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Post by Suzy on May 1, 2014 8:45:53 GMT -5
Nobody here, and I mean NOBODY drives and automatic. I have a 6 speed Toyota Yaris and I love it! Very fast and nippy on country roads and it does a zillion miles to a teaspoon of diesel. In the U.S., it's getting more and more difficult to buy a standard transmission vehicle. I think having to shift gears interferes with texting, eating, talking on the cell phone, and all the other things our drivers do that isn't driving. In at least one out of every five cars I see going the other way, the driver is talking on a cell phone. About one in a hundred have both forearms on the wheel and are texting. I just hope I'm not in the way when they finally win their Darwin award. It's against the law to use a mobile phone here. Some still do it but you can be arrested if you're caught. |
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Post by vrabinec on May 1, 2014 8:48:51 GMT -5
It's against the law in most of the states as well. Just a couple holdouts, but even those states have measures on the docket.
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Post by Daniel on May 1, 2014 9:00:45 GMT -5
Interesting facts regarding state cell phone laws from here (the page includes a breakdown of the laws by state and was last updated April 1, 2014). - Hand-held Cell Phone Use Ban: 12 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands prohibit all drivers from using hand-held cell phones while driving.
- All Cell Phone ban: No state bans all cell phone use for all drivers, but 37 states and D.C. ban all cell phone use by novice or teen drivers, and 18 states and D.C. prohibit any cell phone use for school bus drivers.
- Text Messaging ban: 43 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands ban text messaging for all drivers.
6 states prohibit text messaging by novice or teen drivers.
3 states restrict school bus drivers from texting.
Naturally, Idaho is one of the states that does not ban cell use, although certain communities have ordinances banning them. I have never heard of anyone getting busted for using a cell phone. Idaho does ban texting, but I can tell from the number of people doing it that they do not fear enforcement. ETA: Isn't it lovely that the majority of our states allow our school bus drivers to talk on their cell phones? |
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Post by vrabinec on May 1, 2014 9:07:27 GMT -5
Interesting facts regarding state cell phone laws from here (the page includes a breakdown of the laws by state and was last updated April 1, 2014). - Hand-held Cell Phone Use Ban: 12 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands prohibit all drivers from using hand-held cell phones while driving.
- All Cell Phone ban: No state bans all cell phone use for all drivers, but 37 states and D.C. ban all cell phone use by novice or teen drivers, and 18 states and D.C. prohibit any cell phone use for school bus drivers.
- Text Messaging ban: 43 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands ban text messaging for all drivers.
6 states prohibit text messaging by novice or teen drivers.
3 states restrict school bus drivers from texting.
Naturally, Idaho is one of the states that does not ban cell use, although certain communities have ordinances banning them. I have never heard of anyone getting busted for using a cell phone. Idaho does ban texting, but I can tell from the number of people doing it that they do not fear enforcement. ETA: Isn't it lovely that the majority of our states allow our school bus drivers to talk on their cell phones? Oops, I must've heard the stats on states that banned texting and assumed it encompassed hand helds as well. |
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Post by Alan Petersen on May 1, 2014 13:03:22 GMT -5
Tim Lewis, I had to look him because he sounded familiar, I remember him when he was with the Packers (as a Vikings fan, I remembered). His playing career ended in injury which is why I remembered him. I didn't realize he's still an NFL coach. You know I went to small division III state college in Minnesota, those players had little chance of ever getting drafted by the NFL, but most of them were entitled dicks. I can just imagine at division one school like Pittsburgh. And yes, mine was out of necessity, push or walk.  I tried to teach her to drive a stick shift and she never learned. I guess trying to teach her in a car that needed to have it's clutch popped was too dramatic, to this day, she can't drive a manual transmission. Nobody here, and I mean NOBODY drives and automatic. I have a 6 speed Toyota Yaris and I love it! Very fast and nippy on country roads and it does a zillion miles to a teaspoon of diesel. In the U.S., it's getting more and more difficult to buy a standard transmission vehicle. I think having to shift gears interferes with texting, eating, talking on the cell phone, and all the other things our drivers do that isn't driving. In at least one out of every five cars I see going the other way, the driver is talking on a cell phone. About one in a hundred have both forearms on the wheel and are texting. I just hope I'm not in the way when they finally win their Darwin award. You can't text or talk on the phone while driving in California. They're militant about. $200+ ticket. I drove a manual transmission until 2005. It's too much of a hassle for city driving, especially in San Francisco/California highways, were it's stop and go, stop and go. Your arm and foot take a beating. |
