Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: carlos_fandango on 26 January 2008, 05:46:02
-
Hi Guys, Is it just me or has the country gone speed bump mad.
Im sick of replacing wishbones, steering and suspension parts. every other month and its not as though I thrash it over them either.
Not to mention that they dont work.
EG. The other night i saw a police chase in progress, the offender was coming towards me like the Thrust2, being airborne at every speed bump, whilst the police bless em, came to an almost standstill at every bump. Not quite believing what i saw i stopped, got out of the car and watched as the offenders dissapeared into the night.
Would it not make more sense and be more economical top all for local councils to build chicane's instead?
What are your thoughts and do you think it is worth taking further?
Carlos.
-
Would it not make more sense and be more economical top all for local councils to build chicane's instead?quote]
That should have read "For All" sorry.
-
its the bloody pot holes and sunken drains that wind me up. I drive along looking like im drink driving to avoid them to give the poor miggy a break!
We pay all this council tax and they can't even keep the roads in good condition!
As for speed bumps, they are a waste of time, every speed slowing trick is a waste of time, if people really want to go fast then they will! It is always the innocent ones that get peanalized, example, any normal law abiding citizen like us would have to slow right down for those bumps, where as that person in the chase didint care because his car was probably stolen with no MOT tax or insurance!
Rant over!
-
i agree, the poor state of the roads does more damage. As I found out yesterday >:(
I go over a lot of speed bumps every day, and my wishbones and suspension survives ok :-/
-
yeah I havnt had any speed bump related damage in any of my cars. maybe you are going too fast?! ;)
-
Most of the speed humps you can drive straight over if you position the car right. The sleeping policeman type are the worst offender's they make them steep for you to slow down. yes I agree it is the condition of the roads the councils' need to sort these roads out first before putting in speed humps. The trouble is the council's only think about where the next lot of money is coming from and how much they are going to get the next time round, then they resurface the roads then some contractor comes along and digs it up again.
-
Speed bumps are counter productive IMHO. They may cause a driver to slow down but they focus his mind on the road 30 feet in front of the car to the exclusion of everything else.
They put speed bumps on a bit of road I use to get to work. Now, this road is rather well to do but unfortunately has become one of the main arteries into a town. Lots of influential residents, I'd imagine, who don't like the level of traffic. It's a 30 limit but a long straight road and it's easy to let your speed creep up.
They've tried speed bumps, then ripped them up. Then they tried chicanes, but approaching drivers used to accelerate to get round before the guy coming the other way. 2 Guys decide to try the same trick and there's a head-on. So, they've now ripped them up.
Meanwhile the surface is shocking, it's all you can do to keep the car in a straight line. They've spent hundreds of thousands of pounds experimenting with schemes that don't work and now, seemingly, there's nothing left in the coffers to ensure that it at least has a safe surface. >:(
Kevin
-
everyday big sums of money go down the drain just for those
*censored* speed bumps >:(
whoever want to go fast dont care nothing and go..
-
I was told an interesting bit of info about the little speed bumps which sit in the middle of the road. You know the ones where they look like a wee square sticking up?
Anywho, I was told, "Do not, drive straight over the top of these as they are just the right distance to catch the inside edge of the tyres. This can push the tyres out from the bottom, ruining your wheel alignment, your tyres and can also prematurely wear the wishbone bushes, and more importantly, the bottom ball joints. Plus if your car is lowered, or just has tired suspension, you risk smashing your sump, cats, gearbox or diff."
This was from a trusted mechanic.
So, he advised me to slow right down and mount the bump with one side of the car.
It does prove a bit more bumpy, especially as the council have now introduce 6 sets of bumps on a 400 yd stretch of road, right outside the cul-de-sac where I live.
Thanks East Dunbartonshire Council, I appreciate it.
-
i own/work in a medium size garage, the trend in the last 3yrs for coil spring and or shockabsorber replacement has gone up from 2coils per month to 3+ per WEEK! no particular make/type of car draw your own conclusions guys............ :-[
-
I've said it before. The cheapest and simplest way to improve road safety would be to remove air bags, seat belts, all road signs and lines. Then, fit a 6" stainless steel spike in the middle of the steering wheel on every car.
Speed would automatically fall and those who weren't confident in their ability to control a car just wouldn't drive. The more dangerous something appears to be the more cautious people naturally are.
-
yep, thats what that bloke did, cant think of his name but he died recently, they had a test area in london where they removed all zebra crossings, line markings, signs etc and it was proven that it was safer.
