Juddian:
If you give me a flash, you big hunk you , you’ll receive not only two or three left indicator flashes, but also…wait for it…two flashes of the side lights, the first one a short flash and the second longer.
Now think back when was the last time you saw the proper answering reply to being flashed in?
yep use to do that in the day, can’t see the point in it nowadays unless a wide or a elephant racer but only once i can see the o/s corner of their trl on the i/s of my cab cornerpost…
p.s. also back in the day a flash was a great help what with fog/smog and crappy mirrors…
Can’t do that in a lot of todays vehicles with permanent side/trailer lights on all the time that only switch off with the ignition
Quite, luckily on my old bus the driver still has control over the side lights, and the pointless fairy DRLs.
When that goes its replacement will be perma lit like everything else.
I’m not that keen on the waggling indicator light routine to be honest, for anyone behind passing or attempting to pass the overtaking truck does that sudden right hand indicator mean the vehicle is aboout to move sharply to the right again due to something those behind can’t see happening ahead.
Depending on the following traffic situation, if i’m driving a newer motor that’s permanently lit up like Blackpool Tower i tend to give about 3 left indicator flashes then wait a couple of seconds and another two with the left indicator.
TruckDriverBen:
My truck has PCC so when it know there a hill it eases off and the monkeys behind not leaving a 2second gap get all angry with me as if I’m doing it on purpose.
Likewise when a chimpanzee cuts infront of you with cruise control them my truck slows down hard again
You can turn all that bollox off or at least anticipate when it’s going to do it and override it with the accelerator before it gets chance to do it
Night-and-day:
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You can turn all that bollox off or at least anticipate when it’s going to do it and override it with the accelerator before it gets chance to do it
thehairyarsedtrucker:
With the mercs with cameras instead of mirrors it is sometimes difficult to notice if its a flash or the camera strobing, so accept this as a thanks for the flash in advance
They Deffo don’t like Drls them mirrors. I’ve had it before where Ive thought the emergancy services were behind me until they over take.
Just wait until one of the mirrors has a fit and goes grainy and then decides it wants to give inverted colours and then turns on and off for a few seconds before it decides it wants to do what it’s supposed to do [emoji23]
What about those that sit on your tailgate in the middle lane while you are closing on a vehicle in front ,you back off because you can not get out then he struggles past caring not a jot…you then catch them both up while later and pass them
grumpybum:
Hmm, so you punish the next vehicle, who may have been one of the courteous ones. They then think it’s all going to hell in a handcart and good manners are a thing of the past. If they do the same, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
I flash everyone in, mutter under my breath if I don’t get thanked, but will still do it for the next bod. I’m not assisting our decline into ignorant driving. I like to think enough of us are still holding a high level of courteousness.
Because I always set my cruise control for 53mph I get overtaken by many many lorries and I’ve noticed that the ones overtaking me generally fall into one of three groups; firstly you have that increasingly rare group who will acknowledge you flashing them in, secondly you have the large group who consider that merely indicating left to be acknowledgement enough, and finally another large group who are seemingly incapable of driving in a straight line whilst simultaneously looking into their nearside mirror so consequently don’t see your flash.
What I’ve started to do now is when one overtakes me and doesn’t acknowledge then I simply don’t flash the next one. The thing that strikes me as funny is that I get more (sarcastic) dancing indicators from those I don’t flash than ones I do! The funny part being that if I had flashed them they’d invariably consider indicating left to be an adequate response.
Just to add this neither annoys nor winds me up. On the contrary I quite like the ones that don’t acknowledge as it means that when I encounter them at some future point I don’t need to show them any courtesy whatsoever such as moving across to let them out of a junction, easing off if they are overtaking me on a hill and struggling or even guiding them whilst they reverse into a tight spot.
Not really a rant, more an observation.
I get dancing indicators sometimes when I didn’t flash them in, but I did hit a bump, that may have looked like I flashed them as my headlights presumably bounced up and down a bit in their mirrors…?
The real pains are the ones that feel they MUST overtake when they clearly don’t have the speed overhead to do it…
I drive mostly at 50mph on the motorways, because a of the cabs are already limited to that, but I find I have to go to your “53” when I’ve got a waitrose wagon coming up behind me, because the ■■■ will usually try to slow overtake me on the M26 or M11 J8-9 if I don’t…
The ones that don’t check their mirrors when you flash them in, are the frenchies in my experience…
Still, I get my own back on them by sticking to the speed limit rigidly through the M20 operation brock zone… 30mph all the way down to the ashford junction…
La Gouldale can countenence moi derriere!
robroy:
You missed the other category, the ones that wait until the back of their trailer is level with your windscreen and cut in…these [zb] kers should be tortured and exterminated I actually hate them with a vengeance. …as you know.
