To think people who overtake are idiots?

[sallyhansen32]

So this morning I was out early.
I was on a road with a 30 mph limit..there's a speed camera next to a school.
I'm new to driving so didn't want to go crazy so I dropped down to 25mph till I passed through it.
A van overtook me and stuck his fingers up.
Was I going to slow?
If I was then fair enough ..but it's not like I was going through under 20.

I take a new car to a supermarket or retail park car park when it's almost empty or closed and drive around a bit. I went from a 1.4 that drove like a tank to a 1.2 that you barely needed to touch and wanted to avoid over-revving and sudden braking.

My main worry was this is the first time I've passed a speed camera since driving alone and i was worried about getting 3 points.
Plus like I said with it being a new car I'm still learning.
I have p plates on the back already

BUT you shouldn't drop to 25mph. You should drive at 30. Only a few posts in, and up pops this, as usual. The speed limit is just that, a limit, not a target.

Nobody is saying that you should be used to the car immediately, what people are saying is that there’s no need to slow down to 5mph below the limit for a speed camera, and that the van driver was probably frustrated. He shouldn’t have stuck two fingers up at you but I can see why he felt the need to overtake.

Don't be ridiculous of course over taking doesn't make you an idiot, sticking your finger up and bring aggressive does though. But slowing at a speed camera when there is no need it annoying too, I suspect you broke more suddenly than you think otherwise there would be no need for that reaction

Keeping getting out there everyday and driving. You did make a mistake (and you will make others) but the only way you’ll get better is to keep getting the practice in.

Tbh I was annoyed at him sticking his finger and that made me call him a idiot.
I don't think overtaking in general is stupid,just to be aggressive knocked my confidence a bit.
Il learn hopefully

ifailed if the op was consistently driving at 25mph, that would be less of an issue. Randomly slowing down means she is more likely to cause an accident.

As just about everyone else says, there was no need for you to reduce your speed, but the van driver who overtook you was rude. If you want to know about really bad overtaking, I live in an area which has a 20mph limit throughout. Coming up to a cross roads with traffic lights and driving at 20, I saw the lights change to amber and slowed down preparing to stop (I had no cars in front of me and was reasonably close to the lights and not braking hard or unexpectedly) to be overtaken on the crossroads on an amber light by an idiot going at about 40mph. That person was an idiot.

YABVU.

I would have overtaken you like a shot - slowing down for no reason is poor driving and intensely annaying to the driver behind you. Doing what you've described demonstrates that you're a crap driver and will be driving like that the whole time - hesitant, unpredictable, likely to keep slowing down and braking unnecessarily. I don't want to drive behind someone like that, so would get past you as soon as I find a safe opportunity. Focus on improving your own driving, and let other people get on with theirs!

If you aren't maintaining a consistent speed then other drivers will overtake if they wish to go faster than you.

He shouldn't have been aggressive though (even if it is really annoying when someone slows right down when they see a speed camera. If you're doing the speed limit you won't get caught speeding)

It's like driving rurally. National speed limit roads that are quite windy, people crawl at 25mph and brake every 5 seconds and then on a straight bit where the huge queue could overtake, they speed up, making everyone else pissed off because as soon as there's a tiny bend they're back at 25mph.

Does everyone get the feel for a new car straight away?
It might take 5 mins or so to realise the clutch is different and you'll find it handles a bit differently
Essentially most people could get a hire car or a courtesy car and drive away that morning with it.

If you are too nervous to drive properly then stop driving for the safety of everyone else on the roads. Driving too slowly can be as dangerous as driving too fast.

I wasn't driving 30 before I reached the camera.
Probably 27/28 so don't break to slow..
I just came off a bit

Maybe go out at more quiet times to practice and get used to your car. Whilst the van drivers actions were uncalled for if you broke harshly all of a sudden and he was behind you it probably caused him to have to slow hence the irritation and overtake. You really shouldn't have to drop to 25mph to go through a camera. You have a speedometer to ensure you don't go over the limit. But what the van driver did was perfectly reasonable considering you decided to put the breaks on to slow down for no reason. You're going to have to grow a thicker skin too if you're overly sensitive to someone flipping the finger.

Nothing wrong with overtaking I’d done safely; it’s pretty infuriating when you have somewhere to be and someone is plodding along at 30 on a 50 road.

No need for sticking fingers up, though!

