Caught speeding - 102mph in a 70
- Thread starter PGardner93
- Start date
If I'm honest I don't have much sympathy with you being prosecuted for the offence although the time you have had to wait is arguably unreasonable - I'm not of the holier than thou brigade but doing that speed on the public highway is totally irresponsible and dangerous .
If you do get away with it then good on you but I hope the experience has taught you a lesson - it wouldn't be just you who would be punished if you lost your job .
I would have thought if it does go to Court turn up contrite and apologetic - spending a lot of money on a lawyer will not impress the Magistrate but owning up and expressing genuine regret will have a better chance particularly if you have no previous speeding convictions.
If you do get away with it then good on you but I hope the experience has taught you a lesson - it wouldn't be just you who would be punished if you lost your job .
I would have thought if it does go to Court turn up contrite and apologetic - spending a lot of money on a lawyer will not impress the Magistrate but owning up and expressing genuine regret will have a better chance particularly if you have no previous speeding convictions.
gov said:
Just curious - why do you think so in the case where there do not seem to be other road users in the area and therefore not creating a big speed differential? Having been brought up in Continental Europe and driven through Germany since I got my license, the speed mentioned here is a fairly low cruising speed over there on smaller / busier roads than we have here.
The real serious accidents in the UK are not on the motorways, but generally on the country roads so I have no idea why a motorway offense is even taken serious.
pvr said:
I'd tend to agree with you here the speed per se is not an issue on a motorway, except tailgating, texting, racing, etc., but looking back at the first post I see no evidence the road was clear and this line posted would worry me:
"Had a nightmare, policeman was parked on a slip road and caught me fly past - apparently at 102 although I couldn't say for certain."
To me this makes it much worse that the driver didn't even know he was doing that speed, didn't see the police car and only reduced speed when he finally saw it (implied later in post). That would look really bad in court, as if the driver was not in control, unaware. If the post said "the road was clear with no other cars in sight, it was dry, clear good visibility and I was fully aware for a short distance I'd taken the car to 100 mph, etc." would seem a much better position to argue from.
I'm sure you did you high speed driving in Germany under such conditions, not unknowing of it.
All said I do hope nothing comes of this as there's enoug anguish waiting 6 months for an envelope to drop through the door.
what PVR said.
Seems like a case of 'the law say's it, it must be true'.
I can't say if i was caught i'd be able to show genuine regret, i'd be able to fake genuine regret because i'd be annoyed at myself for getting caught, but i can't say doing 102mph in my car is particularly different to 70mph.
Old, out of date speed limits etc yadda yadda.
I'm sure it's perfectly safe to be maxing out my Triumph Herald at 70mph with a braking distance of about 3 miles and the stability of a drunken giraffe though, the law says it.. right?
And this bit i really don't understand:
The law should be the law, he either is speeding, or he isn't. Whether you impress the magistrate should be irrelevant (Also, hiring a lawyer having a negative affect on your case? behave..). The reason people do over 70mph in the first place is because we all know the police don't really give a s**t unless you touch 100 because at that point, the no tolerance ban law kicks in and they actually have to act. It's like the law itself is designed to be ignored, but at 100 the law has decided the law should be followed.
Seems like a case of 'the law say's it, it must be true'.
I can't say if i was caught i'd be able to show genuine regret, i'd be able to fake genuine regret because i'd be annoyed at myself for getting caught, but i can't say doing 102mph in my car is particularly different to 70mph.
Old, out of date speed limits etc yadda yadda.
I'm sure it's perfectly safe to be maxing out my Triumph Herald at 70mph with a braking distance of about 3 miles and the stability of a drunken giraffe though, the law says it.. right?
And this bit i really don't understand:
gov said:
The law should be the law, he either is speeding, or he isn't. Whether you impress the magistrate should be irrelevant (Also, hiring a lawyer having a negative affect on your case? behave..). The reason people do over 70mph in the first place is because we all know the police don't really give a s**t unless you touch 100 because at that point, the no tolerance ban law kicks in and they actually have to act. It's like the law itself is designed to be ignored, but at 100 the law has decided the law should be followed.
pvr said:
I've not driven on Continental European motorways or driven at 100mph + but even at speeds of 75/80mph it's pretty obvious if something happens and you lose control someone ( you or someone else ) is going to get hurt - isn't this why we have speed restrictions - wasn't this why motorway speed limits were introduced - isn't this just common sense ? Leave these sort of speeds for Track days.