-
Followed a boy racer Corsa today, his exhaust was rattling away over the bumps - nearly stopping
My car is wide enough to go over them without touching, and if it was damaged - I would sue >:(
-
I've said it before. The cheapest and simplest way to improve road safety would be to remove air bags, seat belts, all road signs and lines. Then, fit a 6" stainless steel spike in the middle of the steering wheel on every car.
Speed would automatically fall and those who weren't confident in their ability to control a car just wouldn't drive. The more dangerous something appears to be the more cautious people naturally are.
:o
very radical and practical solution ;D
-
I've said it before. The cheapest and simplest way to improve road safety would be to remove air bags, seat belts, all road signs and lines. Then, fit a 6" stainless steel spike in the middle of the steering wheel on every car.
Speed would automatically fall and those who weren't confident in their ability to control a car just wouldn't drive. The more dangerous something appears to be the more cautious people naturally are.
:o
very radical and practical solution ;D
Radical? Yes! But, it would definitely work.
Too many people think that our roads are a private race track for their own 'sideways action'. One unsuspecting child or inexperienced driver in the wrong place at the wrong time and, no matter how good you are, it's all over. All the safety stuff makes the driving experience feel too safe when it's nothing of the sort. The more safety devices you add the faster and more recklessly some will drive. This is why the number of deaths on our roads hasn't reduced for many years despite the introduction of ABS, SRS, TC, the compulsory wearing of seat belts etc etc etc.
Make it more and more dangerous and people will automatically adjust their driving habits to compensate for the increased risk.
Oops, turned into a rant. ;D
-
good point well made! some of the "safety systems" tc,abs... allow unskilled drivers to drive fast and get themselves out of trouble up to a point,but when they really do go beyond the limits for whatever reason then they often seem to be clueless as to how to get themselves out of trouble bacause everything is happening that much faster :(
-
what about putting the spike under the chair and connecting with a mechanism..How much you push the accelerator..Spike goes up ;D ;D
-
thjere are those who would enjoy that sort of thing though ;D ;D,and besides there is nothing wrong with speed in the right time and place,its inappropriate speed (towns?villages etc;) that causes most of the problems,imho.
-
what about putting the spike under the chair and connecting with a mechanism..How much you push the accelerator..Spike goes up ;D ;D
Yes, but some would enjoy it too much. :o :o
-
great minds think alike golfbuddy (or fools seldom differ) ;D ;D
-
great minds think alike golfbuddy (or fools seldom differ) ;D ;D
:y :y :y
-
personally I wouldnt enjoy that ;D
-
I agree though, we've turn cars into nice living rooms on wheels with stereo's and dvd players and nice comfy seats, trouble is you living room doesn't fly along doing 90mph trying to avoid other living rooms...
-
The London Borough of Barnet now has a policy of not replacing speed humps when roads are resurfaced.
It has also experimented with no markings (centreline) in the busy Marsh Lane (off A1 to Totteridge). So far, so good. :y
-
I agree though, we've turn cars into nice living rooms on wheels with stereo's and dvd players and nice comfy seats, trouble is you living room doesn't fly along doing 90mph trying to avoid other living rooms...
My point exactly. :y
It doesn't matter how good you are or how good you think you are.
It takes one child to walk out in front of you or one mother carrying her screaming kids to do the wrong thing at the wrong time and, if you're driving too fast, you will kill them. It will be their fault but YOU will kill them.
Make driving more dangerous and people will drive more carefully, it's human nature.
-
Question is : if you want people to go slow , why you permit
very strong engines on those cars -some of them reaching 500,600 HP
or even 1000 hp and you give them road license - Just use 500 CC
engines and the problem solved..
* By the way with todays standards even a 1.4 liter turbo car can
easily reach 220 km/h..
-
Question is : if you want people to go slow , why you permit
very strong engines on those cars -some of them reaching 500,600 HP
or even 1000 hp and you give them road license - Just use 500 CC
engines and the problem solved..
* By the way with todays standards even a 1.4 liter turbo car can
easily reach 220 km/h..
I tend to agree, the cars young drivers use now, even standard are capable of quick speeds with ease and comfort, leading you, I think, into a false sense of security. Then add a few drugs!!!
30 years ago we had mini’s or Anglia’s, the latter in particular, was not so fast but with rear wheel drive you could have some fun and soon learned their limitations.
Perhaps a limit in cc with age. That said I just missed the 16 year old motorbike licence so I could only ride a moped, suddenly we had mopeds able to do 50+mph, remember the SS50 or the Fisy.
Now at 16 they are limited to 30mph.
