So i was on the way home from my girlfriends house yesterday and had started to pass a few slow moving cars and semis just outside Kettlemen City.

i had whipped around a Suburban full of Mexicans (thats wasis) that was doing 40 in a 55 and saw a CHP about half mile up. i kept my speed about 60 and quickly caught up to him.

By the time i caught up to him, i think he was trying to pace me or see if he can get me to pass him. he would slow down to 45ish, speed up, slow back down, ect. i wanted to pass him, but talked myself out of it. he did this for about 15 mins and finally flipped a u and went after someone.

my question is, would any of you have passed in this situation, and doesnt california allow a certain amount over the limit to pass safely and quickly?


Cliffs:

CHP driving under the speed limit on a two lane road

held up about ten cars

pass or not to pass?

 

I've never heard of a jurisdiction permitting you to speed while passing. I would have passed the cop if I could have done so while maintaining the speed limit.

That being said, I pretty much always exceed the speed limit when I pass on a two lane road. LOTS of people speed up when they see that they're about to get passed. Zipping by them doesn't give them the chance to do that. I make it a point of passing quickly and getting it over with.

 

Not in TX. Even when passing, traffic code requires you stay at or under the speed limit at all times. I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same way in CA.

 

people are like that around here too, i usually have to let them gap me a couple of cars and then punch it to get a good run.

i do hate when people take their sweet time passing and almost cause accidents. i was almost a victim of that. i just punch it and pass, no need to be in the oncoming lane anymore than i need to

i just asked my friend who is a cop, he said id have to stay within the limit.

i was ready to run the guy off the road though

Edit: i heard from a few people that you can do no more than ten over to pass..first ive heard of this

 

I'd've passed if it was possible to do so without going over 5-8 mph over the speed limit. Otherwise, just let it go. Even if you do make the pass, you'll have a cop car right behind you, and that's never fun.

Cop cars always seem to determine the speed of traffic here, and not just on two-lanes. I was on a three-lane highway where the speed limit was 90 km/h, and a patrol car was in the middle lane, doing 80. Traffic was slow for maybe half a mile. Nobody wants to pass a cop car. As soon as he turned off the highway, cruising resumed at 120.

 

Yup. The Mercedes (old diesel) has no passing power. I have to back off, make a good run to build up speed (usually results in overtaking them by 10+ MPH), and then commit to pass. If I don't do that and I give someone to opportunity to speed up, I would get stuck in the other lane. I miss having a car with decent pickup.

 

I hate when cops do that shit. I think they get a kick out of inconveniencing everyone by cruising along at or below the speed limit.

 

People tend to get offended that you're passing them despite them being 5-10+ mph under the speed limit, and speed up. I had some jackass in a big ass pickup do that to me two or three times so I dropped about a half mile back and gunned it, passing him at a little over 40mph over the speed limit, of course his speed dropped way off once I made it past him...

For the record, the only time I will blatantly speed to pass someone is on a road that is flat and straight for 20 miles which straddles the Colorado/Nebraska border.

 

OP has a vagina.

Definitely don't pass and don't follow too close. Not worth getting raped over. I think all states don't allow going over the speed limit to pass. Catching up to the chippy by speeding was a dumb move as well.

 

As far as I know, no state has a law or ordinance which allows you to speed, especially to pass. Kind of defeats the purpose of speed limits.

As for the situation... even if I had the broken yellow, no way in hell I'm passing a cop regardless of the speed he is going. He's just baiting you and if you pass him you deserve to get nailed. I'll just sit behind, crank up the music and relax. When he turns off, I'll resume driving between the speed limit and 5mph over.

 

i was doing 60, 5 over.

i didnt think 60 was a big deal.

 

^^ It IS over the speed limit, period the end. Legally speaking it is NOT OK. While out in the wild there is this perspective that it is alright to go 5 or 10 over, the reality (legal reality that is) it is not, you ARE breaking the law, and you could be pulled over for it.

 

I just shot him a little bit when he said that...wasnt a big deal. Only once.



Its against the law....press it with the wrong cop and your screwed.

 

I have passed slow cops before. You just need to be smart about it. I passed one the other day.

 

1) Pass
2) You must stay within the speed limit to pass. If you exceed the posted speed limit, you are in violation of the California Vehicle Code, whether you are passing or not.



I've passed lots of CHP, LASD, LAPD, etc. cars traveling on the road before without getting a ticket-- realistically, they don't seem to care about my silver car if I pass going no more than 10 mph over the speed limit.

Although, about 15 years ago, one LAPD cop did tell me over the PA system to slow down after I passed him on the I-110 South to I-10 West interchange, but no stop and no ticket.

 

You should have run him off the road.

Not passing was the right thing to do unless he was a lot under the speed limit.

 

Last year on my road trip I was driving through West Texas and was on I-10 where the speed limit is 80 mph. This cop was cruising in the left lane going 50 and I caught a glimpse of his face as I passed. He was smirking and having so much fun I just wanted to give him the finger but I didn't. It still makes my blood boil to this day.

 

Yup. I do it all the time. As one other person said...if you keep it at x<10 MPH over the speed limit, they aren't going to mess with you.

A cop has to show up to court for any speeding ticket they write. I can't imagine that a judge would be very amused if their docket was filled with jerk-off x<10 over tickets.

