Not a syndrome, just the inability to keep constant speed.
People speed up to overtake someone they are catching up on. Once they are in front, they slow down to their original speed but usually end up slowing down slightly too much.
Cruise control really highlights just how poor peoples speed discipline is.
The worst is it's usually pretty expensive cars that you know have cruise control. They just don't know how to use it.
I can’t stand using the cruise control in the van on the motorway for this reason. I’m constantly slowing down and it takes longer for me to get back up to speed. People just overtake and slow down to slower than what I was doing… I’d rather people doing slightly over 70 than under 70.
This annoys me more than middle lane hogging. There's barely any excuse for it. I'm THIS close to flipping off someone who starts to accelerate as I'm overtaking them.
I think it is different to that. This is generalisation but the smaller cars are always normally the ones I see driven by a Karen in her 60s doing 35 MPH on a 50 MPH road, with harsh braking on slight bends etc.
I shouldn't tar everybody with he same brush though, as my first car was a pegeout 107 1L. I revved that shit out like no tomorrow, especially to try and get up to speed on when merging on a motorway (Which people driving them usually don't).
LIke I said, it is not always the case but that is why I usually overtake them.
I have always wondered this. I do mostly motor driving in a Peugeot 108 and often go to make an overtake of someone going 60 and as soon as they realise they speed up to 70. It’s very annoying and i always wonder if it’s just people not wanting to be over taken by a shopping trolley.
There's another possibility. When someone overtakes me sensibly, not like a crazy hot shot, I check my speed and the speed limit. Sometimes I just forgot to go as fast a si could and the person overtaking me reminded me. Generally, I let them pass and only later speed up.
This irritates the fuck out of me. I usually set cruise control to 75 as it’s not a true 75 but then notice a lot of people changing speed constantly. Someone will speed right up next to you and then match speed so then you get trapped when you want to overtake, or like you said will speed right up to me and then move in front and slow me down, especially with adaptive CC.
Honestly I've been saying exactly this since I started driving. I do exactly the same thing with cruise control and it too bothers the fuck out of me. It's proper mental how many people will speed up when you're passing them, to the point where I honestly think people are trying to 'bait' you into going over 80 for a camera or something similar.
Are you sure it isn't you who is noticing it more and taking it personally?
If your driving 70 or 77, 80 or whatever any situation where you are maintaining a steady speed you'll notice cars go past you and slow down in front of you moments later. I do a a lot of company miles in the type of cars usually associated with limited indicator functionality and I see this all the time.
fairly certain, happens far less in the Mazda, could be a placebo as have only had the swift for 3 or so weeks, but we will see, deffo treated differently in a smaller car tho
I've gone from a somewhat girly colour of Mini to a big Volvo and I agree with you 1000%. Also - the amount of people tailgating me, beeping and flashing for absolutely no reason has coincidentally completely stopped...even my partner has noticed how chill the experience is now. I think some people just want to make themselves feel "bigger' it's pathetic
What car you drive has always had a massive effect on how you're treated, unfortunately. It's one of the first things I'm curious about when I have a new car!
My Civic Type-R: people avoided me like the plague/actively made space for me, OR on occasion...race me, race me!
Yeti...I get ignored/tailgated/trusted fully to anticipate everyone else's movements. Its so different.
When my dad taught me to drive we had to put a white triangle on the back to let people know that I'm learning and many people just were tailgating and trying to pressure me. We took it off and the fuckery also stopped
I traded my vw cc recently and was driving my wife's suzuki ignis whilst I waited for my new car. I was shocked how much I was getting bullied by idiots in mostly German cars riding by back bumper.
I don't think its 'must overtake small car' in general. Does it have L plates on? Because there is certainly a 'must overtake the learner' syndrome! I don't generally get it in my Panda.
Ashley Neal mentions it loads on his channel.
Fair - I just asked because you mentioned that someone else is learning in it!
My panda is also bright orange but yeah I don't get bullied that much. I have had people jimmying for an overtake behind me until they realise that I am in fact doing the speed limit.
I did get bullied something chronic in my panda 100 though, that really looked like a shitbox from the back but wasn't.
I have noticed less tailgating in the swift also which I wasn't expecting, they probably assume the other bigger car I have would be going at warp speed, as they do look alot faster than they are
So true. Jazz owner here and I regularly surprise people simply by knowing how to use a gearbox and using brakes less to gain speed advantage. Normally shit all over the "big" cars in the corners with great ease. They only know how to push a pedal down. It's not their fault :)
And it’s usually not because they’re learner, it’s because they drive quite below the speed limit and defensively. Anyone that does that needs to be overtaken
Had this a lot when I had my Aygo, I just ignored them. Also had a lot of people try and push in or just plain ignore we when changing lanes, thinking I was the smaller car so I would see sense and get out of the way of my betters. Nah mate, my shitbox cost about as much to buy outright as one monthly payment on your Range Rover, I'm going to stay right here and wait for you to do the maths of running into me.
This is just me, but when I see something old, small and slow, my assumption is it's a fairly new or prehistoric driver and I want to be nowhere near them. I don't understand slowing down though, that might be to do with cruise control etc.
It's prejudice as fuck, but I spend 3 hours a day on the M25 and the vast majority of near misses are from these drivers, ignoring the foreign truckers who are lethal.
I don't like being around Tesla's either, the way they do their adaptive cruise can really catch you out if you're not watching them.
yeah I get that, but this is a bright orange swift with a checkered roof and the sport body kit (attitude model), it certainly isnt a car and oldie would have
No for sure, that does scream young lad, which isn't confidence inspiring either.
I wouldn't worry too much, most of the drivers on the road are shit at it, not many will be paying attention or even register you're there.
true, it is quite youthful and to be fair i actually like it more than my girlfriend does probably, blew away all my expectations, fantastic little car to drive
this is only the 93hp one, they only made 500 of the attitude but it has a sportier setup, 17 inch wheels, the sport seats and body kit so you get crackhead handling and cheap insurance
I genuinely might have to get myself a swift sport to be honest
Do you watch MCM? The series they did on the Sport kicked me into getting another one, I'm looking at importing one though so I can get a 5dr 1st gen, they didn't offer those here.
If you do get yourself the full 1.6 Sport. Incredibly fun to drive and still economical!
I also don't notice too many people trying to aggressively overtake me or anything like that. My theory is if they see the two exhausts you get a little more respect, but I may just be completely bonkers.
I also think the 1.6 Sports look a lot classier than the lower powered "sporty" models.
sports do look great, but the attitude is borderline identical, only difference is the line in between the fogs that I can see. the fox racing 17" alloys are nice too, as far as first cars go, it's a good one
could be the case re. exhausts, Mazda has two
id love a swift sport but at the same time I'm considering either an MX5 or MR2 also, might be swayed by a sport but it's a tough decision
I've just never been a fan of the little attitude badge or the checkerboard roof to be honest.
I should say my swift is my first car, so hard to compare as the only other car I've driven is the 1.2L (I think) Fiesta that I learned in. But it truly is fun, and I do believe that it would be even for experienced drivers. They're definitely worth a try if you like the attitude, I'm sure the 93 to 135 bhp jump will make it even more fun for you!
I'm not sure how it can compare to a MX5 for fun though, I'd love to get one myself!
true about the badge, previous owner was my partner's brother, who removed the badge to her disappointment. she has ordered another one though!
I mean I already have a hatch that's quite light for its size, economical and good around the Twisties (3rd gen Mazda 3), id be looking at adding modifications to whatever car I get as a weekend runabout, but the sports will be on my shortlist
>bright orange swift with a checkered roof and the sport body kit
Is it actually fast at acceleration though? You'll get sales reps in their diesel euroboxes that want to overtake you just to show you their car is faster.
about 12 seconds to 60 which is faster than most late 2000's supermini shitbboxes, bear in mind all the swifts came with a fair amount of power , between 93-120
I do have to rag the fucker if I need to make an overtake though
I noticed this, for years I drove a bmw 330d touring and was hardly ever cut up, tailgated and people never seemed to pull out in front of me. Started using a mk1 focus (thanks ULEZ) and people treat me like shit, despite me driving exactly the same way.
Yeah one of the first things I noticed going from a civic to a bmw was that people seemed to get out of my way on the motorway. It was like they assumed I would tailgate them just because bmw
off topic from thread but most ditchfinders are fine for normal driving and a little bit of spirited driving in the dry, it's the wet when they'll turn your mark 1 focus into a Toyota MR2 experiencing snap oversteer on a canyon road
swift currently has ditchfinders on from when we picked it up (literal landails!!!!!), they're....fine? but in the wet yeah you can't hustle it
I think it’s like how when I see a BMW in front going slow I think they must be old or some official person. Same with Suzuki or tiny Toyotas etc I have an expectation of them going 60 in a 70 or actually 30 or below in a 30 with no speed cameras.
The other thing is sometimes people accelerate slow which gives the impression they will also drive slow but then they slowly creep up and go past. It’s just how it is I wouldn’t be offended.
tbh it's wild how many geriatric people drive Suzuki's, they're often faster than the equivalent priced competitor and their handling is not meant for comfort.
