Driving Style

[stumonster]

any ideas on the reasons behind these sort of driving styles...

maintaining cruise speed - accelerate..let off throttle..accelerate...etc

come to 90 deg corner, put on brake go around corner in 5th gear..

overtaking - doing 70kph in 5th gear, have a look past the car in front, overtake at an agonizingly slow speed trying to accelerate in 5th

stopped, put car in neutral..when the car ahead moves put back in gear ..

am being picky, but I want to know what the reasons might be behind this sort of behaviour

[adjan jb]

20 years ago they were riding buffalos. Now they're all driving huge turbo pick up trucks. Have you ever seen a driving school in LOS ? What do you expect ?

[the gentleman]

thank god, there isnt a 6th gear!

[Up2U]

20 years ago they were riding buffalos.

Now they're all driving huge turbo pick up trucks.

Have you ever seen a driving school in LOS ? What do you expect ?

1. So why is it that the buffaloes are sick now ?

2. But it used to be that the Thai truck-drivers in the Middle East were far better than the Pakistani drivers. Now mainly Paki drivers (cheaper) and many, many accidents.

3. Wife of a friend attends adriving school whose policy is 'No pass, no fee'. So the exam cannot be very difficult, can it ?

[NedKelly]

Haha yeah its weird......always find myself thinking....change the bloody gear you idiot.......or have to rest my head back on the headrest to prevent whiplash as the driver continues to put foot on/off/on/off/on/off accelrator.....aaarrrrggghhhhh !!

Reminds me of a guy who used to work for my father......he would start the ute, put it in 3rd gear and take off with all sorts of revving etc before he could actually let the clutch fully out.......what a cracker, he was too fat and <deleted> lazy to use all the gears.

[KevinN]

All Thai drivers that I have had the bad luck to observe up close do a tap dance on the throttle,flash the lights from dim to bright and left-right turn signals constantly.unless meeting another vehicle,then leave the lights on bright.

My bro in law picked me up at SUKOTHAI when I first came here,he was driving my wifes Nissan Pickup, He would be in 4 th or 5th gear,and have to slow down,he would just slip the clutch to gain RPMs instead of shifting to a lower gear,and would eventually have enough speed to engage the clutch fully. WOW. and he is one of the people that on a multi-lane road will always straddle the line and use 2 lanes.

But you can't blame the people,they have never learned to drive and no one has ever taught them,and no traffic laws are enforced as there is no hiway patrols and with no enforcement you can not have compliance. and the police even promote non compliance,they put up traffic cones the otherday about 200 meters down the road from a traffic divider to keep people from passing as they were stopping cars to check for seat belts and licenses,except at the end of the divider they left about 30 meters so that the traffic could make an illegal U turn thru the safety zone that is marked with 2 solid lines with grill stripes painted between them,which is a normal practice to make a U turn ther and is right in front of a police box and there has been 5 people killed there this year so far because of illegal turns thru the safety zone and people goin at excessive speeds where the lanes neck from 2 to 1.

[Guest chingy]

if the cop were doing their job and not taking bribe, maybe the people would drive better

[chanchao]

stopped, put car in neutral..when the car ahead moves put back in gear ..

That's good practise isn't it?? When you're stationary it's better to not leave it in gear (with clutch pressed). Saves the clutch and saves fuel. And is safer in case your foot slips off the clutch. anyway that's the way people taught me..

[Thaiboxer]

chanchao,

I agree with the practice you just commented on...works wonders while sitting in those nasty traffic jams! Just keep your handbrake on or your foot on the brake pedal so you don't roll into something/someone. It sounds like the folks mentioned should consider an automatic transmission...far easier to drive in traffic jams. Most of the cars in the States where I'm from are autos now, but Thailand seems to have mostly stick shift transmissions. With the MUCH cheaper labor here, having an automatic (particularly a Japanese made one) wouldn't be too much trouble if it broke down...in the States it's often cheaper to just sell the car for parts and buy another one rather than spending $1,200 or so to fix it. Both my parents raced cars for several years (as a hobby, not professionally) and my dad always taught us that "riding" the clutch like many folks here do will wear it out fast. Our car here in Thailand is an old, stick shift Toyota from the early 80's. It's not a beauty but it gets the job done and is cheap to repair. If it weren't for cheap labor here, our clutch burning buddies would be using public transport or walking! Take care everyone!

