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Question for people from places like India where they honk a lot while driving....

So, what is is about the culture that makes this practice acceptable? It honestly seems a bit primitive to me.

You would think that if it served no purpose, people would realize it was annoying and useless and they would stop doing it.
 
Haven't been to india, but I've been to Taiwan, Korea, etc the c/j/k countries and they do it all the time. I chalk it up on them being impatient. Parents grew up overaseas and I remember they used to talk about how once they came to the states that driving was a lot less stressful.

Used to have several coworkers from vietnam that would joke about driving around in Hanoi or Saigon, if someone got ran over in traffic jaywalking, no one would bat an eye on the victims.
 
Leros said:
So, what is is about the culture that makes this practice acceptable? It honestly seems a bit primitive to me.

You would think that if it served no purpose, people would realize it was annoying and useless and they would stop doing it.
Click to expand...

maybe cars don't have side view mirrors so when someone behind honks you can know that they are approaching?
 
Leros said:
So, what is is about the culture that makes this practice acceptable? It honestly seems a bit primitive to me.

You would think that if it served no purpose, people would realize it was annoying and useless and they would stop doing it.
Click to expand...

LOL, look who you're talking about. India has one of the most backward cultures in the world.
 
Leros said:
So, what is is about the culture that makes this practice acceptable? It honestly seems a bit primitive to me.

You would think that if it served no purpose, people would realize it was annoying and useless and they would stop doing it.
Click to expand...

Poor training, in the beginning, and then it becomes a habit.

Culturally, perhaps a "why sweat the small stuff?" mentality.
 
I do it when people pass me when I am already going the limit, or they don't want to wait for where the speed limit increaes. I'll also honk at people that go by driving too fast on the high way.

I do it just to let them know they are driving like an idiot.
 
The Italians are famous for it as well. And if you ever go to the Arc de Triomphe roundabout in Paris, you can't hear anything for the honking.
 
When someone honks at you, you are expected to yield and let them by.

Oh wait, wrong thread, that was for people speeding in the left lane.
 
Jumpem said:
I do it when people pass me when I am already going the limit, or they don't want to wait for where the speed limit increaes. I'll also honk at people that go by driving too fast on the high way.

I do it just to let them know they are driving like an idiot.
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Funny guy.
 
If I recall correctly, in India they also turn off their engines at red lights "to save gas".

Of course, when the light changes to green, they rev up the engines for a few seconds and tend to replace their starters every couple months.

MotionMan
 
MotionMan said:
If I recall correctly, in India they also turn off their engines at red lights "to save gas".

Of course, when the light changes to green, they rev up the engines for a few seconds and tend to replace their starters every couple months.

MotionMan
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iunno, never seen it myself. but i guess if one dude saw it, the whole country must be doing it...
 
Inspector Jihad said:
your post made it seem like you heard or read it somewhere. maybe you didn't and its some cultural thing i missed.
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That does not explain why you were such a jerk in your response.

That being said, my brother reported seeing it during his travels (and having a long discussion with many taxi drivers about it) and I believe he said it was in India. I also read about it.

That is the reason my statement was equivocal - I was looking for confirmation from others in case I had the country wrong.

MotionMan
 
MotionMan said:
That does not explain why you were such a jerk in your response.

That being said, my brother reported seeing it during his travels (and having a long discussion with many taxi drivers about it) and I believe he said it was in India. I also read about it.

That is the reason my statement was equivocal - I was looking for confirmation from others in case I had the country wrong.

MotionMan
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come on, was my post really that jerkish? guess, i've been in p&n too long 😛
 
Honking is very important part of driving, in fact its very unsafe to drive without one. All imported cars have special heavy duty horns put in them with 40,000+ cycle per year capability as per govt rules.

This is how it work, as no one follows any driving rules, anyone can go anywhere, you might be driving in a straight line at your own speed or crossing an intersection when its green but you don't know who might be coming behind you or crossing in front of you. Its simply not humanly possible to keep an eye in all directions. So basicall the rule is you drive however you want to drive, wherever you want to drive and if someone is coming faster behind you or going to sneak past you or crossing your path they will honk to let you know that they are coming. Similarly, you need to honk every time to get close to anyone or about to pass anyone or simply crossing an intersection.

In its simplest form you announce your presence or ascertain your precedence. So now you might be wondering if everyone is doing this then who wins? well... everyone chooses their battles based on their position in the traffic. Its complicated, only someone driving there can fully understand that.

That's not to say there there are no accidents or fights or road rage, but compared to the number of vehicles on the street its still insignificant. The key is speed, no one actually travel at more than 20 mph so accidents are not that severe..
 
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MotionMan said:
That does not explain why you were such a jerk in your response.

That being said, my brother reported seeing it during his travels (and having a long discussion with many taxi drivers about it) and I believe he said it was in India. I also read about it.

That is the reason my statement was equivocal - I was looking for confirmation from others in case I had the country wrong.

MotionMan
Click to expand...

Not everyone does that. Govt. actually issued a PSA on turning off your engines if you are going to stop for more than 90 sec. In major junctions they actually installed countdown timers to let the drivers know exactly how long they need to be there.

Personally, I don't have a problem with that.. if people followed that.. I guess junctions would atleast be a bit less polluted.
 
I read an article about driving instruction in rural China (which didn't exist 10 years ago), and these old dudes who haven't really driven more than 5 years that are teaching these courses, teach you that the horn is your best friend.

I think it's the first thing you learn to operate before turning on the engine.
 
DesiPower said:
Honking is very important part of driving, in fact its very unsafe to drive without one. All imported cars have special heavy duty horns put in them with 40,000+ cycle per year capability as per govt rules.

This is how it work, as no one follows any driving rules, anyone can go anywhere, you might be driving in a straight line at your own speed or crossing an intersection when its green but you don't know who might be coming behind you or crossing in front of you. Its simply not humanly possible to keep an eye in all directions. So basicall the rule is you drive however you want to drive, wherever you want to drive and if someone is coming faster behind you or going to sneak past you or crossing your path they will honk to let you know that they are coming. Similarly, you need to honk every time to get close to anyone or about to pass anyone or simply crossing an intersection.

In its simplest form you announce your presence or ascertain your precedence. So now you might be wondering if everyone is doing this then who wins? well... everyone chooses their battles based on their position in the traffic. Its complicated, only someone driving there can fully understand that.

That's not to say there there are no accidents or fights or road rage, but compared to the number of vehicles on the street its still insignificant. The key is speed, no one actually travel at more than 20 mph so accidents are not that severe..
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yeah, that's pretty much it, I think.

no rules, no regulations, no consistent signals or signage to let people know wtf they are supposed to do, your horn is your friend.
 
zinfamous said:
no rules, no regulations, no consistent signals or signage to let people know wtf they are supposed to do, your horn is your friend.
Click to expand...

You know.. what is surprising is that.. they never teach people about blind spots. I don't think no one there knows the idea of a blind spot. I drove there for ~3 years and I had no idea about that.. until I studied for a preliminary license test in the US. :ninja:
 
busydude said:
Not everyone does that. Govt. actually issued a PSA on turning off your engines if you are going to stop for more than 90 sec. In major junctions they actually installed countdown timers to let the drivers know exactly how long they need to be there.

Personally, I don't have a problem with that.. if people followed that.. I guess junctions would atleast be a bit less polluted.
Click to expand...

Maybe this is a better discussion for the Garage, but it would seem to me that it would be a wash when it comes to pollution and gase savings and a loss when is comes to replacing starters and other parts that get nailed on startup. Imagine how much wear and tear your engine would endure if you started it 30-40 times (or more) a DAY.

MotionMan
 
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