"" (bignslow)
09/10/2014 at 10:21 • Filed to: warn a bro
4
61|
"" (bignslow)
09/10/2014 at 10:21 • Filed to: warn a bro | 4
| 61 |
Driving through Europe I noticed oncoming traffic flashing their high beams. At first I thought "wtf are these guys doing?" Then a couple of miles down the road I approached a cop car hiding on the side of the road running radar at which point I clued in that the drivers were flashing their high beams to warn other drivers of the impeding danger of a speeding ticket ahead.
Living in Canada I hardly ever see anyone flashing their high beams to warn other drivers of cops running radar. I find this a bit disappointing since we have thousands of miles of highways, ridiculously low speed limits and high traffic fines.
I propose we as Opponauts kick off a campaign in North America to flash other drivers.
Also, I should mention that I am not advocating breaking the law by speeding. Just leveling the playing field especially when many speed traps are setup in places where drivers expect the speed to be higher and/or the speed signs aren't easily visible.
E30Joe drives a Subaru
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09/10/2014 at 10:22 |
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I do this regularly, also I use waze too, works pretty well.
Brian Silvestro
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09/10/2014 at 10:22 |
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That already happens in America quite a bit.
deekster_caddy
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09/10/2014 at 10:22 |
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It's technically illegal to warn in many places but it's been going on as long as there have been speed traps as far as I know. It should be part of driver's ed! (edited to strike incorrect statement)
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> deekster_caddy
09/10/2014 at 10:23 |
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It's been ruled in court several times that it's not illegal.
SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
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09/10/2014 at 10:23 |
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Flash to warn / flash to pass.
Two things people in North America have little understanding of.
crabdip
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09/10/2014 at 10:23 |
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I've always known of this in the states and I still usually do it. However, I've heard rumors (never really looked into it) that it's illegal to warn other drivers of speed traps?? which would be the most cop thing ever. But with apps like Waze it's basically doing the same thing. Waze has saved my ass so many times I can't even count anymore.
505Turbeaux
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09/10/2014 at 10:24 |
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If everyone used the Waze app we wouldnt have to flash! Try it, it is a phenomenal GPS app for your phone
http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/x-marks-the-sp…
Nibbles
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09/10/2014 at 10:25 |
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Never would have realized that this isn't a thing
Hell I got flashed as we were cruising through the mountains this week, alerting us to a (very expensive) Boulder County Sheriff sitting at the front of a curve
Where the speed limit dropped from 45 to 25. In like 500 feet. Downhill. That guy saved my ass.
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> 505Turbeaux
09/10/2014 at 10:26 |
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Waze is great and all but often times it misses speed traps. For example if a cop has just pulled up and setup radar and it hasn't been reported yet an unsuspecting driver can get caught.
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deekster_caddy
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09/10/2014 at 10:26 |
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Good to know!
KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs
> deekster_caddy
09/10/2014 at 10:27 |
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It's been adjudicated as speech protected by the 1st Amendment in the US.
Edit: Twice, that I can find. Once in Oregon, and once in Missouri (Elli v. Ellisville, US District Court, Eastern District of Missouri)
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Nibbles
> 505Turbeaux
09/10/2014 at 10:27 |
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I love it, though it has partially melted the back of my 920.
JamesDM
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09/10/2014 at 10:27 |
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This practice seems to have fallen out of favor in the US at least. As mentioned by E30Joe apps like Waze and social media appear to have taken over at least partial control of the early warning system.
I second the motion that as a whole North Americans need to get back in the practice for the common good.
MIATAAAA
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09/10/2014 at 10:28 |
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People do this in the USA.
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505Turbeaux
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09/10/2014 at 10:28 |
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in the same vein, someone has to be first to see him to flash.
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> MIATAAAA
09/10/2014 at 10:28 |
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Not nearly enough.
spanfucker retire bitch
> SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
09/10/2014 at 10:28 |
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I still will never understand the purpose of flash to pass on public roads. I don't see the reason for it.
I've seen Flash to warn several times. It's not common where I live in the States, but it happens.
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> deekster_caddy
09/10/2014 at 10:29 |
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It's reflective of the screwed up approach in a lot of states toward tickets and revenue. OTOH, in South Korea they actually have a little light bar ahead of areas in which they don't always enforce, at the side of the road. If you see the intermittent flash from the mini-cop car-like light bar, it means "we are enforcing ahead right now, please do not speed". So ridiculous, but I imagine it works... if your objective is to make people slow down and not write a yacht's worth of tickets.
thebigbossyboss
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09/10/2014 at 10:29 |
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I always always warn other drivers here in Canada. Especially on Ontario highway 7. Hard to on a divided highway though.
Bad Idea Hat
> 505Turbeaux
09/10/2014 at 10:29 |
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Thanks. I've been on the fence about using this app, but now is the time for me to give in.
