Hi,

I've just done my first really long journey in my RS - Watford (Herts) to Aviemore (519 miles). I _was_ going to do it in 'sensible mode', but it didn't somehow work out that way! My route was M1, M6, A74, M74, M8, A9 (without the twiddly bits at either end).

I started at 6.30 am on Sunday and covered the first 285 miles at an average of 84mph/30.9mph - the M1 being covered at 100 - 120 mph (mostly partnering an Imprezza). To the Scottish border I averaged 79mph and overall the 519 miles were averaged at 75 mph.

Ironically, I was only flashed with a speed camera driving sensibly on the return journey, somewhere in Perthshire. I just didn't slow down soon enough when I saw the limit sign (I reckon the camera was too close to the new limit sign anyway) . I just hope I'm not going to get any nasty surprises in the post!

I really shouldn't be doing this sort of thing - I'm 60+ and should have worked it out of my system when I was motor cycling in the 60's, but my RS just has that effect on me!

Regards: Jim Ford

Top stuff, hope you enjoyed it up here...........sounds like the journey was a blast!

Cheers

Hugh

Do you drive a silver vRS? if so it may have been you I saw a couple of weeks ago near Rickmansworth...

glad you enjoyed your trip. Took mine to france a couple of weeks after getting it. Loved every minute, and averaged 32mpg with a fully laden car - 5 people, luggage and of course the booze collected in calais, and the occasional speed test...

Cheers,

Keoghan

Originally posted by exFiesta in this post

Do you drive a silver vRS? if so it may have been you I saw a couple of weeks ago near Rickmansworth.

No - it's Rallye Red!

I enjoyed the trip - backpacking in the Cairngorms. Weather wasn't bad; it only rained for about 50% of the time (which counts as continuous sunshine in Scotland!). As I was camping on my own, there was bags of room in the RS for the gear - especially with the back seats down.

The climate control has been a real boon this week with the hot weather, now I'm back.

Regards: Jim Ford

No - it's Rallye Red!

I'll keep an eye out for you next time I'm in that neck of the woods

K

The A9 through Perthshire is one of the few places I don't speed (much) - there are so many cameras !

Yep, have been that route a couple of times up to Tain in Rosshire. Once past Inverness there are no speed cameras, just marked and unmarked cars instead. Shame as it's on of the best A roads going and the scenery if tops.

Hmm. Somehow I feel a nasty surprise is on its way. Unfortunatly the A9 requires speed limit driving, a few have found that out including Rangers, Celtic and Dundee players! Perth Sheriff Court seems a good place to get an autograph these days! Actually I am surprised you got flashed on the way back the way up seems to have worse hidden cameras. I no longer travel up the A9 as it is no fun and not that quick and with the new flyover to be built on the A80 it will be murder to get to. So I instead choose to go along the M8, over the Erskine Bridge, and up the A82 along Loch Lomond side. To Aviemore you can cut over the A86 and to Inverness you keep on going along the A82. The A82 is a far quicker road especially over Glen Coe.

Jim

I travel from the SE to NW England fairly regularly via the M1 and M6. If you covered the first 285miles at 84mph average (ie much faster for most of the time), I do hope that you knew about the Specs cameras at various points on the M6 ?

Apologies if you know this already, and/or slowed down, but you need to know ! :-

The Specs cameras do not flash and work out your average speed over the whole of the stretch covered by the cameras , not individual ones. A typical example is the stretch either side of the Thelwall viaduct (M6 j20 ish) which has a 40mph limit. If you were doing 80+ through that stretch then get some advice....or spiritual guidance... I'd recommend not going more than 5mph over the limit in these zones in future - despite everybody you have just overtaken passing you at 55. You can always pass them later at lower risk.

Hmm, just got back from Liverpool yesterday, cant remember seeing any zones, is there any warning or past junction 20 clear??:(

Originally posted by Fabpreza in this post

Jim

Apologies if you know this already, and/or slowed down, but you need to know ! :-

The Specs cameras do not flash and work out your average speed over the whole of the stretch covered by the cameras , not individual ones. A typical example is the stretch either side of the Thelwall viaduct (M6 j20 ish) which has a 40mph limit. If you were doing 80+ through that stretch then get some advice....or spiritual guidance... I'd recommend not going more than 5mph over the limit in these zones in future - despite everybody you have just overtaken passing you at 55. You can always pass them later at lower risk.

Gulp!!

I didn't know about those cameras!

What sort of delay is there between getting caught and receiving the notice (I'm keeping my fingers crossed)? In other words - when can I sleep easy at night again?

Regards: Jim Ford

I seem to recall reading it being somewhere along the lines of 3 weeks.

14 days for issuing the NIP I believe heres the ruling best of luck,

"A Notice of intended prosecution is a warning that should be given by the police following the commission of a number of offences, such as speeding and driving without due care and attention (but only when no accident has resulted from this latter charge or if the driver would be unlikely to know that an accident had occurred) and is intended to let a driver know that he has either been photographed committing one of these offences or that a complaint has been made so that he can refresh his memory of the incident. The warning can be given in either a verbal manner at the time of the incident, such as when you get stopped for speeding by a patrol officer, or within 14 days of the incident by post. This would be done in cases of GATSO speed detection or when a complaint is made by another motorist, for instance, of your manner of driving. This form must be issued within 14 days to the registered owner of the vehicle. It does not have to reach that person within 14 days and the recipient does not need to have been the driver at the time."

John

Originally posted by stopan1j in this post

14 days for issuing the NIP I believe heres the ruling best of luck,

"This form must be issued within 14 days to the registered owner of the vehicle. It does not have to reach that person within 14 days and the recipient does not need to have been the driver at the time."

John

I might - I just might be in luck for the blast North! It's now 17 days since I went up! I might also be lucky for the journey down - I was slowing down at the time I was flashed in Perthshire (also there might not have been film in the camera).

There's a lesson for me somewhere there, but I don't know whether I'll learn it. Seriously though, probably the best thing I should do is get rid of the RS and get something more sensible!

Regards: Jim Ford

If its a particularly busy road, you may be in luck, as the film for a normal Gatso costs a fortune, and a lot of Police forces can't afford to keep re-loading the cameras

This form must be issued within 14 days to the registered owner of the vehicle. It does not have to reach that person within 14 days

So what if good old mr Royal Mail loses it inside its sorting offices... ?

You're still f***ed I'm afraid !

Jim, Monkey & co

The point about the Specs (as opposed to Gatso and Truvelo static cameras) is:-

1) They measure your average speed over the whole distance (eg 2-4 miles) that the cameras are covering, so if you are going too fast and then slow down, your average speed may still be too high.

2) They don't need film

3) They are not easy to spot (especially at night) as they are gantry rather than pedestal mounted.

Look out for the yellow/orange backboards IF they've put them up !

The GPS devices do help (Morpheous, Road Angel etc) as they are least remind you about them.

You may be lucky Jim as they cleared the stretch (partly) between Sandbach and Knutsford the other week and part of the the chunk around Birmingham near the M42 turn had also gone. So that leaves the Thelwall stretch at 40mph... Fingers crossed for you.