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This post has been bubbling away for a while, following the thread around the 4km/h tolerance of the posted speed limit. Before we go any further, I want to say that I do not condone driving at excessive speed in any circumstance. People who drive at 100km/h in busy traffic on a multi-lane highway, diving back and forth across the lanes and even using the hard shoulder, are idiots. This is dangerous, and should be addressed by the police by banning the person responsible and fining them to the point where they wonder if they can afford Watties beans this week, or should they buy budget brand ones instead. And don't blame the policeman who pulls you over. He's doing a job, following rules that have been handed to him. Many traffic cops become traffic cops because they enjoy driving, and not simply because they want to see you miserable, or spoil your fun. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Why do we obey speed limits? "Because it’s the law?” is regularly given as a supposedly credible argument, and ultimately, that is the reason many of us drive at 100km/h on SH1 (or wherever). Not because it is unsafe to travel at 105km/h, but because we are more concerned at that time with not getting a fine or endorsements than we are with making safe progress. So, are speed limit laws right? Sometimes, yes. And sometimes, obviously not. They are merely legal. Which means, it is not necessarily wrong to disobey them. And it may be very wrong indeed to adhere to them. To start with, speed limits are a “one size fits all” imposition, and created in order to cater for the lowest common denominator. People do differ significantly in their abilities, including their ability to safely operate a car at higher (or lower) speeds. A better-than-average driver who has had some training in high-speed vehicle handling and vehicle control is probably as or more “safe” (i.e., less likely to lose control of his or her vehicle) operating at say 120km/h on a road with a 100km/h posted limit as a worse-than-average driver with poor eyesight and reflexes and no vehicle control training on the same road at 80km/h. (SH4 southbound heading for Wanganui comes immediately to mind - following someone who crawled around corners at 20km/h less than the posted guide speed, yet accelerated like a demon on any straight stretches is incredibly frustrating for anyone who enjoys driving.) Why should there be a one-size-fits-all standard? Why should better-than-average drivers be constrained – and punished – not for any harm they've caused but because they didn’t voluntarily accept being dumbed-down to the level mandated for the worse-than-average drivers? How fast is “too fast”? The only objective measure of driving “too fast” is an accident caused by loss of control due to driving too fast. Many people are being indoctrinated into believing that driving at x km/h increases the chances this loss of control will occur, but this is entirely hypothetical and by no means logically or empirically established. If it were axiomatic that the faster you go, the higher the odds of loss of control, then it ought to be “safer” (statistically and otherwise) to fly in a single engine Cessna at 120 MPH rather than a 757 at 400 MPH, and manned space flight would never have happened. OK, different laws of physics apply, and there are very different training requirements. But cars are also very differently capable - grandad's old rust bucket may be able to reach 100km/h, but it wouldn't be safe almost regardless of who was behind the wheel. A shiny new M5 will easily double that, and (reaction times aside) be safer doing it. In practice, "too fast" is simply faster than the dumbed-down and often arbitrary standard (speed limit). There is widespread belief, propagated by idiots in positions of credibility, that if they’re not comfortable driving faster than a certain speed, then anyone who drives at that speed – or faster – is driving “too fast.” It is exactly like insisting that everyone walk at the pace of the slowest person on the sidewalk. And that anyone who jogs or runs is “reckless.” Unlike the difference between airspeeds, this is a comparable situation - is someone jogging in Auckland CBD at 6.30am stupid, reckless, or endangering anyone? (Let's leave aside the discussion around the sanity of anyone who jogs in the city at any time!) The same activity 2 hours later would be ridiculous - pavements and roads will be full of oeople heading for work. Back on the ground, there is also no evidence to show faster drivers are involved in more accidents. In the US, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration claims that 30 percent of all fatal accidents are “speed related.” 30%. So it is a minority regardless, but even this is misleading. It means that in less than 1/3 of cases, one of the drivers involved in the accident was assumed to be exceeding a reasonable speed for the conditions. It does not mean that speeding caused the accident. Research conducted by the Florida Department of Transportation showed that the percentage of accidents directly caused by speeding is very low, 2.2 percent. The Transport Research Laboratory in the UK has come to very similar conclusions, scarily even quoting very similar figures from entirely independent research. Note also that in these situations, it is excessive speed for the conditions that applies, not actual illegally exceeding the posted speed limit. Stats in action, again. Pick your information, but don't offer everything that is relevant. Further, “Federal and state studies [in the US] have consistently shown that the drivers most likely to get into accidents in traffic are those traveling significantly below the average speed.” Speed will be, or has been, a contributory factor in some accidents. However, inattention and incompetence are far more typically the reason, but there are no roadsigns forbidding these. And punishment is rarely meted out to offenders because while traffic police are watching for poor driving, they are more focused on speed. Good drivers continuously adjust their speed to their skill level, conditions and so on – not mindlessly obeying an almost arbitrary number stuck on a post on the side of the road. And that’s how it ought to be. Posting signs suggesting speeds for given roads (and conditions, such as curves) as advisories can be helpful to drivers not familiar with a given road. NZ does this on many corners - this is an excellent idea, and not one I had seen before coming here. But insisting on absolute adherence to a generic number as the “right” number for all drivers, at all times is both silly and unfair as well as counterproductive in that it encourages passive (and therefore mediocre/poor) driving while punishing (and thus discouraging) active, attentive (aka, better) driving. But try telling that to the government f**kw!t who was recently quoted in the press saying tighter enforcement of highway speeds would lead to significant improvements in road safety.

