Cell Phones and Driving

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This is like driving and talking on the cell phone.....

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Another thing...when the light finally turns green, you might as well start honking because some asshat in front is looking at his phone.
 
ralleyred said:
Another thing...when the light finally turns green, you might as well start honking because some asshat in front is looking at his phone.
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and use up the left turn arrow, screwing some of the others behind them....
 
North Carolina allows talking on a cell phone while driving. But, not texting. I see people texting everyday. I can watch them thumb their screen while driving. Had 2 near head-on collisions from drivers texting.

One incident, that I almost went ballistic: I was at a drive-up ATM. At the ATM window was a woman on her cellphone. I pulled in behind her and waited while she yakked on the phone. She got her money and finally took the car out of PARK. (I could see the reverse lights flash). She moved forward about 4 feet and stopped. Put the vehicle back in PARK and continued yakking on the phone. I couldn't get to the ATM. This was late at night, the bank parking lot was empty. I thought about honking my horn but, it was such a pathetic meeeep sound. But, I was talking very loudly at her (not cussing). I gave up and drove to another ATM. She looked at me as I went by and the expression on her face was complete bewilderment.
 
gdrill said:
There was a time when the radio in your car had a dial and some push button slides. It was also mounted very low in the car. You certainly had to look down to adjust the radio, at least to see where you were starting at. Heaters being the same thing. Look away from the road for a second in order to adjust the settings. I still don't like the heater in my truck today because of it's location. OK, we made it through those days, because we had the brainpower to realize we were momentarily distracting ourselves from the task of driving.
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Maybe I'm just an old fart, but give me the days when the radio and heater controls were easy and intuitive to operate. Waaaay less distracting than today when everything is done via touch screen menus filled with cryptic symbols.
 
Oaktree said:
Maybe I'm just an old fart, but give me the days when the radio and heater controls were easy and intuitive to operate. Waaaay less distracting than today when everything is done via touch screen menus filled with cryptic symbols.
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Selecting heat controls (no A/C) and changing radio stations with the push buttons on my old MOPARS was never a distraction. The FM converter was a bit tough and I had to wait to get to a stoplight to change stations.
Drove a 2013 Mustang rental car. The thing had an LCD dash display with about a dozen different functions. That was really distracting. Set the display to the pony emblem and ignored it from then on.
 
I'm guilty of talking on the phone while driving.
I use to drive truck. I still have a class a cdl. When I drove there were no laws against talking while driving.
We had nextel and cellphones.
Never had any accidents , and all of us used them.
I believe many are capable of talking and driving.
Texting is a another thing.
However I do believe talking on the phone, eating, smoking ect are distractions while driving.
I do believe also like most things in our world, the few ruin it for the many.
 
Back in Time said:
You should get a ticket.
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What if i paint a bar of soap black and they see me holding it to my ear???

You should be arrested and transported to the loony bin.

Georgia just passed a law that if they just see a cell phone in you hand, you will be fined.
 
Ok I'm going to pretend like I'm a scientist for a moment. If I'm driving, that uses a portion of my attention. If I'm having a conversation with a passenger or using bluetooth hands free that uses more. If I have the extra concentration of holding the phone against my ear, that may be 1 too many different directions to keep my main concentration on what the idiot next to me might do. And not all drivers are created equal. I happen to think car people ie FABO members are probably in the top 10% cause we have a lot invested in our hobby. But back to the rant. If all distracted drivers did was hurt themselves I would care a lot less, but I know my insurance rates will go up to help cover these idiots, they won't confine themselves to just damaging their vehicles or hurting themselves. I know a lot of my car functions won't work while in motion, seems a small step to disable phones while in motion, hell they have an app for everything else!!
 
Well, Mr. Scientist, you are onto something. The human mind has limitations. (duh statement). When our minds reach saturation (different for each person), it begins to ignore or filter out what it thinks is non-essential. I think you are right about our abilities to preserve our vested interest (hobby) while driving. Get too involved in a conversation and certain things can "take a backseat".
I read a story from Col. Robin Olds. He was leading a flight of F-4's in Vietnam. As they got close to the target, he and his other pilots started turning off certain equipment. To keep their minds focused on the objective , they turned off some of the distracting sensory inputs. (IFF warnings, SAM warning, etc)
 
Bigdummy said:
Train horn stops this activity.Vionlently and with much lafter
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Thay's exactly why I installed train horns on my Silverado. One long 'toot' and no more cell phone distraction from
surrounding drivers.
 
