<p>In 1980, I was driving home from my fast-food job late at night when a car came into my rearview mirror, following me closely. There were several routes I could take home so I turned off from one to another to see what happened. The car still folllowed me. I turned off on a side street in a sketchy neighborhood. The car still followed me. I drove around the block. The car still followed me. I remembered reading that in a situation like this I should drive to the nearest law enforcement agency, so I turned back onto the main road to head for the State Police barracks, but I guess the other car realized I was onto them, because they went back the other way. To this day it still scares me to think about it. </p>
<p>My handling at 170 is 3X better than a standard car at 50, and my training is god knows how much better. I am more scared at 70 with other cars loafing around me that I know do not handle as well than at 180 out in front.</p>
<p>That speed is only dangerous if you do not know what you are doing. And there are different levels here too. I think Nascar guys who routinely bump each other and draft one foot behind another car at 180 are insane. Now, that is serious driving.</p>
<p>Cops, like other people in government we know, use prosecutorial discretion to ignore things that are illegal, which they like or condone. Nothing new there. The cops are cool and clear the way, so there are no cars in front that are a danger to anyone. That is why cops are sure fun. </p>
<p>I guess I’ve never seen a road that had such little traffic that you could do that speed without encountering another car. </p>
<p>At times that I’ve thought I was being followed, I’ve taken obscure routes and thankfully they have never continued to follow. If they did, I would call the police and head toward the police station. I would imagine this would likely be at night. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>After 7 PM, I can drive 30 miles home from the highway and pass but one or two cars. I am more afraid of deer, bears and foxes than I am another car. This why when a car turns with me at night, my senses go up. Not many cars this way.</p>
<p>Best not to get into erroneous extrapolation. The stuff with the cops is because they lead the way, and it does not happen that often, but sure is a blast. </p>
<p>Me neither, Barnardmom. Even if you think a street is deserted, an animal could always run across the road. I think I’m glad we don’t have any Maseratis around here!</p>
<p>There are places in this country (not in the densely populated areas) where there is almost a de facto no speed limit (before the 55 in the 1970’s, some states had highways that legally were no speed limit, though cops would nail you for reckless driving and so forth if you were driving too fast for conditions). When you get on highways in places like Nevada, Wyoming and so forth, you could open up with a car like the poster is talking about and go fast and no one would care (technically, all states are supposed to enforce the max 65 mph speed limit, but in places like I am mentioning, it doesn’t make all that much sense).</p>
<p>It should be noted that the German autobahn has no speed limits and people routinely drive fast, and their accident rate and highway fatality rate is much lower than in the US. However, the difference is that in Germany getting a driver’s license takes real skill behind the wheel, unlike here where getting a license in most places is a joke, and on those highways the German police (as you would expect) are sticklers for things like lane discipline, proper passing , using signals, following distance and so forth. Put it this way, you don’t see someone in the left lane doing 50 mph, you won’t see 4 cars across all doing the same speed, you won’t see cars on another guy’s bumper, unlike this country where the cops focus on speeding tickets and ignore everything else. </p>
<p>A while ago, Montana did not have a speed limit on their freeways… That’s how I learned that my Corolla can do over 100 mph ;)</p>
<p>^^ This is one of those situations when one knows the stats, that it is a completely different issue. </p>
<p>The number one cause of accidents and deaths in our area (for a 50 mile radius) is two cars colliding head on because there are only two lane roads. And 90%+ of deaths are between 8 and 5 PM when there are the most cars and trucks on the road. The number one and two causes of the collisions are idiots texting or talking on the phone on a two-lane road and drifting into the other lane. We see three such accidents each week.</p>
<p>So, while you worry about a deserted road at night when lights are easy to see and someone who can stay in their lane with utter precision, the most dangerous and deadly driving is in the daytime, and it is actually the inattentive neighbor in the Mazda who is most deadly.</p>
<p>Even more interesting, we have hit both regular cars three times each with either deer and other animals over the just 8 years, both during day and night. The sports car not a once. Actually, I think it is the darn noise it makes just scares the animals before they even see it.</p>
