Road Safety in 4x4's

[patch697]

G/day All

I have started this thread because ROAD SAFETY is a big concern of mine as im sure it is for others & the single most dangerous thing we do daily is drive a car.

The object here is to share our knowledge of driving 4x4's on our road cos as we would all agree thay are a lot different to driving a normal car.

So lets all pitch in & do our bit to help keep each other & other road users safe, & don't forget this information will be a great advantage for those new to 4x4's in general & may even save someones life one day so as I said PLEASE everyone pitch in.

Cheers
Paul

[DX grunt]

A basic principal for wearing a seatbelt/child restraint unless you are legally excused.........Wear it from womb to tomb.

No seatbelt/child restraint, no ride.

[DX grunt]

Here's a link to road safety in WA.

It's got a lot of good stuff in it.

Probably like where you live, the West has issues with driver fatigue, drink driving, non use of restraints and speeding, and using mobile phones when driving, hoon behaviour and.... and.... and..

http://www.ors.wa.gov.au/TopicsRoadS...oadSafety.aspx

Please, take the time to read the link. A lot of the stuff is generic and will probably apply to you. Learner and P Plate drivers are now 0.000% BAC

Thanks.

Ross
DX grunt

[Minx]

Fatigue's a big one.

I know myself spent many of hours on the road and just want to get home so you drive 20 hours straight.

Definatly not worth it, just pull over and have a sleep even just for an hour or so.

Even just stop for a coffee or a stretch.

Many years ago I drove straight from QLD down to Melbourne non stop and dozed off to find myself heading straight for the biggest gum tree around. Quickly hooked it back on the road which nearly rolled the 4x4.

Absolutely shat myself and from then on I just allow an extra night to stay somewhere regardless of being back on time for work, etc.

Nearlly killed myself and my best mate due to my actions.

[DX grunt]

Fatigue's a big one.

I know myself spent many of hours on the road and just want to get home so you drive 20 hours straight.

Definatly not worth it, just pull over and have a sleep even just for an hour or so.

Even just stop for a coffee or a stretch.

Many years ago I drove straight from QLD down to Melbourne non stop and dozed off to find myself heading straight for the biggest gum tree around. Quickly hooked it back on the road which nearly rolled the 4x4.

Absolutely shat myself and from then on I just allow an extra night to stay somewhere regardless of being back on time for work, etc.

Nearlly killed myself and my best mate due to my actions.

Thanks for being honest. I think most, if not all of us, have pushed it a bit too far some times.

[Woof]

Don't forget you 4x4 does not handle like you family car, slow down on corners and allow for the extra braking distance, if you have Mud Tyres it does not mean that you have better traction on wet bitumen (less surface area making contact with the road surface).

[patch697]

Ok this does not paint us in a good light but im posting this link up because of its relevance to the thread.


http://www.themotorreport.com.au/407...y-roads/#title

Road safety isn't just about us as 4x4 drivers it also about how other road users see us. As there fear could ultimately lead to our misfortune.

Now isn't that food for thought

Cheers
Paul

[mudnut]

I beg everyone to constantly assess their level of fatigue on a long trip.

I have to admit that on the trip home from Melbourne, I stopped at Colac to get lunch and thought I would be right to drive the rest of the way without a break.

Just after Warrnambool I started to do things I would normally avoid. After braking to wait for a truck to turn off the highway, I had a momentary lapse.

I drove the auto as if it was a manual (my Patrol is manual), and managed to dump it in neutral and then panicked and dumped it in reverse. I immediately pulled over. After berating myself for being so stupid, and after having a breather I continued the journey.

I was very fortunate that I didn't cause a serious accident.

Please beware, tiredness creeps up on you, like a stalking hunter.

[GQtdauto]

Yep I've done similar , know better and given the big kilometres we do on our trips we now stop and have regular breaks .

[the evil twin]

OK Mudnut, ante up... how did you stumble across an 8 1/2 year old thread... even Google wasn't invented back then... you using Win 92 OS and Netscape as a search engine or sumthin :-)