Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Here is what I find funny, some of you think that 76 is somehow old. I live in Florida, and the average age here is one step away from death. We have tons of drivers in their 80's and well beyond.
I learned years ago that there are "young" 80 year olds, and there are "old" 80 year olds. I see some all bent over and walking with a cane or walker, and others are out playing tennis and jogging. Not all old people are the same.
The people who are suggesting a 76 year old needs to take UBER have no idea what they are talking about.
Florida, even with some of the best roads in the country and great lighting, has 2X the motor vehicle deaths of many other places. Seniors regularly mow down pedestrians and bikes (I think it is the #1 or #2 state for that).
So, yes, people are upset about the exact type of things you mention. This means 10's of thousands more injured and dead people...which isn't funny, IMHO.
I actually volunteer in FL to drive seniors to docs and church and stuff - seniors who are smart enough to know when to step out of their cars.
My husband is 76 and we live in the center of a big city - driving is pretty insane with cyclists, skate boarders, scooters and other cars all smoodged together in narrow city streets.
He has been a very good driver (no accidents) for almost 40 years but lately (yes, I'm a nervous passenger) his reflexes seem to be slipping a bit. I had to holler for him to pick up on a girl crossing in the middle of the street last month - he would have hit her if I hadn't and he has been slow to pick up on some other near problems, but not quite that serious.
He touched the bumper (after a glass of wine) of a car stopped in front of us a few months ago and the guy got out of his car to check but nothing came of it.
Bottom line, I've lost some confidence in his driving and he gets very irritated about my ongoing yelps and "watch outs!".
Does your hub wear eye glasses? If not, when was the last time he had his eyes checked? The 2 instances you posted seems like he didn't see them; like his eyes are needing glasses or if he wears them, his prescription has changed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by christianstad
We are looking for a new car and I want all the top safety gadgets - anti collision, lane drifting (he does that sometimes) blind spot monitoring, front and back sensors, rear camera, etc.
All this adds on to the price (we are looking for a certified used small suv)
Well, its causing a lot of problems, silences, etc.
Our old car is 10 years old and other than rear beeping it has no safety features.
Should I hold out for what I want even if it caused friction between us?
Thanks for any advice.
No, I don't drive.
What year car are you hoping for and how much do you want to spend? I think upgrading the car is a great idea.
People have suggested public transportation, taxis and apps like Lyft and Uber. Lyft and Uber are expensive as heck, so are taxis. Public transportation is a pain in the butt. He hasn't had an accident yet; there is no way he's going to consider using any of them when he has his own car.
I think having his eyes checked and upgrading your car are great options to start.
In that your in a city living situation take advantage of the city living.....i.e. Uber .....the app is easy to use and the convenience should convince your husband it's ok to do this......save the car for those trips that go outside ......he'll probably be happy to keep the present car and tinker with it to keep it going
Right, so the only thing we have to go on is the OP's observations as far as she has told us. The situation itself isn't unreasonable, but it's possible she's looking at it through colored lenses, but the potential downside of overreacting is a lot worse than that of overreacting. This is why I mentioned she should maybe talk to other people who have seen her husband drive in recent times in order to verify a bit.
76 years old is not the same thing for everybody. No one is saying revoke the licenses from all 76 year old drivers.
Agree. We're only hearing part of what's going on. She could be a bad passenger for all we know.
Quote:
Originally Posted by craigiri
Florida, even with some of the best roads in the country and great lighting, has 2X the motor vehicle deaths of many other places. Seniors regularly mow down pedestrians and bikes (I think it is the #1 or #2 state for that).
So, yes, people are upset about the exact type of things you mention. This means 10's of thousands more injured and dead people...which isn't funny, IMHO.
I actually volunteer in FL to drive seniors to docs and church and stuff - seniors who are smart enough to know when to step out of their cars.
That's awesome that you do that! I wish I would have known about it a few years ago when my hubs grandmother was still alive. She gave up driving about 10 years ago when she had a very minor fender bender. She took it as a sign "from the Good Lord" to give up driving before she has a serious accident. Unfortunately her daughter (my MIL) didn't do the same. She was still driving at 84 except when one of her kids were around. My hub was getting ready to have a talk with her about stopping when she was diagnosed with terminal cancer, passed a few months later. She never got back in a car which we were thankful for because it was just a matter of time before she and her elderly dog were in a bad situation.
The arithmetic of car ownership (round figures for the elderly driving only 200mi/m)
-monthly car payment $200
-monthly insurance $100
- " repairs/maintenance $50
-fuel $40
total-- $390/m--- that's $10+/d for a taxi (assumes no cost for parking)
It's actually pretty dumb for those who have only a few shopping trips or doc visits per month to own a car.