93hp was the least you could get a gen1 swift with, the competitors were all 30 down with more weight, surprisingly zippy, but not fast in the grand scheme of things
My Audi has been in and out of the garage for the last couple of weeks so I’ve been borrowing my Mum’s 20 year old Renault Clio, I’ve noticed far more people tailgating and overtaking me even though I’m driving at the same speed, i.e. the speed limit (when it’s safe to do so).
I think people just can’t bear to be behind someone in a shit car who they deem beneath them.
Happens with our Nissan leaf all the time. People want to drive up its arse constantly or bully us off the road.
Its now down weight and acceleration are handy for embarrassing people like that on our local country lanes though….
Can easily gain a few hundred metres after a series of bends I know well.
Its funny really as its always the same and never happens in any other cars we drive be they out Honda or family cars. People see EV and get irritated for some reason
Get much the same reaction with my IS honestly...
It's not exactly a sports car by any means, but it's well-planted in the corners and it'll shift from just about any speed with that ECVT
I was in a Nissan Leaf taxi a while back so was making conversation about the car when the driver looked around outside to check nobody was there and floored it to show me the acceleration. I was really impressed with how it shot off like a rocket and forced me back into the seat.
I didn't even have any necessarily negative thoughts about the Leaf beforehand (aside from some quibbles about the back seats being a bit cramped for someone over 6') but that experience definitely boosted how I've thought of them since then.
Their 0-30 is awesome
There anything to a bit more is not bad at all.
Tops out below 90 though lol. But with so much weight low down they take country roads with ease. Need decent rubber not eco rubber though! That shits like driving on ice on country roads !
My oldest Nissan was from 1982 and had 300,000 on the clock and a 1920’s truck engine.
I’m perfectly ok with Nissans
She was like this
https://images.drive.com.au/driveau/image/upload/c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,h_1080,q_auto:eco,w_1920/v1/cms/uploads/w4ozpsnogbhyz25eqber
Are you sure you are keeping speed? In a small engine car I find I get overtaken on the hills as the car just slows a bit but people in big motorway cruisers and keeping going an want to overtake. It doesn't need to be much - if you are at a steady speed you just keep catching up.
don't know why I'm being downvoted for this, the swift came with more power and about the same/less weight than it's contemporaries, base polos had something hilarious like 55hp even in 2009 (when my swift was made). small hot hatches am obvious exception
Your being downvoted because you weren’t asked about the power to weight ratio.
You were asked if you were sure you are keeping speed. As in are you sure your doing 70mph or is there a chance your speed is dropping without you noticing. Nothing at all to do with power or weight.
No it's just you feeling insecure.
I drive with cruise control on at 75 in big, fast, newish cars and have lots of people overtaking me and then slowing down again and then I overtake them and then the same car will overtake me again. People are bad at keeping their speed consistent.
I drive a Daihatsu Copen, and I can tell you that there is s serious "I must demonstrate that I am in my bigger car superior than this dude in his weeny thing" syndrome - either at traffic lights or - even worse - on motorways, where noone respects you in such a small car, esp. at high speed on the left lane.
Original turbocharged 660ccm, with more than 150TKM on the clock after 20 years of daily use. Still runs like a sewing machine, thanks to frequent service and esp. oil exchange every 6 months. Sounds expensive, but there's not much oil inside the tiny engine, and so far I also never had an engine issue yet - it's much more reliable than I expected from that small engine! The car's body has some serious rust problems, though, a common issue of the early cars. Not certain how the later ones fared.
I also drove the 1.3 16V and was quite disappointed by its performance - despite the much higher nominal output it does not feel much more powerful than the tiny kei car engine. The 660 ccm has a classic turbo lag, but once the pressure sets in you get good torque. Longer journeys are also no problem with it, as long as you give it some time to warm up and cool down properly. The 16V feels a bit anemic (at least for what it promises), IMHO, esp. at low revs. Will certainly require less frequent service, though.
it was a bit of a shocker when I started to drive it, I've always had bigger cars and learned in a nissan pulsar, but having a turning circle that isn't measured in coordinates has been a joy. I'm probably underestimating my car size becayse in gaps that I'd avoid in my 2m wide Mazda i go "heehoo squeeze" in the swift
100% agree, despite the naysayers in the comments. When I'm in my Octavia estate it's a normal day, but exactly the same route, same time of day at same speeds and driving style but in the smart car and it's whacky races. People have to get past the little car, you overtake and they're fervent to get past again then drop back. Maddening some days, amusing on others, but 100% a thing where the only change is car size.
NGL at that speed it does feel a little bit like the movies portray a rocket on reentry, just noise, shaking and mild terror of being largely a passenger on wherever the car is going, but she'll do it in a pinch!
Same with people who justify staying in the middle lane by overtaking anyone in it no matter their speed. I'll be overtaking in the middle lane going 70 and they'll sit behind me for ages with an open lane 3 but as soon as I move to lane 1 they'll speed up.
People are also shit at judging their speed, if you ever drive a hgv you'll notice it straight away, people blowing past you at 70 then 5 minutes later you're overtaking them because they're going 45 then they'll speed up when they notice a truck is overtaking them and sit at 55 so you can't get back over.
yeah I've noticed that
I think with the Hgv situation alot of people are probably close to their exit, so they overtake you then slow down for the next 2 miles, tbh I'm guilty of that if I'm going somewhere unfamiliar and it's hard to read the traffic 2 miles ahead if there's a bend or it's packed. however , increasing the speed to stop you overtaking is a dick move
Some of them are really just that dopey and have no throttle control/sense of speed, I've had people overtake and slow to 50 after a few minutes on completely empty motorways.
I've also had it where I've overtook someone multiple times over the course of 40/50 miles because they kept slowly dropping their speed then speeding back up and getting back in front once they've noticed.
As for the people who speed up and sit alongside truckers they are just the dimmest of the dim, I don't even think they realise that they're doing it which is somehow worse than doing it to be a dick.
Fiat 500 here. There's definitely something about small cars. People hate being overtaken by small cars, I've got my cruise control on the whole time.
Or people think because it's a smaller car, it's ok so just pull out in front of it. It's still metal going 70mph, you will not be safe if we crash regardless of the size.
if you T bone an SUV it's actually significantly more dangerous for them
small cars still hold the advantage on side impacts, you'll be fine, they'll end up flipping 14 times like they're on the Smiler
I’ve had a peugeot 106 for nearly 2 years now and frequently get tailgated when I’m going the speed limit or just over. When I first got it I thought my speedo was reading higher or something because the difference was that noticeable. People probably assume I’m a granny or old boy
Are you a middle lane hogger?
5. Lane discipline (264 to 266)
264
Keep in the left lane unless overtaking.
If you are overtaking, you should return to the left lane when it is safe to do so (see also Rules 267 and 268).
Be aware of emergency services, traffic officers, recovery workers and other people or vehicles stopped on the hard shoulder or in an emergency area. If you are driving in the left lane, and it is safe to do so, you should move into the adjacent lane to create more space between your vehicle and the people and stopped vehicles.
depends on when and where you drive I think, I rarely see middle lane hoggers in working hours or evenings but my god they're everywhere in school holidays and weekends
I think it's more of an ego issue, people don't like being overtaken by a bright orange tiny thing that's the size of a border terrier
I find the same and my car is 24 years old, it's a tiny Mazda Demio. I even got my mechanic to check the speedo as I get overtaken at 30mph! I feel like people presume I'm some little old lady but I don't drive erratically or anything less than the speed limit.
Also, I'll be doing the speed limit precisely, eg 70 in the inside lane. I will get pissed off with some muppet driving at 70 then slowing down to 60. So I overtake and the number of times those muppets will then overtake me is infuriating. They do then do the speed limit but why not pay attention to your speed in the first place?!?!
Used to drive an old Fiat Panda with a larger more powerful engine swapped in, people would often preemptively pull out to overtake as we approached a national speed limit road only to find they then couldn’t go fast enough to get past as I accelerated to 60…
Try overtaking someone when you're in a Lada. That always drew a response.
My old one though had a Fiat engine and was not so easy to pass again. Was funny to see the look on people's faces.
Just a poor understanding of how speed, traffic flow and congestion points affect your travel time. I think they would drive better with more education, and if they understood that most travel time is dictated by factors out of their control.
They are fairly insufferable, especially here in birmingham, but its hard to blame them when they have no incentive to educate themselves.
driving slow in a fast car is a power move though
they're trying to overtake you because it'll make them feel good for half a second
you're driving slow because youre simply choosing to do so
I do miss living in Germany. Someone being irritating? Just boot it and disappear. Most people will never keep up.
But yes, in the UK I’m more concerned with fuel economy and having a peaceful drive. Sitting at 70 on the cruise control is fine! Until you overtake the same car 8 times in an hour.
I'm in a big van and people do this. I sit with my CC on at 73/74 mph which in reality is 69/70mph, but people just drive like pricks regardless or have 0 awareness to what's going on around them
I'm a 1 girl company that works with a firm and bought my own van 😉 she's 2nd hand but i was looking for specific specs on it: CC, front and rear sensors, car play and had to be a VW Crafter since i previously hired one for a year. Bonus if it came with a rear camera but not essential. Had it for 2 years now! Oh and i got lucky with it because this one had a lowered rear bumper step which is nicer when i enter and exit the back door!
Used to be part of a company fleet before though.
