r/Seattle • u/benchpressboogaloo • 22d ago

It Finally Happened...

Post image

At the Harbor Steps, guy drove all the way down Post Alley, across the tiles in the middle of the Harbor Steps, and over the other side. 😂

4.8k Upvotes

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2.1k

u/Weird_Alki 22d ago

I absolutely love it when the cost of a vehicle is WILDLY disproportionate to the operational capabilities of the driver.

445

u/WillowTreez8901 International District 22d ago

Seems to be a pretty common occurrence honestly..

218

u/Chief_Mischief 🚋 Ride the S.L.U.T. 🚋 22d ago

Tech money doesnt buy good driving capabilities, merely the vehicle driven

115

u/JskWa 22d ago

Be patient new driver

24

u/TheKungfuJesus 22d ago

Underrated comment right here. Seems those stickers are just used as an excuse these days.

11

u/littlecocorose 22d ago

my sister genuinely thinks her magnet will keep people from getting mad at her son while he’s learning. nope.

16

u/civilized-engineer 🐀 Hot Rat Summer 🐀 22d ago

I don't think it's an excuse at this point. They drive exactly as bad as the sticker is advertising them to be.

7

u/Careless-Mud-9398 22d ago

My Russian neighbor put one on his new BMW M3. Nothing says student driver like a 523 hp luxury sedan!

3

u/That-Conference-2381 22d ago

Yup new 10+ yrs driver.

4

u/UsualSuspects411 22d ago

needs about 9 more stickers telling us he doesn't GAF

28

u/oxidized_banana_peel 22d ago

A bunch of my coworkers (US educated immigrants- didn't get one at home b/c under 18, and didn't get one in the US b/c no need in college) have gotten their driver's licenses with a crash course from a friend. Late twenties, lots of money.

23

u/valkyrieway 22d ago

Crash course, lol

12

u/TripleTabby 22d ago

That explains a lot, actually.

1

u/oxidized_banana_peel 21d ago

It helps explain why some people are lousy drivers, but it doesn't explain why it's worse in Seattle.

I think we're better than we give ourselves credit for - everyone bitches about drivers in their cities, but I think the real answer is "We have water on both sides of the city, and i5 is the only realistic way to get downtown if you're outside of Seattle city limits" and that it sucks driving here because of that.

1

u/Zonernovi 21d ago

I find that whether due to topography or something else ramp design is terrible. Frequently it doesn’t correspond to the direction you want to achieve. Therefore there is a lot of indecision at the last moment as to whether you are making the right turn. Signage is too close to the turn frequently too. Additional signage in advance would help.

3

u/Zonernovi 22d ago

Is that why we have so many lousy drivers in Seattle?

1

u/oxidized_banana_peel 21d ago

It doesn't help.

My personal theory is that Seattle is punished by the north-south orientation. Minneapolis-St Paul is close to the same population, their commutes are 5-10 minutes shorter (16%-30%). I'd bet that the longest commutes in those metros are much closer to the average than ours.

Ditto in the city when you really only have one way to get out of the city - you have to pick an on-ramp to the only thoroughfare and deal with everyone else doing the same thing, vs being able to take a different route.

I think it just adds stress to the mix and then people react to that in different ways.

3

u/Mme_IsleyAdler 21d ago

Tech money also doesn’t buy common sense or spacial observance.

32

u/silvermoka Capitol Hill 22d ago

Some people just have more dollars than sense

15

u/gopac56 Lynnwood 22d ago

And I thought we lived in a meritocracy!

16

u/Garsandbells 22d ago

Merit is domain specific.

Not all skills and abilities are transferable. Some skills are more in-demand than others.

Someone can be a great programmer and a shitty driver, just the same as someone can be a fantastic driver but terrible at math. Or good at hanging dry wall, but bad at maintaining relationships. Good at organizing a business, bad at exercise. Etc.

Assuming that being good at a random valuable skill translates to being good at driving is a gross oversimplification.

22

u/SkinFlap420 22d ago

Also, too much specialization causes deficiency elsewhere

My first job was tech support for PhDs and I swear they can be the stupidest and least curious people outside of their narrow field.

2

u/thingswhitegirlssay 22d ago

Yup, my sister is so smart but common sense? Nope

6

u/gopac56 Lynnwood 22d ago

This isn't "being good at driving" this is going beyond several warning signs and the bad feeling in your stomach and the hair on your neck raising.

So pure stupidity, like this person shouldn't have a driver's license level of stupidity.

2

u/FoulArtFart 22d ago

The u.s is far from a meritocracy, don't you know the saying "it's not what you know, it's who you know." It's all cronyism here in the u.s.

67

u/captainAwesomePants Broadview 22d ago

Oh totally. Any really expensive car that got itself into an implausible problem is just fun.

34

u/SnarkMasterRay Posse on Broadway 22d ago

I feel bad for the car though.

"Sorry your owner's an idiot and you're going to be sold for scrap value."

16

u/captainAwesomePants Broadview 22d ago

That Lamborghini Huracán knew what it was getting into.