There will always be differing opinions - this is mine.
I have nothing to base this upon but when I'm driving at 80 on the motorway (and occasionally accelerating to 90 to overtake) I feel fairly confident that traffic cops aren't going to bother me, this is assuming I'm not driving erratically etc. It may be an urban myth, but I believe that unless I'm driving with undue care or attention I'm unlikely to be pulled unless I'm exceeding 90 (speed cameras aside). If you take any journey on a free flowing motorway and keep to 70 mph you will find yourself on the inside lane snarled up with all the HGV's and making complete a nuisance of yourself. It is quite obvious that the 70 mph speed limit isn't enforced.
gov said:
My two penny's worth
1. It's the deceleration that kills you not the speed
2. Current unrestricted road speed limits were introduced in 1965, at the time cars were built with a total disregard to occupant protection
3. Current speed limits have nothing to do with safe driving, they are an arbitrary figure created to re-assure the general public and refrain abuse thereof.
4. Speed limits do NOT make people better drivers.
5. I would bet that driving without due care and attention accounts for practically all accidents
6. If you caused an accident and someone was injured or killed, if it could be proved that you were driving without due care and attention or you were driving recklessly (70 mph in thick fog/heavy rain etcetera) then the it should be treated as attempted murder or manslaughter and you SHOULD do time, 5 to 10 years for the former and 15 to 25 years for the latter
cj10jeeper said:
I appreciate the assumptions, but 1 - the policeman was parked on the descending slip road coming onto the motorway - I would never have been able to see him until he was behind me because of physics, not because of my lack of attention.
Secondly, when travelling at 102mph - it's a bad idea to look at your speedo to check and confirm that you're travelling at 102mph, I was busy doing 102mph... That doesn't mean I'm not paying attention, it means I'm concentrating on the road ahead. I've already conceded I was 'pressing on' so to speak but I wouldn't be able to confirm that I was travelling at exactly 102mph. This is a forum remember, not a court date.
Thirdly - the road was dry, the visibility was perfect and there was very few cars on the road. I'm writing on a forum, this isnt a court date so forgive me for being slightly informal in my wording. I wasn't driving like a bell end.
simonlpearce
Senior member
The moral of this story is surely to slow down for junctions before resuming normal driving :lol: 
Speeding threads = Epic fail without fail. Why people post these up is a constant mystery.
I would say there's a case for driving without due care and attention as well as the speeding charge, if you don't know what speed your doing because your going too fast to read your speedo.....the arrogance on this thread is hilarious. That won't happen, but even so your just tying yourself up in knots trying to justify doing that speed safely, and I'm not saying that that speed and beyond can't be done safely on a motorway because it can (and be able to glance at the speedo), ask any traffic copper
However you have no right to do that speed or the training to do it, so your fair game, end of. It sounds like you've already learnt your lesson in fairness 
I would say there's a case for driving without due care and attention as well as the speeding charge, if you don't know what speed your doing because your going too fast to read your speedo.....the arrogance on this thread is hilarious. That won't happen, but even so your just tying yourself up in knots trying to justify doing that speed safely, and I'm not saying that that speed and beyond can't be done safely on a motorway because it can (and be able to glance at the speedo), ask any traffic copper
However you have no right to do that speed or the training to do it, so your fair game, end of. It sounds like you've already learnt your lesson in fairness I have to say I agree with the looking at the speedo thing, its part of the reasons that the first mod I did to my z was fit cruise control, even driving on a road at 50 or even 40 when I do not know were the cameras are I spend far too much time checking my speedo when I should be looking at the road. Normally on a 40 road I would be happy just knowing I'm doing about 40 and definitely not far enough over it to get pulled by the piolice, I can pretty much tell to within 5mph that I'll be fine with the occasional glance at the speedo... But the problem with roads littered with speed cameras is that about 40 is not good enough I have to be sure I am below 40 at all times whilst still trying to progress with the traffic = too much time looking at the speedometer.
