Somnambulated

I had no idea where to post this, but I figured Suspension would be as good a place as any, considering mostly I'm impressed with the TRD upgrades I have on my car.

About a week ago,

I was coming off the 5 fwy on the way to Laguna Beach, down the 133/Laguna Canyon.

This black Land Rover has been tailgating me since before I merged onto the freeway.

I repeatedly speed up, and they're still tailing me closely. There are trucks blocking me into my lane, and I'm in the right lane so I can merge onto the 133, but fnally, I find an opening and just switch lanes, and Land Rover Dude goes screaming by.

We get to the 133, which merges from three lanes into one. I've backed way off behind the Land Rover, and assume they're going to merge back onto the 5, since they're in the right lane.

I am in the middle lane, slowing down to merge onto the 133.

Guy in the Land Rover cuts past me through BOTH lanes, and is now on my left. Now, he's slamming on his brakes.

I'm kick-braking now to slow down, since he's slammed on his brakes several times now, and is accelerating/decelerating to the point that I can't get behind or in front of him.

Just as the 3 roads become 1, I glance over at the guy in the Land Rover. He's at least 40, his trophy wife is in the car, neither of them look my direction.

I decide, I'm not going to wreck my car because of this clown.

I full-on slam on my brakes, hoping he won't try to keep pace.

I'm now doing 45, and the Land Rover is slowing as well.

I'm still slamming my brake down when my car begins to fishtail. For about three seconds, I manage to pull the car out of the spin it's trying to do. Then inertia takes over, and my car does a 360° twice, hits one of the thin orange cones to the side of the highway, and comes to a stop in the dirt.

The car's now facing the wrong way on the shoulder of the road.

Guy in the Land Rover simply speeds up and takes off.

I get out, check for damage, see there's a huge black streak across my front bumper where it ate the cone.

After this, I manage to merge back onto the highway and drive to work.

I considered calling the police, but realized I had no license plate number for the guy, and the only description I could give is "middle-aged to late forties, Persian, driving a Black '06 Land Rover."

Which is not helpful at all in Laguna Beach, or Orange County, for that matter.

While I'm still considering, I realize I don't want my insurance premium to go up, and since I was technically merging from the right lane--regaurdless of his braking--I would probably be considered at fault for the accident, had I actually colided with his car.

It's been about a week, but I figured I'd go ahead and post this as not only a warning, but a testament to the tC as a well-built car. Because of the construction that has been going on on the 133, there is a fine, powdered dust all over the highway. I don't think any car could have held traction very well on top of that. In fact, while I was on the side of the road, I felt some of it, and it's as slick as Lithium grease.

I am not asking for anyone to be 'impressed,' in fact, I should have chosen another route to work to avoid someone as crazy as the guy in the Land Rover turned out to be.

However, I'm impressed that it's now a week later, and my tC has almost no damage. The black streak on the front bumper polished almost entirely off, and I've found another scratch I'm working on. The only other damage is that the PRNDL display does not light up, which is just a broken bulb.

Not bad for actually going off the road, and having the car fall about a foot and a half from the highway into a ditch.

tikbhoy

u forgot to mention road rage =p

nothing new in cali, but be happy u got where u want in one piece

Spect2K3

Wow, im starting to get a bad feeling about california drivers...that sounds like a true crazy to me. I personally would have called the cops while he was doing that stuff to me. Sounds like you were trying to do the right thing though, I probably would have tried the acceleration rather than the braking if it were at all possible and getting out of the situation, but that sounds like what you were trying to do.

Next time (which hopefully will never happen), make sure that you get those plates!

3min3m2

my tC has had some 4X4 experience...not by choice though....and i have some marks to show for it, but luckily they are all underbody

glad to hear you didn't hit anything, aside from a cone(a lot softer then concrete)

yes those cali drivers can be a bit....well psychotic at times...around here i would have just left him about a mile back(i guarantee that he doesnt handle as good as i do around 110, but lets not go that route), but i know how it can be in cali....a whole different world...


glad to hear u made it out ok

kdog_1981

wow freakin crazy man...

engifineer

Good thing he doesnt live in a right to carry state like here, or other midwestern states :D He would have been filling his underwear why his trophy wife sat and watched at the next stop Stupid yuppy.

Glad you came out ok!

j0nes

he sounds like one of those stupid rich people who think they own the road. i love dealing with them because i have my ways but lets not get into that. sounds like the drivers in cali are just as bad as the ones in south fla. good to hear you made it out ok and your car did too.

Nakioki

hmmm wow.. hearing that really sucks.. tho good thing youre ok and your car! damn i would get soo ____ed off...

-.- although it happened to me, but i wasnt driving my tC. I was on the 5 freeway pass bakersfield and its only 2 lanes. Some punks on their big wheeled ram trucks messing with me. and there was 3 of them. The freeway is empty at this time and its like 10pm at night which is dark. long story short they threw me off course and i ended up on the side of the freeway which is gravel, grass and some stuff...

I didnt stop.. i kept going... I went off road for a few then got back at the road and cuaght up with them

Just to show them what STi can do

toeveryhour

iTrader: (3)

I would have just pulled over to the side of the road, put on the hazards, and waited for that stupid guy to disappear out of sight.

dp-_-

i would have stopped on the freeway and gotten out. It's always fun seeing how "tough" people are once you're out of the car.

Especially South County trendy douchebags. (i.e. Laguna/Irvine/etc.)