ranting about anything car related so Lurch doesnt lock it out :o)

[Zeddophile]

If getting your licence cost (for example) $3000 & took a FULL weekend to complete at a dedicated driver training facility & was made increadably strict, I would be in full favour of it.
In doing so, it would remove all those incompetent brick heads from the roads - and Women.

Unfortunately, not many people agree with us.  I reckon it should be compulsory to do a couple of advanced driving courses, and be given a pass or fail grade by the instructors - a real pass or fail, not a P-plates "everyone has to get through otherwise we're discriminating against people and not giving them equal opportunity to suceed in the world" pass or fail. 

A lot of people agree with that part, but its my next point that upsets most people - you should have to pay the full cost of these courses yourself, NO gubmint subsidy.  In that way people are actually motivated to do well in it, otherwise they've blown $500 odd a time, and they may actually learn something the first time.  This avoids the current mentality among many would be L and P platers I knew which was "Hey, I failed my test last week for the 5th time, I'm off to try again next week haha."  Oh, but thats not fair, then some people can't afford to get their licence blah blah blah - SO WHAT?  If they can't afford the test, they sure as hell can't afford to keep up with the maintenance on their car to keep it in a safe condition, and last time I checked, driving was supposed to be a privilege, not a right.

Dunno about the women comment though Lurch, I know a fair few Alfas that are double entered for sprint meets, and the wife is usually faster!  A certain 3 litre quadcam powered GTV (not mine) does 1:56 around the island, or 1:54 in the hands of the wife!  And she holds back, because if she goes too fast, hubby cracks it and packs the car up for the day 

[gav240z]

Unfortunately, not many people agree with us.  I reckon it should be compulsory to do a couple of advanced driving courses, and be given a pass or fail grade by the instructors - a real pass or fail, not a P-plates "everyone has to get through otherwise we're discriminating against people and not giving them equal opportunity to suceed in the world" pass or fail.

The current system is a total joke, I failed twice when trying to get my licensce not because I'm a bad driver but because my instructor spoke the first time and then argued with Vicroads about failing me, he managed to get me another test in the afternoon but I feel they failed me on principal after that.

So we went to another Vicroads office and I passed first time there 96%.

Having said all that I think the standard test just proves you can check your mirrors every 15-30 seconds and parrallel park.

What everyone should have to do is participate in an advanced driving / defensive course before receiving a license. One of the first things they teach you is that lane switching and being a lead foot will often only get you there 30 seconds to 1 minute sooner and increases your chance of an accident 10 fold.

So yeah the current system is a joke and I think people should be retested every 10 years to ensure they can still drive by the rules.

Those 2 changes would make driving alot safer than placing 100's of speed cameras everywhere. Incidentally it wasn't till I travelled abroad that I noticed Australia's obsession with Speed Camera's. The only other place where its as bad seems to be the UK.

Revenue raising? I think so .

[NZeder]

I recently watched a TopGear episode where Captain Slow visit Finland and Mika Hackien drives a cosworth merc in the snow. Anyway the point is this. Finland has produced more F1 and Rally drivers per capita than anyother nation? Why? Well Mika believe it is due to the driving eduction in Finland. All drivers have to be able to demonstrate car control not just driving but car control to pass the driving test. So how does one learn car control a skid pan of cause.

I guess it is a matter of survival of the fittest really hell if you pass the test = you have some level and understanding of what can and will go wrong on black ice (a lot of that in Finland) with only 4 small little black pads on the road. Then due the road conditions the week will just fall off the road anyway = they will not be on the road anymore but down a cold bank, stuck in the forest, or in a frozen lake.

And I bet their "gubmint" does not pay for the whole or any of the skid pan training.

PS IMHO you can stick your nanny state, lefty, liberal "we are all equal crap too" you need winners and you need losers. Just get over it some people will fail and stop bringing the rest of us down to the loser level.

PSS as someone that has been riding motorbikes on the roads as long as I have been driving I would also say that everyone should learn to ride before they drive as you then know how dangerous the roads and other road users can be/are. You have greater understanding of what little tyre is on the road on a bike as in the wet you know about it and you watch car drivers go past and you know full well it is only the car and tyre technology that is keeping them safe and on the road and not their skills as if and when it does go wrong they make a mess of themselves but worse other road users too. As stated driving is a privilege not a right.