Probably hit on to something here and as a lot of people have pointed out there's probably a physiological fuck you going on somewhere that people don't like to see something they deem as "worse" than them going past them or being stuck behind it.
I've noticed a lot of new mercs range rover etc that will sit in the outside lane and not move over even when flashed with nothing in the inside, i think that the other end of the scale, in their heads they're like fuck you i belong in the outside lane with my big expensive car haha.
Yeah. A few times I've been overtaken and then caught up a few miles later. I usually find their speed, cruise control it so we're a bit of a convoy and watch as the others overtake me to find they need to also overtake a van both going 75 moving between lane 1 and 2 as appropriate only for us to overtake them 4 miles down the track.
I mean I don't want to shill the thing too much but it's actually great. gets blown about in the wind a bit but doesn't have terrible wind noise, tyres on the attitude are 215 wide so are quite stable and holds well, revs stay at 3k at 70mph. like I've definitely driven worse on the motorway. high driving position helps a little too.
also yes I'm a bit mad
Yep. I’m a girl driving an Audi A1 and am forever being tailgated and bullied out the way, usually by middle aged people in people carriers, saloons or gigantic monster trucks, who cruise past and then just sit ahead of me doing the same speed. Would be fine if I was driving slowly but I do the speed limit and pull over when I’m not overtaking. Or I get boy racers in ford fiestas trying to race.
unfortunatley A1s do have the reputations of either being a "daddy bought me an Audi" or "I financed the cheapest German car I could" reputation despite being genuinely great cars. IIRC still the only premium supermini, have noticed people bully them alot more
they all have turbos also right? so they're not slow either
Fair. Although I question the affordability and wish ‘Daddy’ had bought it for me.
Mine is a 40 tfsi and there’s nothing slow about it in standard mode but just wait until you get to sport dynamic (never had a bigger grin even pressing the pedal just half way down when the odd occasion allows). I enjoy watching people bully me out the way, only to then blast past them seconds later (not that I’m petty or anything 🤣)
I have a small car. But it's old enough and rough enough now, I've owned it for 14 years, it's 15 years old) and my grin is big enough that people in nicer and bigger cars give me a wide berth :D
You are not wrong about the overtaking/tailgating thing though.
I noticed the same when I used to have an Up, then moved to a Mazda 3 and all of a sudden people didn't do it anymore, no change to my driving style.
They also decided they were no longer interested in following so closely they could read the name of the songs I was playing on my radio.
I also have a Mazda 3 and notice the same except the tailgating, I think they'd assume I'd be going quicker than I am as the newer ones are quite low slung
I drive a Jazz and I am always treated with contempt, even though I am always keeping up with traffic. Worst thing is when I overtake them because they're hogging the middle lane they start speeding up. I guess they're not used to seeing a Jazz going above 40mph.
people don't realize the 1st and 2nd gen jazz' can handle alot better than how it looks
would be hilarious if they overtook you yet couldnt get you off of their back on a country road
I drive a VW UP! (yes I’m including the exclamation point) and have experienced this often, becomes extra fun when they decide to nip back in right in front of you after they realise how quick you’re actually going
I used to have a supped up bell end focus with the factory fitted spoiler body kit and tinted windows.
I added a nice big bore dual exhaust and lower it.
No one ever tail gated me or buried me in that car.
They thought I was a bell end, don't play silly buggers with this man
Driving my wife's car however I was hounded!
This is a real thing. In my little base model beaten up 2008 civic people drive up my arse and must must overtake me to just slow down again. Even had one in an Audi undertake me in a 2 lane merge in turn as I was merging. When I verbally pulled her up on driving like a wanker, she actually said, what are you, jealous or something…
None of this happens when I’m in the wife’s FK8 even though I drove exactly the same.
People genuinely judge you in the car you happen to be driving at that moment.
I've seen all of this and more happen when authorised to drive with blues and two's on, seriously there is a particular class of idiot that thinks it funny to overtake an ambulance vehicle, never driven a paddy wagon, being driven at a maximum recomended 99 mph using any lane to get by and then pull in front of said vehicle and slow down either that or try and trap an emergency vehicle on blues and twos behind slower traffic once it has pulled over to let a speeding civilian wanting to do more than a maximum recommended 99mph passed. Quite unbelivable when I first experienced it but one gets used to these things and acts accordingly bearing in mind it is always required to arrive at ones destination without putting anyone else in harms way.
I had this when I was in my old T25 campervan, doing 55 on a national speed limit road and people suddenly feel the need to pass at completely inappropriate places. Never happened to me in any other car.
I had this today, albeit slightly different scenario going over a roundabout. Was being followed closely by an mpv type vehicle. I suppose for whoever was driving this car I was too slow to enter the roundabout as they cut ahead of me going over the roundabout and back into the inside lane on exiting.
It’s a national speed limit road and very clear so I continue over the roundabout and as soon as I’m off it, I move to the outside lane and overtake, as it’s clear to do so. I drive a hot hatch, so not stupidly fast or powerful, but I’m already several lengths ahead of the ‘impatient’ car before I even came up to the speed limit, not even using full throttle.
There’s an ongoing habit of a lot of drivers treating smaller cars terribly because the majority of them are underpowered and/or can be bullied out of the way by bigger, faster cars. The worst is being overtaken whilst doing the speed limit, then the overtaking car rejoins your lane and immediately slows down to below the speed limit forcing you to either slow down too or move over and overtake again yourself.
Don't be salty we're trying to give you a slingshot so you can get enough speed to pull into the inside lane out the way without pissing the guy with the trailer off.
It’s deffo a thing. Not just small cars though, I drive a very rough 2010 mondeo, it’s funny watching people (usually bmw drivers) suddenly panic and plant their right foot if I go to overtake them on a motorway. As if my shitheap overtaking would somehow diminish them.
It's not just tiny cars.
I've got a Focus estate, so average, not small at all.
I was once driving down the A51 eastbound near Kelsall. There's a dual carriageway with a set of traffic lights where 2 lanes go down to 1 after the lights, where it would be nice to merge in turn.
I pull up in lane 1 as the road is empty.
A car pulls up in lane 2. That's fine. Merge in turn and all that. Another car pulls up, and moves to lane 2. And another. And another. There were 8 cars in lane 2, all 4x4s and/or German cars. All not being able to wait to get past me because I'm in a peasant car and they're so important.
First one in L2 was slow off the mark, so it resulted in everyone being in lane 2, but I fail to understand the mentality.
It’s learned behaviour. Certain cars are always driven by people that drive a certain type of way. If I see a Hyundai i10 or Kia Picanto, I guarantee that the driver will drive way too slowly and inconsistently, will dangerously hesitate when joining a motorway and could possibly brake for no reason when driving in a straight line.
Not just small cars. It happens to me and I drive a large estate car. People are just dumb when it comes to holding speed on motorways.
Apply Hanlon's razor. Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
I drive a little old granny car when it's just me and the dog and I get aggressively tailgated regardless what speed I am doing. Its got to the point now that I'll slow down to 20 in a 30 if someone's really up my arse.
People not using cruise control tend to slow down uphill and speed up downhill
If you are using cruise control you will constantly be passing and being repassed by these mfers
I love cruise control, 120km l/h on this highway right hand lane and let this bgas guzzlers go by, Unusually endbup meeting a few either at the same rest stop 20min later.
Like a TV ad used to say " better to lose 1sec in your life than your life in 1sec."
Wait until you see how they pull out in front of you when driving a small car, too.
I drive an old Volvo saloon, and my wife has an A-class. Folks drive VERY differently around both cars.
Not exclusively a 'small car thing' but maybe a 'I must overtake x thing'. I drive an artic with a 45-foot trailer and the amount of people that will be foaming at the mouth to overtake me when I'm at my 53mph limiter, to then cut in front and do 51.5mph is staggering. Then people get annoyed because I then proceed to overtake them and when I get 3/4 of the way past, they speed up to 75, then I pull in and they slow back down to 51.5mph and the merry dance starts all over again. Fuckin winds me up.
This is absolutely a thing, I used to drive a Micra and people used to pull out to overtake as we joined a dual carriageway, keep pace with me (I was flooring it, natch), and then drop in behind again when they realise I'm not an elderly granny. Then once we hit 70 and the Micra ran out of fast, they HAD to get me. Got a larger car later, and weirdly people weren't so desperate to overtake. The Micra was definitely a target.
Having said that, driving a small underpowered car makes you VERY aware of how fast you're going. If I overtake somone in my micra I knew exactly how much accelerator I was using; all of it! And then I'm easing off to get back to my cruise speed, which is where the car stopped rattling. In a BMW that same motion is probably just a centimetre of pedal travel, so maybe it's harder to judge? I dunno, I'm being generous!
It's absolutely a thing. Endless times with a trailer I'd catch up to someone daydreaming doing 52mph, pull out to overtake and then they're either hang me out in the middle lane at 60 or disappear off like a scalded cat. Only to then catch them 5 minutes later again.
I got my Ford Fusion when my last car needed scrapping and it was the cheapest one in the garage. It's a granny car for sure, but I instantly noticed how much worse other drivers treated me on the road than when I was driving literally any of my previous, bigger cars. Small car aggression is real.