Here is what Consumer Reports has to say about 76 year old drivers.
Quote:
Originally Posted by christianstad
My husband is 76 and we live in the center of a big city - driving is pretty insane with cyclists, skate boarders, scooters and other cars all smoodged together in narrow city streets.
He has been a very good driver (no accidents) for almost 40 years but lately (yes, I'm a nervous passenger) his reflexes seem to be slipping a bit.
I had to holler for him to pick up on a girl crossing in the middle of the street last month - he would have hit her if I hadn't and he has been slow to pick up on some other near problems, but not quite that serious.
He touched the bumper (after a glass of wine) of a car stopped in front of us a few months ago and the guy got out of his car to check but nothing came of it.
Bottom line, I've lost some confidence in his driving and he gets very irritated about my ongoing yelps and "watch outs!"
We are looking for a new car and I want all the top safety gadgets - anti collision, lane drifting (he does that sometimes) blind spot monitoring, front and back sensors, rear camera, etc.
All this adds on to the price (we are looking for a certified used small suv)
Well, its causing a lot of problems, silences, etc.
Our old car is 10 years old and other than rear beeping it has no safety features.
Should I hold out for what I want even if it caused friction between us?
Thanks for any advice.
No, I don't drive.
Here is what Consumer Reports has to say about 76 year old drivers.
Does your hub wear eye glasses? If not, when was the last time he had his eyes checked? The 2 instances you posted seems like he didn't see them; like his eyes are needing glasses or if he wears them, his prescription has changed.
What year car are you hoping for and how much do you want to spend? I think upgrading the car is a great idea.
People have suggested public transportation, taxis and apps like Lyft and Uber. Lyft and Uber are expensive as heck, so are taxis. Public transportation is a pain in the butt. He hasn't had an accident yet; there is no way he's going to consider using any of them when he has his own car.
I think having his eyes checked and upgrading your car are great options to start.
The reason why rideshare/taxis and mass transit was suggested is because the OP specifically said they live in a major city center. Yes, distances to things and mass transit is pretty bad in the US, but some major cities in their urban cores are pretty alright.
Florida, even with some of the best roads in the country and great lighting, has 2X the motor vehicle deaths of many other places. Seniors regularly mow down pedestrians and bikes (I think it is the #1 or #2 state for that).
So, yes, people are upset about the exact type of things you mention. This means 10's of thousands more injured and dead people...which isn't funny, IMHO.
I actually volunteer in FL to drive seniors to docs and church and stuff - seniors who are smart enough to know when to step out of their cars.
Interesting stats, if accurate. The "2X the motor vehicle deaths of many other places" is certainly a concern, if not startling. I've seen the stats that fatalities double when drivers hit their 80s. My question, I guess, is if the 2X rate is for the old drivers and their old passengers or if it's also true for the younger drivers who they have accidents with. I mean, how many of those additional fatalities for octogenarians are because they drive worse and how many are because they die easier? I'd imagine it's probably a combination of those two reasons and difficult to say exactly. If they're killing pedestrians and bikers, that's pretty telling.
It's good of you to volunteer to drive us old people, craigiri. You could be saving more lives than medics do!
I had to deal with my stepfather driving as he became impaired with dementia in his 80s. He'd go missing. Call the police. They'd put out a "Silver Alert". He'd eventually turn up many miles away. I'd have to get the car out of impound and have my mother follow me back to their house. The farthest was 120 miles away. I ended up putting a GPS tracker on the ODB II port. My mother was in a rapid decline then, too. When my stepfather had his big medical event, I had to take her car and move her to assisted living. She could handle driving things she'd driven daily for years like grocery store and pharmacy. She'd hit the point where she couldn't do that and couldn't live independently. There wasn't enough money to pay for 'staff' with enough coverage to keep her aging in place.
For the OP, at least get a car with anti-collision braking. My Subaru has a stereo camera system called EyeSight that is pretty good at picking out pedestrians, dogs, and deer. The system has been out for a half-dozen years so you don't have to buy a new car to get that level of feature.
Our old car is 10 years old and other than rear beeping it has no safety features.
Should I hold out for what I want even if it caused friction between us?
Thanks for any advice.
No, I don't drive.
I had to face the fact that my driving skills were unsafe at 72 yrs old. I drive very rarely now in town only with my wife doing what little distance driving we need done. I see the day that neither my wife or myself will drive so I will not waste money on newer vehicle than our much loved Suburban (It's 25+ YRS OLD!! ).
I see driving skills going away as a fact of life as one ages. I'll start looking for other means of transport now and so should you. Get hubby out from behind the steering wheel before he kills someone or both of you.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
call Uber....