Point is I don't see anything wrong with the OPs comment that he wasnt sure of the exact speed because anywhere near 100 your focus has to be on the road not the dash. A glance at the speedo is one thing shows you pretty much how fast you are going but to be able to give the exact speed, you are looking at it for too long!
Just another example I thought of as I was typing this, I did a track day when I got to do some laps in an MP412C (awesome experience) but had a few people ask me afterwards how fast I had gone.... The answer was not a flipping clue! Was too busy looking where I was going
Point is I don't see anything wrong with the OPs comment that he wasnt sure of the exact speed because anywhere near 100 your focus has to be on the road not the dash. A glance at the speedo is one thing shows you pretty much how fast you are going but to be able to give the exact speed, you are looking at it for too long!
Just another example I thought of as I was typing this, I did a track day when I got to do some laps in an MP412C (awesome experience) but had a few people ask me afterwards how fast I had gone.... The answer was not a flipping clue! Was too busy looking where I was going
85genius said:
But that's exactly the point, you *can* do that speed and beyond while being able to glance at the speedo totally safely and know exactly what speed your doing. The fact that the OP says he didn't because he was so focused on the road proves that he shouldn't be travelling on the public highway at that speed because he doesn't have the experience or knowledge to do so, it's as simple as that. If you find that patronising then you clearly believe your a better driver than you actually are (most people's attitude to be fair).
And if you can glance at the speedo and know your doing over 100mph and carry on doing so regardless then there's no argument really :lol:
- You can't compare a track day with lots of bends and driving at well above a normal limit with driving along in a relative straight line on a motorway!
simonlpearce said:The moral of this story is surely to slow down for junctions before resuming normal driving :lol:
Yes. A lot of traffic cars sit on the slip roads on the A1 outside of Edinburgh. I always make sure every time I go by a slip road I'm doing the speed limit for that section.
Will probably delete this thread - I was initially looking for some advice as to what people will imagine the outcome will be. It quickly turned into a condemning bunch of do good-ers that believe 100mph+ is a jail worthy sin committed by societies most disgusting creatures.
That's the most arrogant and condescending comment I've heard all week. You don't know anything about me, the cars I've driven, the experiences I've had and the circumstances I've driven in. Without sounding up my own arse, my job involves driving some rather fancy vehicles, much faster than any Z4's, I've got thousands of miles of experience on the Autobahn - reaching speeds well in excess of 102mph. Don't twist my words, 'I was SO focused on the roads' - I knew I was going fast, I was looking ahead, I hadn't seen the police, why would I even bother looking at my speedo anyway? I knew I was speeding and I was looking where I was going. (I'm not even denying that I was travelling at that speed!?!) Honestly this forum has turned to a 'Holier than thou' exhibition. Christ...
AndyBeech said:
That's the most arrogant and condescending comment I've heard all week. You don't know anything about me, the cars I've driven, the experiences I've had and the circumstances I've driven in. Without sounding up my own arse, my job involves driving some rather fancy vehicles, much faster than any Z4's, I've got thousands of miles of experience on the Autobahn - reaching speeds well in excess of 102mph. Don't twist my words, 'I was SO focused on the roads' - I knew I was going fast, I was looking ahead, I hadn't seen the police, why would I even bother looking at my speedo anyway? I knew I was speeding and I was looking where I was going. (I'm not even denying that I was travelling at that speed!?!) Honestly this forum has turned to a 'Holier than thou' exhibition. Christ...
PGardner93 said:
Hence why I said these threads always turn into an epic fail :lol: Sorry I hurt your ego, 'I knew I was speeding', is that not arrogance? Dude, honestly, best of luck with it, I never said you should end up in jail, I actually suggested earlier I very much doubt you'll get banned. If you don't want people putting in their 2 penny's then don't post it up on the internet (ie. an open forum), google it or something, loads of other people have been down the same road
simonlpearce
Senior member
PGardner93 said:
Don't be too put out, my opinion is that you were just unlucky enough to get caught. Keep on trucking my friend