<p>BTW, Maseratis are tame compared to this beast.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I got a kick at the local gas station some years back when the owner of a spectacular yellow Ferrarri couldn’t get it to start after the fill-up. I think those types of cars are super looking, and would like to own one from time-to-time, but I can’t get over what for me would be a misallocation of resources. I am very excited about seeing others own them, but it’s not my cup of tea.</p>
<p>As far as speed goes, I recall a help column written by drag racer Don Garlitts years ago in response to someone complaining that his Crown Vic speed seemed to be electronically limited. Garlitts pointed out that he didn’t feel comfortable going above 80 mph in cars that weren’t equipped the way his drag racer was. 1/2 MV(squared) is immutable, so doubling V puts a lot more risk into the travel equation. Obviously, though, that speed would lessen the “follower” syndrome.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That is very true. </p>
<p>We see that at the track a lot in action. The German and French drivers do take much shorter time to join the top race group (red group) than American drivers who just bought their first sports car, and the Europeans are formidable racers. </p>
<p>Really, anyone not taking an official race course every year to improve their skills is always going to be behind the car and need to add at least 10 track events per year to keep skills improving.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>My kids tease about this all the time. I drive the other cars like a grandmother. Those cars feel completely unstable to me.</p>
<p>I am used to placing the left or right corner of rubber of my front tire on a three-inch wide red patch of pavement at 120mph in order to get the proper apex in a particular turn. I can touch that specific spot all day long with the exact same inch of rubber to the point you can see the wear on that one part of the tire, which is about 1 inch wide. No way can my other cars even do that at 20 mph, as the accuracy of the steering is just not there. And at 180, I can feel, based on just temperature, the exact tire grip and can dynamically change my braking distance before a turn, as temp changes from morning to afternoon. I can actually feel that in the steering wheel, as the road feel is that sensitive.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree. These are toys and one should never spend money on them that you do not care to lose. In the 90s, I had a Ferrari that stalled a couple times on me at gas stations and also blew coolant hoses twice on the highway. Part of the deal. </p>
<p>Must be a Bugatti Veyron</p>
<p>A family friend retired from his brokerage job, bought a Ferrari and trailerred it around the country to different race courses. He stayed with us when he was racing at Watkins Glen.</p>
<p>Other than a passing acquaintance with some mafia-types, my entire life is in the “not worth following” category.</p>
<p>My younger sibs were close friends with a girl whose dad disappeared under mysterious circumstances one day when he went to the market. The girl and her parents had moved out of our neighborhood shortly before the disappearance and my parents did not further the relationship after the dad disappeared.</p>
<p>My relative was trying out a bright red Oldsmobile Cutlas. He got like 3 speeding tickets in less than 24 hours, so he promptly returned the car and opted for a less attention-attracting vehicle. He is still an awful driver but gets fewer tickets. </p>
<p>Adults disappear for all sorts of reasons, many on purpose I have come to realize.</p>
<p>My Ferrari in the 90s was red, and only got one ticket, within two weeks of having it. Silly too - 87 in a 55 highway, but was in a tough enforcement area. It was funny because I was not thinking of really racing, but after that ticket my license got suspended for a couple months. OK, so on a friend’s advice, I shipped the car to FL and went there to drive it for those months. It was there I found the serious track scene and that was all she wrote. </p>
<p>Nice guess. Not a fan of the Veyron. Do not like the front section styling at all.</p>
<p>I know too many of the trailing racer crowd. That is an industry into itself. </p>
<p>Red cars seem to get followed by the police. I’ve come to the conclusion that if your car looks like its providing some true pleasure/exilharation to just be driving, you should come prepared to be pulled over if your foot is heavy. </p>
<p>Not if you drive like an old woman. I had a red car, Ford Mustang Mach 2 when I was in high school but never was pulled over.</p>
<p>Actually, the rumor on the guy’s disappearance was that he was “knocked off” by some criminals who were unhappy that he didn’t pay a debt. We lost track of that family. In Hawaii, people who have lived in the islands for decades do not usually disappear without a trace and without word to loved ones. It’s a very small state.</p>
<p>It sounds like Hawaii-Five-O which is one of my husband’s favorite TV shows besides the western/cowboy movies.</p>
<p>Yea, but it feels pretty scary when it is an unsolved case and it was someone whose kid played regularly with your younger sibs. We don’t watch the new Hawaii 5-0; we’ve never gotten into it, but it does definitely have a loyal following.</p>