i drive a 5 series, i will deflect anything i hit so i will be all right

Hi thought i would share what i am currently doing with my 335i So a couple of months ago, I picked up a 2009 335i M Ordered the following bits: Active Autowerk Race Front Mount Intercooler Active Autowerk Bov kit Active Autowerk Exhaust BMS Oil Catch Can BMS Dual Cone Intake AR design downpipes LUX Angel Eyes Now when i bought the car, it was ex-uk Pre-inspection of the car, 2 wheels had cracks in them. In 2 months, i have had 2 other cracks on the wheels ( and i haven't hit any potholes - my old e46 was lowered and on 19's so i know when i have "hit something" and saw that cracked BMW wheels seemed to be an issue with the UK BMW's, so decided to get rid of these POS wheels and get something decent Ordered Vossen CV3 20inch wheels from Precsion Wheels Ordered Michelin PSS tyres from tiretrack I have been chatting to Ross@BMworkshop Botany about the mods and installation and sorted out all the bits would be installed there. Ross was a big help with my questions, his wealth of knowledge and previous work done to other 335i/135's gave me a lot of insight on what i should focus on and i knew the job would be done right As its a 6AT 335i, had been reading about the new Alpina B3 flash for the TCU, had Ross flash my car - if you have a 6AT 335i - this flash is night and day to stock WOW, car was a total different beast after the flash, if you like driving in D - might not be for you as it tries to quickly change to 6 as soon as possible - tho great for fuel saving economy . Sport mode a lot of fun - def noticed the change and when in M mode gear changes were crisp and fast More info: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.p...ht=alpina+flash So got the car on the dyno before the mods were installed Bits arrived at BMworkshop Botany : Give you an idea, stock intercooler in the front, new intercooler at the back So with the N54 engine, the intakes get clogged over time, so i decided this was the best time to get them cleaned out Intakes current status: Intakes after being cleaned: So last week i had the following bits installed AA Intercooler AA Bov Kit BMS Dual Cone Intakes BMS Oil Catch Can Replaced all Spark Plugs Next week I'll be getting the downpipes, exhaust, angel eyes and tune done on the car

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11179265 Shivers!

The weakest link will always be the nut behind the steering wheel.... that is a constant and will never change. You just have to make the right selection for the nut you are dealing with.

Speculating the cause is one thing, but lying in a court of law is a slippery slope.