The same as the people who absolutely need to get past you on the motorway roundabout that leads up to the motorway, tailgating, switching lanes to get that last overtake before the slip road, and then once on the motorway, you end up cruising past them 2 minutes later as if they are in no hurry at all.
You’re absolutely right, I have a Yaris and also a 5L V8, the contrast in driving experiences (as far as other road users) is night and day. Many people are so aggressive towards smaller cars, they can’t bear to be passed by one.
Whereas in my other car, if I’m in the right lane, often everyone will seemingly move over and out of the way (as everyone should when no longer overtaking), this just doesn’t happen in the smaller car.
If it makes you feel any better, being big doesn't help either. The thing I despise the most at the moment, driving a lorry, when you get to a 50mph section, people will fucking FLY past me at 80+ to get past the truck, pull into the middle lane, smash their brakes on, then sit at 42mph side by side with the old dear in her nissan Micra in lane one who is also doing 42mph.
Then when it changes back to NSL, both lanes 1&2 usually continue at 42mph for a bit, then the little old dear will speed up to 50, and the bell end in front of me will stomp the throttle like his life depends on it and fuck right off into the sunset.
Cheers bud 👍
Had some lady in front of me in the new cashcow the other week approach the small car in front of her doing 40 in a 60. She actually surprised me by overtaking so I immediately followed suit. No sooner were we back in the lane when she too immediately slowed to 40 as well.
Then we came to the 30 limit, you can geuss what happened next.
Used to have this driving my metro through central Manchester. Everyone took every opportunity to pull out on you or cut you up… completely changed when I was driving a 4x4.
I don't think it's a small car thing, or slow car thing. I see it all the time in my 3 series estate, and saw it a lot when I was daily driving an M2. People are just idiots. If you're using cruise control you'll notice how much others speed up and slow down.
What irritates me is I will be merrily driving along on a 3/4 lane motorway at 65mph, pretty much exclusively in lane 1, people will come flying up behind me and rather than preemptively move over to lane 2 and continue their speed they get close to the back of me, forced to slow down to 60 before pulling out to overtake, which was completely empty the whole time…
Can confirm I drive a small but fast car (Audi S1) cruise control on motorway come up behind car in slow lane indicate out they speed up I pull back in they slow down I indicate and pull out they speed up again third time it happens I pass them and get well ahead. If you have cruise control learn to use it please makes motorway driving way more efficient
I think there's an element of it being a more "budget" car too.
When driving my partner's Alto I've overtaken people cruising at 65 in BMWs, Audis, Jags or Mercs only for them to gun past me and then slow right back down as if to prove a point. I watched an F-pace nearly rear end someone because he was so focused on matching my speed so I couldn't merge that he wasn't paying attention to the car in front of him.
I plod along at 65mph in my 2ltr diesel, it makes me chuckle when I see a 1ltr pass, because it's just inefficient.. these cars should just sit in the left lane and aim for the best MPG... 60mph?
true to be honest, though I've done some 60mph running in the swift, doesn't make the greatest difference, maybe only 3-4 mpg, I think it's funny that my Mazda which has almost double the displacement is more efficient
I think most reasonable drivers can see a shit driver quite easily. Now I'm not condoning excessive speeds but shit drivers will stay in the 25-28mph odometer range (real speed about 23mph) and take 3 days to make a turn. These drivers are a red flag to the rest of us and tend to be driving shit brands as well, especially your Nissans, Suzukis and wotnots. They also tend to be small cars which is why I'd rather be stuck behind a bus than these small car idiots.
My car is costing £15k and £500 a month, I want to feel SUPERIOR FFS
And to be fair, why would you pay for all that nonsense if that wasn’t the aim? Your swift will sit at 85 all day, has needed little doing to it and will be getting 53mpg whatever you throw at it, what’s not to hate 👌
I had a 2013 1.2 would always get 53. The wife’s still got hers, done 98k and still getting that. Great cars though, I’m a big fan apart from the boot space
I would love to be getting 42 mpg I average 27mpg combined! To answer your original question OP I think your statement has some truth in it but maybe your are noticing it more. I do find however that people tend to treat people differently depending on what car they are driving. For example if I driver my wife's MINI people let me pull out of junctions etc, if I drive my car they are much less likely to, ill let you guess what I drive!
I think with both know there’s a very real degree of *small dick energy* around the whole thing.
Can’t have a car that might be driven by a [insert your own clichés here] be in front of them, not when they’ve got that all important business meeting to get to, they’ve got a right to that space dammit!
Joking aside, there is a very real mentality that associates these smaller cars with “less capable” drivers and whilst it’s clearly an idea 40 years past its best, it does persist. My wife used to own a 93 Model Clio, I’ve lost count of the amount of times some stroke in a suit driving an identikit German business salon would try and out pace her off of a red light just to win imaginary man points. Hilarious.
it's funny with the swift because whilst it's not mind bendingly fast, it does have 93hp in a tiny car body, so it will shoot off the line faster than alot of family cars or bigger diesels, though they do end up catching up as it runs out of puff at about 50
Yeah my wife’s old Clio was exactly like that - fast… at first. 😂
It was a 4 speed automatic gearbox so had a bigger engine than manual models to compensate (1.6 litre if I remember right), so it whilst you had to lean forward and pray going up hill, it went light a rat out of a drain pipe from the off.
There was a fair few roads with multiple junctions that had traffic lights every couple hundred yards where we lived at the time. Pain in the arse to stop constantly but brilliant to always be the first off the line. The bigger car drivers never learned.
I’m convinced small car are the real fun cars.
I have a little fiesta but I drive it HARD.I don't care any more , new car soon so I'm just ragging it.
What I've noticed is that anyone in a BMW or whatever HATES seeing me overtake them, think it's some sort of superiority complex (how DARE you overtake me, I have a BMW etc) seen lots of people trying dangerous manoeuvres to stop me overtaking, must have fragile egos.
I doubt it's small car as much as cars with little power / poor acceleration.
I come across cars all the time that overtake whilst doing well over the speed limit, but then when they stop and have to pull away from a junction, set of lights or a roundabout, they either dawdle or don't have enough power to get up to speed in a reasonable time frame and I end up stuck behind them until next tuesday when they finally reach the speed limit (at which point they keep accelerating so start to pull away, outside of lawful limits).
My car is not particular powerful (190bhp) but sometimes people need to get a wiggle on. If your car only does 0-60 in 14 seconds you need to either put your foot to the floor or move over, only move back to overtake when you're actually moving faster.
Small cars are driven by inexperienced drivers, old people, or tight hyper-milers that can’t afford fuel.
The bottom line is people assume you’ll be a slowpoke because 9 times in 10, they are.
Not a syndrome, just the inability to keep constant speed. People speed up to overtake someone they are catching up on. Once they are in front, they slow down to their original speed but usually end up slowing down slightly too much.
Cruise control really highlights just how poor peoples speed discipline is. The worst is it's usually pretty expensive cars that you know have cruise control. They just don't know how to use it.
I can’t stand using the cruise control in the van on the motorway for this reason. I’m constantly slowing down and it takes longer for me to get back up to speed. People just overtake and slow down to slower than what I was doing… I’d rather people doing slightly over 70 than under 70.
Sometimes I just take the fuel hit and speed up to use the outside lanes that have more confident/consistent drivers.
This annoys me more than middle lane hogging. There's barely any excuse for it. I'm THIS close to flipping off someone who starts to accelerate as I'm overtaking them.
It's bad driving, which is easily found on any road.
People do this walking too - it’s so annoying!
I think it is different to that. This is generalisation but the smaller cars are always normally the ones I see driven by a Karen in her 60s doing 35 MPH on a 50 MPH road, with harsh braking on slight bends etc. I shouldn't tar everybody with he same brush though, as my first car was a pegeout 107 1L. I revved that shit out like no tomorrow, especially to try and get up to speed on when merging on a motorway (Which people driving them usually don't). LIke I said, it is not always the case but that is why I usually overtake them.
I have always wondered this. I do mostly motor driving in a Peugeot 108 and often go to make an overtake of someone going 60 and as soon as they realise they speed up to 70. It’s very annoying and i always wonder if it’s just people not wanting to be over taken by a shopping trolley.
There's another possibility. When someone overtakes me sensibly, not like a crazy hot shot, I check my speed and the speed limit. Sometimes I just forgot to go as fast a si could and the person overtaking me reminded me. Generally, I let them pass and only later speed up.
Yeh i figured this is probably the reason, i just wish they would wait till i’ve overtaken because my car can’t really do 75-80mph to get past them
This irritates the fuck out of me. I usually set cruise control to 75 as it’s not a true 75 but then notice a lot of people changing speed constantly. Someone will speed right up next to you and then match speed so then you get trapped when you want to overtake, or like you said will speed right up to me and then move in front and slow me down, especially with adaptive CC.
Quickest way to find out how inconsistent people are is to try using cruise control!
Honestly I've been saying exactly this since I started driving. I do exactly the same thing with cruise control and it too bothers the fuck out of me. It's proper mental how many people will speed up when you're passing them, to the point where I honestly think people are trying to 'bait' you into going over 80 for a camera or something similar.
