Like, if you accidentally cut someone off, and they get mad and honk, how do you apologize?
The middle finger. It has to be that.
Flash the hazards twice, also works as a thank you for letting me merge in or whatever, it’s pretty common in the UK.
I have gone to using a single hazard flash when people are in front of me as well instead of flashing high beams(reserved as the head tap equivalent for cars) because I hate when people blind me at night trying to thank me… high beams are way brighter than they used to be.
raise your hand?
had a brain glitch on a roundabout, nearly forgot to break for a passing car.
Like this 🖕
I roll down the window and do the Sorry/ThankYou Wave. 👋
Especially if they DIDN’T honk.
This. I will forgive most driving indiscretions if I see a wave/acknowledgement of wrongdoing.
Hand up, and bow head.
This. It says, “I acknowledge you are upset, and accept blame.”
Instructions unclear. Ended up doing the wave (like you see at baseball stadiums) alone in a car.
Accidentally dabbed.
Accidently my ass! Stop trying to bring it back!
I have a huge purple dildo. I just start beating myself about the head and shoulders.
Found the saints row player
What about the “sorry, my bad” while driving though?
You can do that at the same time as beating yourself with the purple dildo
Mantis starts beating off with a purple dildo
Me: “…the fuck is he doing?”
(Edit: real answer) For most acknowledgements, I double-tap a light — beams, brakes, or hazards depending on current lighting conditions and relative position of other driver — because most things I would say to them are two beats long:
- “Thank you”
- ”Sorry”
- “My bad”
- ”Go on”
- ”Nice drift”
- ”You drunk?”
I’ve mostly seen the double-flick of lights to mean either “Go ahead, make your move, I see you and I won’t hit you” (to pedestrians or someone waiting to turn into/out of a driveway in heavy traffic) or “turn on your lights you idiot, it’s pouring rain.” But it’s always heavy traffic in Southern California, and it never rains, but man, it pours.
I once got an A on an anthropology paper by analyzing body language in vehicles and different driving cultures in different places.
Rock on. Were there any instances of local parlance you found peculiar or surprising?
One insight was the different behavior when a light turned green with someone at the front making a left turn.
Where I grew up that person would just have to wait, but in the city where I went to college they’d let one car turn left before opposing traffic started.
It was a bit of a culture shock being honked at for obeying the actual law.
I don’t think oncoming traffic “lets” the first car go. It’s more that if the person in the front of the left turn queue is on the ball and ready to go, he’ll scoot out while the oncoming drivers are typically looking up from their instagram or TikTok or whatever and understanding that they need to drive again.
I’ve done that before when I’m in a hurry, but this was actually people waiting for that initial left turn.
Also this was back before smart phones, so things may have changed. Culture evolves.
If you mean that the way I think, in Los Angeles when you’re going to make a left turn at a light without a red arrow, AND there’s enough clear road ahead on your left for you to turn into, you’re expected to “post up” into the intersection while you wait for opposing traffic to clear. Which often it never does until the light turns yellow, or even red. Then you’re expected to make your turn on the red, and the car behind you is allowed to follow you if they’ve got their front wheels over the line into the intersection. The cross traffic has to wait until you’ve cleared the box. “Two cars on a red.” Of course if it’s an especially large intersection, it’s possible for the first car and second car to post up so far that a third car can get those wheels over, and all three can make their escape from the box after the light changes. But the cross traffic considers this rude.
For me, I go with:
One long honk : PAY ATTENTION! Right now to avoid an accident!
One short honk: hey bud, not mad but the light changed, or similar. Also used when I see someone I know.
Two short honks: did not respond to one short honk. Also used when I was the one to fuck up - accompanied by head nod/bow, arms up with hands upturned, mouthing “I’m sorry”, and/or similar gestures.
Two long honks: you did something bad, like turning out in front of me with not enough room. I’m yelling about it!
Combination of short and long honks: I’m pissed at what you just did. Mad enough that I want to shame you, at least enough to make your next several minutes awkward. Given the chance I’m flipping you off, or simply shaking my head in acknowledgment of your shame.
I remember reading a while back that the hazards twice = thank you.
I’d certainly interpret it that way if it fit.
The only issue I’d see with that convention is that in many scenarios in which you’d use it — other driver makes room for you to merge, brakes early to let you turn left, and so forth — you (should) already have half of the hazard lights actively repeating, which could muddle the message. But otherwise I like it.
Another random convention I learned early on was rapid triple-tap beams (i.e., like a strobe) = “speed trap ahead”
I think the fact that there isn’t a good way I think escalates a lot of otherwise defusable road rage situations.
Sorry? Hell naw. Double down. Make it their fault. Get even more mad than them. Brandish your gun. Then brandish your second gun. Fire a warning shot towards their vehicle. Finish your beer in case you need to get out of the car. Challenge other driver to fisticuffs. Lose. Go home and explain to wife why you lost another fight. Get sad. Go to bar. Get really drunk. Pass out on stoop of the Wayne County Building. Miss work for the 3rd time this month. Get fired. Get kicked out of house by wife. Move into bachelor apartment. No artwork on walls. Only Kroger brand bread, condiments, and cheese slices in fridge. See kids every other weekend. Start going to AA meetings on a whim. Find new job. Hit the gym. Find new hobbies. Meet new girlfriend. Come to terms with faults and find peace through meditation and mindfulness. Experience growth. Drive to work one day. Accidentally cut a guy off. Double down…
Bow head down slightly, lift your hand slightly like a weak wave, show a little humility in your eyes if they meet.
Just hit their car slightly with yours. You know, a love tap, to show them love and appreciation. Then show them your extended middle finger, signifying that you are standing with them in solidarity of thinking you’ve made a mistake. If you have a weapon with you, you can hold it up and show them to indicate that you are aware you could be perceived as a threat, but are making the effort to indicate that you aren’t.
I wave the back of my hand with all my fingers up except my thumb, index, ring, and pinky
I’ve seen people put both hands up a little above the steering wheel and that was probably the clearest way I’ve seen.
I find that rolling over and showing my belly, while impractical, is reliably effective at diffusing these situations.
