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Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

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Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#61

Post by majewsky »

ce4 wrote: post #58
nikisweeting wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Woah it's a crime to flip someone off in a car in Germany? TIL

It's also a crime to insult people outside of cars in germany. When doing so behind the steering wheel it may result in a temporary driving ban in addition to a penalty.

IANAL, but in the German legal system, one can only be convicted on an insult charge if the insulted party explicitly requests it.

Behind the steering wheel, the situation is different because road rage will usually not be litigated as an insult, but as attempted coercion.

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#62

Post by ce4 »

kratom_sandwich wrote: post #4

Can't remember where I read this but IIRC it's not a healthy for a machine to constantly run at 100%, hence you make an engine with a peak performance of 200mph which constantly runs at a cosy speed of 100mph.

Well, that depends on the exact model/make. In Germany there's the term "vollgasfest" (full throttle proof) for cars and it means ability to e.g. empty the gas tank in the pedal-down position in one go without damage. Especially some of the foreign brands from the 70'/80's are known to overheat in such conditions and also some of the earlier turbos. Wear is of course increased under more load but i wouldn't regard it unhealthy for engine/transmission and co per se.

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#63

Post by apatil »

eitland wrote: post #41

Generally because machines should serve us instead of telling us what to do. This is an important principle for many of us. That said I generally stick to the speed limits [1], but what if I need to get to the hospital in a hurry? At least around here local laws are quite clear that you are allowed to break laws and regulations to save lives. [1]: old habit, wasn't always a well paid programmer and also I mostly thin…

We could have speed governors with an opt-out button, where use of the opt-out button gets logged and has to be justified.

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#65

Post by eitland »

apatil wrote: post #63
eitland wrote: post #41

Generally because machines should serve us instead of telling us what to do. This is an important principle for many of us. That said I generally stick to the speed limits [1], but what if I need to get to the hospital in a hurry? At least around here local laws are quite clear that you are allowed to break laws and regulations to save lives. [1]: old habit, wasn't always a well paid programmer and also I mostly thin…

We could have speed governors with an opt-out button, where use of the opt-out button gets logged and has to be justified.

This can be a good idea in certain applications, but the idea of applying it generally comes off as outright scary to me.

What history, politics and leadership classes at school (as well as following the news for a couple of decades afterwards) has told me is that such tools should be used to protect ordinary citizens against abuse of power, not to simplify the lives of those in power.

Otherwise we should just as well make it mandatory that everyone wears GPS trackers and has cameras installed in their living rooms as that should certainly reduce unsolved crimes ;-)

(To make it clear: I support the police, at least our local police, but I still think they should be logged whenever they do something at work that ordinary citizens aren't allowed to while ordinary citizens - and off duty cops for that matter - should only be logged after a judge has allowed it for the investigation of a specific case.)

Edit:

A very practical example: 3 kilometers down the road next to me there is work going on, so instead of 80 km/h the limit is 30km/h.

All well and good except the speed limit doesn't stop until a few hundred meters after the roadworks. Almost everyone breaks the speed limit here, or can we just accept that sometimes people have good reasons for breaking the rules?

Do we want all that information in the hands of already powerful people so that they can selectively enforce it against their enemies? (admittedly less of a problem here in Norway, but you catch my drift).

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#67

Post by leon_sbt »

The most simple answer:

Because people are willing to buy them.

It also supports typical human behavior. If you're neighbor has a 400hp car, to "one up" them you buy a 500hp car.

Childish? Yes. Are adults with childish behavior new to the human race? Not at all :)

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#68

Post by sawjet »

andylynch wrote: post #49
rutthenut wrote: post #24

It isn't illegal everywhere. Acceleration is a big part of the enjoyment of fast cars. That's not usually illegal. Also, having better acceleration can help reduce the 'time exposed to danger' when overtaking, which may still be below the local speed limit. Faster cars can be safer, see...

You may be conflating acceleration with velocity? Acceleration is definitely helpful (to a point , even on the track), but for instance I live in the UK where the max speed limit is 70mph, and my very ordinary car is specced to do more than double that. I don’t see the benefit of being about to do >>100mph outweighing the risks- earlier comment mentions how this arises from the need for useful torque bands in IC engi…

Can your very ordinary car maintain that top speed at a maximum duty cycle without overheating or causing unnecessary wear to the engine or drivetrain? Have you ever actually used your car at its limits? It's not something that you would want to do for long periods of time. Now imagine your cars limit is 70mph.

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#69

Post by darkr »

mcculley wrote: post #59

I would appreciate having a mode on my car that automatically sets the governor to not exceed the speed limit as found with GPS. I could turn that off if I really need to and otherwise not have to think about the speed limit.

A lot of newer cars have this already. There's an EU draft law approved for this to become mandatory for all new cars from 2022

Re: Ask HN: Why do they make cars go so fast if it’s illegal?

#70

Post by giantg2 »

DiabloD3 wrote: post #16

Disclaimer: IANAL, but also asked that question once in my youth, and went digging for the answer. They technically don't in a meaningful sense. What they do is make a car that has high torque and can accelerate 0-60 mph as quickly as possible. This has the unwanted side effect of also being able to still continue accelerating quickly past the target zone ( The acceleration in cars are designed around pretty much one…

"Some street legal cars have governors because of how exceptional their acceleration is."

Most manufacturer limits on top speed are tied to the vehicle tire speed rating (usually somewhere around 92-116mph). There are a few that are sort of an industry standard cutoff for 'safety', like 300kpm (I think) on sport bikes.

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