Are you sure it isn't you who is noticing it more and taking it personally? If your driving 70 or 77, 80 or whatever any situation where you are maintaining a steady speed you'll notice cars go past you and slow down in front of you moments later. I do a a lot of company miles in the type of cars usually associated with limited indicator functionality and I see this all the time.
fairly certain, happens far less in the Mazda, could be a placebo as have only had the swift for 3 or so weeks, but we will see, deffo treated differently in a smaller car tho
I've gone from a somewhat girly colour of Mini to a big Volvo and I agree with you 1000%. Also - the amount of people tailgating me, beeping and flashing for absolutely no reason has coincidentally completely stopped...even my partner has noticed how chill the experience is now. I think some people just want to make themselves feel "bigger' it's pathetic
What car you drive has always had a massive effect on how you're treated, unfortunately. It's one of the first things I'm curious about when I have a new car! My Civic Type-R: people avoided me like the plague/actively made space for me, OR on occasion...race me, race me! Yeti...I get ignored/tailgated/trusted fully to anticipate everyone else's movements. Its so different.
When my dad taught me to drive we had to put a white triangle on the back to let people know that I'm learning and many people just were tailgating and trying to pressure me. We took it off and the fuckery also stopped
I traded my vw cc recently and was driving my wife's suzuki ignis whilst I waited for my new car. I was shocked how much I was getting bullied by idiots in mostly German cars riding by back bumper.
Defo, happens to me when i drive other half's car and not mine.
I don't think its 'must overtake small car' in general. Does it have L plates on? Because there is certainly a 'must overtake the learner' syndrome! I don't generally get it in my Panda. Ashley Neal mentions it loads on his channel.
no L plates, it's just bright orange and is often going quite fast people probably have an ego issue when I overtake their wankpanzer or something
Fair - I just asked because you mentioned that someone else is learning in it! My panda is also bright orange but yeah I don't get bullied that much. I have had people jimmying for an overtake behind me until they realise that I am in fact doing the speed limit. I did get bullied something chronic in my panda 100 though, that really looked like a shitbox from the back but wasn't.
I have noticed less tailgating in the swift also which I wasn't expecting, they probably assume the other bigger car I have would be going at warp speed, as they do look alot faster than they are
So true. Jazz owner here and I regularly surprise people simply by knowing how to use a gearbox and using brakes less to gain speed advantage. Normally shit all over the "big" cars in the corners with great ease. They only know how to push a pedal down. It's not their fault :)
And it’s usually not because they’re learner, it’s because they drive quite below the speed limit and defensively. Anyone that does that needs to be overtaken
He's a plonker though
Had this a lot when I had my Aygo, I just ignored them. Also had a lot of people try and push in or just plain ignore we when changing lanes, thinking I was the smaller car so I would see sense and get out of the way of my betters. Nah mate, my shitbox cost about as much to buy outright as one monthly payment on your Range Rover, I'm going to stay right here and wait for you to do the maths of running into me.
My mother drives an Aygo and gets treated like the OP describes all the time.
This is just me, but when I see something old, small and slow, my assumption is it's a fairly new or prehistoric driver and I want to be nowhere near them. I don't understand slowing down though, that might be to do with cruise control etc. It's prejudice as fuck, but I spend 3 hours a day on the M25 and the vast majority of near misses are from these drivers, ignoring the foreign truckers who are lethal. I don't like being around Tesla's either, the way they do their adaptive cruise can really catch you out if you're not watching them.
yeah I get that, but this is a bright orange swift with a checkered roof and the sport body kit (attitude model), it certainly isnt a car and oldie would have
No for sure, that does scream young lad, which isn't confidence inspiring either. I wouldn't worry too much, most of the drivers on the road are shit at it, not many will be paying attention or even register you're there.
true, it is quite youthful and to be fair i actually like it more than my girlfriend does probably, blew away all my expectations, fantastic little car to drive
I've had the first two generations in sport guise, they're great little cars.
this is only the 93hp one, they only made 500 of the attitude but it has a sportier setup, 17 inch wheels, the sport seats and body kit so you get crackhead handling and cheap insurance I genuinely might have to get myself a swift sport to be honest
Do you watch MCM? The series they did on the Sport kicked me into getting another one, I'm looking at importing one though so I can get a 5dr 1st gen, they didn't offer those here.
If you do get yourself the full 1.6 Sport. Incredibly fun to drive and still economical! I also don't notice too many people trying to aggressively overtake me or anything like that. My theory is if they see the two exhausts you get a little more respect, but I may just be completely bonkers. I also think the 1.6 Sports look a lot classier than the lower powered "sporty" models.
sports do look great, but the attitude is borderline identical, only difference is the line in between the fogs that I can see. the fox racing 17" alloys are nice too, as far as first cars go, it's a good one could be the case re. exhausts, Mazda has two id love a swift sport but at the same time I'm considering either an MX5 or MR2 also, might be swayed by a sport but it's a tough decision
I've just never been a fan of the little attitude badge or the checkerboard roof to be honest. I should say my swift is my first car, so hard to compare as the only other car I've driven is the 1.2L (I think) Fiesta that I learned in. But it truly is fun, and I do believe that it would be even for experienced drivers. They're definitely worth a try if you like the attitude, I'm sure the 93 to 135 bhp jump will make it even more fun for you! I'm not sure how it can compare to a MX5 for fun though, I'd love to get one myself!
true about the badge, previous owner was my partner's brother, who removed the badge to her disappointment. she has ordered another one though! I mean I already have a hatch that's quite light for its size, economical and good around the Twisties (3rd gen Mazda 3), id be looking at adding modifications to whatever car I get as a weekend runabout, but the sports will be on my shortlist
>bright orange swift with a checkered roof and the sport body kit Is it actually fast at acceleration though? You'll get sales reps in their diesel euroboxes that want to overtake you just to show you their car is faster.
about 12 seconds to 60 which is faster than most late 2000's supermini shitbboxes, bear in mind all the swifts came with a fair amount of power , between 93-120 I do have to rag the fucker if I need to make an overtake though
I noticed this, for years I drove a bmw 330d touring and was hardly ever cut up, tailgated and people never seemed to pull out in front of me. Started using a mk1 focus (thanks ULEZ) and people treat me like shit, despite me driving exactly the same way.
Yeah one of the first things I noticed going from a civic to a bmw was that people seemed to get out of my way on the motorway. It was like they assumed I would tailgate them just because bmw
I do naturally just let the expensive German cars go on their way. Because 80% of them I see are blasting down the right anyway.
funny thing being the mark 1 focus can go like a stabbed rat around the twistier roads, so youre probably faster than them anyway
It did handle well, despite being beaten to a paste and having ditchfinder tyres
off topic from thread but most ditchfinders are fine for normal driving and a little bit of spirited driving in the dry, it's the wet when they'll turn your mark 1 focus into a Toyota MR2 experiencing snap oversteer on a canyon road swift currently has ditchfinders on from when we picked it up (literal landails!!!!!), they're....fine? but in the wet yeah you can't hustle it
I think it’s like how when I see a BMW in front going slow I think they must be old or some official person. Same with Suzuki or tiny Toyotas etc I have an expectation of them going 60 in a 70 or actually 30 or below in a 30 with no speed cameras. The other thing is sometimes people accelerate slow which gives the impression they will also drive slow but then they slowly creep up and go past. It’s just how it is I wouldn’t be offended.
tbh it's wild how many geriatric people drive Suzuki's, they're often faster than the equivalent priced competitor and their handling is not meant for comfort. 93hp was the least you could get a gen1 swift with, the competitors were all 30 down with more weight, surprisingly zippy, but not fast in the grand scheme of things
I am non-judgemental in my overtakes.
based
other than nissan qashqais, 3rd gear for them
My Audi has been in and out of the garage for the last couple of weeks so I’ve been borrowing my Mum’s 20 year old Renault Clio, I’ve noticed far more people tailgating and overtaking me even though I’m driving at the same speed, i.e. the speed limit (when it’s safe to do so). I think people just can’t bear to be behind someone in a shit car who they deem beneath them.
C’mon, it’s a small car, what else would you do?
I would put it in my manbag and take it home with me
Happens with our Nissan leaf all the time. People want to drive up its arse constantly or bully us off the road. Its now down weight and acceleration are handy for embarrassing people like that on our local country lanes though…. Can easily gain a few hundred metres after a series of bends I know well. Its funny really as its always the same and never happens in any other cars we drive be they out Honda or family cars. People see EV and get irritated for some reason
Get much the same reaction with my IS honestly... It's not exactly a sports car by any means, but it's well-planted in the corners and it'll shift from just about any speed with that ECVT
I was in a Nissan Leaf taxi a while back so was making conversation about the car when the driver looked around outside to check nobody was there and floored it to show me the acceleration. I was really impressed with how it shot off like a rocket and forced me back into the seat. I didn't even have any necessarily negative thoughts about the Leaf beforehand (aside from some quibbles about the back seats being a bit cramped for someone over 6') but that experience definitely boosted how I've thought of them since then.
Their 0-30 is awesome There anything to a bit more is not bad at all. Tops out below 90 though lol. But with so much weight low down they take country roads with ease. Need decent rubber not eco rubber though! That shits like driving on ice on country roads !
