Dave,
Sounds just like the daily commute at my former address outside NYC.
Out here in the "country" (NW Jersey) my biggest worry is the ocassional deer, which apparently were hiding this year. Perhaps the RMB scares them away

Glad to hear you're ok.

 

Dave,
Awfully glad you and your GT came thru relatively unscathed. I shudder to think of what the worst case scenario might have been! I think most of us have probably been in very similar traffic situations and have performed the exact same manoevers you attempted (I know I have). What happened to you ( accelerating into next lane,close behind passing vehicle and then having them suddenly brake hard), is a real danger. I find that I have to remind myself constantly to relax and wait for that opening that allows more room to brake/manoever safely if the person ahead brakes suddenly.

I hope this will be taken as merely an "academic" type discussion with the intent of enlightening myself, and not sound like I'm trying to second-guess you here. I'm aware of the driving theory that stepping on the gas (accelerating) will transfer vehicle weight to the rear and help increase tire traction there, which you described doing above. My question is, when in a situation as you described where the tires have already broken loose, can you gain enough traction through the weight transfer effect for the tires to regain their grip on the road?At some point if you just "floored it" (and add too much acceleration), doesn't the tire just lose whatever traction was gained through weight transfer to the new forces induced for acceleration and start sliding again? Wouldn't you be better off just trying to maintain control through steering inputs until enough speed is scrubbed off for the tires to regain their grip? Maybe the answer is somewhere in between? Does this make sense to anyone?
Glenn

 

I'll send Amber right over! (leave the chequebook)

 

Not that it helps, but a least you had the "crappy" wheels on!

 

Dave,

Good to hear that you are alright. Also good to hear that the GT didn't suffer badly and will be back. Not only is it the rarest of the model year GTs (1991), but it is also the best color of the bunch - Amazon Green! Those '91 Amazon Green GTs are special and have to be preserved!

 

Whoa... lot's of stuff to respond to. More later too.

Thanks for the sentiments and comments everyone. If I don't respond specifically to you don't take it as a slight please.

Amber huh? Sounds interesting. Does she do windows?

I suppose. Although a paying to fix or repair single broken Fikse might be less of a PITA than finding one good condition 7.5" D90 with working RDK sensors.

And if anyone hasn't figured out yet why I married you...

Yup. But, I'll be driving the disposable cars in to Boston from now on. However, if all goes well, by late May my commute should be 15 miles of twisty back roads.

Dallas to Nashua! Ay yi yi! And I thought my displacement from Amarillo to Boston was massive.

Depends upon how hard she has to work. But, she has a nice new Cannon RebelXT camera with which to record any fun she might have. Right Jane?

When I'm driving a disposable car in traffic I am more aggressive. But, in the 928 I'm usually far more reserved and don't really care what the other idiot Massholes are doing. That was part of yesterday's problem. I didn't have Game.

Thanks D.R. Don't you worry none now hear? In any case, Iris is making the trip to SITM.

If I was a betting man I'd bet on stupidity. A few folks have commented that it might have been an attempt at an insurance scam. No kidding folks. Not only are driver's in Massachusetts the worst in the States, something like 10-20% of insurance claims in MA are fraudulent. (Don't quote me. That's from memory.) Just look for the sports car (must have money right? Probably a doctor or lawyer) and see if you can create a rear-ender.

 

From reading your post, it sounds to me like you were impatient and things got a little tight. She probably saw your intentions and closed the gap, which has become an instinctive reaction for many drivers, but was she looking at you in her rearview mirror when she braked? If she was, then she did it on purpose and deserved the horn and the finger. If you didn't have time to give her the horn and the finger anyway, then you were too close to begin with.
The question is, did she?