 

You can legally pass anyone as long as you're in a passing zone and don't exceed the speed limit to do so. I've passed slow moving cops plenty of times...only had a problem once. It was on the interstate at night (ie. hardly any traffic). Speed limit was 60; he was going 55. I got into the next lane and passed him doing 60. He gunned it, cut in front of me, and brake checked me. What an ass (and dangerous).

 

i pass cops all the time...on the highway or freeway, not on a 2-lane road though. when the speed limit is 65mph and the mofo is going 55mph and holding everyone back up (no one dares to pass cops for whatever reasons), i just get in the passing lane, speed up to 65-67mph and slowly passes him. no harm no foul done. cops like to bait you, such as following close behind you or slowing down in front of you...etc....if you're competent and maintain a consistent speed without going over the speed limit too much, cops don't bother you.

 

Over here, cops like to drive at the limits (usually 40 or 50 km/h, very pathetic) in a 660cc car, lights on, as a way to slow down traffic. Cars just go by about 10km over, so no real effect.

 

Then, they decide to do the speed limit, ridding your ass after doing so.


I remember once attempting to pass an Altima doing 10 under and he gunned it right as he saw there was a truck coming down the road the other way. He was trying to stay on my rear fender & race me into the truck, but I thankfully had enough of a slingshot to get by him; scared the hell out of the girls in my rear seats. Guy rode my rear bumper all the way to the next light.

 

I'm normally not on two lane roads, but when I'm on the fwy and I see a cop I will do about 70-65 and if he's going slower, sometimes happens when they are behind trucks, I pass.

I've been luck a couple times, I was doing 80 in a car pool lane, and it was also a ramp to another fwy, and when my car pool lane joined the other fwy's carpool lane I'm on it beginning to merge doing 80 and a cop passes by me doing 90 lol

 

I wouldn't ever pass a cop that's doing that. I get the feeling hes just doing this shit then later hes gonna pull you over for speeding. If it wasn't a cop I would have passed the person long ago, but if its a cop, I will just keep my cool. I'll just cruise behind him til he leaves, or I leave.

 

I pass cops but will not exceed the speed limit when doing so. Like mentioned above, they will let you know if they disagree.

On two lane roads you have to make a decision before passing slow traffic. I chose to break the law and spend as little time as possible risking a head on collision. If I get a speeding ticket under that circumstance, I just pay it. I then also learn patience cause one ticket is more than enough.

 

i agree mike. I too will not take anymore time passing than i need to. If i need to pass, its usually almost floored.

My situation was just irritating. Every chp i see around here drives like they stole it, and this guy holds up traffic for 15 mins or so.

I guess it was just a rant on my part

 

Idk. I passed the "sheriff" today (according to his car) cause he was on his phone and doing 3-5 under the limit. He slowed everyone down. I was right behind him too. I signaled, waited a few seconds, got into the right lane and got up to the limit and went on my way.

 

^ Wow... you passed a cop on the right and didn't get pulled over? You got lucky he was on the phone...

 

 

People who preach about 5 over being illegal need to lighten up. Yes, you are correct. 5 miles over is breaking the law.

Cops in my area usually drive fast, like 15 over. One time I had a feddy give me the dashboard lights while driving in DC - just so he could merge into my lane. Normally I don't mind someone merging in front of me, but @$$hole was driving one of those armored SUVs that I can't see around.

Don't get me started on those damned convoys.

 

all I can say is that in FL, in passing zones you are allowed a MAX of 20 over the speed limit. As well, if you are speeding by 5 or less miles per hour, you can't get a ticket.

 

I pass cops all the time. 2 lane hwys, or interstates. If they are driving under the limit i will pass. I hate the assholes that speed up slow down. (cops or non cops) I once called the county i was in sheriffs dept to inform them of one of their officers doing that. Shortly after the call he started to maintain a constant speed ( i was the 4th car in a string of cars that was stuck behind him)

 

Really? I've never heard of a state allowing speeding for passing. You have any links? I did a quick search and couldn't find anything on Florida's sites to indicate this law. AFAIK, speeding is speeding... whether it's 2mph or 20mph over.

 

+1 on link

 

If the guy i wanna pass act like dumbaz i just downshift to 2nd or 3rd and wave him.

 

speeding is speeding whether it's 2mph or 20mph above the limit and it's the law... but really, if you can't speed to pass someone, what's the point of trying to pass? you're suppose to jam on the gas pedal, pass that slow driver as soon as possible and then get back on your lane and down to speed limit. so the law say if the slow driver is going 45mph on a 50mph stretch, i can only do 50mph to try to pass it when there's traffic coming at you at 50mph? some state laws are stupid and this is one of them!

 

^ This one

 

When I see a cop the only thing I do is PASS GAS!...Then I roll my windows down so he can't see my tint...and let the air out. hehe.

Freak that I would never pass a cop nor would I try to catch up to one. The farther they are from my car the better!

 

If there is traffic coming at you then it is not safe to pass... therefore, you shouldn't be attempting a pass regardless of the speed.

 

While i agree taking your time to pass is unsafe, Speeding is speeding. If you cant safely pass without breaking the law you shouldnt be doing it (according to the laws)

This


That said i usually use every ounce of HP that my motor has when i pass. And yes, that means i am usually always breaking the law.