I know, I know, pick on people my own size, but this guy was doing one of my pet peeves.

My commute home involves a highway which goes from one lane each way, to two lanes each way for approximately 5 or 6 km, then back down to one lane each way. There are lights at either end of the 4 lane section.

Anyhow, this guy in a Geo Storm is putt-puttering along in the two lane section at 5 km under the speed limit. There are no real places to pass, so I just patiently wait until we hit the four lane section and go around him. No biggie.

A pass a few more cars while in the four lane section and end up catching the red at the end of the section. I am the first car in the left hand lane and 150 ft or so beyond the light the right hand lane ends.

The cars that I had just passed stop behind me like good little children, but then I notice a car pull out of the line-up into the right hand lane. Its the little Geo Storm I had passed.

Rather than come up next to me at the light and stop, he keeps his car slowly rolling up the line of cars, obviously trying to time it so he can get a rolling start on me. Now this annoys me.

Well, he times it beautifully and the light turns just as he's at my middle and he floors it. I nail it, great launch, redline in first and a picture perfect shift into second with a very loud squawk (not a chirp, Potenzas are probably crapping up on me already). By the end of second gear it was all over.

The funniest part is that he had his window open and when I shifted into second my front wheels were approximately at his door. The noise startled him badly enough that I saw him jump in my peripheral vision. I wonder if he wet his pants?

 

Man some of the people you come accross when your driving, don't they just cracked you up?

 

I don't even think that counts as a "kill"

 

why does this annoy you?? it doesn't sound like he was trying to race, more like he was trying to conserve gas. if there're no cars behind me, i do this too...

 

If it took until second gear before it was "over", then he was trying to race.

 

While rolling to a stop is no big deal, its clear the Geo tried to take the Maxima, why else gun it?

 

This wasn't a race, just a waste of gas...but fun!!

 

Nice one! It would be a shame to let a Geo beat a Max, any time any place!

 

It bugs me because

a) I intentionally passed this guy because he was going slower than the speed limit, I didn't want to end up behind him again.
b) Get in line like everybody else.
c) Rolling stop is basically cheating. You want to race, pull up and stop like a man. You never hear stories about "I totally killed this z06 Corvette. He was stopped at the light and I ripped down the left hand lane at 50 mph and timed the light beautifully. He never had a chance."

I floored it through the first two gears, so I can't see how he wasn't flogging the hamsters...

 

i know how you feel, i hate people that do the lil rolling starts, no matter what car it is, i'll just gun it to fly past him/her

 

you're right, my bad, i didn't read your original post close enough and missed the part where you said he floored it.

 

heh, i remember when i was 12 i thought storm's were pretty cool lookin'... at least better than my mom's minivan.

 

When my girlfriend (now wife) and I first saw the Storm at the New York International auto show (1989) it was setup with the Isuzu Impulse Turbo/Intercooler powertrain (177hp) and looked to be a future dominant performance car out of Japan and about as quick as the also soon to appear Mitsubishi Eclipse. Unlike Chrysler (with the Laser & Talon), GM backed away from the idea of putting this potent and very capable motor in the Storm so we got stuck with a slow 120hp (or so) nonturbo 4XE1 motor.

The 1992 Storm GSi (w/5speed) wasn't too bad as Isuzu raised the displacement to 1.8L (now a still nonturbo 4XF1 motor, but now 130hp) and was good for 0-60 times in the low 7s and mid 15 second ETs. Not TOO bad but nowhere near the performance of the 1G DSMs and All Trac Celicas.

(Ironically, I almost bought a 92 Storm GSi last week for $1500 and loads of miles but thought better of it. I guess I just miss driving a manual tranny THAT much!)

 

my good friend just bought a '99m e36 5speed and he let me drive it around town. god, i hadnt realized how much i missed a manual until i was shifting that baby into third.

*sigh*

 

I always assume a rolling start means the person wants to race, no matter what the car looks like...

edit..

Around here, is usually means the person is trying to get in front of me before the lane merges due to all the construction...

 

i had a metro ( ) that i once drafted a eclipse upto about 100 (indicated) down stateline rd! I about wet myself that day, it was actually pretty cool and so was the guy i drafted. we stopped and bs'd a couple, he thought it was kinda funny how he "pulled" me along.

l8tr -- SS