:) :) :)
-
freedom of choice for the individual.......it isnt perfect and its disappearing fast(imho) but when its gone what we are left with is a lot worse
-
Had to smile at this thread. Here in Spain they have gone mad for speed humps. They appear (and sometimes disappear - who makes that desicion and why?) overnight with NO signs and no painted markings till sometimes a week or more later. There seems to be no standard design - I really believe they are left to the workmen to design. The end result is that in our local village there is one in particular that even using the diaganol approach resulted in excessive exhaust graunching. Fortunately there is a way around the back streets.
Some speedbumps have very almost vertical faces, others are really high with a flat top maybe 10 feet across.
One thing that is a problem here is big roundabouts. When they made them a few years ago there was little traffic so it didn't matter that EIGHT roads were joining half of which are two or three lanes wide. People now drive so fast( and don't use their indicators AT ALL) that they have endless accidents on one in Granada town. Yesterday they had installed rumble strips to try and slow people down.
varche
-
I am in two minds about that....
My area if full of them, and I have reason to believe that the fact that both my front bearings and wishbones failed at 50k has much to do with it >:(
On the other hand the road outside my house is very wide and striaght, does not have any traffic calming measures, some boy racers and bikers go through it at full throttle which i find scary considering that I have a 6-years old... :-?
-
Today I followed another boy racer with 4 exhausts!!
Again struggling to get over the humps ;D ;D
Mumble mumble little engines, mumble mumble missing two cylinders ;D ;D
-
i find that if you speed up to approx 40 to 45 mph and hit the speed bumps dead centre you will glide over them with much less effect.this only works on the diamond shaped ones,for all others get a 4x4
-
I find that if you throw it round bumpy lanes at speed, you don't need speed bumps to rip the sump plug out ::)
-
They've put speed ramps on every approach to the road I live in, I have to go over at least 2 just to get home!
(http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p266/Polski_Mafia/Mig.gif)
-
We've had speed humps in my area/road for many years now & i'm for them :y I never fly over them, just steady & iv'e never had any extra suspension probs. :) :)
They work well too, apart from a long stretch where they just try to go as fast as pos from one hump to the next >:( Usally a guy in a Type R
-
i find that if you speed up to approx 40 to 45 mph and hit the speed bumps dead centre you will glide over them with much less effect.this only works on the diamond shaped ones,for all others get a 4x4
Swindon council have installled some mountainous speed bumps in the Pinehurst area......anyone that lives in Swindon will know....speed limit is 20mph.......but i have experimented......hitting the bumps dead central at 25mph (20mph or 30mph is worse)........in the omega certainly has a less of of an impact comfort wise.......not sure what its doing to suspension/etc :-/
-
Yeah, i'd say the omega was pretty good at speedhumps. Seems to straddle quite well, as TD says, with the high level of comfort never sure what damage it's doing underneath?
Speedhumps, bah, I hate em. Yes, they remove your concentration from the road ahead but yes, they do slow you down so they do serve a purpose. But frankly i'm only gonna tear arse between them to make up the time i've lost from slowing down! :-?
Chicanes, HORRIBLE. Increase congestion, increase pollution and downright dangerous encouraging people to take risks. "Now, can I squeeze through that gap before this oncoming car?"
-
I am in two minds about that....
My area if full of them, and I have reason to believe that the fact that both my front bearings and wishbones failed at 50k has much to do with it >:(
On the other hand the road outside my house is very wide and striaght, does not have any traffic calming measures, some boy racers and bikers go through it at full throttle which i find scary considering that I have a 6-years old... :-?
a small hidden camera connected to the computer at the correct angle
with your small investment (max 25-30 £) will prepare good videos
for the traffic police to sort the problem :y
Believe me worth it..
-
My town is like bloody speed bump city - the idiots in the council have put them on just about every road in the town and I have had to get front shocks replaced on 2 of my last cars (not my current one......yet!!). I just wonder how many hundreds of other people in the town have had to fork out for similar problems caused by this menace. >:( As my Omega has an Irmscher spoiler with very low ground clearance I have to creep across them at about 2mph to avoid scraping it and some I have to avoid completely! >:( >:(
-
I always make a meal out of speed bumps in the Westfield. Plenty of blipping the throttle on the downshifts and pops and bangs on the overrun as I slow down for them. ;D
Hopefully the local residents will realise how much more intrusive it makes the traffic as opposed to when just cruising past at a constant speed and lobby for their removal.
Kevin
-
^^^^^^^^^^
A man after me own heart! :y