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[ianu]

This caused a bit of a dilema for me yesterday. But how do you try and attract the attention of the driver of the car in front of you and get them to stop for safety reasons - without obviously scaring the pants off them and looking like a road rage nutter that just wants to get past them ?
Is there an internationally recognised code of gestures/ light flashes / horn beeps that (assuming the person is looking in their mirror) mean 'hey pull over - you're going to have or cause a serious accident if you keep driving that vehicle'.
Situation yesterday - I was out in my Volvo XC90 (which probably didn't help  :-?) travelling on a main A road - 50 / 60 mph limit with a couple of 30mph zones too following a Vauxhall Corsa at a safe distance. Approaching a long sweeping left hand bend (60mph) - the Corsa makes a wide sweep over the centre line  and recovers back onto the right side of the road. I imediatley drop back a few more yards thinking 'oh oh' either asleep or on the phone.. but then notice the o/s rear tyre is almost flat.
SO assuming they are oblivious to the fact - I reckon - if I can attract their attention before they completely lose control in front of me - they'll pull over and I can point it out - I'll even help change the wheel for them  8-).
Now this road is the main A41 between Bicester and Aylesbury. There are plenty of Layby's, turnings and a couple of villages wher you can slow down enough to stop safely (this is broad daylight - plenty of people around). Usually if I can get the opportunity to stop alongside a car I'll toot and ask them to wind down their window - but this just isn't possible on this stretch of road (and I certainly wouldn't attempt it on the move  ). So I try flashing my lights politely to attract their attention - no acknowledgement. I wait a few miles for the next layby approaching and try again this time including a left indicator - nothing. Ok I know coming up is a village where it drops to 30mph - great - chance to get close enough and also gesture through the windscreen to pull over - nothing. OK up the ante a bit before we lose the 30 limit back to 60mph. Flashing lights and toot the horn & gesture - nope  :-/. The tyre on this car is not flat on the rim - but you can see it's not handling corners very well.. too late and we're back on the 60 limit stretch.
As we approachg Aylesbury - I think great - I might be able to get alongside at a set of lights here - nope - a few subtle flashes and gestures - then I realise that the driver of the car is in fact female and I think 'oh' that'll be why then !! 
I still can't seem to get her attention - and I'm trying to stay with her for as long as I can - coincidentally we're both going the same route round the Town Centre - or she's trying to lose me ... until she eventually turns off into a multi storey. I abandon the 'chase' and hope that she notices the flat tyre when she gets out of the car - unless it was actually an attempt to shake me off  :-/ :-/ -. I tried - what else could you do ??
The A41 is a mysteriously dangerous piece of road - a friend of mine has been killed on it - an out of conrol car coming towards you isn't pretty ...

SO - any thoughts ??

Cheers
Ian.
PS I quite regularly use the opportunity at lights or roundabouts to point out to other drivers that they have a brake light or tail light out. Even did it to a Police car in Bicester once 

[jonnycool]

I think you did all you could mate, any decent driver would have noticed you flashing and would at least have looked in their rear view mirror to see what was up, and slowed down to see who it was. You could then have pointed to the tyre and it's their choice then to risk stopping for a complete stranger.
You may have been able to convey a flat tyre somehow without getting out of the car, if it was a woman on her own, because they especially would be suspicious of a man trying to pull them over.

[Lizzie_Zoom]

You seem to have done all that you could Ian when not having blue's and two's!!

Some drivers I am sure drive along, not looking in their review mirror, oblivious to everything going on behind them!  My father once ignored / didn't see on a motorway a police Senator lit up like a Christmas tree with the two's going until the police were right on his bumper at 70!

You have to consider your safety, and that of others, so any rash overtaking or excessive honking and flashing could cause an even bigger problem, especially with a female driver involved who could believe you are up to no good, that could distract her and cause a serious accident!

Flagging down another car, without the aid of police equipment, is always going to be problematic, and in fact you have no legal right to stop another motorist, or at least they have no legal obligation to stop.  All you can do is take the actions you did, and if the other motorist ignores it all, well you did what you could!  Pulling into a layby and ringing the police with the problem and the cars reg., was the only other thing you could have safetly done

[Varche]

It wouldn't help in this case but Bruce Willis would have found a way.

[Richie London]

It wouldn't help in this case but Bruce Willis would have found a way.

yippee kayay 

[ianu]

It wouldn't help in this case but Bruce Willis would have found a way.

yippee kayay 

Hmm - climbing out onto the bonnet of my car whilst asking my son to take the wheel and jumping onto the roof of the Corsa did cross my mind - but as my car is a manual - my son hasn't quite mastered driving without the aid of an XBox so yet .....
Maybe if I'd been in the Omega - I'd have stood a better chance..

Cheers
Ian

[MaxV6]

chuck Norris would have managed it !   and made Bruce look like an amateur.... 

[Danny]

I have a notepad in my car and on each page in thick letters, in reverse, is several messages:

FLAT TYRE!!

NO REAR LIGHTS WORKING

DRESS CAUGHT IN DOOR

GET OFF YOUR PHONE BEFORE YOU KILL ME

YOUR CAR'S ON FIRE

and finally

WATCH THE ROAD!

I dont really, but maybe it's a good idea!

[Dishevelled Den]

 All you can do is take the actions you did, and if the other motorist ignores it all, well you did what you could!  Pulling into a layby and ringing the police with the problem and the cars reg., was the only other thing you could have safetly done

Pulling into a layby and ringing the police with the problem and the cars reg., was the only other thing you could have safetly done

Sadly, the way things are now, that 's the most sensible solution.

[aaronjb]

YOUR CAR'S ON FIRE!

I occasionally wondered about getting one of those matrix displays (rather like the Police use(d)) with messages like that - naturally only works if you're in front of the person, of course.

Would also help for those "You drive like an idiot!" moments..

Knowing my luck I'd do it to an unmarked car and they'd find a reason to book me, though 

[MaxV6]

fitting 007 style anti tank missiles front and rear would probably do it.



well, it's safe for YOU.....  but there may be some argument that it's a tad antisocial to go round blowing other drivers off the road ...

be handy when trying to park in London though.... 

[ngrainqey]

fitting 007 style anti tank missiles front and rear would probably do it.



well, it's safe for YOU.....  but there may be some argument that it's a tad antisocial to go round blowing other drivers off the road ...

be handy when trying to park in London though.... 

ROFPMSL!!
you need an S60 like mine or a V70
they'd stop the car shitting themselves immediatly fearing getting fined lmao...unfortunatly they probably wouldnt unless you have front strobes in the grill but you do generally sh!t boy racers up when you come up behind them lol!

get a 48" amber strobe ontop like somebody on the volvo forum has lol?

[feeutfo]

Ram it!    No?  Just me then.



Usually find a flash or 3 and a point down at their car gets attention, which I often do when I see a semi flat tyre, often goes un noticed until the car spins out as said. One of the girls at work thanked me for "shouting at her son" at the lights round the corner from work as we left for home. He had come to pick up Mum and was driving round with what turned out to be 13 psi in the right rear, two bald tyres,and when Mum looked further into the car was found to be devoid of screen wash, coolant, oil with a week left on the mot..... she gave him a right boll locking.    8-) 

[Kieran]

So you where flashing the lady in front and she didn't stop. Its a wonder she never called the police

[aaronjb]

Most impressive is that he could keep his feet on the pedals while flashing her through the windscreen..