L00b Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 (Have you got rid of that V50 POC yet?)Yup. No V for me, ever again. Might have been a duff, a Friday afternoon one, etc. Don't care - manufacturers only ever get a single chance with me. So far, that's Fiat (Brava), Renault (Clio sport), Volvo (V50), Saab (9-3), Citroen (C3) and Lancia (Delta) (some obvious ones, with 20/20 hinsight ). Unfortunately that will probably be every modern car L00b.I know. Probably why I just can't separate myself from the MX-5. Electronics? What electronics? Even the window are not electric! I'm going back to Subaru. I only need a banger, so an early one (prob 2003-2005) before they put too much electronics and fly-by-wire stuff in them (had an '06 hawkeye in years gone by, first series with electric steering, steering pump kept going on it, went through 2 or 3 in first 20,000 miles!) In that case she's clearly not sufficiently competent to be driving on a motorway.Try reading the post I had a cambelt go on me on the motorway, years and years ago. Plenty experienced with several thousand miles' worth of motorway driving by that time. But never had a cambelt go (with the associated bang, dead engine with camshaft-in-a-puzzle and bent valves, etc). It took me a good couple of seconds to get full sensory appraisal (no power, engine off, and, as it was a Citroen BX, fast-hardening suspension/brakes/steering) and then take relevant action (clutch out, hazards on, look around for adjacent and upcoming traffic and for opening towards reservation). More recently, rear tyre burst (nearside, on a RWD) at 75mph on M1 (southbound, just past M18 turn-off into the 'dipped bend') in 3rd overtaking lane. Same symptoms (bang, immediate power loss (since one of driven wheels is flopping) and very mild oversteer developing), same reaction time (couple of seconds), same action (hazards on, try and keep speed, check traffic for danger and manoeuvre to left ASAP). A car fault developing while underway, and how it is addressed by the driver at the time, has nothing to do with one's competence to drive on a motorway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 In that case she's clearly not sufficiently competent to be driving on a motorway. How's that then? It wasn't her best bit of driving, but dealing with a sudden and complete loss of power is not something taught or required even to drive on the motorway. I understand why she was trying to make it accelerate, we were overtaking and in moderately heavy traffic. Which makes cruising to a stop and moving 3 lanes (to the hard shoulder) left a rather tricky proposition, at least if you don't want someone else to be pushing you for part of the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frededwards Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Mistreating the engine and transmission in that manner could have seized either or both, causing massive, sudden deceleration. She could well have ended up wearing the car behind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truman Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Mistreating the engine and transmission in that manner could have seized either or both, causing massive, sudden deceleration. She could well have ended up wearing the car behind. So you would have instantly known what the problem was and how to deal with it..? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frededwards Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 No. I would have dipped the clutch, let the car freewheel and put on the hazard lights, in line with what is advised by all cedible advanced driving and racing instructors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Mistreating the engine and transmission in that manner could have seized either or both, causing massive, sudden deceleration. She could well have ended up wearing the car behind. Yes, I'm aware of that. She did the wrong thing, I wouldn't have done the same thing, in fact I shouted "clutch, clutch, clutch" or something like that. And fortunately she put the clutch in before the pistons came out of the bonnet. It's a situation a lot of drivers would struggle with though, particularly the first time it ever happened to them, unexpectedly, mid conversation whilst overtaking on a busy motorway. I think it goes to show that having the ECU messing about with the inputs can be very dangerous (although in this case when it can no longer be sure of the accelerator position due to a faulty reading it's the safest thing it can do). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truman Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 I had a cambelt go on me on the motorway, years and years ago. Plenty experienced with several thousand miles' worth of motorway driving by that time. But never had a cambelt go (with the associated bang, dead engine with camshaft-in-a-puzzle and bent valves, etc). It took me a good couple of seconds to get full sensory appraisal (no power, engine off, and, as it was a Citroen BX, fast-hardening suspension/brakes/steering) and then take relevant action (clutch out, hazards on, look around for adjacent and upcoming traffic and for opening towards reservation). A long time ago I was driving a hire car,a cavalier,in the right hand lane of the M6...traffic stopped due to some roadworks..after a couple of minutes everyone set off again,except me..lots of lights on the dash..nothing from the engine..it's not funny being stuck like that in the outside lane of the m/w...fortunately the guys doing the road works saw what had happened,stopped the traffic and pushed me out of the way...it was a broken cambelt...it wouldn't have been easy to get out from there without the roadworkers giving me a hand.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 No. I would have dipped the clutch, let the car freewheel and put on the hazard lights, in line with what is advised by all cedible advanced driving and racing instructors. For how long? More than a few seconds and you would then be stranded in the fast lane as the traffic to your inside would be going faster than you and you couldn't move over! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frededwards Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 They car would have slowed very gradually (have you seen how far a car will freewheel for at 70 MPH?), adjacent drivers would be aware that there was an issue and the throtlle could be fed back in progressively in a controlled manner. That is the correct thing to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L00b Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 <...>it wouldn't have been easy to get out from there without the roadworkers giving me a hand..I was lucky, of sorts. That cambelt was brand new, but had been fitted the wrong way around (main stealer had put apprentice on job) - the car was literally 20 minutes out of the garage after a main service when it happened. And it happened in the middle of roadworks, in 75-meter visibility fog, mid-morning, so traffic was slower than usual and not too bunched up. The German guy in the campervan I was overtaking at the time clocked what was going on about as fast as me (he must have jumped 3 feet in his seat when the engine blew up right next to him! ) and, very kindly, put his own hazards on, braked and stayed behind me while I free-wheeled to the slow lane, then off the m'way between cones. Needless to say, recovery fees and repairs were all out of the main stealer's purse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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