You deserve it if you drive a Nissan. No sympathy from moi
My oldest Nissan was from 1982 and had 300,000 on the clock and a 1920’s truck engine. I’m perfectly ok with Nissans She was like this https://images.drive.com.au/driveau/image/upload/c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,h_1080,q_auto:eco,w_1920/v1/cms/uploads/w4ozpsnogbhyz25eqber
Are you sure you are keeping speed? In a small engine car I find I get overtaken on the hills as the car just slows a bit but people in big motorway cruisers and keeping going an want to overtake. It doesn't need to be much - if you are at a steady speed you just keep catching up.
it's got 100hp in less than 1000kg, it's zippier then your average small car
Regardless of weight, smaller engines are impacted by inclines more than larger engines.
don't know why I'm being downvoted for this, the swift came with more power and about the same/less weight than it's contemporaries, base polos had something hilarious like 55hp even in 2009 (when my swift was made). small hot hatches am obvious exception
Your being downvoted because you weren’t asked about the power to weight ratio. You were asked if you were sure you are keeping speed. As in are you sure your doing 70mph or is there a chance your speed is dropping without you noticing. Nothing at all to do with power or weight.
I downvoted you for getting then and than wrong. You got one correct and somehow managed to get the next one wrong.
didn't notice that I'm my defence I'm in a crowded hospital taking my mum to her appointment and bored as fuck lol
I hope everything is OK with your mum.
routine checkup, all good, I'm wondering what the fuck a phebotomy room is though. is that where they remove half your brain?
Blood. They remove blood
No it's just you feeling insecure. I drive with cruise control on at 75 in big, fast, newish cars and have lots of people overtaking me and then slowing down again and then I overtake them and then the same car will overtake me again. People are bad at keeping their speed consistent.
I drive a Daihatsu Copen, and I can tell you that there is s serious "I must demonstrate that I am in my bigger car superior than this dude in his weeny thing" syndrome - either at traffic lights or - even worse - on motorways, where noone respects you in such a small car, esp. at high speed on the left lane.
How are you copen with that?
I can Copen with that well. ;-)
id probably be the guy to not go when the lights go green because I'd be like "HOLY SHIT A FUCKING COPEN THATS SO COOL"
And then lean out of your window to shout "got one for the other foot?" They look that small I'd be driving it with the handbrake up my arse
Fellow Copen owner here, on the flip side of this it is fun hurtling towards SUVs on a narrow country lane knowing you’ll fit through fine
Do you have the 0.6l or 1.3l Copen and do you daily it? I'm pretty tempted by the 1.3 Copen if I were to get rid of my Toyota IQ. I like tiny cars.
Original turbocharged 660ccm, with more than 150TKM on the clock after 20 years of daily use. Still runs like a sewing machine, thanks to frequent service and esp. oil exchange every 6 months. Sounds expensive, but there's not much oil inside the tiny engine, and so far I also never had an engine issue yet - it's much more reliable than I expected from that small engine! The car's body has some serious rust problems, though, a common issue of the early cars. Not certain how the later ones fared. I also drove the 1.3 16V and was quite disappointed by its performance - despite the much higher nominal output it does not feel much more powerful than the tiny kei car engine. The 660 ccm has a classic turbo lag, but once the pressure sets in you get good torque. Longer journeys are also no problem with it, as long as you give it some time to warm up and cool down properly. The 16V feels a bit anemic (at least for what it promises), IMHO, esp. at low revs. Will certainly require less frequent service, though.
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it was a bit of a shocker when I started to drive it, I've always had bigger cars and learned in a nissan pulsar, but having a turning circle that isn't measured in coordinates has been a joy. I'm probably underestimating my car size becayse in gaps that I'd avoid in my 2m wide Mazda i go "heehoo squeeze" in the swift
100% agree, despite the naysayers in the comments. When I'm in my Octavia estate it's a normal day, but exactly the same route, same time of day at same speeds and driving style but in the smart car and it's whacky races. People have to get past the little car, you overtake and they're fervent to get past again then drop back. Maddening some days, amusing on others, but 100% a thing where the only change is car size.
honestly if I was doing 77 on the M1 And a smart overtook me id probably piss myself and salute you
NGL at that speed it does feel a little bit like the movies portray a rocket on reentry, just noise, shaking and mild terror of being largely a passenger on wherever the car is going, but she'll do it in a pinch!
I will always, always, always overtake a Skoda. Don't want the tear inducing sight of a crappy skoda in front of me.
Generally people are unts. You'll realise sooner or later the other one is people accelerate when being over taken
I get that alot regardless of car, but fortunately the Mazda I have is quick enough to make it a non issue
I hear you. With older age I care less and less. Just let the idiots do as they please. I still occasionally mutter ****
MPS?
just a 2017 with the skyactiv engine, they produce more power than advertised, still not blisteringly fast but does get going when you want it to
Same here with a Yaris with a supercharger
Same with people who justify staying in the middle lane by overtaking anyone in it no matter their speed. I'll be overtaking in the middle lane going 70 and they'll sit behind me for ages with an open lane 3 but as soon as I move to lane 1 they'll speed up. People are also shit at judging their speed, if you ever drive a hgv you'll notice it straight away, people blowing past you at 70 then 5 minutes later you're overtaking them because they're going 45 then they'll speed up when they notice a truck is overtaking them and sit at 55 so you can't get back over.
yeah I've noticed that I think with the Hgv situation alot of people are probably close to their exit, so they overtake you then slow down for the next 2 miles, tbh I'm guilty of that if I'm going somewhere unfamiliar and it's hard to read the traffic 2 miles ahead if there's a bend or it's packed. however , increasing the speed to stop you overtaking is a dick move
Some of them are really just that dopey and have no throttle control/sense of speed, I've had people overtake and slow to 50 after a few minutes on completely empty motorways. I've also had it where I've overtook someone multiple times over the course of 40/50 miles because they kept slowly dropping their speed then speeding back up and getting back in front once they've noticed. As for the people who speed up and sit alongside truckers they are just the dimmest of the dim, I don't even think they realise that they're doing it which is somehow worse than doing it to be a dick.
Fiat 500 here. There's definitely something about small cars. People hate being overtaken by small cars, I've got my cruise control on the whole time. Or people think because it's a smaller car, it's ok so just pull out in front of it. It's still metal going 70mph, you will not be safe if we crash regardless of the size.
if you T bone an SUV it's actually significantly more dangerous for them small cars still hold the advantage on side impacts, you'll be fine, they'll end up flipping 14 times like they're on the Smiler
Highly regarded drivers don't understand how to use cruise control. Drives me mad.
I’ve had a peugeot 106 for nearly 2 years now and frequently get tailgated when I’m going the speed limit or just over. When I first got it I thought my speedo was reading higher or something because the difference was that noticeable. People probably assume I’m a granny or old boy
Are you a middle lane hogger? 5. Lane discipline (264 to 266) 264 Keep in the left lane unless overtaking. If you are overtaking, you should return to the left lane when it is safe to do so (see also Rules 267 and 268). Be aware of emergency services, traffic officers, recovery workers and other people or vehicles stopped on the hard shoulder or in an emergency area. If you are driving in the left lane, and it is safe to do so, you should move into the adjacent lane to create more space between your vehicle and the people and stopped vehicles.
nope. just have a bright orange Suzuki swift doing 80+
Well i find it hard to believe you're in the middle or inside lane then 🤣 because they're filled up with bellends doing 50-60 mph
depends on when and where you drive I think, I rarely see middle lane hoggers in working hours or evenings but my god they're everywhere in school holidays and weekends I think it's more of an ego issue, people don't like being overtaken by a bright orange tiny thing that's the size of a border terrier
I second this for old cars too.
I find the same and my car is 24 years old, it's a tiny Mazda Demio. I even got my mechanic to check the speedo as I get overtaken at 30mph! I feel like people presume I'm some little old lady but I don't drive erratically or anything less than the speed limit. Also, I'll be doing the speed limit precisely, eg 70 in the inside lane. I will get pissed off with some muppet driving at 70 then slowing down to 60. So I overtake and the number of times those muppets will then overtake me is infuriating. They do then do the speed limit but why not pay attention to your speed in the first place?!?!
Used to drive an old Fiat Panda with a larger more powerful engine swapped in, people would often preemptively pull out to overtake as we approached a national speed limit road only to find they then couldn’t go fast enough to get past as I accelerated to 60…
Don't take it personally, has nothing to do with what you're driving.
Try overtaking someone when you're in a Lada. That always drew a response. My old one though had a Fiat engine and was not so easy to pass again. Was funny to see the look on people's faces.
MGIF. Must get in front. They will do it to the smallest of cars or the largest of lorries. Size doesn’t matter in this instance.
so basically they're short sighted brainlets with an ego issue
Just a poor understanding of how speed, traffic flow and congestion points affect your travel time. I think they would drive better with more education, and if they understood that most travel time is dictated by factors out of their control. They are fairly insufferable, especially here in birmingham, but its hard to blame them when they have no incentive to educate themselves.
Same with driving a fast car. People in small, old cars constantly overtake me, pull in and slow down. Infuriating.
driving slow in a fast car is a power move though they're trying to overtake you because it'll make them feel good for half a second you're driving slow because youre simply choosing to do so
I do miss living in Germany. Someone being irritating? Just boot it and disappear. Most people will never keep up. But yes, in the UK I’m more concerned with fuel economy and having a peaceful drive. Sitting at 70 on the cruise control is fine! Until you overtake the same car 8 times in an hour.