A legend of F1 and inspiration to anyone who drives is in a f**king coma and you wankers are worried about silly sh*t? Btw bros making people wrong only makes you look like a c**t. Sent from my GT-I8190N using Tapatalk

Incredible Car that is...very impressive

Spent ALL DAY yesterday tracing wires, testing circuits etc etc trying to get the electric release to work on the convertible roof rear lid thing. Finally figured it could only be the switch in the dash. Disassembled switch. Cleaned and reassembled. Repeated process. Googled for clues. Went back to disassembled switch. Reassembled. Disassembled again (getting the picture?) Googled some more. Found a switch at a wrecker in England. Requested a price for said switch. Gave up and watched the cricket :-) Got car out this morning and started to head down to visit Ray to see if we could bodgy something up. Got 2 k's up the road and remembered isolating switch I installed in the circuit when I was dicking about with the roof mechanism some years back. Remembered also that 3 year old granddaughter loves to play in the "car with no roof," pushing buttons and flicking switches. Went back home. Reassembled perfectly fine switch. Installed. Reset isolating switch.

Really guys best place to swing hand bags is it

Haven't followed the rules completely, but it's still a candid shot I took a few seconds after realising I was about to take my baby, all packed and ready, on it's first proper roadtrip: Pleased to say 800km later she is doing just as well as she left! (sans a whole lot of ash all over it from nights of bonfires!)

^^^Non-injury accident - didn't need reported............... I agree with whats been written here Graham / Matt........I'll come back properly once my internet speed improves.........!!!! Its at smoke-signals' speed lately....... Edit. From my perspective, some of the best driver's I see driving in NZ, have motorcycle riding experience. The reason they then end up as above 'average' car / truck drivers is because they are so aware of whats happening around them, whats happening under them, & they have good knowledge of what the conditions are............. I'm a big fan of drivers making consistently good decisions & good choices, regardless of anything else really. For myself as a driver, I drive assertively, I drive defensively, I drive to the conditions, & I drive to survive, so that I get to 'go home'. I drive within my skill limits, & within the vehicle's capabilities. And if I want to avoid tickets & demerit points, I drive within NZ traffic laws. Not all people with agree with my mentality on how I see things - I'm ok with that. 'Illegal' & 'unsafe' are too totally different categories really - I've been on a road in the central south island, at 10.30 at night in a 4WD vehicle, 4WD engaged, where safest speed to go was around 35kph. Same road, in different circumstances & different time of the year, is probably a perfectly safe hypothetical 140kph cruise...........

I always wondered what that switch was for! Problem solved, thanks so much.

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E38/Europe/740i-M60/R-A/apr1995/browse

Did this to the V12 yesterday Link to the project thread is in my signature and then today i lowered the E30 front and back with some Eibach/Bilstein gear that i brought for my 316i i used to have and never ended up fitting. but too overcast today and photos have come out like crap so another time. Supposed to be about 1.8"F/1.4"R but is more like 2.0"F/1.6"R

nothing wrong with a 316i but it HAS to be Manual, i daily drove one for a year or so, and have had a few of them now. If you drive it for what it is, excellent runabouts and easiest E30 to work on, not that any are hard. If i didnt have so many here allready i would be tempted!! For reference, I sold my 316i Manual Coupe for $3500 middle of last year, was tidy, about the same kms as yours 240 i think, but bone stock with no goodies except 15" BMW/BBS basketweaves. they seem to be worth more than both 318i and 320i which is a bit odd good luck with sale!

I bought my first smart phone 2 months ago. paid like $70 on sale. was expecting to pay $500 since my friend paid 1k for his Ipoop, but this is not a apple ipoop. its a simple phone that has a good battery life, a gps that helped me traveling to auckland and a mp3 player. i rather drive or go read some news then watch tv. I dont hate technology, its just that i dont like too much of it, makes people more carefree and drift away. there is a feeling in a paper book and a desk lamp you just cant get, no kindle for me.

