Motorway driving is ridiculous. I really think everyone should be forced to take a course on using the motorway before they actually do. The amount of middle lane missiles are RIDICULOUS, and it grinds traffic to a halt on really busy days. Your unnecessary braking gets on my nerves but nowhere near as much as idiots who just sit in the middle lane. There was a sign on the M27 the other day that actually said "Don't hog the middle lane", which I enjoyed.
Excessive braking.....
- Thread starter Scania
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So to slow down you prefer transmission wear and higher fuel consumption over smooth control and a visible warning? What if the box doesn't have other forward gear selections? The brakes are there to slow the car down, so why not use them? The whole point is not to get into these situations in the first place, and my point was that with the reduced engine braking from auto boxes it's not as easy to do so.You know that "T" shaped lever on the tunnel in the middle of the car with funny letters and numbers next to it.
Guess what , there are other positions in which you can put the lever, not just "D" and hey presto you get engine braking, just like in a manual, probably best not to put it in "P" or "R" when on the motorway though.
With plenty of forward observation and anticipation you could find that if you use the correct gear for the correct situation and speed there is very little need for hitting the brake pedal except for stopping, and that includes driving automatics.
I have done several hundred thousand miles in autos and manuals of all different types so yes I do know what I am talking about.
Finally I do agree with the OP it is one of my pet hates as well.
rant
As you can probably guess, I spend a lot of time on the M25 (and most other motorways for that matter!) and I am sick of the traffic jams caused for no other reason than people braking when ,frankly, its not needed.....
Ask any muppet motorist what's the first thing they do to slow down and they will invariably tell you "Brake" - Wrong!
I so wish they'd simply take their foot off the throttle, plan ahead, anticipate, leave a decent distance between you & the vehicle in front and the anchors may well not be needed.
Don't get me wrong, certain steering wheel attendant & brain-dead truck drivers could do with observing this "rule" too!!!
Alas, people are like lemmings - they see a brake light and without reading the situation, follow suit. This imo results in a "ripple effect"; traffic decelerates too quickly, bunches up and before you know it everybody has ground to a halt. Smooth the flow; take your foot off the gas, let friction & hills slow you naturally. Think of the fuel savings not to mention less wear & tear on the brake pads.
FAT CHANCE!
/rant
oh i do love the wave effect on motorways..... traffic jams for no reason other than some tool slamming his brakes on for no apparent reason..... lol
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Soldato
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By that logic just letting off the throttle and rolling in gear wears the transmission? Erm nope!
This practice is smoother and uses less fuel and is taught by IAM.
The "visible warning" that is the red brake light actually causes the exact problem this thread is discussing. Needlessly hitting the brakes results in "snaking" for everyone behind you.
Anyone that can drive properly should barely ever use the brakes on the motorway.
Obviously auto-boxes are completely different yes.
I think I must be the only one who really doesn't care or get wound up by middle lane hoggers
because you can't always
Soldato
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Fail. My cruise control (de)activation button is about 2 cm from my thumb.
Cruise along at 75.
Someone ahead and I can't overtake right now? Jab at cruise button. Car gently engine brakes down.
Outside lane free now? Jab at cruise button to get back up to 75.
Makes long journeys an absolute breeze.
I don't quite see how you relate dropping a gear to degassing, my whole point was to highlight the differences
The visible warning isn't the problem, the problem being people over-reacting to brake lights instead of reading the deceleration of the car and adjusting their speed accordingly. Many people's lack of judgement (or anything in particular between the ears) is the cause.Well, it was auto boxes to which I was referring
I agree with the cruise control issue as well, modern ones might adjust quickly but mine takes at least 5 seconds to figure things out, which is far too long even at a safe distance.
Feel for me, I have to go to essex through the M4 and around the m25 in the morning and then back at rush hour, will probably take 4 hours each way? :'(
I've done the reverse of that journey 3 times this week. This morning was the worst. Stuck for over an hour on the M25, then stuck for ages when they shut the M4
It's very very very annoying 
I was behind a car (just so happened to be a rather nice 5 series) earlier today who was braking literally every 5 seconds! What is the point? That can't really be a comfortable journey can it?
The M25 is so annyoing! I try to avoid it until later than 8pm if I can. Even then you'll still get people doing 45 mph
It's quite funny 'cause if you are on a sweeping bend you can watch the domino effect of the brake lights and predict that you will be coming to a stand still very soon!
I was behind a car (just so happened to be a rather nice 5 series) earlier today who was braking literally every 5 seconds! What is the point? That can't really be a comfortable journey can it?
The M25 is so annyoing! I try to avoid it until later than 8pm if I can. Even then you'll still get people doing 45 mph
It's quite funny 'cause if you are on a sweeping bend you can watch the domino effect of the brake lights and predict that you will be coming to a stand still very soon!
I've done the reverse of that journey 3 times this week. This morning was the worst. Stuck for over an hour on the M25, then stuck for ages when they shut the M4
Yea, its really bad on a friday as well since everyone goes home for the weekend :'(
If people would pull into the correct lanes once they have overtaken, we wouldnt have this problem,but thats the ideal world, and we dont live in that unfortunately.
In all honesty, the only motorway that i find, that flows correctly, is the M42 when it has the speed signs operating, every body sticks to that speed, even those that normally drive below the speed limit!
In all honesty, the only motorway that i find, that flows correctly, is the M42 when it has the speed signs operating, every body sticks to that speed, even those that normally drive below the speed limit!
Soldato
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I sometimes find a lone car or two in the middle lane, and I'll be going a little faster than them in the left hand lane, so I have to go across all 3 lanes to overtake them, then go back across all 3 lanes once I'm done. Pretty comical if you ask me, but sometimes I notice them go over to the left hand lane in my rear view...
This winds me up as much as lorries trying to overtake each other on a dual carriageway
To Vans & the many others that have mentioned truckers overtaking, I fully agree, especially on dual's, it can be very frustrating.
Alas, we (truckers) are usually given tight if not impossible delivery schedules, combined with restrictions on our driving time which is all recorded by tachograph so we simply have to try to get from a to b as fast as possible.
Sure, trucks that take miles to pass are idiots, if the margin of speed difference is that small, then I simply set my speed limit to say 55 rather than 56 MPH and sit behind until I can use a hill to gain momentum to pass relatively quickly.
My biggest gripe is the trucker who tries to overtake, fully freighted, on a hill. Unless he's driving something like a Scania R620 he's going to lose speed hand over fist and not be able to complete the pass, the other truck (the one he's trying to overtake) will invariably keep his foot down trying to maintain speed whilst climbing said hill.
As ever it comes down to planning ahead (or sheer lack of it)
On behalf of my comrades in HGV's, I sincerely apologise.