Well, just the other day one of our local Mopar group members was driving down a two lane 25mph street and a woman on her phone changed lanes right into the side of his 66 Dart wagon.
She hit him right in the drivers door because he was right next to her, but she had no idea he was there because she never looked, and made the lane change fast enough where he didn't even have a chance to swerve away from her.
 
Go a little OT with this post.
I've very aware of big trucks.
I avoid them.
I stay back for rocks.
I don't block them in their "passing lane" if they want to go 20 MPH over the speed limit.
(They already have destroyed the far right, "truck" lane pavement).

I wonder though.
Why do truck drivers always say don't cut in front of them because they can't stop as fast as a car yet they routinely ride the people's asses who get in front of them.
And why do the same trucks that can't do 55 uphill go 90 down the back side of it.
 
TrailBeast said:
Well, just the other day one of our local Mopar group members was driving down a two lane 25mph street and a woman on her phone changed lanes right into the side of his 66 Dart wagon.
She hit him right in the drivers door because he was right next to her, but she had no idea he was there because she never looked, and made the lane change fast enough where he didn't even have a chance to swerve away from her.
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Yes.
See it every day on the Autoban.
Blond in the far left doing 85. phone at the ear, and I'm pacing next to her and looking at her.
Blond didn't know I was beside her till she saw blue lights on the shoulder ahead and started to move over into me in my center lane.
Seem surprised I was there.
Blond didn't do it and slowed down till we passed the blue.
9 miles ahead at the interchange she was still on the phone.
 
last winter i came up over an overpass and saw a Jeep had spun out and was stuck in the middle between the two lanes (this is Michigan so she is sitting in about 6 inches of snow)
traffic was light, so i pull over in front of her, put on my blinkers and hooked a tow strap up to her
i told her, wait for my signal when that lane is clear ill pull out

no problem, 3 minutes of waiting, a lull in traffic, a quick jerk ans she was free
i jumped out, got her unhooked, waved and was on my way

as im pulling out, the wife (who was in the car, asked how everything went)
i just had time to point the girl out to her, as she blew me by, in the slow lane, phone glued to her ear
 
I got a 2012 Toyota Highlander SE, it has Bluetooth audio and speakerphone, the wife
or I
​
​
can talk handset free. If I'm in the Duster, leave a message.
 
My 72 340 said:
I got a 2012 Toyota Highlander SE, it has Bluetooth audio and speakerphone, the wife
or I
​

can talk handset free. If I'm in the Duster, leave a message.
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its not that i dont want to answer when im in the duster, you simply can not hear the phone ring
 
adriver said:
Go a little OT with this post.
I've very aware of big trucks.
I avoid them.
I stay back for rocks.
I don't block them in their "passing lane" if they want to go 20 MPH over the speed limit.
(They already have destroyed the far right, "truck" lane pavement).

I wonder though.
Why do truck drivers always say don't cut in front of them because they can't stop as fast as a car yet they routinely ride the people's asses who get in front of them.
And why do the same trucks that can't do 55 uphill go 90 down the back side of it.
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they are trying to gain speed to not be doing 15 mph on the next one !
 
TrailBeast said:
They don't care if you are actually using it or not, as they just go on the fact that if you are holding it you are guilty.
It's kind of the same thing as my Brother having a cigarette snuffer/container magnetically mounted on his motorcycle.
Even though he has this and uses it, if they see him with a cig in CA while on the bike they give an instant ticket because the assumption is that motorcycle smokers throw their cig on the ground.
He even showed the cop he has it and uses it, but they didn't care and he got the ticket.
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...........Which is why some states have what is known as "open container" laws. They don't care, and don't have to prove if you were actually drinking, or not. All they need is to find an "open container."

Also......IT IS NOT the physical act of hanging onto a phone that is the damn problem........it's where your brain goes when you are "into" that conversation on the other end. "Hands free" phone conversations should be illegal, too.
 
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