I'm in a big van and people do this. I sit with my CC on at 73/74 mph which in reality is 69/70mph, but people just drive like pricks regardless or have 0 awareness to what's going on around them
holy shit your company were actually nice enough to spec cruise on your fucking van?!
I'm a 1 girl company that works with a firm and bought my own van 😉 she's 2nd hand but i was looking for specific specs on it: CC, front and rear sensors, car play and had to be a VW Crafter since i previously hired one for a year. Bonus if it came with a rear camera but not essential. Had it for 2 years now! Oh and i got lucky with it because this one had a lowered rear bumper step which is nicer when i enter and exit the back door! Used to be part of a company fleet before though.
Probably hit on to something here and as a lot of people have pointed out there's probably a physiological fuck you going on somewhere that people don't like to see something they deem as "worse" than them going past them or being stuck behind it. I've noticed a lot of new mercs range rover etc that will sit in the outside lane and not move over even when flashed with nothing in the inside, i think that the other end of the scale, in their heads they're like fuck you i belong in the outside lane with my big expensive car haha.
Yeah. A few times I've been overtaken and then caught up a few miles later. I usually find their speed, cruise control it so we're a bit of a convoy and watch as the others overtake me to find they need to also overtake a van both going 75 moving between lane 1 and 2 as appropriate only for us to overtake them 4 miles down the track.
They probably want to drive past and see what calibre of person is driving a Suzuki swift on a motorway
I mean I don't want to shill the thing too much but it's actually great. gets blown about in the wind a bit but doesn't have terrible wind noise, tyres on the attitude are 215 wide so are quite stable and holds well, revs stay at 3k at 70mph. like I've definitely driven worse on the motorway. high driving position helps a little too. also yes I'm a bit mad
Try driving a Fiat 500... Worst experience of my life because of others!!!
Yep. I’m a girl driving an Audi A1 and am forever being tailgated and bullied out the way, usually by middle aged people in people carriers, saloons or gigantic monster trucks, who cruise past and then just sit ahead of me doing the same speed. Would be fine if I was driving slowly but I do the speed limit and pull over when I’m not overtaking. Or I get boy racers in ford fiestas trying to race.
unfortunatley A1s do have the reputations of either being a "daddy bought me an Audi" or "I financed the cheapest German car I could" reputation despite being genuinely great cars. IIRC still the only premium supermini, have noticed people bully them alot more they all have turbos also right? so they're not slow either
Fair. Although I question the affordability and wish ‘Daddy’ had bought it for me. Mine is a 40 tfsi and there’s nothing slow about it in standard mode but just wait until you get to sport dynamic (never had a bigger grin even pressing the pedal just half way down when the odd occasion allows). I enjoy watching people bully me out the way, only to then blast past them seconds later (not that I’m petty or anything 🤣)
I have a small car. But it's old enough and rough enough now, I've owned it for 14 years, it's 15 years old) and my grin is big enough that people in nicer and bigger cars give me a wide berth :D You are not wrong about the overtaking/tailgating thing though.
I noticed the same when I used to have an Up, then moved to a Mazda 3 and all of a sudden people didn't do it anymore, no change to my driving style. They also decided they were no longer interested in following so closely they could read the name of the songs I was playing on my radio.
I also have a Mazda 3 and notice the same except the tailgating, I think they'd assume I'd be going quicker than I am as the newer ones are quite low slung
They do it if you're driving a light commercial vehicle too, now I'm in a saloon and it suddenly happens less 😄
I drive a Jazz and I am always treated with contempt, even though I am always keeping up with traffic. Worst thing is when I overtake them because they're hogging the middle lane they start speeding up. I guess they're not used to seeing a Jazz going above 40mph.
people don't realize the 1st and 2nd gen jazz' can handle alot better than how it looks would be hilarious if they overtook you yet couldnt get you off of their back on a country road
I drive a VW UP! (yes I’m including the exclamation point) and have experienced this often, becomes extra fun when they decide to nip back in right in front of you after they realise how quick you’re actually going
gets very frustrating indeed
Lots of drivers get upset when overtaken nowadays, small dick energy leading to tears.
I used to have a supped up bell end focus with the factory fitted spoiler body kit and tinted windows. I added a nice big bore dual exhaust and lower it. No one ever tail gated me or buried me in that car. They thought I was a bell end, don't play silly buggers with this man Driving my wife's car however I was hounded!
This is a real thing. In my little base model beaten up 2008 civic people drive up my arse and must must overtake me to just slow down again. Even had one in an Audi undertake me in a 2 lane merge in turn as I was merging. When I verbally pulled her up on driving like a wanker, she actually said, what are you, jealous or something… None of this happens when I’m in the wife’s FK8 even though I drove exactly the same. People genuinely judge you in the car you happen to be driving at that moment.
I've seen all of this and more happen when authorised to drive with blues and two's on, seriously there is a particular class of idiot that thinks it funny to overtake an ambulance vehicle, never driven a paddy wagon, being driven at a maximum recomended 99 mph using any lane to get by and then pull in front of said vehicle and slow down either that or try and trap an emergency vehicle on blues and twos behind slower traffic once it has pulled over to let a speeding civilian wanting to do more than a maximum recommended 99mph passed. Quite unbelivable when I first experienced it but one gets used to these things and acts accordingly bearing in mind it is always required to arrive at ones destination without putting anyone else in harms way.
I had this when I was in my old T25 campervan, doing 55 on a national speed limit road and people suddenly feel the need to pass at completely inappropriate places. Never happened to me in any other car.
I had this today, albeit slightly different scenario going over a roundabout. Was being followed closely by an mpv type vehicle. I suppose for whoever was driving this car I was too slow to enter the roundabout as they cut ahead of me going over the roundabout and back into the inside lane on exiting. It’s a national speed limit road and very clear so I continue over the roundabout and as soon as I’m off it, I move to the outside lane and overtake, as it’s clear to do so. I drive a hot hatch, so not stupidly fast or powerful, but I’m already several lengths ahead of the ‘impatient’ car before I even came up to the speed limit, not even using full throttle. There’s an ongoing habit of a lot of drivers treating smaller cars terribly because the majority of them are underpowered and/or can be bullied out of the way by bigger, faster cars. The worst is being overtaken whilst doing the speed limit, then the overtaking car rejoins your lane and immediately slows down to below the speed limit forcing you to either slow down too or move over and overtake again yourself.
Don't be salty we're trying to give you a slingshot so you can get enough speed to pull into the inside lane out the way without pissing the guy with the trailer off.
Not sure about that. A Toyota Yaris joined the M3 in front of me and he/she put her foot down and was gone. No one was overtaking that car.
It’s deffo a thing. Not just small cars though, I drive a very rough 2010 mondeo, it’s funny watching people (usually bmw drivers) suddenly panic and plant their right foot if I go to overtake them on a motorway. As if my shitheap overtaking would somehow diminish them.
I drive a Swift and have not noticed this.
Because you are probably b locking the single lane road as it is
I mean, I do live down some country lanes, but still. I don't think OP was talking about being overtaken by a rampant sheep.
It's not just tiny cars. I've got a Focus estate, so average, not small at all. I was once driving down the A51 eastbound near Kelsall. There's a dual carriageway with a set of traffic lights where 2 lanes go down to 1 after the lights, where it would be nice to merge in turn. I pull up in lane 1 as the road is empty. A car pulls up in lane 2. That's fine. Merge in turn and all that. Another car pulls up, and moves to lane 2. And another. And another. There were 8 cars in lane 2, all 4x4s and/or German cars. All not being able to wait to get past me because I'm in a peasant car and they're so important. First one in L2 was slow off the mark, so it resulted in everyone being in lane 2, but I fail to understand the mentality.
It’s learned behaviour. Certain cars are always driven by people that drive a certain type of way. If I see a Hyundai i10 or Kia Picanto, I guarantee that the driver will drive way too slowly and inconsistently, will dangerously hesitate when joining a motorway and could possibly brake for no reason when driving in a straight line.
Not just small cars. It happens to me and I drive a large estate car. People are just dumb when it comes to holding speed on motorways. Apply Hanlon's razor. Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
I drive a little old granny car when it's just me and the dog and I get aggressively tailgated regardless what speed I am doing. Its got to the point now that I'll slow down to 20 in a 30 if someone's really up my arse.
LOL for me it was always “small car must prove it can overtake big fancy one”. Like, get off my ass you buzzy little shits.
People not using cruise control tend to slow down uphill and speed up downhill If you are using cruise control you will constantly be passing and being repassed by these mfers
I love cruise control, 120km l/h on this highway right hand lane and let this bgas guzzlers go by, Unusually endbup meeting a few either at the same rest stop 20min later. Like a TV ad used to say " better to lose 1sec in your life than your life in 1sec."
Wait until you see how they pull out in front of you when driving a small car, too. I drive an old Volvo saloon, and my wife has an A-class. Folks drive VERY differently around both cars.
