I would consider myself a safe driver and at no time do I stay in the Fast lane on the freeway. So if the speed is 65 and I’m going let say 70 in the fast lane if somebody else wants to go faster I move over to let them by. Now since I bought the prius I have been driving 60-65 in the slow lane to get my MPG and I have been tailgated over and over but I have nowhere else to go and this is on a 5 lane freeway. Funny thing is the tailgating mostly happens when I drive the prius. I switched it out with my other car and drove the same speed in the slow lane and the tailgating stopped. Is anyone else getting tailgated with the prius or is just me?
A lot of Rush Limbaugh fans in your area? April 27th: [ame="http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201204270005"]Limbaugh "Can't Wait" To Give A Prius "An Anal Exam" With Front Bumper Of His New Gas Guzzler[/ame]
No more than while driving any other car. It does happen. Makes me angry because it's dangerous and I don't want my precious car to be ruined by their stupidity.
When driving a hatchback car it often appears that car behind you are closer than they actually are due to having no trunk to give the appearance of more distance.
Just drop one or two MPH and they'll go around and on to the next guy. It isn't personal, they do that to everyone.
Don't be shy about sending them a message by letting off the gas. I have noticed more tailgaters compared to my old Fit, but not an enormous amount. I personally find the C likes to be going around 70 on the highway for ideal mileage but here in SoCal I'm usually running up against wind and hills.
I agree, or just tap your breaks lightly once or twice to give them the message to pass, I'm not suggesting break checking anyone. That's just as dangerous. But on a 5 line highway, in the slow lane, no one has any excuses to justify tailgating you.
If you're driving more slowly you'll be tailgated more. If there's a persistent tailgater, the recommendation is to wait until the tailgater has a passing opportunity and then lower your speed to encourage them to pass.
Even flashing the brake lights, without slowing down one iota, can be dangerous. That is all I did when these incidents were triggered.
Combo of factors. 1. You are probably hyper miling to some degree, change in your driving technique to match the car. 2. There are the Rush Limbaugh types who hate Prius because it symbolizes everything they hate, most of all getting confronted by facts like US need for oil imports, climate change etc. About the advice to start playing games on the road, slowing down, hitting the brake lights etc., don't do it. It's not safe and if the person tailgating you is a Rush fan on the edge of road rage, don't push them over the edge where they roar past you, jump in front of you and jam on the brakes. I always figure right lane speed limit, middle lane 5 over if you are passing on slow traffic is merging from the right, left lane whatever the market will bear.
Slowing down to allow the tailgater to pass when they have a passing opportunity is the action recommended in the Maine Drivers Handbook.
Thanks for posting this. Possibly explains why I got tailgated earlier this week in the right lane of an open 3-lane road, going 74 in a 65 mph zone. I live in Limbaugh-land!!! :rockon:
its normal people see a nice new car that gets HIGH mpg and want to have a close look Rush Limbaugh thats on comedy central?
That's for single lane roads, not highway driving. What was advocated was road rage techniques on the highway which is dangerous.