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Post by vrabinec on May 1, 2014 13:05:50 GMT -5
Tim Lewis, I had to look him because he sounded familiar, I remember him when he was with the Packers (as a Vikings fan, I remembered). His playing career ended in injury which is why I remembered him. I didn't realize he's still an NFL coach. You know I went to small division III state college in Minnesota, those players had little chance of ever getting drafted by the NFL, but most of them were entitled dicks. I can just imagine at division one school like Pittsburgh. And yes, mine was out of necessity, push or walk. I tried to teach her to drive a stick shift and she never learned. I guess trying to teach her in a car that needed to have it's clutch popped was too dramatic, to this day, she can't drive a manual transmission. In the U.S., it's getting more and more difficult to buy a standard transmission vehicle. I think having to shift gears interferes with texting, eating, talking on the cell phone, and all the other things our drivers do that isn't driving. In at least one out of every five cars I see going the other way, the driver is talking on a cell phone. About one in a hundred have both forearms on the wheel and are texting. I just hope I'm not in the way when they finally win their Darwin award. You can't text or talk on the phone while driving in California. They're militant about. $200+ ticket. I drove a manual transmission until 2005. It's too much of a hassle for city driving, especially in San Francisco/California highways, were it's stop and go, stop and go. Your arm and foot take a beating. A manual in San Fran would be BRUTAL with all those hills. |
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Post by Alan Petersen on May 1, 2014 13:12:44 GMT -5
Tim Lewis, I had to look him because he sounded familiar, I remember him when he was with the Packers (as a Vikings fan, I remembered). His playing career ended in injury which is why I remembered him. I didn't realize he's still an NFL coach. You know I went to small division III state college in Minnesota, those players had little chance of ever getting drafted by the NFL, but most of them were entitled dicks. I can just imagine at division one school like Pittsburgh. And yes, mine was out of necessity, push or walk. I tried to teach her to drive a stick shift and she never learned. I guess trying to teach her in a car that needed to have it's clutch popped was too dramatic, to this day, she can't drive a manual transmission. You can't text or talk on the phone while driving in California. They're militant about. $200+ ticket. I drove a manual transmission until 2005. It's too much of a hassle for city driving, especially in San Francisco/California highways, were it's stop and go, stop and go. Your arm and foot take a beating. A manual in San Fran would be BRUTAL with all those hills. Yeah we live in the middle of a 17% grade street, and that doesn't even make the top ten of steepest streets here. The top of the street is a stop sign, so you're literally vertical at the stop sign, so you don't want to get too close to the back bumper of the car in front of you, in case they're on manual transmission. |
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Post by Daniel on May 1, 2014 13:27:14 GMT -5
I drove a manual transmission until 2005. It's too much of a hassle for city driving, especially in San Francisco/California highways, were it's stop and go, stop and go. Your arm and foot take a beating. That's a good point. I could be that the the preference for automatic is due to the number of people who live in cities with bad traffic. That's another good reason not to live in a city. I pray I never have to do so again. |
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Post by Becca Mills on May 1, 2014 18:50:47 GMT -5
Huh. Poking around a bit, I'm seeing lots of cars for sale around here with salvage titles. That means the car's been totaled out by an insurance company, but then repaired anyway. They get a special title and are no long eligible for collision coverage. Prices look to be about 60% of cars with clean titles. Hm. Prolly not a good idea, especially if you're not paying cash. I bought my Yaris for under $10K Hmmm. Will look in to the Yaris. My first car was a Tercel. Great car. Daniel, I can drive stick and eat an ice cream cone, so manuals totally fit into the American lifestyle. Spread the word.  |
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Post by Daniel on May 2, 2014 8:46:45 GMT -5
Daniel, I can drive stick and eat an ice cream cone... If I were an erotica author, I would so use that image. |
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Post by Becca Mills on May 2, 2014 10:29:44 GMT -5
Daniel, I can drive stick and eat an ice cream cone... If I were an erotica author, I would so use that image. ROFL! |
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I tried to teach her to drive a stick shift and she never learned. I guess trying to teach her in a car that needed to have it's clutch popped was too dramatic, to this day, she can't drive a manual transmission.
