Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Having got stuck yesterday in the wrong land in Canterbury i signaled to move lanes, expecting a bit of a wait and not thinking that the young lad chewing gum in his done up BMW mark 3 would let ever let me out, rather leave a bit of a gap let me think i could go then rev up and fill the gap! Alas he didnt he kindly waved me out-I was shocked to say the least and realised I have decided that a youn lad a BMW mark 3 would be a rude and selfish driver....other cases have supported this!

I have had a few of my friends make comments about me and my car-my mini named Dottie and it reflects me, so I was wandering if you like me think you car says something about sort of person you are?

I reckon he saw your blonde locks and as a perfect gentlemen let you out...!

It's true we do have a lot of misfounded theories about types of car and persona associated...I never adhered to that one where males have to buy big cars as they have complexes elsewhere. I was very happy in my Clio!! Now I'm a BMW driver but it's an estate as we need space for the little'un.

CHAZ wrote:I reckon he saw your blonde locks and as a perfect gentlemen let you out...!

he he, maybe but im currently a light brunette!

Another one is the keeping up with Jones's people who have to have the flashy car, latest reg etc to show their status. Oh and school run mums in their big 4x4's taking their kids 500yard down the road in the middle of the city/town!

blondie95 wrote:Oh and school run mums in their big 4x4's taking their kids 500yard down the road in the middle of the city/town!

I did enjoy reading a spoof report from a road safety officer extolling the need for a 4 by 4 to drive over the yellow zig zags outside the school gates, bump up the kerb and drop their darlings at the gate.
The final recomendation was to follow McDonald's drive through example and have drive through classrooms so that the child could be deposited directly behind their desk.

When I lived in America, it was the pick up truck that identified you as a red neck (still the case no doubt) annd thos ewho wanted to brag flashed around in Nissan Z's...

Here in Luxembourg the entry level car is a BMW series 1 and the plethora of 4*4s is amazing for a country of 350 000 inhabitants! I've seen more Maseratis, Astons, Porsches here then in any other place.

The bigger the car, the smaller the Johnson!!

We no longer own a car - what sort of image does that portray?

That you are good, environmentally friendly folk and have no stuck ups with image!

We currently have a (company paid for) Honda CRV. 3 x 6' offspring and asssorted friends, and runs to Uni necessitate lots of legroom and space in the back. When it is due for renewal (march 2012) we will probably buy our own Focus or even a Fiesta or similar size car as the offspring should be off our hands. Meanwhile the Oyster card is the best ever invention for getting about. Husband has a season ticket but otherwise we just have a pile of Oyster cards and whoever needs one takes one and tops it up.

We have 3 cars

Company Prius, in which I do 1000 miles a week, largely anonymous and no-one really lets you out, but for some reason they get out of the way fast when you are travelling on the motorway (not sure if they think I am Mr. Plod or something)

Land Rover Discovery 3 (my toy) orange, and kitted up for adventure travel (used by LR in Thailand, Laos and Moroccos before I bought it) - either people give it a very wide berth, or disappear out of site under the bonnet

Hyundai Matrix - People carrier - no-one comes close!! I think it is because they think a distracted mother will be driving it so don't want to risk an accident

I'm not sure where I stand, in this Topic----
I "Own" two cars, a V reg Ford Mondeo 1800 Zetech and a Y reg 1litre Toyota Yaris.
Naturally, you can guess which of the two of us drives which car !
However, at the moment, the Blessed Anne is attending a Conference in Derbyshire, with 3 other ladies, and has taken the Mondeo as a comfortable vehicle for the round trip of some 400 odd miles, --- sensible.
I am left with the Yaris, which, although a nice little car, was obviously designed for DWARFS !
I drove it this morning to the Parish Office, a round trip of some 4 miles, and I need Orthopaedic Treatment !
I cannot move the driver's seat back far enough to accommodate my leg length -- I am only 6 ft, and I need to adjust all mirrors, in order to be able to drive the dam' thing out of the driveway !
Driving at the required 30 MPH, I am constanly looking for another gear,and Iam aware that this vehicle has no all-roud disc braking.
The Blessed Anne is away for 3 days, as the Dorset Co-ordinator for the Lydia Ladies Prayer Organisation.

In my present state of mind ----- I need their Services !

To be honest, the reason we got rid of the car had nothing to do with being environmentally friendly - my husband is diabetic and his eyesight was no longer up to the task of driving. It took quite a while to persuade him that he really shouldn't be driving! I do not drive - I once had lessons, but the canny driving instructor waited until I had run out of money before suggesting that perhaps I should forget about it, or find someone with an automatic. My husband then learned instead. No longer having a car made an enormous difference to our lives. Fortunately we now both have Freedom Passes, so the buses are free and we don't live deep in the country. For a while we attempted to continue hauling supermarket shopping on the bus, but finally gave up and ordered online - the delivery charge is less than we would have had to pay in bus fares if we didn't have Freedom Passes! The main problem about public transport in this part of the world is that it is mostly geared to going in or out of central London, or southwards towards the coast - it is not so good at going across south London.

On the subject of being mistaken for Mr Plod --
I carry, in the boot, a high-visibility yellow jacket-- with reflecting strips.
A little while ago, while it was pouring with rain, I wore it in the car, to avoid getting soaked,in and out.
Guess what ? I noticed a "Bubble of Compliance" around me -- nobody Tailgating, People giving way, no-one overtaking at high speed ----- Ho Ho Ho !

My husband has been an officer with the Sea Cadets for many years. Driving back from Cadets one evening in uniform but not wearing his hat, he stopped at traffic lights and noticed a police car behind him. As they pulled away from the lights the police car pulled him over. The moment he got out of the car (still without his hat) the police driver apologised for having stopped him, looking very embarrassed, because my husband had clearly not being doing anything to warrant being stopped. Out of curiosity my husband why the policeman had stopped him in the first place; the best he could come up with on the spur of the moment was that our car was a type which often got stolen! So the moral of this story is that if you want to get away with a crime, drive an old banger and wear a navy 'woollie pully'! It was a good thing that they didn't stop him on the evening that the adult instructors at the Cadets had just had a session on Drug Awareness complete with simulated samples so that they would recognise the aroma of certain drugs!!

CHAZ wrote:That you are good, environmentally friendly folk and have no stuck ups with image!

That's me as well, then !

?Back to topic.
Little Clio, bright shiny blue, diesel dci and supposedly 'sports version, and turbo charged' (which my gardener, whose day job is with Ferrari, describes as a 'contradiction in terms'). But I love it. It's not especially nippy but if I press my foot down it can move past other traffic. It's comfortable to drive, gets me where I need to go, and it's got all the gadgets - onboard computer, CD changer, etc. - which of course I do not use because I am technologically impaired!
OH,.and it's hugely environmentally friendly. The emissions are zilch, and my road fund tax is £35 a year. That's definitely a bonus.
So what does the car say about me? Not especially fast (ha ha!), technology and environmentally conscious, but inept. And I'm happy with that...