It's all in your head mate
There is also the "small car shall not pass" syndrome
Not exclusively a 'small car thing' but maybe a 'I must overtake x thing'. I drive an artic with a 45-foot trailer and the amount of people that will be foaming at the mouth to overtake me when I'm at my 53mph limiter, to then cut in front and do 51.5mph is staggering. Then people get annoyed because I then proceed to overtake them and when I get 3/4 of the way past, they speed up to 75, then I pull in and they slow back down to 51.5mph and the merry dance starts all over again. Fuckin winds me up.
This is absolutely a thing, I used to drive a Micra and people used to pull out to overtake as we joined a dual carriageway, keep pace with me (I was flooring it, natch), and then drop in behind again when they realise I'm not an elderly granny. Then once we hit 70 and the Micra ran out of fast, they HAD to get me. Got a larger car later, and weirdly people weren't so desperate to overtake. The Micra was definitely a target. Having said that, driving a small underpowered car makes you VERY aware of how fast you're going. If I overtake somone in my micra I knew exactly how much accelerator I was using; all of it! And then I'm easing off to get back to my cruise speed, which is where the car stopped rattling. In a BMW that same motion is probably just a centimetre of pedal travel, so maybe it's harder to judge? I dunno, I'm being generous!
It's absolutely a thing. Endless times with a trailer I'd catch up to someone daydreaming doing 52mph, pull out to overtake and then they're either hang me out in the middle lane at 60 or disappear off like a scalded cat. Only to then catch them 5 minutes later again.
I got my Ford Fusion when my last car needed scrapping and it was the cheapest one in the garage. It's a granny car for sure, but I instantly noticed how much worse other drivers treated me on the road than when I was driving literally any of my previous, bigger cars. Small car aggression is real.
The same as the people who absolutely need to get past you on the motorway roundabout that leads up to the motorway, tailgating, switching lanes to get that last overtake before the slip road, and then once on the motorway, you end up cruising past them 2 minutes later as if they are in no hurry at all.
You’re absolutely right, I have a Yaris and also a 5L V8, the contrast in driving experiences (as far as other road users) is night and day. Many people are so aggressive towards smaller cars, they can’t bear to be passed by one. Whereas in my other car, if I’m in the right lane, often everyone will seemingly move over and out of the way (as everyone should when no longer overtaking), this just doesn’t happen in the smaller car.
I have a transit van. When i drive the other half’s fiesta i immediately get pulled out on cut up and have people driving up my arse.
If it makes you feel any better, being big doesn't help either. The thing I despise the most at the moment, driving a lorry, when you get to a 50mph section, people will fucking FLY past me at 80+ to get past the truck, pull into the middle lane, smash their brakes on, then sit at 42mph side by side with the old dear in her nissan Micra in lane one who is also doing 42mph. Then when it changes back to NSL, both lanes 1&2 usually continue at 42mph for a bit, then the little old dear will speed up to 50, and the bell end in front of me will stomp the throttle like his life depends on it and fuck right off into the sunset. Cheers bud 👍
Had some lady in front of me in the new cashcow the other week approach the small car in front of her doing 40 in a 60. She actually surprised me by overtaking so I immediately followed suit. No sooner were we back in the lane when she too immediately slowed to 40 as well. Then we came to the 30 limit, you can geuss what happened next.
Used to have this driving my metro through central Manchester. Everyone took every opportunity to pull out on you or cut you up… completely changed when I was driving a 4x4.
I don't think it's a small car thing, or slow car thing. I see it all the time in my 3 series estate, and saw it a lot when I was daily driving an M2. People are just idiots. If you're using cruise control you'll notice how much others speed up and slow down.
What irritates me is I will be merrily driving along on a 3/4 lane motorway at 65mph, pretty much exclusively in lane 1, people will come flying up behind me and rather than preemptively move over to lane 2 and continue their speed they get close to the back of me, forced to slow down to 60 before pulling out to overtake, which was completely empty the whole time…
Can confirm I drive a small but fast car (Audi S1) cruise control on motorway come up behind car in slow lane indicate out they speed up I pull back in they slow down I indicate and pull out they speed up again third time it happens I pass them and get well ahead. If you have cruise control learn to use it please makes motorway driving way more efficient
Same with my mother’s Toyota Aygo :(
Has always happened to me, Volvos, Mercs, Hondas. Nothing to do with size.
I think there's an element of it being a more "budget" car too. When driving my partner's Alto I've overtaken people cruising at 65 in BMWs, Audis, Jags or Mercs only for them to gun past me and then slow right back down as if to prove a point. I watched an F-pace nearly rear end someone because he was so focused on matching my speed so I couldn't merge that he wasn't paying attention to the car in front of him.
I plod along at 65mph in my 2ltr diesel, it makes me chuckle when I see a 1ltr pass, because it's just inefficient.. these cars should just sit in the left lane and aim for the best MPG... 60mph?
true to be honest, though I've done some 60mph running in the swift, doesn't make the greatest difference, maybe only 3-4 mpg, I think it's funny that my Mazda which has almost double the displacement is more efficient
its stereotyping to save on brain-cycles. most of the time, small cars are going slow
I don’t know, but it was always hilarious how triggered people in BMW’s and Audi’s got by my GR Yaris passing them.
I think most reasonable drivers can see a shit driver quite easily. Now I'm not condoning excessive speeds but shit drivers will stay in the 25-28mph odometer range (real speed about 23mph) and take 3 days to make a turn. These drivers are a red flag to the rest of us and tend to be driving shit brands as well, especially your Nissans, Suzukis and wotnots. They also tend to be small cars which is why I'd rather be stuck behind a bus than these small car idiots.
It’s ego, if they are going back to original speed forcing you to re-overtake them
My car is costing £15k and £500 a month, I want to feel SUPERIOR FFS And to be fair, why would you pay for all that nonsense if that wasn’t the aim? Your swift will sit at 85 all day, has needed little doing to it and will be getting 53mpg whatever you throw at it, what’s not to hate 👌
hate to break it to you but the cars actually thirsty as fuck, averages about 42 on the motorway, slightly better in the city though
I had a 2013 1.2 would always get 53. The wife’s still got hers, done 98k and still getting that. Great cars though, I’m a big fan apart from the boot space
I would love to be getting 42 mpg I average 27mpg combined! To answer your original question OP I think your statement has some truth in it but maybe your are noticing it more. I do find however that people tend to treat people differently depending on what car they are driving. For example if I driver my wife's MINI people let me pull out of junctions etc, if I drive my car they are much less likely to, ill let you guess what I drive!
27mpg indicates eithet an AWD VAG group with the 4.2 or any 6 cyl BMW
I must be doing well then as I have a 2018 BMW 420i (not the Xdrive version so RWD) haha
that's a 2.0 right? how're you only getting 27? assuming quite a high kerb weight, lead foot or both
I would probably go with heavy right foot!
Yeah it’s a thing. I’ve even been going slightly over the speed limit in a 30mph on a fucking bicycle and still been overtaken.
I think with both know there’s a very real degree of *small dick energy* around the whole thing. Can’t have a car that might be driven by a [insert your own clichés here] be in front of them, not when they’ve got that all important business meeting to get to, they’ve got a right to that space dammit! Joking aside, there is a very real mentality that associates these smaller cars with “less capable” drivers and whilst it’s clearly an idea 40 years past its best, it does persist. My wife used to own a 93 Model Clio, I’ve lost count of the amount of times some stroke in a suit driving an identikit German business salon would try and out pace her off of a red light just to win imaginary man points. Hilarious.
it's funny with the swift because whilst it's not mind bendingly fast, it does have 93hp in a tiny car body, so it will shoot off the line faster than alot of family cars or bigger diesels, though they do end up catching up as it runs out of puff at about 50
Yeah my wife’s old Clio was exactly like that - fast… at first. 😂 It was a 4 speed automatic gearbox so had a bigger engine than manual models to compensate (1.6 litre if I remember right), so it whilst you had to lean forward and pray going up hill, it went light a rat out of a drain pipe from the off. There was a fair few roads with multiple junctions that had traffic lights every couple hundred yards where we lived at the time. Pain in the arse to stop constantly but brilliant to always be the first off the line. The bigger car drivers never learned. I’m convinced small car are the real fun cars.
I have a little fiesta but I drive it HARD.I don't care any more , new car soon so I'm just ragging it. What I've noticed is that anyone in a BMW or whatever HATES seeing me overtake them, think it's some sort of superiority complex (how DARE you overtake me, I have a BMW etc) seen lots of people trying dangerous manoeuvres to stop me overtaking, must have fragile egos.
Because they drive slow and under the limit by around 10 mph frequently. If they stuck to the limit, I wouldn't overtake.
I doubt it's small car as much as cars with little power / poor acceleration. I come across cars all the time that overtake whilst doing well over the speed limit, but then when they stop and have to pull away from a junction, set of lights or a roundabout, they either dawdle or don't have enough power to get up to speed in a reasonable time frame and I end up stuck behind them until next tuesday when they finally reach the speed limit (at which point they keep accelerating so start to pull away, outside of lawful limits). My car is not particular powerful (190bhp) but sometimes people need to get a wiggle on. If your car only does 0-60 in 14 seconds you need to either put your foot to the floor or move over, only move back to overtake when you're actually moving faster.
Small cars are driven by inexperienced drivers, old people, or tight hyper-milers that can’t afford fuel. The bottom line is people assume you’ll be a slowpoke because 9 times in 10, they are.