Why do you tailgate?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There’s only one scenario where I tailgate: if I’m driving the speed limit or just barely over it, and someone rushes to pull out in front of me from a side street, necessitating hitting my brakes to avoid a collision, but then they drive below the speed limit. In other words, if you were in a huge hurry to cut me off, but as soon as you’re in front of me, you have all the time in the world, I’m going to give you the tailgating you wanted so badly when you put your rear bumper thisclose to my front bumper.

Seriously? This happens so often that you need a strategy to punish the person? On the rare occasions this happens to me, I might have a flickering observation that the driver really misstimed his turn, and then I get on with my day, safely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

If I am being tailgated, I will gradually slow down to accomplish 2 things:

1. Hopefully give me enough reaction time that I won’t need to slam on brakes if something unexpected happens, in which case I would almost certainly get hit by the tailgater

2. Add extra distance between me and the car in front so that not only do I have room to safely stop suddenly, if necessary, without hitting the car in front of me, but also to allow extra space if I do so that hopefully if I get rear-ended, it won’t domino and push me into the car in front.

My only concern as a driver is to be safe. I would much rather you be in front of me where I can keep an eye on your reckless driving and adjust accordingly, but if you insist on staying behind me and tailgating, the safest thing I can do is give myself more time and space to react safely, and that is accomplished by slowing down.

The safest thing you can do is pull over snd let the other car pass in the event you are otherwise unable to maintain control of your vehicle at the posted speed limit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DW is a lifelong tailgater and genuinely believes it is a generous educational gift to her fellow drivers. There's no convincing her otherwise.

DW is selfish, self-centered and must feel she’s more important than everyone else. Oh wait, she’s a brain surgeon just called into an emergency situation and tailgates others to get to the hospital faster. 🖕

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Better question: what do you do to piss off the tailgater? I sometimes turn on my lights. Or slow down more.

I have off-road floodlights on the back of my Jeep.

If you tailgate me, I’ll give you some warning with a couple flickers of brake lights over a minute or two, and if you’re still back there after that, I’ll hit the switch for the lights and your pupils will instantly contract to the size of pinheads and then you’ll back off because you’ll be blinded!

Awesome!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

So pull around me into the passing lane and PASS me!

Why are you tailgating me in the RIGHT lane? You can go around! Why stay behind me? The passing lane’s next to you! Use it!


Why don’t you?

OMG, THIS!!!!!

I can be somewhat sympathetic to someone tailgating on a single lane road.

But a road/highway with multiple lanes? Why????? It makes ZERO sense. They can just go around you. Why do they sit there behind you????

Weird. I’ve only seen tailgating in the left lane. And only when there wasn’t a way around a slow POS.

You don’t live around here then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

So pull around me into the passing lane and PASS me!

Why are you tailgating me in the RIGHT lane? You can go around! Why stay behind me? The passing lane’s next to you! Use it!


Why don’t you?

OMG, THIS!!!!!

I can be somewhat sympathetic to someone tailgating on a single lane road.

But a road/highway with multiple lanes? Why????? It makes ZERO sense. They can just go around you. Why do they sit there behind you????

Weird. I’ve only seen tailgating in the left lane. And only when there wasn’t a way around a slow POS.

You don’t live around here then.

I live in the DC area and drive often. No tailgating in the right lane if the left is clear.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

So pull around me into the passing lane and PASS me!

Why are you tailgating me in the RIGHT lane? You can go around! Why stay behind me? The passing lane’s next to you! Use it!


Why don’t you?

OMG, THIS!!!!!

I can be somewhat sympathetic to someone tailgating on a single lane road.

But a road/highway with multiple lanes? Why????? It makes ZERO sense. They can just go around you. Why do they sit there behind you????

Weird. I’ve only seen tailgating in the left lane. And only when there wasn’t a way around a slow POS.

You don’t live around here then.

I live in the DC area and drive often. No tailgating in the right lane if the left is clear.

Try looking up from your phone on occasion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DW is a lifelong tailgater and genuinely believes it is a generous educational gift to her fellow drivers. There's no convincing her otherwise.

Sucks you have to drive with her. She probably thinks she is an excellent driver.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

If the car ahead of you is going the speed limit do you still tailgate?

[Anonymous]

I only tailgate in the left lane. If you're questioning why someone is tailgating you in the left lane, the problem is you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I only tailgate in the left lane. If you're questioning why someone is tailgating you in the left lane, the problem is you.

If the person you are tailgating is actively passing the person to his right then you should not expect the person in front of you to match your desired speed even if you tailgate. The left lane is for passing, not driving at the exact speed you want

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

So pull around me into the passing lane and PASS me!

Why are you tailgating me in the RIGHT lane? You can go around! Why stay behind me? The passing lane’s next to you! Use it!


Why don’t you?

OMG, THIS!!!!!

I can be somewhat sympathetic to someone tailgating on a single lane road.

But a road/highway with multiple lanes? Why????? It makes ZERO sense. They can just go around you. Why do they sit there behind you????

Weird. I’ve only seen tailgating in the left lane. And only when there wasn’t a way around a slow POS.

You don’t live around here then.

I live in the DC area and drive often. No tailgating in the right lane if the left is clear.

Nope, sorry. I get tailgated daily on the DTR in the middle and right lanes, while the leftmost lane is there next to us, available for them to use to pass me any time they want. And it’s not like I’m doing 40mph either. I’m typically doing 60-65, sometimes more. So clearly wanting to go faster isn’t the issue. They could go as fast as they want just by going around me. But they don’t. They’d rather tailgate.

I don’t get it.

[Anonymous]

If someone is tailgating me I move over to another lane or help them pass me by pulling off the road. Those are the safest actions for me. I don’t understand why some of you choose to make the tailgating driver angry, creating an increasingly dangerous situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To communicate I would like to go faster.

I very rarely tailgate now, kids are teenagers so I try to emulate good driving, but I spent 4 years in Germany and this nit so subtle ‘communication’ took a while to integrate back into the terrible US driving norms.

So pull around me into the passing lane and PASS me!

Why are you tailgating me in the RIGHT lane? You can go around! Why stay behind me? The passing lane’s next to you! Use it!


Why don’t you?

OMG, THIS!!!!!

I can be somewhat sympathetic to someone tailgating on a single lane road.

But a road/highway with multiple lanes? Why????? It makes ZERO sense. They can just go around you. Why do they sit there behind you????

Weird. I’ve only seen tailgating in the left lane. And only when there wasn’t a way around a slow POS.

I’ve seen lots of people do it in the right lane when they have the option to pass. I honestly think some of them think that’s the right was to drive, because if I move out of their way (I to the left lane), they do it to the next car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I only tailgate in the left lane. If you're questioning why someone is tailgating you in the left lane, the problem is you.

If the person you are tailgating is actively passing the person to his right then you should not expect the person in front of you to match your desired speed even if you tailgate. The left lane is for passing, not driving at the exact speed you want

It's relative. Slower traffic keep right.

But really, how often is someone going slower in the left lane for a half a mile or more, and just passing? 99.9% of the time it's a clueless dingbat.