Anti Litter Campaign

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

Ian B Walker

MB Enthusiast
Joined
Jun 7, 2003
Messages
7,668
Location
Freckleton
Car
300-24, saloon and coupe, E300 24 valve diesel estate
I was listening to the news on the way home this morning and one item caught my attention. Apparantly there is going to be a crack down on littering. I totally agree with this but for one point. I am one of the few smokers around these days and the motor industry has decreed that ash trays are no longer a feature in a car. Take the Corsa I have at the moment, no ashtray. So if I have a smoke, where do I drop the dog end? If I chuck it out the window I am liable for a £50 fine. Just an observation.
 
You could always give up :devil: ;)
Or just use the back seat, lets face it, its only a corsa after all.

Hmmm thinking about it, the new Vauxhall marketing plan.....
The Corsa.......Its an ashtray with wheels........
 
Good morning Ian,
I understand where your coming from, but unfortunately I have little\no sympathy. :eek: Sorry about that.

You carry a packet of cigarettes, so why not carry a small metal, non inflammable tin? Then you can put your 'dog-ends' in the tin and take the blooming smelly things home and put them in the bin.

As an ex bike rider it was always one of my big hates, car drivers throwing out their dog-ends without a second thought. Lorries that carry straw bales are frequently the victim of this obnoxious habit, but no doubt lorry drivers might themselves be to blame.

Sorry for not agreeing with you,

Have a nice day,
John
Beautiful, sunny Torquay
 
sorry Ian - I have to agree. I don't like seeing dog ends all over the place. I'm not saying this is you at all - but so many smokers think they just dump their used tabs without a thought. I do know some very considerate smokers who do put their cigarette out and take the tab end home to dispose of. Not many do though :(

The fear of a loose and live tab end is something I'm also wary of in Edna when the top is off - I have ducked before today :eek:

But a clamp down on littering is necessary. I hate to see litter lying around. I never let my kids drop rubbish - and I know they don't coz I get to empty Josh's pockets and see the contents of Meg's bags - not pleasant :crazy: But I am proud my young uns know it's wrong. Just wish others did too :rolleyes:
 
Surely smoking whilst driving will/should be banned the same as eating/drinking or using a mobile phone?? It is just as, if not more dangerous, how can somebody be in total control of their car if they have a red hot lighted cigarrete in one hand??

Being an ex-farmer I have bad experiences of 100's acres of crops and a combine harvester being destroyed by some careless smoker throwing a fag out of the car window.

And where do the fag ends end up once chucked out of the window? Picked up by wildlife, washed down drains and polluting our water courses?

And seeing as tobacco is a form of drug should it not be banned because of this too? Driving under the influence and all that?
 
jimmy said:
And seeing as tobacco is a form of drug should it not be banned because of this too? Driving under the influence and all that?


See what you've started :D

I suppose what smokers don't sometimes accept is the 'pollution' smoking causes inside the car. Headlining gets a horrible yellowly nicotine stain, the sound insulation absorbs the smoke and the obnoxiuous smell is there forever. Get a clean tissue and wipe the inside of the windscreen and you will usually remove a layer of this gunge. (I am sure this doesn't apply in Ian's case)

I am not decrying the right of the smoker, but smoking in cars does cause problems. However whilst I am waffling I suppose I come down on Ian's side and whilst smoking remains a legal practice it would be a good idea to have ashtrays
 
Last edited:
I don't litter - never have, never will.

Nothing against smokers, but their perception that throwing rubbish on the ground is ok is just plain wrong.
 
Ok so back to the observation. Why do car makers not fit ashtrays then? If they did then all your observations would be groundless as the likes of me would use the ashtray. Jimmy good point in that smoking in a vehicle may be banned. That would obviously include listening to a cd or radio as you would be distracted listening or changing channels etc :rolleyes:
 
I see no problem with an ash tray being an option when speccing the car - but for me I find an ash tray a waste of good space - but then I don't smoke. I don't think they should be standard - but an option yes.
 
This a pet hate of mine at the minute, there is a T**T of a 18 year old chav who constantly drops his chip papers and polystyrene cartons on the road... I see a bit of a "falling down" experience happening. Some people are just so LAZY... Where was the grumpy old men website again.. going to have moan
 
Ian B Walker said:
That would obviously include listening to a cd or radio as you would be distracted listening or changing channels etc :rolleyes:

Behave! :D It's hardly the same is it?