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MIATAAAA
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09/10/2014 at 10:30 |
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Truth. But it's a generally known this. Unfortunately, where I live, it also means "deer ahead - watch out!". So I'm hesitant to flash my lights re: a cop and have people all nervous about deer.
Philbert/Phartnagle
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09/10/2014 at 10:30 |
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Appropriate T-shirt?
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> MIATAAAA
09/10/2014 at 10:31 |
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But what if it's both?
erikgrad
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09/10/2014 at 10:32 |
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I have both been saved by drivers (usually truck drivers) here in Michigan by a flash of the lights, and I have done it. I wouldn't call it commonplace, but I have benefited from this trick...mostly on two lane highways.
Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
> SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
09/10/2014 at 10:32 |
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Pulling back on the stalk to temporarily flash the brights is actually called "flash-to-pass" in my Buick's owners manual, yet NOBODY seems to understand wtf I'm doing when I flash my brights at someone going too slow in the left lane. Ugh.
nucciOMG
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09/10/2014 at 10:33 |
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Tried to warn a bro once... got pulled over by a cop a few cars down and got a 'dazzleing headlights' ticket. It's a BS ticket but the cop was pissed.
jariten1781
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09/10/2014 at 10:34 |
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I see it pretty often on two lane country roads, mountain passes, etc. but petty much never once you get into suburbs/cities or on interstates.
kaheff (L20E)
> SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
09/10/2014 at 10:35 |
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I think the flash to pass thing is something that should be limited to the track. I know that lane discipline is not a big thing in North America, but the system should be that you make room for oncoming traffic if you are traveling slow in the left lane and that flashing should be restricted to warn of imminent dangers. Otherwise one signal could be confused for the other. On the track of course, passing a slower car is always dangerous so flashing has its justification.
At least where I am from flash to pass can be considered duress just like tailgating.
Svend
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09/10/2014 at 10:36 |
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Ye', there are also double taps of the brakes to warn drivers behind and flashing alternate indicators to thank someone for letting you out of a junction or back into their lane.
A lot of the common courtesy has been lost over the years but certain elements still prevail.
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KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs
> spanfucker retire bitch
09/10/2014 at 10:37 |
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It's really useful on two lane roads, especially if you are hauling a load and may need to alert the other driver to *NOT ACCELERATE* as you pass them. They may only be going 2-3 MPH slower than you, but there is a reason that you caught up to them.
Of course, that's why the more used two lane roads also have pull outs... But of course those are never used in the US.
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SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
> spanfucker retire bitch
09/10/2014 at 10:40 |
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People in Connecticut like to drive 60mph in the left lane regardless of how fast traffic is going. I've flashed people going under the speed limit in the left lane on the interstate a number of times. Sometimes they get it, sometimes they flip me off. It's a gamble I'm willing to take. It's also perfectly legal in a number of states, although flashing to warn others of a cop is not, and the flasher in old Caddy and Buick owner manuals (among others) is actually referred to as "flash-to-pass."
CalzoneGolem
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09/10/2014 at 10:40 |
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I live in the US and I do this every time I see a cop and to warn people of other dangers like a bunch of college kids running down the side of the road.
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spanfucker retire bitch
> KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs
09/10/2014 at 10:42 |
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In my experience, an asshole is an asshole, and I've read enough accounts on this very website that it doesn't matter whether you flash someone when you're passing or not; an asshole will still accelerate.
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SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
> Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
09/10/2014 at 10:42 |
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I feel you, buddy. I really do. Flash-to-pass doesn't seem to work in my 2002. The 70's headlamps are too dim and the car is too low. I could honestly drive around without ever turning my high beams off without anyone really noticing. My Jeep, on the other hand... People can see those high beams and yet most of the time they still don't get it!
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Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
> SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
09/10/2014 at 10:43 |
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I had an electrical gremlin that meant I had highbeams or nothing... it was night and I had to get home through town.
Found out that night that a lot of people are aware of how to flash drivers. I felt like a huge tool.
HiMyNameIsJayAgain
> Nibbles
09/10/2014 at 10:43 |
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Holy shit does it make my phone hot.
I have my phone mounted over an A/C vent just to keep it cool while running the app.
GTI Sprinks
> MIATAAAA
09/10/2014 at 10:44 |
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Yeah, typically i see highs flashed i figure it's one or the other. Either one can be a bad day for another driver.
Nibby
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09/10/2014 at 10:44 |
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Or, just... don't speed.
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SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
> kaheff (L20E)
09/10/2014 at 10:46 |
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In CT, where I'm from, it's not illegal unless your'e flashing to warn of police presence. It's not really legal either, it's just one of those things that there isn't a law for, so police can't do anything about it but ask you to stop (other states actually do have laws for or against it though).