[Santastic]

u dont burn clutch when it is pushed down, the only time your burn clutch is when there is a difference in tranny and the engine speed. the more the difference in speed the more it wear out.

its all about rev matching, pratice heel toe.

[KevinN]

Santastic is almost correct,,

You do not burn the clutch,that is the friction disk or the pressure plate when sitting with the pedal depressed.

But everytime that your foot is on the clutch pedal with it depressed, even a little, you are putting the throw out bearing in contact with the clutch plate fingers which spins the throw out bearing ,and due to the fact that it is a bearing on a car that can not be greased it will burn out and you will have the labor costs to replace it when it is worn,,you can tell if it is by pushing the pedal down a little and if worn,you will hear a noise sometimes slight and sometimes a squal

so unless you are actually shifting gears,keep your foot off the clutch pedal.It is not a foot rest.

[tutsiwarrior]

you tell 'em kev...no one seems to know about throw out bearings except us hard livin' NW types...clutches either work or they don't??? Always replace the bearing when you do a clutch job.

With regard to driving in Thailand...buy a cheap pickup and have the brother-in-law do the driving so you can eat, drink and relax and have a snooze on the way home...fukc them buffaloes...

[Pepe']

Yes the throw out bearing, thank you. Rarely though when the clutch is released you may hear the pilot bearing which is mounted in the fly wheel. This can also show up as vibration during driving or idling. I always used to replace them as well during a clutch job even though they could sometimes be a pian to get the old one out.

I've never driven in Thailand but have spent alot of time in cars. I can't imagine owning one with a manual tans...

[peteypie]

It's not about the physicality of driving, it's about what's going on inside the persons' brain. As Asian culture tends to have a different concept of 'self', (read Scollon and Scollon, 2001. Intercultural Communication 2nd ed. Oxford. Blackwells Publications) therefore the awareness of others, those not part of that self, also differs. Whereas the average 'farang' has the culturally enforced concept of others as being part of our own personal environment and are therefore aware of their presence, many Asians, and in this case specifically Thais, only see their close relatives and friends as being part of the equation. Others, ie other road users, are therefore not regarded as being there! They are not part of the physical and visual arena which makes up the 'family circle' the image of 'self' that they are used to. Am I losing people here? Let me give you an example. You're in a restaurant with your wife and kids, a crazed lunatic runs in and begins shooting people, what do you do? Yes! You grab your wife and kids and hit the floor. You don't even consider the other people in the restaurant until your family is safe but then you do consider them and do your best to save them. The first part is the Asian concept of self. That blinding, instinctive impression of who is around us and who is valueable is what is happening to your average Thai driver all of the time. He/she isn't aware that you are there or that their driving is creating a problem for other road users, there isn't anyone else on the road as far as they are concerned! Only when they hit you, or some other road user, does the second stage kick in. As for the actual quality of driving skills, well the next time you follow a vehicle up a narrow soi, notice how the driver will stop and not attempt to go through a gap which your average farang driver could drive a tanker truck through without slowing down. This one I'm not so sure about. Thai drivers seem unable to judge lengths and widths of spaces? Also, you never see Thai drivers attempting to reverse a vehicle into a road side parking space? Again lengths and widths? When they turn into a soi in their car, they swing out into the road before turning left into the soi, just as though they had a 'semi' with a 40 foot trailer behind? Obviously, if these people have actually had driving lessons, their instructor taught them to do these things, why? Anyone out there got any ideas? On a closing note, as a former driving instructor, I've yet to meet or see a Thai to whom I'd even consider giving a driving licence to. As a farang motorcycle driver, I've had to learn to reign in my temper so many times that it isnt real. Only after reading the aforementioned book, did I truly begin to realise that all Thai drivers weren't trying to kill me personally, they just didn't know I was even there!! Now, whenever I have a near death experience, I just smile at the offender and think 'ji yen yen' I feel more at peace with myself and don't give myself high blood pressure. Oh! I also drive through red lights, the wrong way down the dual-carriageway, always on the hard shoulder, never look when I turn out of my soi, overtake in front of oncoming traffic and feel I'm becoming more Thai every day?! Everyone I encounter and cut up always smiles at me, it's great.