So fumbling around opening a fag packet, finding your lighter, driving with the use of one hand impaired, trying to get the fag ash into the ashtray, squinting cos the smoke is in your eyes, dropping the fag down the side of the seat or flicking it out of the window and it comes back in and lands on the rear seat is the same as me listening to Classic FM??????

Seriously though, joking apart, I don't believe that anybody can be in 100% full control of the vehicle for the 5 minutes that they have a cigarrete inbetween their fingers? Nobody can possibly argue with that.

All the hire/courtesy cars I have ever had have always had a great big 'NO SMOKING' sign in the car. Smoking in a hire/courtesy car is not nice for the next driver and devalues somebody elses car. Cars that have been smoked in are worth less, it's a fact.

I am not personally having a go at you Ian, if you wish to and enjoy smoking, that is up to you. I know smokers can be very defensive and argumentative on such topics.
 
I have actually gone to someone before with their litter and said " I'm sorry, you appear to have dropped something!" The look on their face!
 
Smokers in cars are fine so long as they don't litter with the fag end. Use the ashtray, if your car doesn't have an ashtray don't light up!!

My real hate is when an adult is smoking in a car and you see the wee kids in the back having to breath in all the cancer.....the parents should be done for abuse!!!

Both my Dad and Father in law smoke and if they go outside the house for a fag, they are not allowed back in for 15 minutes even if its chucking it down outside.

Roll on 2006 when smoking in public is banned..

Pammy is totally correct, make an ashtray an option. The lighter should also be an option but the accessories socket (cigarrette lighter socket) should remain.

Just my opinion.
 
Last edited:
try following a smoker when you are on a m/c and he throws his nice red hot fag end into your face, musn't fill the ash tray. Followed a guy who did this once many moons ago. Maybe my size intimidated him, or thought of my ripping a new orrifice made him stay in the car for 15 minutes. All I wanted was an apology for my then very sore nose. Could have been my eye except for wearing glasses.
 
As I said in the opening post "Just an Observation" oh are we having fun :devil:

Now where did I leave that fishing rod :rolleyes:
 
Ian B Walker said:
As I said in the opening post "Just an Observation" oh are we having fun :devil:

Now where did I leave that fishing rod :rolleyes:


he he - but see what you started :D :D
 
I smoke in my car, always with the windows down and always throw my fag butt out of the window. Don't want my lovely clean ash-tray getting dirty.

When I light up its not dangerous as my ciggies are easy to get to and so is my lighter. No smokers have to fumble to find ciggies....We know where they are at all times....lol

As for the littering aspect, if we never dropped our fag butts out of the window, the roadsweepers would all be made redundant!!!!!! lol

I choose to smoke becuase I enjoy it, I'm not going to make any excuse for my behaviour and will not stop smoking in my car if I feel like doing it. My car doesn't suffer from nicotine stains/smell as I only have the odd ciggy whilst driving to work and back(I don't use my car for much more than that) I also use loads of fabreeze/air fresheners on the interior to keep it smelling nice...

I do have one complaint, I bought the wife a new Megane Conv and she won't let me smoke in it...Have to respect the wishes of she who must be obeyed I suppose...
 
Last edited:
Fishing Rod............... thats worse than smoking! all that lead deposited in the rivers and ponds, along with cast off gut entangling innocent wildlife. Next thing we know you'll be admiting you work for DCUK.............hang him I say.
 
smoking

wasn't Jeremy Clarkson pulled over recently for smoking behind the wheel can't remember which paper I read it in think it was the Costa del sol news...or something...anyway I smoke but I don't smoke in cars very confined space ruins the air con because it just smells of smoke..and I rather like to be cool in this weather with the window up and have the leathery smell that I paid a fortune for in the car, and because I pay for the service stamp as to help with future saleability and value I can't seam to bring myself to spoil this by turning the inside yellow and smelly so some oiky salesman can reduce the trade in value,I can do 9 hours on a plane with out a ciggy so its not a problem to me driving for anything inbetween.
 
pammy said:
The fear of a loose and live tab end is something I'm also wary of in Edna when the top is off - I have ducked before today :eek:
I remember seeing a photo in the newspapers about this story in 2003.
Saloon drivers should be careful too.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/dorset/3131075.stm
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom