driving slower

[BIGCEE]

is it just me or does driving a luxury car make you drive slower. last car was a 320 bmw and i thrashed the life out of it everywhere i went and everyone else on the road was just in my way i was constantly in a state of anger. ive now had my clk 320 for about 5 weeks and its like driving miss daisy i`m calm,relaxed,SLOW and have even picked up some good manners from somewhere even my mates can`t believe the change. i`m a bit concerned it could be old age kicking in

 

[Carrotchomper]

Well yes, that certainly is true. I used to have a BMW 5-series touring and just kind of floated everywhere in it (Primarily because it was a bit underpowered!!!).

I sold that and bought a Volvo S40 for tuppence at an auction to tide me over. I have limited respect for it as a result, and as it is a bit of a wolf in sheep's clothing,take great pleasure in ragging it everywhere now! It's such fun driving an old man's car which just happens to go like stink. Bye bye "modded" corsa...

Was undertaken in a bus lane by an old Fiat Panda on the way to work last night who took exception to me sticking to the speed limit having passed him at lights due to woeful acceleration

 

[BIGCEE]

haha have come across a few of them lately.tapping there steering wheel and shouting at there girlfriend on the way back from school

 

[PJH]

Hello BIGCEE
Did your BMW have manual transmission ?
Automatics ARE more relaxing.

 

[BIGCEE]

hi pjd it was a manual as it happens prob brings on a more aggressive driving style

 

[GazCaff]

Yar, it be true that a great, grand car be the stuff to soothe an 'ol sea dogs temper!

(remember today be talk like a pirate day, yar)

 

[BTB 500]

I drive my VW Sharan in a more 'enthusiastic' way than my SL500. As PJH says, I think a lot of it is down to the transmission. The Sharan has a 24V V6 which has a lovely howl to it .. so there's a temptation to hang on to the (manual) gears that bit longer. With an automatic (particularly a powerful one) you tend to just waft around. That's why I had the centre box removed on my SL - it was virtually silent before, unless you really floored it. Not something you want to do too often, assuming you want to keep your licence!

 

[Rory]

I agree on the transmission, although I find my C270 quite awkward to drive 'normally', I think because of the low revving 5cyl diesel. I always drive in S mode, and it's fine if I drive like the Queen's chauffeur, and it's also OK if driven hard - there just doesn't seem to be a happy median.

The big thing for me is fuel cost - chauffeur mode sees 45MPG, driving it hard it's sub 30.

I've also become somewhat paranoid about speed cameras - not so much the orange boxes, but the scamera vans and guys with lasers on motorway bridges. I used to laugh at people who got caught and then I got done twice in quick succession, both times just bowling along a little over the limit, so it's less stressful to take it easy than having to worry about the cameras.

 

[Rebel]

I have to say driving a more powerful car tends to mean you dont have to prove anything to anyone as well.

I have a calibra turbo, and its reasonably quick, I've had it for about 11 years (yep I did say 11 years) top speed is over 150 mph, 0-60 is 6ish secs, and thats performance from a standard car mine was a little bit better than those figues, I honestly didn't feel the need to put my foot down in it.

BTW thats why I have a clean licence, yes I am getting older, and maybe more mature, the only times I have pushed the car was on a derestricted road abroad, and I ran out of bottle at 140 ish the car was still accelerating strongly.

The performance of a car can, and often does mean you have nothing to prove to anybody, so quite often the more powerful a car is the more slowly it gets driven.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

The performance of a car can, and often does mean you have nothing to prove to anybody, so quite often the more powerful a car is the more slowly it gets driven.

Power can be described as the ability to do something ...but choose not to.

In fact didn't Oskar Schindler say "Power is when we have every justification to kill, and we don't"?

 

[BIGCEE]

Thanks for the comments all i think it may also be a bit of vanity thing as with my old bmw i was just one of the common folk but now slower driving is required so nobody hurts there neck whilst I'm driving by haha. also love this talk like a pirate gimmick should have been set up with a bit of notice

 

[uumode]

Driving slower has many factors, my own theories but not limited to these :

1. luxury cars normally have big capacities, and more cylinders to feed, Jaguars in particular I find drive slow, probably because they are trying to conserve fuel

2. some cars are a bit slow of the mark, I've found Mercedes petrol engines don't appear to have a lot of oompph lowdown and generally have softer suspensions and wallow more and don't turn in as crisply with their higher geared steering - and the somewhat larger steering wheels? (stereotyping luxury cars).

3. when you are driving a flash piece of metal, you have nothing to prove at the traffic lights, unlike the white van (who gets a bit of a feel good factor when he burns up the Mercedes at the traffic lights... but who cares?).
- Besides it's just plain silly to go head to head with a revving on the line, Citroen VTR or Vauxhall Corsa SR, just let it be.