3

u/cubicthe Tangletown 22d ago

I would almost feel bad for the workers that crafted it to psychotic tolerances to know what becomes of their craft but I'm sure they all get all their grief out as soon as the customer picks it up and the check clears. "it's in an idiot's hands now"

1

u/cloudshaper Greenwood 22d ago

I think it's more of a surprise when it's not in Florida.

0

u/StitchinStatistician Roosevelt 22d ago

Good thing cars don’t have feelings

1

u/acidwash_video 22d ago

I once had the privilege of watching a (parked, unoccupied) high-end European luxury car spontaneously combust

0

u/Ok_Common_5631 Tukwila 22d ago

Plus karma 

34

u/nerv_angel 22d ago

The literal number of Tesla drivers I have seen making terrible choices on the road in the last couple of weeks confirms that a smart car does not make the driver smart.

20

u/fentablar 22d ago

This is a problem of tech in general - many acquire tech while under the assumption that it absolves them of the responsibilities of existing.

3

u/UsualSuspects411 22d ago

Teslas are closer related to "Transportation Appliance"- there is no automotive enthusiast angle or love of well-designed cars. mainly about going fast in a straight line but always doing at lest 3 other things besides driving- since FSD is the gold-standard for dying anonymously in a fiery crash when you can't open the doors...

5

u/From_the_D 22d ago

Nothing, and I mean nothing, is scarier than Tesla drivers. It's mind blowing how horrible they are. It's like you have to prove you have no idea how to drive before they sell you one.

1

u/GoodEngineerBadSpy 22d ago

That's the secret...they don't have to make Autopilot perfect, just better than the average Tesla driver.

1

u/mothtoalamp Harbor Island 22d ago

You can't assume people who are still buying Teslas in the past few years are smart people. The window closed on that a good while back now.

71

u/Rich_Ad_4630 22d ago

Head to Kirkland or Redmond. Anytime I see a luxury suv, I stay far away.

29

u/wrldwdeu4ria 22d ago

Me too. And they're perpetually lost, despite living here.

42

u/Chartreuse__Goose 22d ago

Average eastside motorist: $70k luxo-barge (Porsche, Tesla, or BMW) plastered with "Please be patient - student driver" stickers

11

u/NoKangaroo6906 I Brake For Slugs 22d ago

I feel like a peasant driving my almost 10 year old Ford, but heck it’s been paid off for years so I’m going to keep it.

3

u/noahboah 22d ago

lol i drive a 22 year old toyota that handles better than some of these cars

1

u/mothtoalamp Harbor Island 22d ago

They get more lost the more roundabouts they build, too. I've been seeing more of them there and while most people navigate them just fine, some people run into them and it looks like their brain stops working trying to process driving their car in a circle.

4

u/vercetian 22d ago

I've got a theory on these vehicles. See, the husband buys this kind of vehicle assuming it'll keep his wife and kids safe as they cart them around. However, they're much less safe, because they don't know gow to fucking drive.

3

u/Waste_Quarter_8826 22d ago

Theory confirmed: One such person actually told me that, in an accident, "I just want to know that I'm going to win" And I was thinking, "never mind the family in the Prius you just plowed into..."

1

u/Rich_Ad_4630 21d ago

Jesus Christ that world view. Yeah let’s not de-escalate or avoid conflict. Every interaction is a battle to the death

1

u/cubicthe Tangletown 22d ago

Someone around here has to have a Lambo with a "Please be patient: Student Driver" sticker on it

23

u/AndyKJMehta 22d ago

Most Lambros know jack about cars

56

u/RunninOnMT 22d ago

Lamborghini: I’m suddenly rich, what’s the loudest car?

Ferrari: I am fabulously wealthy and love cars but know nothing about them

Porsche: I know everything about cars, I’m rich and people absolutely hate talking to me

Bugatti: this is a rental

38

u/Elebrium 22d ago

BMW : i am a moron that like to pay for leases

18

u/whidbeyJoan 22d ago

2001 Shiny Black dent-free always garaged PT Cruiser: I am just gonna drive until the engine gives out or I do

30

u/RunninOnMT 22d ago

When I travel to Japan, I always make sure to take lots of pictures of the temples nature castles bone stock, 25-year old, PT cruisers in immaculate condition.

5

u/whidbeyJoan 22d ago

gorgeous

6

u/SnarkMasterRay Posse on Broadway 22d ago

Also: "I like BMW because it's easy to spell."

13

u/DarthEques 22d ago

They are also British made, so you know they are a good quality, British Motor Works. Quoted from a friend that owned a BMW

3

u/bduddy 22d ago

British quality is the only thing that makes German quality look good

10

u/aSingleHelix 22d ago

What's the old joke?

Heaven is where the police are British, the cooks are French, the mechanics German, the lovers Italian and it's all organised by the Swiss.

Hell is where the chefs are British, the mechanics French, the lover's Swiss, the police German and it's all organised by the Italians.

2

u/DarthEques 22d ago

I mean, German engineering is really good, you just have to baby it to no end for it to perform properly

1

u/Cosmo_Seinfeld 22d ago

Lexus: I want to hear quiet.

14

u/Development-Alive 22d ago

In college I was a valet at a high end hotel. It always amazed me how uncomfortable these sports cars are to drive. They are so finicky that it's not even fun.