I flash all trucks in…including rigids …just so they don’t feel inadequate.
Tbh it doesn’t really bother me if they don’t acknowledge,.I’m sat safe in the knowledge that I’m more courteous and less pig ignorant than they are.
On the other hand if I give way to somebody when I don’t really have to,.I do get annoyed if they don’t acknowledge it, it’s just bad manners which I hate.
I’ve noticed another group emerging,…those that get less than half way past you and start indicating…wtf is that all about exactly?
You never know if they are actually waiting for a flash, or are going to cut in on you before they clear you.
As you say mate a strange breed.
I will pick you up on your last point.
I do that but only under the following conditions. Two lane dual carriageway, am goin faster than you so catch you up. I overtake but its slow, not really painful but slow. A stream of cars builds behind then you decide to race me (empty artic or tipper driver). In order not to hold the cars up what I want you to do is back off a couple of clicks. I get in, the cars f off and on ‘we’ go.
Do drivers do this? nah most of them sorry to say dont get it. I dont go to work for a fight, nor do I drive for SNT. But it does help if truck drivers can err drive not just steer the darn thing they are purporting to drive.
Juddian:
If you give me a flash, you big hunk you , you’ll receive not only two or three left indicator flashes, but also…wait for it…two flashes of the side lights, the first one a short flash and the second longer.
Now think back when was the last time you saw the proper answering reply to being flashed in?
2 Flashes of sidelights. The way it was done in the good old days.
Made far more sense and tended to be less likely to cause confusion.
robroy:
You missed the other category, the ones that wait until the back of their trailer is level with your windscreen and cut in…these [zb] kers should be tortured and exterminated I actually hate them with a vengeance. …as you know.
I flash all trucks in…including rigids …just so they don’t feel inadequate.
Tbh it doesn’t really bother me if they don’t acknowledge,.I’m sat safe in the knowledge that I’m more courteous and less pig ignorant than they are.
I’ve noticed another group emerging,…those that get less than half way past you and start indicating…wtf is that all about exactly?
You never know if they are actually waiting for a flash, or are going to cut in on you before they clear you.
As you say mate a strange breed.
After i passed my car test i did a pass plus course and was taught to start to indicate back in as my bonnet was level with the front of the lorry cab. Theory being is it lets the lorry driver know your coming back in (like they aint aware thats what you should be doing) and other traffic so they dont pull out into the next lane only to pull back in. It never happend when i was with the instructor but oncei was out on my own i seemed to get a lot of annoyed/perlonged flashes of headlights so i quit doing it.
Sensible idea to stop doing that. Whoever told you that wants shooting. Standards.
I’m sure it has been said before, but by the time the lorry is sufficient distance past for there to be an appropriate gap, the lorry is already in. I spend my time more often having to ease off to establish a gap than flash anyone in.
In terms of what is done with indicators etc after pulling in, it isn’t really on my radar and I don’t think about it.
A bit like lorries that flash other lorries from the same company, I don’t really indulge in unnecessary signals which could be construed by other road users as having a different intention.
robroy:
You missed the other category, the ones that wait until the back of their trailer is level with your windscreen and cut in…these [zb] kers should be tortured and exterminated I actually hate them with a vengeance. …as you know.
I flash all trucks in…including rigids …just so they don’t feel inadequate.
Tbh it doesn’t really bother me if they don’t acknowledge,.I’m sat safe in the knowledge that I’m more courteous and less pig ignorant than they are.
On the other hand if I give way to somebody when I don’t really have to,.I do get annoyed if they don’t acknowledge it, it’s just bad manners which I hate.
I’ve noticed another group emerging,…those that get less than half way past you and start indicating…wtf is that all about exactly?
You never know if they are actually waiting for a flash, or are going to cut in on you before they clear you.
As you say mate a strange breed.
I will pick you up on your last point.
I do that but only under the following conditions. Two lane dual carriageway, am goin faster than you so catch you up. I overtake but its slow, not really painful but slow. A stream of cars builds behind then you decide to race me (empty artic or tipper driver). In order not to hold the cars up what I want you to do is back off a couple of clicks. I get in, the cars f off and on ‘we’ go.
