to think 4x4 drivers should have to pass an additional test before being let loose?

[MrsRichardHammond]

Maybe im being prejudiced about matters due to being involved in a rear end shunt today (Me - stationary in a KA him moving in a 4x4) but i have wondered this for some time now whether you should have to pass additional tests to drive larger vehicles.

Am I being unreasonable to feel this way?

I went into the back of somebody at a roundabout in a mini it's piss poor driving that's the issue not the car!

ps are you okay?

Aw sorry about your shunt, they're horrible

yanbu- dh and I got ran into in our focus by a couple in their seventies in a ginormous 4x4, in a fuck b&q car park

Noope, it is the driver not the car at fault.

*fucking sorry!

DD and I have whiplash and a bit shaken but we're fine thanks - more than can be said for my car though!

I agree it's the driving but this seems to be made worse by the size of the car iyswim - magnifies it.

The larger vehicle is rarely the problem. It's more likely to be an inability to drive to a safe standard, general incompetence and poor decision making.

Poor you - it's scary and I agree the car size makes it more so x

I felt awful and all I did was nudge her

Agree its the driver at fault, but a) it seems that poor drivers often seem to pick these huge tanks, perhaps because on some level they know they aren't a confident driver and b) its widely known that these vehicles are a menace on the majority of roads in the uk. They are far less safe for pedestrians and other road users (try edging out of a junction to turn left when you've got some twat in a 4x4 blocking your entire view waiting to turn right) and also hideous from an environmental aspect

It is piss poor driving that is the problem but I sometimes think larger cars attract nervous/bad drivers since "everyone must get out their way if they don't want to be crushed". Sigh

We drove a road home from our dog walk today and 5 (we counted them)4x4's drove down the middle of the road forcing us into the verge - 5!!!! Then, eventually, a normal car drove past - no problem, kept to their own side of the road, not an issue.
Where I live these vehicles are the most common on the road but why do they all drive down the MIDDLE of the road as if they own it???

Aw so sorry to hear about your and dds whiplash, that's really shite, hope you managed to sort out insurance details etc and lots of sweets and cuddles for dd

Hmm based on the fact that 4x4s are very cheap to I sure most owners must be good drivers and accidents must be less?

Insure

YABU

what about people carriers? should people have to do an additional test for those too?

what if you are just very small and drive an average sized car, should you have to do a separate test then?

no

there is a standard test that tells you whether you are save to drive. this includes 4x4s. if you cant drive it, you are a shit driver and need some refresher lessons.

4X4s
Fuck off expensive cars
Cars with boy racer stripes
Cars with that turbo exhaust thing added (in a city centre, I mean, how fast do you think you are going to go?)
Cars with really loud stereos
Really old cars that join the moterway doing 30mph

Drivers of all these cars should be shot made to do an extra test.

Or Changeisagoodthing are they cheap to insure because in a fight between a Fiat Uno and a Range Rover, guess who sustains most damage?

I drive a 4 x 4 and have been hit from behind twice recently. Once by someone driving a Renault Clio, the next by someone driving a Peugeot 205 so both small cars. Thankfully my car was fine but the small ones that hit me were damaged.

I think its all down to driving skills and conditions has a part to play ie light, wet, slippery.

I have never hit another car. I must be the bestest driver ever then? Or lucky? Or aware? I don't know which but I do feel fortunate.

I hope you are ok, OP.

The way i look at it you have to pass extra bits to pull a trailer, or a caravan, or drive a vehicle over 3.5tonnes etc etc so why not a 4x4 or any other vehicle of a similar size/weight?

i agree with you. i get so mad at the 4 x 4 drivers near me (outskirts of a city) as they always take up the disabled parking bays. when challenged they usually say they need more room for their larger vehicles. maybe an extra test would weed out the bad drivers of these large vehicles

OP are you serious? I thought this was a reaction to your accident! YABU then, because someone who drives a mini should have to take a lesser test than someone who drives a volvo. Or should engine size be the key factor? Madness.

Hope you are ok.

but where would it stop though OP? some 4X4s are the same size as an average sized car. some non 4X4s are the same size as a jeep. who gets to decide which are ok on teh standard license and which arent?

I really don't think an extra test would help. Some people are just arseholes, maybe a personality transplant might help.

Mind you small man/small car syndrome can be equally dangerous. Lets face it, all vehicles are dangerous if not driven correctly and with care.
There will always be arseholes on the road.

This is true. Crap drivers are crap drivers end of.