New To LA? Here's how to drive in rain. (dangerous, safe)

[Charles]

Originally Posted by DaBeez

This is for all you non native LA people who moved here from wherever else...I am sick of the transplants .....

Originally Posted by BennyPhoenix

... they are usually the new arrivals who say ....

Aren't most people who move to Los Angeles moving from a place which probably gets more rain the Los Angeles does?

[LaoTzuMindFu]

Originally Posted by Charles

Aren't most people who move to Los Angeles moving from a place which probably gets more rain the Los Angeles does?

True, but since they get more rain, there isnt 8-10 months worth of oil build up on the streets that is all of a sudden brought to the surface with the first rain. This is what makes for extremely slippery streets.

Most other places since it rains more often, there isnt any oil that builds up on the roads so they can drive faster with better traction in the rain.

[trover]

I came to SoCal from the East and I always slowed-down when it rained. I think two things make driving in the rain in LA bad:

(1) For some reason (maybe because it's dry so much of the time) the drainage on the roads isn't the best. The roadway seems to remain fairly slick for a long time.

(2) The problem in LA isn't so much a speed issue as following too closely. In driver's ed they tell you one car length per every 10 mph, double when it rains. Tires and brakes have improved somewhat since they came out with that rule, so you can follow a little closer. But you should still leave plenty of room for emergency stopping in bad conditions. People in LA don't seem to do this.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by DaBeez

True, but since they get more rain, there isnt 8-10 months worth of oil build up on the streets that is all of a sudden brought to the surface with the first rain. This is what makes for extremely slippery streets.

Most other places since it rains more often, there isnt any oil that builds up on the roads so they can drive faster with better traction in the rain.

Ya, I thought about that when I posted - but I posted anyway. Very true, though. Sometimes it goes six months without rain.

Still nothing compares with driving on ice. Scary as hell, having not been use to it.

[NYSD1995]

People drive like maniacs rain or shine, the danger is certainly not people driving too slow... it is them doing 90+ in a downpour!

[Full-Blooded American]

Furthermore, to you SUV drivers out there, your vehicle is not more apt at stopping in wet conditions simply for having AWD. It's a matter of mass and force, and in most cases you need to allow for a greater increase in stopping distance than with a passenger vehicle traveling at the same speed though with lesser mass.

[KnoxTown]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

People drive like maniacs rain or shine, the danger is certainly not people driving too slow... it is them doing 90+ in a downpour!

[LAPTOP GAMER]

Originally Posted by hsw

Good advice for anyone driving in rain

Actually find CA drivers generally more competent driving fast (when traffic and weather allow) on urban fwys than drivers in NYC or Chic...which have often-crappy weather and generally slower fwys

Have often found it's the drivers of newer performance cars who tend to be some of safest, fast drivers on fwys....esp tailgating distances; safe lane changes; using turn signals; headlights on in rain, etc....guys who prob have a decent understanding of the delicate balance between hp/torque/performance tires and traction on a slick road

When it rains heavily in CA, one usually needs to dodge a bunch of rolled-over SUVs of generally obese people who clearly can't drive and assume a 6000+lb POS is invincible in any weather....they don't hand out certain vehicles to just anyone

Really? I see a lot of Mercedes and BMW's flipped over in a ditch or plowed into a guard rail during rain storms, they too thought their traction control system would save them.

[Coldjensens]

Originally Posted by DaBeez

This is for all you non native LA people who moved here from wherever else you were from because LA is better and provide you with better opportunities than your home town.

I am sick of the transplants saying LA people do not know how to drive in the rain so I wanted to provide you with this little bit of info so that you wont be so ignorant as to why we drive slow in the rain.

The reason people here slow down when it rains is primarily for safety. Remember, it does not rain here too often and with millions of cars we have here commuting 24hrs a day on all our roads, streets and freeways, there is a lot of oil built up on the roads. During the first rain, it brings up all the oil in the ground and makes for extremely hazardous conditions (i.e., very slippery roads). When I was an assistant for a large motorcycle training group in Hollywood a number of years back, we always told our fellow riders that if you are on the road during the first rain, to immediately pull over for for a few hours (restaraunt, coffee shop, etc.) until most of the top oil is washed away, then proceed but slowly allowing extra stopping distance between you and car in front. This applies to all on the road.

From the title Ii expected your post to say How to Drivee in La in the rain: If you want to fit in, close your eyes and slam on the brakes then spin and slide into everyone and everything.
My concern is not driving slow inthe rain, it is driving like idiots. People do not seem to know how to control their cars in slippery conditions. That is probably becuase they never drive in snow or ice. There is one simple rule that no one seems to get - stay away from that brake pedal. The brake is your enemy. Second, do not try to accellerate rapidly. It does get somewhat slick in the first rain of the season. Nowhere near as slick as black ice, or even snow. I have a theory that when it rains, everyone is so acclimated to dry weather that their brains shrink and they begin to think that slamming on the brake is a good idea. Then they get mad/frustrated and punch the gas. Either way you end up doing more dancing than driving. Driving on the freeway after the first rain is a lot like one of my son's video games.

[Coldjensens]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

Another heads up for newcomers: Yes, we already know we make a big deal out of a rain event, including all the local news programs leading with something they call "Storm Watch" for the barest hint of rain. Truth be told, it rains here so seldom, we treat it like the second coming..... mainly because that's usually what it is, the second coming of rain in what seems like the last 10 years.

One also has to consider that rain is the major contributor to one leg of our natural disaster trifecta... the mudslides and flooding that always follow after the second leg bares its ugly face, which are the yearly wildland fires. (The first leg of the trifecta: earthquakes)

So, in a nutshell, what I'm trying to say is: Shut the f up.

Thank you.

If we shut up is it still ok to laugh?