[gav240z]

Dunno about the women comment though Lurch, I know a fair few Alfas that are double entered for sprint meets, and the wife is usually faster!  A certain 3 litre quadcam powered GTV (not mine) does 1:56 around the island, or 1:54 in the hands of the wife!  And she holds back, because if she goes too fast, hubby cracks it and packs the car up for the day 

Where does one find a woman like this? I'd love it if my girlfriend was faster than me at the track would make for a laugh. Might bruise the ego just a tad but if anyone else was giving me a hard time about it, I could always remind them she's faster than they are also lol.

[gav240z]

I recently watched a TopGear episode where Captain Slow visit Finland and Mika Hackien drives a cosworth merc in the snow. Anyway the point is this. Finland has produced more F1 and Rally drivers per capita than anyother nation? Why? Well Mika believe it is due to the driving eduction in Finland. All drivers have to be able to demonstrate car control not just driving but car control to pass the driving test. So how does one learn car control a skid pan of cause.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy8LJx71_9o

[NZeder]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy8LJx71_9o

Good man - you go mr google

[fufu]

The current system is a total joke, I failed twice when trying to get my licensce not because I'm a bad driver but because my instructor spoke the first time and then argued with Vicroads about failing me, he managed to get me another test in the afternoon but I feel they failed me on principal after that.

So we went to another Vicroads office and I passed first time there 96%.

Having said all that I think the standard test just proves you can check your mirrors every 15-30 seconds and parrallel park.

What everyone should have to do is participate in an advanced driving / defensive course before receiving a license. One of the first things they teach you is that lane switching and being a lead foot will often only get you there 30 seconds to 1 minute sooner and increases your chance of an accident 10 fold.

So yeah the current system is a joke and I think people should be retested every 10 years to ensure they can still drive by the rules.

Those 2 changes would make driving alot safer than placing 100's of speed cameras everywhere. Incidentally it wasn't till I travelled abroad that I noticed Australia's obsession with Speed Camera's. The only other place where its as bad seems to be the UK.

Revenue raising? I think so .

I know the feeling. I was given a really harsh examiner at sunshine vicroads. If  you guys go there his an old chap whose bold and wears glasses and has that forwarded looking between the gap of the top of the glasses look. He made me do a 40 minute drive. Tested me on not 1 but all 3 items. U-turn, parallel park and 3-point turn. After that he just passed me. My twin brother on the other hand was speeding through a 40 school zone and got in excess of 95% and he had a hot chick for his examiner, not to mention he only had to do parallel park and a 20 minute drive. Examiners aren't standardised which is a craphole, if they are feeling shiver that day... be sure to expect a fail.

That being said I too experienced this at Honda bike license tester. I had 2 examiners mark me whilst my brother only had 1. I feel that just overkills the nerves. Bloody testing people under different scenarios is a bit unfair. Yep, i failed that test and had to pay the stupid $70 for a resit.

[Zeddophile]

Where does one find a woman like this? I'd love it if my girlfriend was faster than me at the track would make for a laugh. Might bruise the ego just a tad but if anyone else was giving me a hard time about it, I could always remind them she's faster than they are also lol.

If you saw the girl I was referring to in conjunction with the GTV, you'd REALLY want to find one like that - she's a stunner as well as a quick driver.

Dunno if my girlfriend can do fast times on the track - the seat in my car has been very deliberately bolted to the floor, and her legs are just enough shorter than mine she won't be able to operate the clutch    She can take her TR7 on the track if she ever finishes it, but if someones going to blow my car up, its me.

[nizm0zed]

PSS as someone that has been riding motorbikes on the roads as long as I have been driving I would also say that everyone should learn to ride before they drive as you then know how dangerous the roads and other road users can be/are. You have greater understanding of what little tyre is on the road on a bike as in the wet you know about it and you watch car drivers go past and you know full well it is only the car and tyre technology that is keeping them safe and on the road and not their skills as if and when it does go wrong they make a mess of themselves but worse other road users too. As stated driving is a privilege not a right.

DAMN BLOODY RIGHT!!!!! Someone buy this man a beer....
I ride, and i am amazed by some of the crap that goes on.
i had some P plater pull out in front of me on my bike just the other day, fortunately for me, i am a very aware rider, and assume every one is out to kill me, so i anticipated it.
still didnt stop me from getting off at the next set of lights, and very IMpolitely knocking on his window and discussing the finer points of what a human body sounds like when it hits a car.
I am also an advocate of proper training/testing (not harder, just better quality, and more through) and regular re testing.
I think it should be made state wide that your licence needs to be updated every 4 years, with driver retesting done at the same time.