Do drivers do this? nah most of them sorry to say dont get it. I dont go to work for a fight, nor do I drive for SNT. But it does help if truck drivers can err drive not just steer the darn thing they are purporting to drive.
Yep good point,.I can see why you would do that if you were attempting to overtake some inept arse hole.
I’ve never had it done to me in that situation as I don’t speed up when somebody is overtaking me,. I dont’ ‘leave them hanging if I’m let out of a slip road’, I’ll back off a couple of clicks in both scenarios…mainly because I try and be courteous to fellow truckers.
In other words… I ain’t a pure ■■■■.
Its got to be said that courtesy isn’t what it used to be. Apart from the flashing and cutting in issues, I’ve noticed another trend recently.
I’ve pulled over to let someone onto the motorway/dual carriageway and they join and then sit on my inside and don’t let me back in. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
Happened 2 or 3 times recently. As someone said, its very tempting not to bother for the next one, but that would probably be unfair taking it out on someone that probably would let you back in. And unprofessional.
I think it’s been said already in this thread, but I’d like to reiterate, using Actros cameras in the daytime I have no clue if you flashed or not. Maybe I should be registered blind, but I blame the cameras for now, the only experience I have.
To this day I always do and have done as I was taught,
When being passed I do not flash until I see the Driver of the vehicle passing me in the passenger side mirror. At night or when you miss them looking in the mirror, I flash after a count of 4 seconds of their trailer passing my cab.
When I am passing another Vehicle / Truck, I DO NOT signal to move over until I see the whole front and wheels of the Truck I am passing in my inside mirror.
Pulling in too quickly can easily create a RTA and should beclassed as dangerous as Texting while Driving…
I too find these drivers who dont aknowledge or flash themselves rather pig ignorant, but there is another group of drivers that are very common nowadays. The ones who simply refuse to act as a banksman for you in a tight situation. I drive bulk tippers and some sheds we go into the yard areas can be pretty tight. Yesterday I was sat in a que in a yard and it was obvious where I wanted to go, I was tipping fertiliser and the others were tipping wheat into the shed next door. I was struggling to blindside into a narrow opening and everyone just sat in their cabs staring at their phones. A welsh driver got out of his cab and acted as a banksman for me and the reverse took less than a minute to complete. Out of 8 of us in the que he was the only one that actually got out of his cab. Years back this was just a natural thing to do, nowadays it is a rare occurance that I have found. If the welsh driver is on here we were tipping in Goole and I would like to say thanks mate for being a proper driver!!!
Sabretooth:
Don’t know how I missed this thread before ?
To this day I always do and have done as I was taught,
When being passed I do not flash until I see the Driver of the vehicle passing me in the passenger side mirror. At night or when you miss them looking in the mirror, I flash after a count of 4 seconds of their trailer passing my cab.
When I am passing another Vehicle / Truck, I DO NOT signal to move over until I see the whole front and wheels of the Truck I am passing in my inside mirror.
Pulling in too quickly can easily create a RTA and should beclassed as dangerous as Texting while Driving…
Sabretooth:
Don’t know how I missed this thread before ?
To this day I always do and have done as I was taught,
When being passed I do not flash until I see the Driver of the vehicle passing me in the passenger side mirror. At night or when you miss them looking in the mirror, I flash after a count of 4 seconds of their trailer passing my cab.
When I am passing another Vehicle / Truck, I DO NOT signal to move over until I see the whole front and wheels of the Truck I am passing in my inside mirror.
Pulling in too quickly can easily create a RTA and should beclassed as dangerous as Texting while Driving…
Madness!!
Madness ■■? Please specify what is mad about my post, I have never had a problem or given a problem to other by utilizing my methods as taught many. many moons ago. Sometimes the old ways are still the best and safest !!
I never see the driver in their mirror. I suppose It’s a bit of a nice little trick if it worked, but it wouldn’t work in this country because half or more of lorries are LHD.
4 seconds is irrelevant without considering speed. The speed differential could mean that 4 seconds after they pass you , they’re still only 4 inches in front of you. The answer is simply don’t flash until you are happy to have them in front of you at that distance. How simple is that?
I was driving up the M1 solo and trying to put your advice into practice. By the time I can see the whole of the front of the cab in my mirror I was just about happy to pull in. No way would I do it with a trailer on that early.
You’re trying to over complicate it with rules that are mostly irrelevant or at least not interchangeable with different trucks.
, you’ll receive not only two or three left indicator flashes, but also…wait for it…two flashes of the side lights, the first one a short flash and the second longer.
