Commuting in a 1098cc Morris

[lambrettalad]

especially when it's very close to the junction you want to get off at

[M25VAN]

If every truck left more than 10 ft beteen it and the car ahead - when tricking along an m/way jam at 30 mph - the queue would be 3 times as long! The truck driver can see ahead - he knows if the traffic is slowing - his aim is to keep moving at a steady pace, not start/stop and up/down the gears. 10 ft is MORE than enough in these circs. It really annoys me when people leave stupid big gaps in slow moving traffic.......

Here here, gaps back up traffic and encourage pointless lane changes which interrupt the traffic flow. It's all about constant moving. This sort of driving the Minor can handle easily...

[qwerty165]

It should be no real problem in about 30 years (or less) from now when all vehicles will probably fly, just imagine how quite the roads will be for everyone driving a sensible vehicle.

[les]

Yes as quiet as living under a flight path!!

[Hubert]

If every truck left more than 10 ft beteen it and the car ahead - when tricking along an m/way jam at 30 mph - the queue would be 3 times as long! The truck driver can see ahead - he knows if the traffic is slowing - his aim is to keep moving at a steady pace, not start/stop and up/down the gears. 10 ft is MORE than enough in these circs. It really annoys me when people leave stupid big gaps in slow moving traffic.......

For some reason I have a completely different opinion about that. Five years ago a friend of mine died in an accident on an East German motorway. A 40-ton-truck smashed his car between it and another lorry. The queue wasn't moving faster than 30-35 mph, and he had pulled in between the two lorries because he wanted to leave the motorway at the next exit, a few hundred yards away. The truck driver could not see further than the lorry in front of him and realize the queue was going to stop, and he was obviously half asleep by the continuous slow move of the queue, because it was found that he did not apply his brake at all when the lorry in front of him and my friend's car came to a standstill. Having kept to the correct distance would have given the HGV driver a few seconds more to react and stop his vehicle - and probably saved my friend's life.

I wish you never to be in such a situation!

[les]

Can't argue about keeping a safe distance but not sure how to avoid people 'half asleep'.

[Daddybear1984]

here is my advice, stick to a safe distance to react if the vehicle slams it's brakes on (weather it is clear in front of the vehicle or not) and be considerate of others "comfort" zones and all should be well, if i find someone tailgating me, i flash my brake lights without slowing and if they don't get the message i slow down and make them overtake me (dual carriageway or motorway). i don't mind people wanting to drive faster than me as long as it's done safely as i am sure most will agree.

as there is no minimum speed on the motorways it is up to you what you feel happy with and others should accept that however i drive at a minimum of 56mph not to cause issue for lorrie drivers...again personal preference.

be safe and drive safe.

Kind regards

Scott

[bmcecosse]

The speed limit for trucks on the M/way is 60 mph...not 56..... If I drove at 56 I would have a constant view of a large truck radiator in my mirrors! Try flashing the brake lights at them - and see what happens to you....... Extremely dangerous thing to do.

[Daddybear1984]

Not at all it lets know your not comfortable with the distance and like it or not the rules of the road apply to everyone including lorry drivers Roy.

No disrespect meant just facts

Kind regards

Scott

[bmcecosse]

It is extremely dangerous - if the Police saw you doing it - you would be pulled over... Ask yourself - would you do it if it was a Police vehicle behind you?? The truck will blast you with his extremely loud horns - and probably move even closer...... And if he does pass - he will be so close to you you will be able to read the small print on his tyres...and be ready for him to cut right in, in front of you... and possibly slow down dramatically. I completely agree with slowing down and getting out of the way to allow slower traffic to overtake - I HATE having anything on my tail. But best of all I find is to avoid motorway travel when in my Classics. On lesser roads I can pull over if there is any sign of a problem - and pretty much go at whatever speed I feel like - again, avoiding holding up other traffic.....either by maintaining a decent pace until it is safe for them to pass - or by pulling into a lay-by. It's simple courtesy...sadly lacking on the roads these days.

[Daddybear1984]

I can see that this bothering you and this indeed is not my intention but if the vehicle is following too closely then THAT is dangerous and i have flashed my brake lights at a police car and he slowed and left a safe and legal gap, safety is my concern and do not hold lorries up i overtake or sit behind.

i maintain that if this is followed to :

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=highw ... B277%3B419

then my flashing of the brake light ( which is not dangerous as i am not slowing the car at all ) would never happen.

that is all i will say on the matter Roy and my apologies if i have offended you

kind regards

Scott

[rayofleamington]

It is extremely dangerous - if the Police saw you doing it - you would be pulled over...

If they do pull you over, you can say you are following the Highway Code and/or training for the current computerised part of driving test, which states that "if a vehicle behind is driving too close you should reduce your speed".

I had to be re-educated about that point when helping wifey learn her Highway code a few years ago.

anyway - i'm much less interested in discussing trucks and tachos (although like most people in Blighty who know their onions about commercial vehicle legislation, they ARE limited to, 90kmh, and spot checks are regular, and the big firms don't accept rule bending, & fuse pulling or needle bending is more than 10 years out of date for a digital tacho)

The point more worthwhile here is the daily driving a Minor!
I did this regularly in my past and only had problems when doing over 20k miles a year and had a run of bad luck (mostly gearbox failures.. e.g. 3 in 3 months).
My most recent (2010) was doing 600 miles a week in my 54 saloon (60 miles each way to/from Nottingham).
The SII fuel tank was way too small (~20L) and the tuned 1275 lump was only doing 25mpg. Fuel cost and range (1.5 days per tank) put me off straight away. My Eurobox Diesel estate could do almost the entire week on 52 litres tank. I collected parts for a Diesel conversion Minor, but it was easier to change jobs instead...

With my current 12 miles each way, I have no problem to do this in a Minor but my insurance excludes commuting so the car only gets to work on special occasions now.

For something like 8k to 12k a year, you need to make sure you have time & motivations for regular & thorough maintenance on a classic. For in excess of 15k miles per year, I'd say that most would get tired of the work on a classic. Having a cheap disposable Eurobox is less hassle for high mileage, albeit also likely to need repairs & parts every so often, it doesn't need the additional suspension greasing and brakes adjusting etc..

[chickenjohn]

I have used my completely standard Traveller for commuting for 12 years or so and recently again.
No need to modify the car, just keep on top of servicing and rust proof thoroughly . Including inside sills and other box sections.

I've also done plenty of motorway and dual carriage way driving in my minors. As long as you stick to 60-65mph, use common sense and don't aggravate other road users you will be fine.

[bmcecosse]

Absolutely! Just don't crawl along at 56mph...