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Original poster

4x4s... all driven by morons?

93 replies

bakedpotato · 13/11/2004 11:19

so all the rumours are true, about 4x4 drivers being dangerously-insulated petrolheads. yesterday the local high st was wedged solid with these huge macho motors, with one parent and one child rattling around inside, after the school run. me and dd were crossing a small sidestreet in the rain when a 4x4, driven by a man i should add, abruptly turned off the main st and nearly ran us down. he simply was not looking for us. he asumed the road was ALL HIS. being so much higher than us, he'd failed to look down.
i must have been halfway across before he decided to take the short cut down it. admittedly my child is very small (!), but i am all-too visible, being pretty PG at the moment.
i banged on his window as he passed at speed but of course he didn't stop to apologise. he had a child in there as well. all last night i keep thinking of what might have happened.
these cars are so inappropriate in the city.
why on earth would you want one when they say you're
a/ environmentally unaware
b/ a fashion-victim/conspicious consumer
c/ contributing to an exisiting congestion problem
d/ dangerously removed from the realities of the road

?? I'd really LOVE to know

i've always pitied people in them as being brainless... now that prejudice has been completely reinforced

OP posts:

MarsLady · 13/11/2004 11:21

ah... won't tell you about my wonderful bf who drives one of these and has four kids then....

bunny2 · 13/11/2004 11:37

Lol bp, Im with you. One of my very good friends drives one of these despite living in central London, having no children and being a member of Greenpeace. The word hypocrate springs to mind but as she is a good frined I tend to avoid making an issue of it with her.

lockets · 13/11/2004 11:47

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

MistressMary · 13/11/2004 12:09

My partner drives one up around Salibury Plain and such places.
He wants to get me one for safety, I am higher and can see the morons in small billy racer type vehicles cutting me up on roundabouts etc...
From that point of view yes, plus I am a farmers daughter in a rural location.
So probably will be one of the "brainless insulated petrolheads" in the near future. .

jampot · 13/11/2004 13:41

I had a brainless fuckwit the other day actually turn round and walk into my burbling V8 powered 4x4 (I was stationary waiting for him to walk out of the car park) the other day who then had the audacity to snarl at me. Stupid ignorant deaf idiot!!!

jampot · 13/11/2004 13:42

BP - Luckily Im none of the 4 things you've mentioned.

Tinker · 13/11/2004 13:51

So agree with you bp. Had one idiot woman with one of these banging on my door and snarlingly demanding that my daughter get someone to move my boyfriend's car because she couldn't get out of the parking space. She had clear space on either side. I stood at the window laughing at her (boyfriend was on the toilet, oh dear, he couldn't move his car ). She quite clearly couldn't drive the thing.

You have to remind yourself that these people are stupid people, we must try to make allowances for them!

MistressMary · 13/11/2004 13:55

Thank you for the compliment!

JanH · 13/11/2004 13:57

Not all of them, MM - just the stupid ones!

Slinky · 13/11/2004 14:00

Actually, I sat in my car and watched a woman struggle to park her Ford Ka in a parking space the other day. Waited for about 5 minutes whilst she shunted backwards and forwards, narrowly missing cars left, right and centre.

Eventually she gave up, enabling me to park my huge Toyota Previa into the space that she failed to park her tiny Ka into

I was half-way across the carpark when she finally emerged from her car!

You get c* drivers whatever car they happen to drive!

MNHQ

tech · 13/11/2004 14:06

Where I live in (Highbury Barn, London), the road gets narrow by the shops. So you get mummy, who simply must get some posh cheese from the Fromagerie and some organic meat from the smart butchers, pulling up in her tank and blocking the whole road. Who cares that the 19 bus carrying 80 lesser people has to wait for her to finish before getting through. The worst of it is that you can usually see in her earnest face that she cares deeply about pollution and the environment and wasting resources. She just can't quite bring herself to think that her own behaviour has any impact on any of it. Or maybe she thinks carrying little Jocasta in (perceived) safety is more important than anything else on earth. She'll be worrying about pollution a bit more when I set her stupid car on fire in a rage. Snarl, grr. (joking, but only just)

I remember reading somewhere two interesting things about SUVs in the States. One is they are statistically no safer for the occupant. People feel insulated in them so don't drive as carefully. They are meanwhile definitely more hazardous for everyone else on the road. Also, a kind of big car arms race has developed, which has ended up with people driving Hummer/Humvees which really are tanks. It's madness. By the way, I've got a fiesta. marvel. nippy. park it anywhere.

jampot · 13/11/2004 14:08

But its named after a PORN mag Tech!!!!

MistressMary · 13/11/2004 14:35

That's ok then.
Good job I don't take the John Deer into town then.

SueW · 13/11/2004 14:38

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at OP's request.

scaredshitless · 13/11/2004 14:52

i recently took a ride in a 4x4 with someone i don't know very well and was scared out of my wits at the driver's arrogance and disregard for other motorists. maybe this person would be like this whatever they drove but i get the feeling the 4x4 made them think they were a)invincible b)king of the raod. scary...

jampot · 13/11/2004 14:54

well strictly speaking they are King of the Road in such a big vehicle

SoupDragon · 13/11/2004 14:56

I don't think these have any place in a town or suburbia.

SoupDragon · 13/11/2004 14:56

Especially not with **ing bullbars on the front

MistressMary · 13/11/2004 15:00

Hehe,you should try this then?

\link{http:/www.scorpionracing.co.uk}

scaredshitless · 13/11/2004 15:09

yes, jampot, if the king is a ruthless dictator

jampot · 13/11/2004 15:12

Im sure the King wouldn't be a ruthless dictator but just severely misunderstood after all not everyone knows what its like to be King do they ?

mckenzie · 13/11/2004 15:41

I bought a BMW X5 which is a 4x4 when i was expecting DS1 and the main reason i bought it was because at the time, according to the professional reports,it was the safest car on the road. I fully appreciate that I am hindering the environment but like most of us, I am instinctively selfish when it comes to my DS and my second unborn child and if by being in this monstrosity, I make us safer and more protected from the other twits on the road then I shall continue to drive it.
On the whole I find that other drivers are more aware of me because of the size and and I make sure that i never take advantage of that, in fact I believe it has made me a more courteous driver.

misdee · 13/11/2004 16:02

my sister has one. i dont like big cars, and told her so. the thing is, she wanted a car when she would take 3 kids plus passenger out in. but the one she has bought has only 2 seats in the back. i am very confused lol.

CountessDracula · 13/11/2004 16:20

could I point out that not all 4x4s have to be big gas guzzlers. I have a tiny one, same size as a golf but very safe as clings to the road like a limpet.

Agree anyone in town in a Disco type thing should be disembowelled

jampot · 13/11/2004 16:22

ouch - my bowels

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