I'm a bit at so many people saying that driving at 25 in a 30 zone is stupid, or dangerous or whatever. I must admit to generally pootling along at 30 myself, and I've never been a nervous driver, but there are loads of hazards in a 30 zone. Pedestrians, dog walkers, driveways, children kicking their football over the garden fence and into the road etc. To say that it's terrible driving to drive a little bit below 30 mph is bonkers. Crawling along at 10 is crazy, but 25 is hardly dangerous driving.

Your instructor is clearly incompetent. Your car will be set 2-3 mph below what the Speedo says. So you were actually doing 75% of the limit in good conditions. That's the equivalent of doing 53mph on a motorway which is a pile up waiting to happen.

People who overtake whilst shouting out of the window or making rude gestures are idiots.

People who generally overtake are not idiots. I regularly drive along roads with national speed limits and will overtake slower vehicles when it's safe and legal to do so. I'm not prepared to wait behind someone doing 40mph when it's safe and legal for me to be doing 50 or 60. But then I don't get annoyed with other drivers about their speed. They drive how they choose and that's up to them.

Frankly there is an expectation with most drivers that you should be able to drive up to the speed limit. You should be able to safely drive at 30mph in a 30 zone. Higher limits, I'd expect to be a bit slower but not ridiculously under the limit.

I didn't break harshly tho,I dropped my speed by about 2/3 mph for 4/5 seconds.

My instructor always taught me a speed limit is a guide not a target.

Well technically maybe, but you also need to think about making good progress and not hindering other road users. I actually got marked down the first time for slowing to 25mph on my test, there was speed bumps (the type you position yourself to drive straight over) and a school was just getting out so kids everywhere and I just wanted to be a little more cautious. I got marked down because there was traffic behind me. If it had just been me on the road it would have been Ok he said, but I was driving in a manner that caused other road users to change their speed and that was the difference.

I would suggest getting more experience. We've all been a little over cautious when first passing but at the same time I made sure I had P plates on so other drivers were aware and I would never have judged others for being frustrated. You have to be confident to pass a test, so you must maintain that i.e you can't pass and then think its ok to drive at 25mph on a 30.

The speed on your speedometer will be 2-3mph faster than you’re actually going. So slowing down to 25 actually meant about 22, also slowing down for no reason can cause accidents. It’s bad driving and bad practice.

But carry on as you are, you obviously think you’re better than the rest of us and aren’t willing to accept you can improve.

Some people are being really rude about the OP's driving. It can take a week or so to get used to being out in the car on your own, and to getting used to a car you haven't driven before. Being cautious until you build up confidence is perfectly sensible - much better than driving faster because you feel you "should".

OP, it may be worth getting your old instructor to take you out for a lesson in your own car, but you should find your feet soon. My issue at first was that I always felt I was too close to the pavement for the first couple of weeks in my own car - got used to it quickly enough though.

Just try not to slow down if you don't need to; if you are slowing, don't slam on the brakes or slow down too suddenly. Try a few drives on quieter roads and get a feel for your car. You'll get there!

You are still learning to drive, people being rude is a normality you wil get use to. They way you drive now in 6 months will seem alien and you will be the one driving behind the cautious driver thinking WTF.

If the van driver was giving a gesture he wasn't fully focusing on his vehicle or the road, so it wasn't a safe overtake at all. If there were lots of parked cars then slowing slightly and that is all dropping to 25 really is, is sensible. A door could suddenly be opened, a child could pop out between parked cars etc.

Unfortunately where I live it seems the simplest things annoy other road users and you need a thick skin to tolerate the tail-gating, gestures and shouted comments. We have a 20mph limit near a school in a tiny village here, virtually every single journey we are tail-gated, flashed or gestured at. In my experience there are a lot of impatient 'idiots' who think they own the road and should be able to drive as they like. You need to get used to handling this, I'm not saying it is acceptable but you can't let it 'get to you' as you will stop driving.

Yes, every car does drive differently and you do need to get used to it. BUT you need to do that somewhere safe and not annoy other drivers while you do it! Slowing down for a speed camera is very annoying and only demonstrates that you either don't know the speed limit or aren't a competent driver. Both are your problems to sort out. Yes, the speed limit is a limit and not a target (because of weather and road conditions) but you can also fail your test for not making good progress along the road e.g. going too slow or varying your speed with no good reason. I think you have a decision to make, are you going to continue being a hesitant and ultimately dangerous driver OR are you going to choose to be confident and trust you and your car?