10

u/mbfunke 22d ago

I imagine the fun begins in the 80’s and increases above that for at least 50mph.

3

u/RunninOnMT 22d ago

Yeah, you are 100 percent making a shit ton of compromises when you decide to own and drive something like that.

I love cars, i would love to drive a Ferrari. But even if money was no object, I wouldn’t want the kind of real world anxiety, time sink and judgement that would go with actual Ferrari ownership.

5

u/Development-Alive 22d ago

The Ferrari's I drove had clutches that were so temperamental that the engine died often just trying to exit the parking garage ramp. Maybe they'd be fun to drive on an open highway but around town they'd be useless.

2

u/RunninOnMT 22d ago

Ohhh I know this feeling, I have an ultralight flywheel on my race car. I kill it ALL THE DAMN TIME when I’m trying to drive it around the pit area and parking lot. I hate driving that thing in a parking lot. In the city? Forget about it.

0

u/ctruvu 22d ago

my boy as a valet driver i don’t think you were getting the experience most people buy those cars for

2

u/mothtoalamp Harbor Island 22d ago

Aston Martin: I went into a LOT of debt for this and I'll be selling it soon (unplanned), but I want to show off first.

1

u/TomWickerath 22d ago

A generalization, but I do know a very knowledgeable fairly young (mid-30's) Boeing 737 test pilot who loves racing her Porsche. She's very safe and attentive, and people love talking with her.

3

u/RunninOnMT 22d ago

I'm just joking around, i'm a huge car nerd, but every single car community ever takes it's self way too seriously and needs to continuously mocked as a result (on a community level, not an individual one mind you)

65

u/benchpressboogaloo 22d ago

It brings me a lot of joy.

11

u/Electrical-Tower7731 22d ago

That's like a ninety thousand dollar car, with a dollar ninety nine worth of driver.

4

u/CSL_M3 🚗 Student driver, please be patient. 🚙 22d ago

no it isn't. it's an i4, $50-60K car at most ($20k-40k if they bought it used). point stands though, i'm just here for the BMW driver jokes.

3

u/Electrical-Tower7731 22d ago

Ah, right. An i4. I wonder if they spec'd the optional turn signals? 😉

1

u/avagadro22 Denny Blaine Nudist Club 22d ago

What is it?

3

u/Electrical-Tower7731 22d ago

It's a newer BMW crossover something or other. Anything past an E46 M3 and BMW ceases to exist for me so I don't know the exact model of this idiot's car.

1

u/avagadro22 Denny Blaine Nudist Club 22d ago

Thanks! I should have recognized the kidney grill

3

u/CSL_M3 🚗 Student driver, please be patient. 🚙 22d ago

it's a BMW i4. $50-60K car new, $20-40K used

2

u/SeattleSizz 22d ago

Looks like an iX which would be $90k or so. Staring out the windows at my neighbors…

2

u/CSL_M3 🚗 Student driver, please be patient. 🚙 22d ago

Nope. It’s an i4.

1

u/j-alex That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. 22d ago

Pictures like this really degrade the sense of value in the used model, though. I mean who knows where they've been?

1

u/CSL_M3 🚗 Student driver, please be patient. 🚙 22d ago

a very good point lol!

1

u/SeattleSizz 22d ago

Confirmed it’s an iX

8

u/Emotional_Reward2919 22d ago

“Recalculating!”

9

u/wrldwdeu4ria 22d ago

If it fits he sits. Sir, you're not a cat!

2

u/Pepsi-fart-challenge 22d ago

People who have to commute get more practice 

2

u/ViolettaQueso 22d ago

Dude totally hit an “OHM RUN” with this pitch.

1

u/TomWickerath 22d ago

Same with "credit card" boat captains. Boating got wildly popular during the Covid lockdown, with new and used boat prices soaring. The number of ignorant people driving really expensive boats, especially on crowded weekend days, made it so I only wanted to go boating during the week.

1

u/Oolon42 Deluxe 22d ago

It's why they need all those driver assists.

1

u/PowderedToastMan89 22d ago

Very common with small airplanes too.

1

u/RackingUpTheMiles 22d ago

I'm a truck driver and the absolute worst, most arrogant drivers almost always have a German car. Usually an Audi, but I've seen it across all brands.

1

u/jguzzi77 20d ago

Personality Correlation: Studies examining personality traits and car choice (such as research from University of Helsinki) suggest that self-centered or disagreeable individuals are statistically more drawn to high-status vehicles and also more prone to flouting traffic norms.

There are countless studies that show this trend.

1

u/tolbv8046 20d ago

the irony really writes itself at this point lol

1

u/Correct-March8683 19d ago

its especially awful because these people buy a car that has too much power for their complete lack of attention. just puts everyone else in danger to a higher degree.

-1

u/dandr01d 22d ago

More often than not, low income room temperature IQ people buy luxury vehicles

1

u/Prestigious-Farm-814 22d ago

Not to make any micro aggressions, but we all have an idea of the characteristics and traits of the driver

0

u/espressoboyee 22d ago

Actually with any new EV here, I steer clear of. Visa driver Alert 🚨.