for him to catch onto the game. |
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Good catch, [NoExit]. On a summary statement no less! |
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[theGem], shifting into second gear whilst letting off the gas, can be quite effective as well. It slows you down about as fast as a firm brake check without the warning of brake lights. Sometimes I like to waggle my car back and forth in the lane as if to "Shake them off my ass". |
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Are you all seeing an abnormal amount of buns and bones on the posted ideas? Or is it just my computer? |
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ya know, it's probably not illegal to put a few blue LED's on your car yourself, without waiting for it to be a standard... I'd go with a slow flashing though, instead of solid blue, at least until it becomes a standard. |
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[Mike D] Jutta is having a bit of fun for Halloween. Happens every year. |
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// Neither green nor purple are particularly good for the colour blind. // |
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Yet another whiny minority wanting to be pandered to .... |
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// blue of Cerenkov radiation // |
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Ah yes..... soooooo beautiful .... |
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<asking for trouble> How about a display (LED, e-paper, whatever) on the back, saying "I'm cruising at ..."? /<aft> |
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Not to say that you're an idiot... |
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However, I must suggest that attempting to set cruise control for driving in traffic is somewhat idiotic. Setting cruise control for a precise set speed is difficult due to variabilities in spedometers and the setting mechanisms, and driving at a constant speed in the variable speeds experienced in most traffic situations tends to be unsafe. |
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In light traffic, and on long stretches of road, I suppose I can see the benefit of knowing some other car is on cruise control, but an individual who varies their speed in traffic is not necessarily the idiot. |
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Not to say that you're an idiot... |
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// variabilities in spedometers and the setting mechanisms // |
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The variability in speedometers can be nullified by using GPS as a velocity reference. And since any "error" in GPS will affect all vehicles in a given area, such errors will tend to be self-cancelling. |
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(We now use GPS exclusively as our velocity reference in ground vehicles and find that installed speedos are generally pretty inaccurate) |
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As to the setting mechanism, all that's needed instead of the usual "On", "Cancel" and "+/-" buttons is the ability to dial in an actual speed. Given the plethora of digital displays in modern cars, it's probably already baked on some high-end models. |
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[River], I'm not saying a varying speed is indicative of idiocy, but it is one of many symptoms. |
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// blue of Cerenkov radiation // |
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<reverie> Ahhhh. </reverie> |
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Why not get a nice big lump of Cobalt-60 ? Available now from a Mexican scrap dealer near you .... |
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// <reverie> Ahhhh. </reverie> // |
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Yes, it's quite common ..... invariably seen when a few rounds get loosed off in the far distance, and Staff officers decide they would be better off somewhere a bit further to the rear .... that blueish glow as they accelerate towards .99C is unmistakeable. |
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What if someone fakes it? |
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There's a certain misplaced self righteousness about cruise control usage. Under all but the most boring conditions i can beat it for fuel economy (hard to not go slightly faster than efficient on the long straights) and i enjoy actively controlling my car, after all, to the same extent that others can be irresponsible, you are responsible. If you desire to drive as passively as possible, and find interacting with other drivers, obstacles, and road conditions unpleasant then I propose you "leave the driving to us" and take a bus. |
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//Red is brakes and law enforcement, yellow is running or turn, white is for the night... What does that leave us?// |
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Anti-missile flares would be visible as hell, and no one in front of you would likely slow down. |
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//certain misplaced self righteousness // |
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No, no. It is right where I wanted it. |
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I want to be away from other drivers because that is the safest place to be. However; I have learned enough in my less scrupulous days to still surprise a motorist with a misplaced sense of skill (or two). |
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not clear on the insinuation there mike. Language was a little obtuse. Are you referring to cruise control drag racing? Nimble use of heel and resume? Daring low traction cruise control drifting? Synchronized drafting? help a fellow car enthusiast out here. |
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The real beauty of cruise control is that it's a safer way to
switch drivers without stopping the car. You don't have to do
that tricky gas pedal foot transfer to the new driver. The CC
keeps it right on 90 mph, too bad it doesn't hold the wheel
straight. |
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// safer way to switch drivers without stopping the car // |
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It's easiest done in a Land Rover with a hand throttle. |
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Procedure for R/H drive Land Rover: |
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1. Current driver sets hand throttle. |
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2. New driver climbs over bulkhead and sits in centre seat with legs to right of gear levers and handbrake. |
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3. Navigator (passenger seat) takes hold of steering wheel. Driver states "you have control". navigator responds, "I have control". |
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4. Driver slides upwards and backwards out of driving seat into cargo space, assisted by rear passenger. |
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5. New driver slides along seat into driving position, takes wheel, positions foot on throttle. Navigator states "You have control". Driver responds "I have control". Navigator releases wheel. |
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6. Driver releasses hand throttle. |
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The Navigator can be relieved of duty by a similar procedure, but without formal control handover. |
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An alternative procedure involves the Navigator steering while another crew member operates the gear levers, hand throttle and clutch for the centre seat while the driver is swapped over the bulkhead. This may be necessary in busy traffic conditions where changes of speed and gear are required but requires extensive crew training to achieve effectively and unobtrusively. |
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[+] Anything that makes driving safer and more interesting. This is flow control that could work. |
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On the A1M yesterday they were displaying the message "Don't hog the middle lane" every mile or so. Obviously, hogging is bad. Being an occasional hogger myself, I peered into my soul asking myself the root cause. I tend to hog whist doing the legal speed limit. In this mode, I won't readily drop into the slow lane. This is because I know that if I come up behind a slower mover, somebody will come tooling past me. I then won't be able to pull back out because they will box me in, and I will need to drop down speed, come out of cruise control, maybe even brake. I've always been a timid driver, you see, since my days of cycling and being consequentially completely invisible. |
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What [Scad] says helps a bit and if people were all normal and pleasant this would work fine. We do, however, have Audi drivers, testosterone-fuelled maniacs, and pure mad heads who just don't mix in. Also people who's cruising speed is varying without due cause which doesn't help. |
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So I was going to post this idea myself but found it here pre-existing. My first thought before I found this was that cruise controllers should display a blue light, same as MikeD had proposed. But it's associated with emergency workers so it was going to be green for me. And on a short mechanical pole like those flappy direction indicator lights but vertical, which pops up when cruise control is engaged. This will then work in daylight, too, and be visible from a greater distance. |
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But that's all just detail. The main thing needed is an addition to the Highway Code which says "Give way to drivers who are indicating that they are in cruise control", plus, it goes without saying, speed control indication is only permitted within the legal limit. |
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Ps I have no idea why the Nottinghamshire Police are going after the middle lane hoggers instead of the Audis blatantly flouting the speed limit, but I feel that this is gong to suit those buggers down to the ground. That's because the rest of us will be happy enough to match our speed to the flotilla of cruise controllers; we'll be happy to go into the left hand lane and free-up the middle lane because we feel as though we can safely and comfortably indicate to pull back out into it should we need to do so. This will give the boy racers more space to be unpleasant in, if they insist. Less stress; Happy days. |
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I love this post so much. |
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