Love reading. Books. Real ones. I've never had a kindle or similar and don't feel inclined to get one... If it is techy stuff I want, I can read and photocopy or print anything relevant that I need. Novels are another thing - it's the tanglible aspect of going to a bookcase, pulling a book and flipping pages which is part of the reading experience (for me). I tried reading from a friends eBook thingy while on holiday once but found my imagination didn't seem to work as well as with the paper-based item.

Thanks. Have requested at my local friendly library. Not into staring at a screen all day. Probably got close to 50 library books at home at any one time - love books. Love the book sales too. Great bargains to be found.

Yes. I am a lot like you but more of an technology dinosoure actually. I prefer to read books but not in kindle. just cant stand reading books on the computer/iphone screen.

A 10c diode, and two 10c resistors. - It's also Illegal to do this. I would have not as a professional ever tell anyone to do this.

really? didnt think a casual thread was subject to exam rules. could everyone please refrain from giving jamie money for that post in anycase.

So i drove from taupo to northland and back. up on 30th back on the 1st. up was fine, nice open roads. not hard to stick to 104. not many cops. the cops i saw were all in passing lanes or the bottom of hills etc. on the way back what a massive level of stupid on the roads. got stuck behind a few different people who were doing 70kph max on the open roads and looked smug like they were saving the world. also behind a nissan in stop go traffic in warkworth who had no brake lights at all. was a real pain at 5kph. finally drew the line when i was following an old campervan. (lz*** number plate so must have been old.) was a proper camper not a ute conversion and as such has the tandem rear wheels. except this f**kface has the outer wheel going with a small tyre and the inner wheels empty, just rims floating in mid air. i pulled over in wellsford and talked to a cop who had just pulled into the station. he shot off and pulled him up just out of town. i dont like to ruin peoples holidays but if you think a tare weight of 2750kg is suitable on 145 series tyres you shouldnt be on the road. and yet none of these people fall foul of the 104kph limit. also as a small acheivement i got an average consumption over 1200km of 9.9 L per 100km. much lower than quoted for the 540i and good considering i took some windy roads.

Stats 101 in action. 2/3s? Nope. Less than that, and then only if you add those who want it full-time to those who want it part-time. You could word that survey in a different way, and get a different result. In town, in 30km/h (and possibly 50kmh) limits, a 4km/h tolerance has a place. On the highway, it doesn't. Edit: Here's an alternative. Increase the multi-carriageway limit to 110km/h.

Apparently half of NZ Herald readers agree that speed limit tolerance should only be 4 kph above the limit for year round. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11180340 Aucklanders eh. Vote differently if you don't agree with this (clueless) half.

Thanks guys, ya definitely loving the look those wheels make Ya will need to look up the law about quotes etc On a better note, ordered a new Front Lip and side splitters from JGMODS via kiwishipping.co.nz - be here probably next month some time ARKYM MTECH front lip Carbon side splitters

So got the call this morning that the Vossen CV3 wheels had arrived, went there this morning to get them fitted on. Vossen CV3 wheels (20x9 fronts) (20x10.5 rears) on Michelin Pilot Super Sport tyres (245/30/20 fronts) (285/25/20 rears) As i had been having issues with OEM wheels that came with car due to the cracks, i had decided to get some Vossen CV3 wheels as replacements. I got a quote from Precision Wheels for $3299 for the set of 4 mags. On the 21/06/2013 i paid the initial deposit $1649.50 and was advised it would take between 4-6weeks to arrive via Ship - it actually took them 8 weeks. I had already researched on getting the wheels online and best i found was $2200 US + $450 US shipping + 15% GST = $3850NZ and would be here in 2 weeks. So i turn up today at Precision wheels to get them fitted, get a phone call about 1hr later saying that their supplier couldn't confirm the price they quoted me now it would cost me $3950 instead of $3299 and its all at cost. Had a choice to get my deposit back after waiting 8 weeks or suck it up and eat the cost . Left me with a very bitter taste on this whole experience, i definitely wouldn't be recommending them or doing business with them again