Posted on 08/14/2013 12:27:43 PM PDT by posterchild
We have long ragged on BMW drivers for their terrible parking skills and general assholery, and Toyota Prius drivers for their holier-than-thou smugness. Now, it has been confirmed — through the miraculous power of science — that their owners are, in fact, terrible and inconsiderate motorists.
Our old pal Benjamin Preston reports in the New York Times on a study done by the Institute of Personality and Social Research at the University of California Berkeley which links poor driving habits and wealth. Basically, rich people are more likely to be jerks behind the wheel.
The researchers examined how motorists in California behave when approaching intersections with pedestrians, where they are required to stop, as well as how well they take turns at four-way stop intersections.
(Excerpt) Read more at jalopnik.com ...
I went to DC one time for business. The only thing the rental car had was a Prius. I could not get over the constant starting and stopping of the engine to recharge the batteries. The “control center” was a frigging mess, the electric drive always never seemed like it was “on” and caused a lot of false and apprehensive start-stops. I hated the frigging thing..
The next time I went there, I made my secretary tell them I wanted a gas engine only car reserved or I’d use another company. I sure as hell wouldn’t own one.
That car was built to run in the 24 Hours of LeMons. That’s basically a racing series for old, beat-to-hell cars (max budget excluding safety equipment is $500, with lap penalties assessed for going over) and you stand a much better chance of getting your entry accepted if you decorate your old crapcan.
http://www.24hoursoflemons.com
Negative connotations? How about the entire series renaming thing resulting from the Audi 5000?
don’t know that one.
A friend of mine used to sell BMW’s. He said that they were a huge status symbol for the Asian community in the area. So there are a lot of DWA’s behind the wheel. That would explain a lot.
IIRC, they had always sold that car as the 100/200 in Europe. But I’m sure all the negative publicity from “unintended acceleration” didn’t help matters.
BTW, I used to own an Audi (an ‘82 Coupe, which was not affected by the recall) and the gas and brake pedals were VERY close together. I suspect all those 5000 owners who accidentally drove through the back wall of the garage were probably pressing the wrong pedal.
I know a racist joke about two Asians driving a ‘69 Charger...
Was that mentioned in the article? If so, please point to it.
Me too and agreed. A few bad apples spoil it for the rest of us who take the machine and the driving seriously.
The problem with Prius drivers is that they drive at or below the speed limit when everyone else is above - that’s just plan dangerous.
...a study done by the Institute of Personality and Social Research at the University of California Berkeley...
How seriously was I supposed to take that?
No it wasn’t, I was making a joke to BigDaddy about his mentioning the Audi A6.
The Audi thousand series thing was a decades old problem Audi had here in the US. They ended up renaming everything they made to something “not in the ‘thousand’ series”....marketing and memories..
Actually, I don’t know if there was a real problem or not. All I can remember is the horrendous negative publicity, and I seem to recall a particularly nasty show or two from “60 Minutes” on it. I stopped watching that show around that time. Nothing but a PC Kangaroo Court.
I am the only one in this thread who has mentioned the A6.
I've been Audi owner since the 80s. I'm well aware of the problems with the 5000 and the renaming. I had a 1983 5000. It was a great car as is my current A6. I never experienced the accelerator problems with my 5000. I've also owned a 1994 M5. It was a good car but I'm far happier with Audi.
You may not have had any problems with a 5000, but there were enough of some kind of problem to cause Audi to rename virtually their entire line. So, my original comment about 'negative connotations' still stands.
Nowhere in the article does it mention the 5000 or renaming. You stuck your foot in your mouth and proved you didn't read my post (the one you were apparently responding to) nor did you read the article.
If you're going to embarrass yourself by making asinine and completely non responsive comments to others' posts you just might get called on it. You might also get called on your making lame excuses as to why.
Have a nice day.
I thought Gore’s kid got busted doing like 120 in his Prius.
I agree. Mine is a 2002 325i that's driven regularly on monthly ralleys in the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains.
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As for the haters, I tend to agree that many BMW drivers should be driving Priuses and Volts. Others like myself engage in active driving on roads like the Tail of the Dragon in Deals Gap, NC.
http://www.tailofthedragon.com/
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Others are just expressing class envy.
It appears this study was conducted at intersection in one city, San Fransisco. All it really proves it that rich progressives are A-holes.
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