Moron in a Silver Mondeo - Road Rage

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mct_cars

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Mercedes R107 500 SL
Thought I'd put this on here as a vent!

Set the scene... in my wife's car (S-Max), just been to Tesco to do the shopping, around 13:30 today.

Sets off happy as you like and goes to join the motorway (in this the A1 Western Bypass). Accelerated down the slip road up to about 60 - cars in front mean I can't accelerate more, and looking at the traffic on the A1, it wasn't going more than 60 anyway.

Indicator on, checks my mirrors and looks over my shoulder. Noted a silver Mondeo a couple of car lengths behind. Keeping up wqith traffic in the outside lane, I was half way onto the motorway, noticed in my mirror said Mondeo accelerating hard and moving towards the centre of the two motorway lanes at around my rear quarter. Too late to swerve back on the slip road and he can't go into the outside lane as it's full of (by this point slower-than-him) traffic.

Queue light flashing and associated gestures. I put my hand up to say "really, did you not look at the traffic conditions and my indicator. And the on ramp with cars joining". He was about two inches from my bumper and I knew I had to brake for the (now slowing more) traffic in front of me. Obviously he was that close that he must of wet his pants when he saw my brake lights as the front of his car dived a la emergency brakes style.....

Slowing for traffic was obviously a bad idea however as he found the narrowest of gaps to pull into the outside lane and do same said gestures to my side window along with "pull over I'm going to kill you" type hand signals. I just let him get in front as I thought screw this... I have shopping to deliver. I wanted to be off the next junction anyway, so just let him rant and thought I'd just pull off at the last moment and wave good by.... when I did so he crossed the hatchings in front of me to do the same. As he was now past the point of no return I pulled back onto the motorway thinking "thank god for that"...... but sure enough a couple of miles up the road as I turn off at the next exit to go home..... guess who's behind me shouting and screaming. He must have come back onto the motorway and god knows how he got through the traffic to catch up as there's two sets of traffic lights to get through on the roundabout!

I turned off onto the A19 and at the next roundabout lights he pulled alongside (in the lane to turn left, wound his window down and invited me wind my window down - associated frothing of the mouth and swearing included.. (I declined and set off at the green light) He followed me down the A19 (tried going slow and fast) to my turn off and thank god turned back round the way he came on a small roundabout near my house. I was really struggling on what to do - no police stations near, typically not a police car in sight, he looked way bigger and certainly more angry than I was.

I only got half the reg - AK06 - a late model silver Mondeo something or other,

Moral of the story? Don't know if there is one apart from keep clear of an angry looking guy in a Mondeo.

Also, what should you do? I guess it could escalate to a 999 situation quite quick but didn't really think it was an "emergency" (although I guess I felt in danger)?
 
This is what you need...
 
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Hard to say as every situation varies.

My one and only run in with proper road rage, several years back I got chased down the M4 for about 15 miles by a similarly angry man in a Mondeo (I'm noticing a trend here) simply because I was in front of him (as was everyone else in the steady line of vehicles in front of me).

He'd tried several times to run me off the road and failed (apparently my skills in evasive driving were sufficient), but eventually managed to get in front of me on the J11 slip road and seizing his chance, stopped, jumped out of his car and ran into the middle of the road in front of me.

:fail

I did brake (for the benefit of the witness statements) but perhaps not quite as hard as I could have done.
 
I did think of stopping and then speeding off when he got out, but figured he'd just end up killing someone trying to catch me up!

I did have a hankering for a spike strip to be deployed from the back of my car. If only!
 
Some right knobs about - If it was only you in the car, you could have done an emergency stop, he would presumable them plough into the back of you and you make your way to a police station to report the incident.

Or as you did, keep driving round until the muppet calms down and gets bored and goes home.

I had some oik tailgating me the other week, I was doing around 80mph through a section of the M25 with cameras at every gantry and the traffic was busy so all lanes were occupied.

I couldn't even see his bonnet he was that close, I was so tempted to brake test him but knew he would surely go into the back of me - 6 pot composite Brembo's vs. Pug standard brakes.

I just lifted off and slowed and he then saw a chance to undertake me, once he was alongside I squeezed him nicely - it was the least I could do.

Then of course after the camera's I opened up the taps.....

S
 
The one time it happened to me (on the A27 coming into Chichester) I didn't hesitate in calling 999. Once the guy saw that I was talking to the police he shot off, but was pulled over about 4 roundabouts later :)
 
Some right knobs about - If it was only you in the car, you could have done an emergency stop, he would presumable them plough into the back of you and you make your way to a police station to report the incident.

S

Did cross my mind, but I spent all weekend polishing and waxing the damn thing! He nearly went into the back of me when I pulled of the A19 as I overtook a slow moving car before pulling into the slip road - he decided the best course was to accelerate past the slow car too (I heard this car beep its horn!) and pull in behind me - he'd sped up, I'd slowed for the slip road. He wasn't far short of going into the back of me as I closed an eye and gripped the wheel tight waiting for the impact!
 
I was so tempted to brake test him but knew he would surely go into the back of me - 6 pot composite Brembo's vs. Pug standard brakes.

That would just have been down to lack of reaction time though. Standard brakes can easily get the tyres to break traction - you can't stop any quicker than that. Repeated heavy braking is another story of course.
 
Not sure I subscribe to that - so bigger discs and tyres and six pistons will not provide any more braking power than standard Pug 206 brakes? I accept the Merc is heavier. Mercedes are missing a money-saving trick here....
 
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Not sure I subscribe to that - so bigger discs and tyres and six pistons will not provide any more braking power than standard Pug 206 brakes? I accept the Merc is heavier. Mercedes are missing a money-saving trick here....

As said, all cars can reach the point of tyre traction being lost, so it doesn't matter how much extra braking power your car has, it's the tyres make the stopping distance long or short.

It is possible that the stiffer suspension might transfer more braking force tot eh rear tyres and that wider tyres may grip for longer, but nothing is guaranteed, especially as your car is heavier so carries more energy.
 
Hold on guys...it's only Friday!
 
Jeez, only in this forum does a thread like this turn into an argument.

Time to put the weapons down. Or fight to the death.

I don't care which, just pack it in!!!
 
Glad you were ok in the end, that would have shaken me up.

Can't understand why someone would choose to move to the left when traffic is joining from a slip road :confused:
 
Can't understand why someone would choose to move to the left when traffic is joining from a slip road :confused:

Undertaking slow moving traffic while already in a rage / late etc. is my guess. Recon I was just the poor sap at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Wouldn't care, my shopping was all over the place by the time I got home.
 
Also, what should you do? I guess it could escalate to a 999 situation quite quick but didn't really think it was an "emergency" (although I guess I felt in danger)?

I'd consider calling Police- which might also help your case if the other driver makes a malicious report.

I'd avoid a physical confrontation regardless of how confident I felt- if someone's really lost it, then even the best outcome is unlikely to be pleasant or worthwhile. There are too many ways that a showdown could end unexpectedly badly for either protagonist.
 
I'd avoid a physical confrontation regardless of how confident I felt- if someone's really lost it, then even the best outcome is unlikely to be pleasant or worthwhile. There are too many ways that a showdown could end unexpectedly badly for either protagonist.

I echo that...
 

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