[Up2U]

Let me give you an example. You're in a restaurant with your wife and kids, a crazed lunatic runs in and begins shooting people, what do you do? Yes! You grab your wife and kids and hit the floor. You don't even consider the other people in the restaurant until your family is safe but then you do consider them and do your best to save them. The first part is the Asian concept of self. .......

On a closing note, as a former driving instructor, I've yet to meet or see a Thai to whom I'd even consider giving a driving licence to. As a farang motorcycle driver, I've had to learn to reign in my temper so many times that it isnt real. Only after reading the aforementioned book, did I truly begin to realise that all Thai drivers weren't trying to kill me personally, they just didn't know I was even there!! Now, whenever I have a near death experience, I just smile at the offender and think 'ji yen yen' I feel more at peace with myself and don't give myself high blood pressure.

Sorry - my first instinct is to attack the bugger. But then I'm a Pommie rugby hooligan.

Please explain the Middle East version of this, where the driver has not any instinct about what will happen one nano-second in the future. It ain't just tunnel vision, or lack of awareness - they just cannot understand that going forward with a car crossing in front of them will result in a collision.

After years of nervous tension teaching these idiots to drive (nationality, gender, race do not come into it - all are idiots!) ain't it good to do all those stupid things yourself

[Santastic]

peteypie- u can't sterotype all asian drivers. even if u can, don't u think that the thai's view the round eyes drivers as being a wuss, because they don't rush out though the intersection? and that they wait forever and takes an hour longer to get to one part of the city to another?

just a thought.

[KevinN]

PETEYPIE; Thanks for that,Ya know, I started driving on the ranch when I was 7 years old,grandad had an old model T pickup that I was allowed to tool around with,and had my first car when I was 14 ,so have been driving a long time,Driving a GMC diesel from montana to anchorage when I was 17 and drove trucks, cars and motorcycles all my life and am still doing it.

But I really didnt think that anyone but me had seen the way a Thai drives and noticed all the things that they do WRONG, My wife drives and corners just like she was pulling a 40 foot reefer with a load of hanging beef,Jesus I never saw such a thing before I moved here.

I laugh out loud when ever I see a Thai try to parallel park,,when I took my test and had to park,backed in and stopped 3 inches from the curb,the inspector told my wife,"WOW that guy is the best I ever saw", coarse the guy just before me was a Thai and he had his pickup straight in,at a 45 deg. angle and every other way for 30 minutes before he finally got it within walking distance from the curb and was Okd.

I have noticed that they do not know you are there and I just thought that the bastuds was tryin to kill us and knew that they wouldn't die cause they the supreme being,,guess maybe I was wrong,HUH.

[natee1]

I have been driving a motorbike (almost) accidentfree in Bangkok for 6 years now, and I feel much safer here than in any other country where people learn "properly" how to drive, basically because Thais drive defensively, to avoid accidents, there are no big western egos of the I am better, faster, smarter than you kind around. The I am right and you are wrong mentality is not very pronounced, let them play with their clutches and let me live ....

Thank you kap, Thai drivers.

[sbk]

I have to agree with Peteypie on this one too, it's not that many drivers here are doing these stupid things out of selfishness or maliciousness, it seems to me that many of them do not seem aware that there is anyone else on the road besides themselves. I think allowing children to start driving motorbikes at 8-9 years old makes it worse, as let's face it, small children do not have much awareness beyond themselves. I suspect the bad habits they start as children driving just get reinforced as they age and because they never learn anything different, it just gets worse.

Perhaps driving lessons and proper road safety courses at the schools would help. Police enforcement of laws (instead of seeing the police directing traffic when the primary school lets out) would do wonders, how often do you see the police themselves driving dangerously? If every policeman caught an offender when he saw the offense instead of saying, "well I am not traffic police, not my job" people here might be more inclined to follow the laws.

And natee, perhaps you need to check the fatality rates of road accidents before you start feeling so confident? Every year on major holidays the accident numbers skyrocket as do the numbers of dead. I personally don't find people who pull out into traffic without looking for oncoming vehicles to be driving 'defensively'.

[natee1]

On second thoughts...the above does not include buses and taxis.

Taxi drivers: get some sleep and find a useful job.

[KevinN]

natee 1 says

I have been driving a motorbike (almost) accident free in Bangkok for 6 years now, and I feel much safer here than in any other country where people learn "properly" how to drive, basically because Thais drive defensively, to avoid accidents, there are no big western egos of the I am better, faster, smarter than you kind around. The I am right and you are wrong mentality is not very pronounced, let them play with their clutches and let me live ....