If all that comes in, i am quite happy for my tax paying dollars to install more speed cameras, because the responsible drivers wouldnt be affected, and through atrittion it'll weed out the crap drivers.
I also think that the driver should be retested after losing thier licence, to prove that they deserve to get it back.
Atmittedly i did just pay a speeding fine (-15kph over), but its because my DD speedo is out 10kph across the board, and i just plain forgot, because i spend most of my time on my bike.

[Lightmaster240z]

 My sister who think that it is OK to go around corner at the same speed as a F1 driver and can't park a car for nuts got a score of 99 on her test by simpling drive In around the block stalling the car twice and wearing Short dress.

Where I had to do my test at 8.30am in calton. Getting a score of 80 and them been told my sister is a better drive than me. Who the one who park her car in the centre of a pole two week later.
I hate the rta and the way they operate
that my two cents     

[stevo_gj]

I got my car back today from the body shop, looking great with a proper metal roof and repainted bonnet etc etc.

This old fella walks up to the car, having just concluded business in the office at the body shop and asks, 'how original is it then?'.

Being a non confrontational person I went along with his doddering accusation type statements as he pointed out features of the car that weren't nissan factory originals. I learn halfway through the conversation that he used to work in a Nissan dealership selling these cars.

After having time to think about it, I wanted to go back and tell the guy that original doesn't necessarily mean the best, and that I prefer my car the way it is thank you very much.

Good for him that he's able to remember that the font on the original gauges was slightly thinner than my speedhut face reproductions, and the exact compression ratio of my engine, but he doesn't need to be telling me this in a know-it-all fashion while he quite plainly judges the car's value in front of me.

If I get this kind of attention again im going to state quite plainly that perhaps their values differ from mine, and they are most welcome to keep their opinions/judgments to themselves.

/end rant

[gav240z]

I got my car back today from the body shop, looking great with a proper metal roof and repainted bonnet etc etc.

This old fella walks up to the car, having just concluded business in the office at the body shop and asks, 'how original is it then?'.

Being a non confrontational person I went along with his doddering accusation type statements as he pointed out features of the car that weren't nissan factory originals. I learn halfway through the conversation that he used to work in a Nissan dealership selling these cars.

After having time to think about it, I wanted to go back and tell the guy that original doesn't necessarily mean the best, and that I prefer my car the way it is thank you very much.

Good for him that he's able to remember that the font on the original gauges was slightly thinner than my speedhut face reproductions, and the exact compression ratio of my engine, but he doesn't need to be telling me this in a know-it-all fashion while he quite plainly judges the car's value in front of me.

If I get this kind of attention again im going to state quite plainly that perhaps their values differ from mine, and they are most welcome to keep their opinions/judgments to themselves.

/end rant

Sounds like he rubbed you the wrong way. Maybe he just felt he had to prove something to you? I wouldn't worry too much about it.

When I first got my 240z my 73 that I later sold and still regret. I had some guy tell me I shouldn't bother with it, too much rust it had cancer and wasn't worth fixing up. He wasn't the only one either.

That stuff used to wind me up a bit, because I didn't want to hear that it wasn't worth while and was a pointless endeavor. I guess what I'm trying to say is try not to let it bother you. He was probably just trying to look like an expert .

[Zedman240]

Sounds like he wanted a "pissing contest".. Best way to deal with those sort of people is like a wild rabid dog; keep eye contact while slowly backing away and be quiet...

I remember once arguing with a guy about the weight of a zed; thing was he has never owned a zed, just Alfa's! Felt like throwing a heavy object at him.

[mossy]

Maybe he's jealous because he doesn't have one, i don't listen to what others say anymore because often if they are bagging it they're usually jealous. I got a heap of mates who think 100% I won't complete my v8 zed project and generally give me crap about it because I've had a lot of cars before that i don't keep for long(4 mx5's, plus the 20 other's) but I know I've now found a car i love. Also I know when its finished in all its glory who will be the first ones to be asking to go for a drive, as I'm going for that drive all i can say will be the footpath is to the left.

[zzzzed]

Yeah i have had some one tell me that my crappy hot wire rims are the most valuable part of my car 
I hate telling people how much i paid for my 240z because the just don't realise that a Datsun can actually be worth something 

I had some guy trying to tell me his clapped out vn commodore is worth more than my 260 2 seater
and he was serious