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Porsche Club of America
The Northeast Region

By Frank Bruns, Bruns911@PorscheNet.com
NOR'EASTER Online - August 2000

OK, let me start by saying that this is going to be another whining and complaining column. Sometimes I just need to vent and this is one of those times. If you’re not in the mood to listen, I won’t mind if you move on to the other, more interesting, parts of our fine newsletter. (Or you can just nod every once in a while and pretend you’re interested, like Bernadette often does to humor me.)

Why doesn’t driving an automobile get more respect? I am constantly amazed at how lightly the skill of proper driving is taken, not just by drivers, but also by government and the auto industry itself. I’m not talking here about high-speed cornering and threshold braking. I’m just talking about taking the family grocery hauler out on the public streets and highways. You would think that stepping into a 3-4 thousand pound vehicle capable of accelerating to over 100 miles per hour would require more of a test than driving around the block and parallel parking. It has always amazed me that it takes more study and effort to get a SCUBA certificate (where a mistake usually only puts yourself in danger) than it does to get a license to drive on public roads.

I would agree that almost anyone could, with minimal training, learn to steer a car and get from point A to point B without running into an inanimate object. This isn’t driving, however. This is steering. Driving requires a high level of concentration and attention. The driver has to constantly review his car’s position relative to all the other cars on the road. This involves watching ahead, both side mirrors, and the rear-view mirror. The driver has to be aware of cars as they enter and leave the “blind spots” in his mirrors’ coverage. On top of that, the driver must constantly anticipate all of the other drivers’ possible “next stupid moves”. Given that the “stupid move” is completely out of his control, a good driver is also constantly looking for “escape routes” to take in order to avoid the consequences of the other drivers stupidity. Safe driving is a full time job requiring full concentration. I’m sure we all agree.

So here’s my beef. What’s with all the gadgets? It’s hard enough to keep drivers from driving while slurping on a Coffee Coolada and chomping on a Big Mac while, at the same time, trying to read a map. The automakers even provide us with (multiple) cup holders and drivers’ map lights that illuminate while the car is in drive. (I guess so the driver can read a map while driving at night, as well.) Do the automakers have to add additional distractions? Yes, I use a cell phone. I do, however, try not to dial while moving and I use the hands-free mode. I also try to avoid distracting, high-intensity conversations while driving. Even higher on my list are the new GPS navigation systems. No one would place a TV in the driver’s view. Why the navigation screen? I recently heard a story (told as the truth) that a driver in England drove his car into a river while using his new navigation system. It seems that the driver was too distracted by his new toy to notice that the recommended route included a ferry ride and the ferry was not there when he arrived. Add to my distraction list the complex audio systems with their micro-miniature buttons, climate controls with digital readouts and graphical displays, and onboard computers with buttons to push to determine instantaneous and average as consumption, outside and inside temperatures, and twenty-five other interesting little tid-bits. Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not some Luddite that thinks we should go back to the days of pull-chokes and four open-windows cooling. I like gadgets as much (probably more) then the next guy. I’m just concerned that the automakers are introducing their sexy new technology with an eye toward sales without providing for its safe use.

If you really want to know what set me off, it wasn’t even that technical. While showing me her new mini-van recently, a friend of ours pointed out a little convex mirror that pops out of the overhead console to allow the driver to see the people in the back seat while carrying on a conversation with them. Now tell me, which is more important to see? The expressions on your friend’s faces after you tell a cute joke or the fact that the car ahead of you has just slammed on the brakes? (And it has REALLY good brakes!)

While I am venting, I might as well pass along my pet peeves about Eastern Massachusetts drivers. Given their universal use, I’m convinced they are taught in Driver’s Ed classes. While I am sure this does not address any of our fine readers, you might pass them along to your friends.

1) Stop signs are not suggestions, even if you’re “sure” there is no cross traffic.
2) You do not have the right-of-way when making a left turn across traffic just because you are quicker on the accelerator.
3) Its not a state law in Massachusetts that an unlimited number of cars can continue through an intersection after the light turns red, so long as they can keep a headlight-to-taillight train going.
4) Your turn signal does no good if you turn it on as you turn the wheel.
5) It only puts you back by about 25 feet to allow someone to merge into your lane in traffic. (It also wouldn’t hurt to wave a “thank-you” if some pays you this courtesy.)

There, I feel better already!

Porsche Club of America The Northeast Region

Porsche Club of America
The Northeast Region