Thank you kap, Thai drivers.

O MY MY natee 1,you are so full of <deleted>,,A Thai doesn't know what defensive driving is and it appears that you don't either.

I don't know your age or where you are from,must be lower slobovia if you think that Thai are good,defensive drivers and it is also apparent that you have never taken a defensive driving coarse.

I wont go into the mistakes that are made by the Thais,but all you have to do is see a Thai on a wheeled motor vehicle and you know for sure that within the next nano-second he gonna fuk up.

[Santastic]

thai's are not defensive drivers, hey are agrisive drivers. i have to agree with u there, if u want to see some defence diver u should come to west cost north american.

sorry about the gammar and spelling, i cna't put sencenese together, cuz i'm not 100 % there at the moment.

[Felt 35]

I only wonder! Can there be a connection between how people drive and their ways to be......

[Pepe']

I've always thought of cars as an extension of our body. One of my girl friend years ago said , "you don'r drive your car, yoe ware it." I took it as a compliment.

I used to have quite a lead foot in my youth and loved to drive hot cars.

I've mellowed out now in my new M3. I only nail it occassionaly when there's no traffic around...

[Padkapow Guy]

Santastic

your comment about Thai viewing roundeye's as a wuss for not rushing through an intersection made me laugh. It reminded me of my wife.

My Thai wife is always calling me a pooying because I will wait for an opening before pulling out into traffic, but I guess thats why she has 6 accidents and I don't have any.

Jim

[Santastic]

lol, meh, fixing car there is cheap compare to north america.

and u can't compair girl driver to a guy. sorry to be sexes but, its true, most girls cna't drive, bad sence of directions.

u have to campare yourself wiht an average male driver.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

On second thoughts...the above does not include buses and taxis.

Taxi drivers: get some sleep and find a useful job.

Whatever are you high on Natee ?

[sbk]

and u can't compair girl driver to a guy. sorry to be sexes but, its true, most girls cna't drive, bad sence of directions.

Well, if you drive like you write and spell then I am a much better driver than you. Actually, if most women can't drive then why is it men's car insurance rates are always so much higher than womens?

As for the difference between thai women and thai men drivers, well I have seen none. Very few of them understand how their vehicle works and what exactly the gears are for in the first place. I live near a very hilly road and everyone (male and female) races down one hill in order to make it up the next hill in 3rd gear. And it's always a 50/50 chance who will pull out in front of you without looking, man or woman. Back to the very good idea of driving courses; perhaps by teachers who actually know how to drive?, and road safety lessons; perhaps by teachers who know the rules of the road? Nah, too radical of an idea for here

[Santastic]

sorry if i was a little tooo drunk to type last night, and this night too, but men's insurance is higher than women's is becuase mens... lol mens are mens, anyone one can drive safe like a grandma.

and as for thai's don't know thier car's, well that is just..... i don't want to say it, i'm thai and i know my cars, i know how gear works, its simple physics. and all engines are the same when it comes down to it, V configured engines (V 8), inlines, H , or even W configurations; N/A, force inductions, its all the same principle. just the matter of witch is more effeicent. fuel+air= energy.

in the end there are bad drivers everywhere in the world. weather people cutting others' off, or fast lane driver who doesn;t change lane.

but most women are bad drivers!! not being mean. its like saying men are not good at gardening.

[sbk]

sorry if i was a little tooo drunk to type last night, and this night too, but men's insurance is higher than women's is becuase mens... lol mens are mens, anyone one can drive safe like a grandma.

and as for thai's don't know thier car's, well that is just..... i don't want to say it, i'm thai and i know my cars, i know how gear works, its simple physics. and all engines are the same when it comes down to it, V configured engines (V 8), inlines, H , or even W configurations; N/A, force inductions, its all the same principle. just the matter of witch is more effeicent. fuel+air= energy.

in the end there are bad drivers everywhere in the world. weather people cutting others' off, or fast lane driver who doesn;t change lane.

but most women are bad drivers!! not being mean. its like saying men are not good at gardening.

OK, how about MOST Thais? Will that do instead of my incorrect broad generalization?

Oh, and someone forgot to tell Christopher Lloyd (considered one of the finest gardeners/garden designers of the 20th century) that men can't garden

And that should do for your incorrect broad generalization.