<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ Mar 17 2007, 09:06 AM) [snapback]407412[/snapback]</div> So there IS justice in the world, sometimes!
Tapping the brake lights work. I haven't met a tailgater that was so aggressive that he/she was determined to have YOU move out of the way rather than he/she move around you.
My strategy for dealing with tailgaters: 1. If I'm in the left lane, I change lanes to one of the slower lanes. 2. If there is a lane for them to pass me, I take my foot off the accelerator until I am going 10 mph under the speed limit. 3. If there is no lane for them to pass then I just go a reasonable speed and put my emergency flashers on. The emergency flasher thing is something I heard was taught in a friend's traffic school class. I like it because it tells the person behind you that there's something strange going on and because they don't know what it is they tend to back off. I find that tailgaters are a good emotional mirror; I can notice if there's suppressed anger in me by my reaction to them.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tmorrowus @ Mar 17 2007, 02:24 PM) [snapback]407545[/snapback]</div> :blink: Whoa, that's way deeper than the sticker, "I brake for tailgaters"! Lee
I haven't found much that works for tailgaters except waiting them out or dropping speed very gradually until they pass if there is a passing lane. My big problem is that most of the tailgaters I encounter are on two-lane 35mpg residential roads without passing zones, and I refuse to go more than a few MPH over the limit to appease them. This means that either my bumper is ridden for 5+ miles at a time or they pass illegally, and I would be rich if I had a dollar for every time they passed illegally. There's even one guy...I need to make up a name for him I see him so often...who does the same thing every time we cross paths. He rides up doing at least 45-50 in a 35, slams on his brakes when he gets to my bumper, weaves a bit, then rockets past. Usually I'm just glad he's gone, and hope he doesn't hit anyone. One of these days I just need to take a video so I can show it to the cops. He's that predictable.
Wow, someone else uses the windshield washer technique, fantastic! When I had my old diesel, I would downshift and leave a cloud that James Bond would be proud of. That was more fun than washer fluid.
