Why do Americans drive so fast?

[jayliu1984]

I recently did a 600 mile round trip from Vancouver Canada, to Portland Oregon in my 2009 I4 Accord.

To make the solo trip less boring, I decided to try to get the best mileage possible, which of course include drafting big tour bus and semi.

Oh my do Americans drive fast... Those semis.... all going 65+, and all other cars must be doing 75-80.

USA is sure a nation on wheels, it is so freaking busy that I end up getting stuck in traffic half the time doing 20-40.

Needless to say, my plan to minimize fuel comsumption is a wash. But nevertheless, the car did pretty well with 42MPG over the 600 mile trip (EPA is 27MPG).

I find that going at 65mph, drafting a semi will net 10-15% fuel save (1 semi length in between, I felt pretty safe).

Going lower than 55mph, there is virtually no difference.

And the best strech of highway I had, is the section within Canada on a flat, newly paved empty highway and I was tired so I was doing 52mph, and the car managed 55MPG.

Why can't we all drive at 55mph? I am starting to like the highway in Canada where the speed limits are usually 56-65MPH, so I never felt pressured going at 56.

[nemo]

Cheap gas, long travel distances, little enforcement of psl and many people seem to think it's their "god given right".

[oil pan 4]

You think we drive fast in the US?
I take it you have never been to germany.

[redyaris]

Let me see Toronto highway 401 driving at the posted speed limit 110km/h [70mph] in the rain, at night, I was being passed like I was parked. Or highway 2 from Calgary to Edmonton Alberta, you need to be going 120km/h [75mph] before only cars and pickup trucks are passing you...

[elhigh]

Stepping right along at the posted speed limit of 110kmh on TCH 17, about a half-hour east of Marathon ON, I got passed by a couple of trucks and a stack of cars all moving at around 150kmh. It was like getting passed up by the Starship Enterprise and a fleet of shuttlecraft all at Warp Factor Three. Whoosh.

So when you say Americans drive fast, you mean North Americans, right? Because it ain't just a States thing.

[redyaris]

They were probably being chased by The Borge...
"resistance is futile" follow the heard...

[101Volts]

Why do some Americans drive so fast? I have no idea. Want to ask some people? I can say that the faster they go, The more it costs them in fuel and safety and more - Pity the man who has a blowout at 75 MPH!

People really don't need to go over the speed limit. If they slow down they'll be less likely to hit a deer, For example and it'll cost a lot less in gas money.

I was once going the speed limit of 45 MPH or so at a place I guesstimate is about five or six miles away and some people in a corvette passed me, Speeding. About 2.3 miles later I caught up to them at a red light; I was in the second car behind them so speeding saved them no time at all but cost them more in gas money and potential safety hazards.

[Fat Charlie]

We drive so fast for the same reason we eat too much, invade too many countries, clog the airwaves with too much Taylor Swift and fill the TV listings with too many "reality" shows: We don't always think things through.

[Frank Lee]

If you want to see real Uhmericans list the reasons why they do the stupid things they do, check out the forums over at GasBuddy. I've never seen such a collection of stupid all in one place.

[jimd]

Put it this way, I was driving the PSL and a Cop comes up and rides my A$$ till I pull over to let him by and he was in a hurry to go nowhere BTW.