Yesterday, while driving to & from lunch with a co-worker & the boss, in my 1-week old TL-S, I almost get run into by three (3) different idiots:

One decides to pull into the left lane without signalling or looking... almost right into my car. I get to test out the TL-S horn for the first time.

Another decides to drive directly towards me, down the middle of an undivided road.... I get to test out the TL-S horn again, only minutes after the first test.

After lunch, another idiot decides to pull out directly in front of me.... I get to test out the TL-S ABS brakes to avoid T-boning this one.

What is it with this car ? Are TL-S's just idiot magnets ?

Or is it the color ? My car is silver.... I've never had a silver color car before; is this like urban camouflage ? Maybe this is why they have daytime running lights on some cars...

Previous cars:

1980 Volkswagen Dasher, blue.... not an idiot magnet, but it was a deer magnet once
1989 Nissan Sentra, white.... not an idiot magnet while driving, but someone hit it while parked
1995 Jeep Cherokee, green (still have it).... an idiot repellant, people actually move out of the way when I'm driving it (it's modified)
2000 Chevrolet Camaro Z28, maroon (traded it for the TL-S).... only seemed to attract idiots who wanted to race.... who always lost. But no-one seemed to have any difficulty seeing it coming.

-Karl

 

It probably is the color: light reflects off the silver and blinds the idiot, but strangely the idiot is attracted to the light like a moth to a flame.

 

Don't feel bad because it happens to all of us.

 

its like one of those blue bug zapper things that rednecks watch for entertainment.

 

That's why I got DWP. Statistically less accidents, according to insurance companies. They say it is because the white is more visible.
When you were driving, was it cloudy out? If your car wasn't real clean (I know silver is hard to keep clean) maybe (and I'm giving those fools the benefit of the doubt) they didn't see you against very well? But, it does sound like they don't know how to drive... no blinkers, down the middle of the street, pulling in front of you... I am an offensive and defensive driver. I have gotten to know when someone is about to change lanes (isn't it stupid when you see someone looking in their mirror, wanting to change lanes, but they do not have blinkers on so that people will give them room?? Duh!), or if they are not paying any attention at all.

 

Happens all the freggin time, I hate it. People have the deer stareing into the lights syndrone when they see our TLs.

 

I'm right there with all of you.

Day one: Untethered trash can flies from rear of bug-zapper-watching redneck pickup, moments later friend remarks "this car handles great"

Day five: 32' long 1976 Cadillac does 360's on a wet road RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!, moments later I remark to myself "this car stops great in the rain"

Day fourteen: Yet another untethered object (I believe it was a dresser) becomes airborne and exits the rear of a pickup, moments later I pulled up next to the unaware bug zapper-watcher and tested my horn and middle finger, both worked fine.

Day twenty-seven: FIRST G0DD@MN DOOR-DING, you would think a parking spot requiring a two-day walk wouldn't have too many close parkers, I guess I was wrong.

Day thirty-three: Unexpectedly in construction zone, no rock chips, but some of that neat reflective (and oh-so-sticky) yellow stripe paint was still wet, and later deposited on my car.

All I can say is, if you don't like it, by a P.O.S. but I think we are ALL of a different breed and therefore will continue to bring this agony on ourselves in the future as well, who wants to drive a P.O.S. anyway?

 

You know, I am "THE" idiot magnet...
Ed

 

Every day I have to drive 38mi. one way to Ft. Walton Beach. This is the Mecca of riced up Civics, Nissan pickups, etc.

For some reason they always want to cut off my Acura. One guy decided to turn into my lane while he was right beside me. Mine is a WDP. I hit the breaks and horn hard and he just keep on truckin' like nothin happened.

What I cannot understand is those ricers sink a ton of jack into those POS's and they almost always involved in some wreck or another. How you figure ?!!

 

Hmm... is it possible that there is nth to do with ur TL-S... jus that you, yourself is the magnet???
MUHAHAHAHA
just j/k

 

jbrown,

I feel your agony and frustration, but your past had me laughing my ass off. One of the best I've read in a while.

 

The pic in ShoofinTL's sig about says it all.... that's what it felt like; driving down the street with idiots leaping out of nowhere, trying to affix themselves to my TL in any way imaginable...

Kinda reminded me of old news video of the pope's visit to the U.S. back in the late 1980s.... people just climbing all over each other to get a little bit closer.

-Karl

 

Silver cars are sometimes hard to see on cloudy days, because they reflect the gray skies quite well!

 

Ever notice that usually it's a POS car that cuts you off, or owner is driving like they got blind folds on? They just couldn't care less about banging their turd boxes up, let alone our nice cars.

 

Precisely! It's the beat up old things and Corollas and Echoes of the road that always seem to cluelessly cut in front of me and nearly cause an accident. I've learned to steer clear of such suspicious looking vehicles upon first sighting on my idiot radar screen.

This idiot magnet theory deserves more testing. I know my car is a shopping cart magnet already. Everytime I go to a supermarket, I return and find my car is blanketed with shopping carts on all sides. I bet it's those lousy POS Corolla drivers that are behind the misparked shopping cart conspiracy too!

 

Maybe the aliens moved from Gulf Breeze and gave them all free brain surgery

 

Hey Matt, I think you got a point there. Obviously brain surgery was not successful based on subsequent behavior.

BTW you guy still having a lot of UFO activity on east coast??

 

I have yet to see one UFO at all. When I was at Gulf Breeze I didnt see any either and this was when it was in the news for the sightings.

 

mine is silver too. there is not a day that goes by that some idiot doesnt pull out in front of me or try to side swipe me. i cant even get out of the parking lot without someone doing something stupid!!

 

whats up with all these old threads being revivied!?!

 

haha they are prolly temporarily blinded by those wheels

 

Silver is a blind color to other drivers. Silver color matches the grey color of the asphalt and the environment; especially in the afternoon and in cloudy days.

 

Wow, now this is an old bump!

 

no bashing but i think thats the most "tl's" ive seen. but we know how you feel i have a problem with idiots and their rock throwing lawnmowers.

 

I can't see silver. I may have been the idiot.

 

WOW 7yrs old. I love SSM

 

I've had a ton of close calls myself ever since getting the TL. Never had such problems with my previous beater and I wasn't even driving as carefully with it.

Maybe people don't see the black.

 

A Seven year old thread comes back to life. I have a 2000 Firepepper Pearl colored TL and most days I have issues with people that act like they are the only ones on the road or parking lots.
Color does make a difference, but about 75% of the people out there think cars are just transportation from point A to point B. So with that view they just don't care what happens since, "It's just a car...."
I have a Black 1998 Jetta GT and the same issues happen on a regular basis. My hauler vehicle is the only one that gets any respect, an old 1992 Toyota 4runner. Trucks seem to scare the sloths into thinking maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to pull out in front of that huge chunk of metal coming down the road.

This forum site is a great information source for everything I want to upgrade on my TL. Rock on.

 

thats why i like to drive next to corvettes and g35s, their owners think of the car as a little more than a hugeass moving hunk of metal

 

If you go to the 3rd gen photo album, you will see that I can matter-of-factly state that the answer to the original question is a resounding YES.

 

It doesnt matter what car I drive some people are idiots.