Honestly, I see where you're coming from but people in Connecticut are so bad at doing a reasonable speed in the "fast lane" and paying attention to what's behind them that sometimes it feels necessary. I try not to do it because I feel like a bit of an ass, but if you're doing 50 in the left lane of a 55mph highway and I can't safely and easily get around you, but you can move over, I'm going to flash.
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SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
> Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
09/10/2014 at 10:48 |
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Ahaha. Well thats the issue. People know how to flash when something is inconveniencing them , but if you flash they have no idea what's going on.
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> Nibby
09/10/2014 at 10:48 |
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HiMyNameIsJayAgain
> Bad Idea Hat
09/10/2014 at 10:48 |
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Waze is awesome but it largely depends on how many people in your area use it. It's apparently pretty popular in my area so it seems to catch about 90-95% of speed traps I've come to.
You get the occasional false positive (where the police officer is no longer there) but I guess better safe than sorry).
Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
> 505Turbeaux
09/10/2014 at 10:51 |
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I used this almost the whole way on my 7 hr drive to St Louis. It spotted every cop we drove by. It was quite awesome.
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kaheff (L20E)
> SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
09/10/2014 at 10:57 |
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I see your frustration but to be honest it is like tackling one problem by making up another problem (allowing a behavior that is generally considered to be rude). Over here it sometimes happens that you're getting flashed at and tailgated when traveling 200kph in the left lane and already searching for a gap in the middle lane. It is really unnecessary and unnecessarily dangerous behavior.
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SmoresTM Has No Chill (O==[][]==O)
> kaheff (L20E)
09/10/2014 at 11:05 |
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I agree. And I rarely actually flash at people to pass them, but when I do its not because I'm coming up on someone super quickly and don't feel like slowing down. Usually I've been behind this hypothetical person for a number of miles, can't safely pass them for whatever reason, and they are completely oblivious to my existence. Flashing is certainly rude but I feel like, under certain circumstances, is the lesser of the two evils by a wide margin. I could be wrong, and maybe I just drive like a bit of an ass sometimes, but doing the exact speed limit with no one in front of you in the left lane (or far right lane in RHD countries, I suppose) is unnecessary and super obnoxious. Even if I'm in the left lane driving faster than traffic, and someone comes up behind me and wants to go faster than I'm going, I always slow down enough to move into another lane an allow them to pass. People in my state don't seem to care though. At all.
twochevrons
> Svend
09/10/2014 at 11:09 |
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I always used a brief flash of the hazards as a 'thank you.' There's a lot to be said for some general politeness when driving.
Sam
> Svend
09/10/2014 at 11:28 |
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It makes me happy when a truck driver flashes the hazards to thank me for letting him in to the lane.
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Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs
> Nibbles
09/10/2014 at 11:34 |
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Yeah, I used it for almost 7 hrs on Friday, phone certainly got hot, especially along with Pandora and Google Nav running.
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Svend
> Sam
09/10/2014 at 11:35 |
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If I'm merging onto the motorway invariably the truck will move over to the centre lane so he doesn't have to brake to let me in or for me to accelerate to beat him or slow down to let him past. I'll let him past, flash my lights to let him/her in once he/she has cleared past me, then they'll indicate to move back in and then flash alternate to say thank you and then I indicate to go past and sometimes wave when passing the cab.
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deekster_caddy
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09/10/2014 at 11:53 |
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So report it!
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deekster_caddy
> MIATAAAA
09/10/2014 at 11:54 |
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Either one would make people slow down a bit, so no harm in confusing the two IMO.
buford-t-justice
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09/10/2014 at 12:18 |
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OPP actually wants you to do this
Blunion05 drives a pink S2000 (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST)
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09/10/2014 at 13:36 |
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I don't flash because more often than not people around here generally suck at driving. Although if I see a car that appeals to me I might flash.
bob and john
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09/10/2014 at 13:51 |
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I do it all the time. Rollin in the GTA if you want to meet next year :P
Camry-Into-Canyon
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09/10/2014 at 14:13 |
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MK6GTI-now with added Miata
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09/10/2014 at 15:48 |
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I like to do this for motorcycles by patting the top of my car as I go by. Old habits die hard.
Diesel
> Nibby
09/11/2014 at 09:28 |
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Do you have an Oppo card? Please hand it over and back away slowly.
XD
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Nibby
> Diesel
09/11/2014 at 09:30 |
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Bitch please, I got Jalopnik Gold.
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Diesel
> Nibby
09/11/2014 at 09:31 |
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/revokes status
YOU HAVE NOTHING!
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Nibby
> Diesel
09/11/2014 at 09:38 |
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You can't take this from me
MFEJAL grey because who knows...
>
09/11/2014 at 11:24 |
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And when you have a lot of 2-way roads, you want to know if the guy driving a big truck is awake, so you flash your lights, and wait for an answer. No answer? be ready to avoid a collision. Flashing your lights are like saying," hello! please pay attention!" I tried here while driving at oilfields, but only received curses from stupid wheel-holders.