this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2023
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Cars - For Car Enthusiasts
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It's not car lengths, it's seconds. You need roughly 2 seconds between you and the person in front of you. That gives you time to react and emergency brake if needed. At 70mph, 2 seconds is a little over 200 feet, not 3 car lengths. Average reaction time is about .75 seconds; you see something, and you start reacting to that thing--not you finish reacting--in .75 seconds. At 70mph, you will travel 75 feet before you can even realize that you need to get your foot off the gas and hit the brakes.
2 sec is not practical in daily driving in busy city. It is correct if there is some car stopped there then you need completely stop. People take the risk and follow closer because usually everyone brake so give you more time/distance.
But if there's a road hazard hidden by the vehicle in front of you, or a person/animal steps out onto the road, if something falls off the vehicle ahead of you (note that I have had an entire wheel go through my windshield when it fell off the car ahead of me; good times), then you just aren't going to have enough tie to do anything.
This is true. When I say “minimum” I should have been more clear, I usually leave a pretty sizable amount of room in front of me. It’s also nice to not have to worry about people merging right in front of me at the last second due to them not being prepared
I mean duh. People use car lengths because it's easier to visualise than seconds.
The trick I learned was to watch their shadow pass a stationary object, then count how long until you pass it. Way easier than trying to visualize two car lengths
Say in your head "Only a fool, breaks the two second rule". Takes about two seconds to say