4. very expensive luxury cars like top 911's, Ferraris which are very quick cars drive around slowly because the only people who are able to afford them normally are the 50+, and ironically the people who desire them the most the 20 somethings (with a more sporting image than a 50 something) can't afford them.

5. luxury cars can normally have a wife in the passenger seat (and maybe kids in the rear), a hot Renault Clio will probably only have a girlfriend who might be a (willing or unwilling) spectator to some showpiece driving skills, courtesy of the person behind the driving wheel.

6. luxury car drivers want to take care of the cars and so don't thrash it.

7. it just looks plain silly to cane the engine on a luxury car and squirt in and out of traffic... it's just not civilised (some BMW drivers don't seem to mind though )

If you have the old CLK, I found it to have a rather jerky power delivery (not sure if it is a trait or just that car), it moved off rather slow if you drove normally, if you put the gas down a bit more, it sort of squealed off the line in a rather alarmed fashion with an overkill on power, so there was a tendency to drive it at the slower pace.

 

[Silestanix]

I'd put it down to Manual and Auto differences...Manual is more enthusiastic, Auto is alot more relaxing...

3. when you are driving a flash piece of metal, you have nothing to prove at the traffic lights, unlike the white van (who gets a bit of a feel good factor when he burns up the Mercedes at the traffic lights... but who cares?).
- Besides it's just plain silly to go head to head with a revving on the line, Citroen VTR or Vauxhall Corsa SR, just let it be.

There's a white van driver here ya know.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Ive been driving similar since I got the new car, as a result of my crash.

I sh!t myself everytime I drive round a sharpe corner.

 

[frog1520]

geared steering - and the somewhat larger steering wheels? (stereotyping luxury cars).

Are steering wheels smaller these days?? I'm used to my 140 but was in a new E class the other day and I'll swear the wheel was a lot smaller! Is that right or just perception??

 

[BearFace]

Yeah, I agree with you. In the CLS I sort of waft around, and even on the motorway I generally stick to 85mph or so. In the TVR, on the bike and even in the missus' Golf GTi, my driving style is far less relaxed and usually significantly faster. This is possibly why I tend to prefer using the MB, because I know I'm unlikely to be caught speeding and therefore I'm far less stressed both during and after journies I've made.

Last week I drove the CLS over to a friend's house at La Rochelle in France. In the past I've ridden over on the bike, but the forecasts weren't good this time and so I elected to be a wuss and take the car. On the bike I normally average 100-120mph or so once I'm in France, but in the MB I was just cruising along at 80mph and loving it. When I arrived, I felt as fresh as if I'd made a trip to the local shop, whereas normally I need a couple of hours to unwind.

It could be an age thing (I'm 37), but I'm really starting to appreciate the virtues of larger, more luxurious cars. The irony is that I'd lusted after a TVR for many years and yet now I've got one, I hardly use it (I've added just 1200 miles in a couple of months). The CLS - like most bigger cars - is sedate and cossetting, but it's certainly not the type of car I'd dreamt of owning as a kid. And yet......it's one of the first ever cars I've truly bonded with. Must be getting old

 

[Kam]

i have to agree, i have had a BMW and all i ever wanted to do is put my foot down and see who i can overtake. I am nowon my second mercedes and my present car is the CLK320, and even though i am enjoying the power i have to say i dont have the urge to speed, or go in and out of traffic.
with a car of that prestige state, you would look like a prat speeding in and out, when driving along at cruising speed its looks the part!!!!

 

[Thmsshaun]

Perhaps I have a devil inside me at time with the C43. Sometime and generally though I do take my time in it.

4. very expensive luxury cars like top 911's, Ferraris which are very quick cars drive around slowly because the only people who are able to afford them normally are the 50+, and ironically the people who desire them the most the 20 somethings (with a more sporting image than a 50 something) can't afford them.

That one made me laugh. i had been looking at a CL500
Whilst I had many good comments a few people said but yeah its an old mans car.

Wonder if thats to do with the £80+K New price TAG and that no youngster could dream of affording one.

 

[uumode]

That one made me laugh. i had been looking at a CL500
Whilst I had many good comments a few people said but yeah its an old mans car.

Wonder if thats to do with the £80+K New price TAG and that no youngster could dream of affording one.

Less to do with the price tag, a 911 has that sort of tag but that's not an old man's car.


...maybe 'proper' sports cars have handbrakes? Can you do doughnuts and 'handbrake' turns in a footbrake car??

 

[uumode]

I'd put it down to Manual and Auto differences...Manual is more enthusiastic, Auto is alot more relaxing...



There's a white van driver here ya know.

I must admit I've never been overtaken by a Sprinter
Ford and Vauxhall types yes.

- so maybe even Mercedes van drivers drive slower too! Mercedes lorry drivers drive in a more civilised fashion I think too - though in the lorry world do Mercedes commercials attract an air of prestige like the passenger car division?