HWY23FH010.aspx is the investigation brief
What I was thinking of was if the user entered a wrong SL and then got a ticket, could he sue Garmin for allowing him to be able to change that data? Also, I think when you do an Garmin map update, it also updates the speed limit data. I hope so because speed limits are always changing.
Many cars have speed-LIMITERs often to allow tires with a lower speed rating or to prevent vehicles that should NOT go over xx speeds for reasons of physics…
My truck is limited to 99 mph for darn good reasons (6000 lbs of truck) but it is not an impediment to me punching it at 70 up to 85 to avoid a possible accident.
My new Mustang is limited to 155 mph while the manual version can reach about 166 mph. I don’t know why but the only place I am likely to reach that limiter is Daytona International Speedway. And I’d really like to TRY that!
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How about your airbags? Have you ever used those? Same logic.
My wife has used her airbag once - a head-on crash when another car ran a red light. And accelerated out of a potential crash of a skidding semi truck and trailer. She punched it and drove past the truck before it was completely sideways and tipped over. Made me so proud!
You don’t think you need it until you NEED it.
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Sue Garmin ? Not a chance other than wasting money.
I recall reading a 1951 “drive report” in either Popular Mechanics, or Mechanix Illustrated, or Popular Science. I don’t recall which one because we subscribed to all 3.
Anyway, the author of the article had just finished his evaluation of a Chrysler New Yorker with the then-new Hemi V8. He noted–and emphasized–that he had been able to avoid a collision only because that car had (for the time) excellent acceleration. He stated that he had never before viewed strong acceleration to be a safety factor, but that incident turned him into a believer.
The ability to accelerate strongly has the potential to save a driver from some nasty situations.
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In between those is reckless endangerment- a criminal offense as well. Exceed the speed limit by too much and it can go from a civil infraction to a criminal one…deservedly so for some of these morons…
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Leave it to an engineer to bring a logical answer… 
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Yes, Virginia has implemented variable speed limits (VSLs) on I-95 northbound between mile markers 115 and 130 in Caroline and Spotsylvania counties, and the city of Fredericksburg. These VSLs are dynamic signs that adjust the posted speed limit based on real-time traffic conditions to enhance safety and improve traffic flow.
I do not know how well the speed limiting systems works in situations like this but I imagine that it is using a database, not live updates, and the operator could take advantage of this situation if the speed is reduced and the datebase says differently… But I have to believer that the drivers who have this device on their vehicles are not driving with the “petal to the metal” and now would be a bit more careful… Additionally, if the speed is reduced it is also less likely for that person to take advantage since there would be heavy traffic…
My car is limited to 155 mph also. I’d love to do Daytona but, I have a convertible so that’s a NO GO. Damnit.
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My only issue with the VSL signs are, since the signs are not every few feet, a lot of (maybe even most) people don’t pay attention to signs in the 1st place, but even more so if you are paying very close attention to the vehicles around you, you might not see the sign because you were checking your mirrors trying to make a lane change for whatever reason, now a sign lowers the speed and you missed it and you are doing the prior speed shown, and you get a ticket for speeding, I see that being an issue, or even being an issue being abused either by a LEO or by a driver saying they didn’t see the speed change when they really did..
This of course is pure speculation as I have never seen a VSL sign nor know how they are set up…
I love how the school bus is in the far left fastest speed lane, 40 vs 30 mph… 
Yeah, we not that fancy down in the Nashville area that I have seen… However I have missed overhead road signs while paying attention to traffic…
That’s the HOV/car pool lane
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The VSL signs are more visible than the usual speed limit signs. The numbers are larger and since they are lit up they are easier to see.
The transportation authority has an algorithm they use to determine when to change the speed limit. It’s based on weather and traffic flow. There are traffic monitoring cameras on overpasses and it’s easy to see traffic flow. Here’s Virginia’s take onVSLs. It’s everything you want to know (and don’t want to know) about their system.
Well I’m not sure the concept makes sense. Wouldn’t traffic conditions automatically slow traffic? And in heavy use, would you really want to reduce road capacity more by reducing speed?
The variable speed limit is theoretically supposed to improve throughput for a given demand. Everyone has to have experienced what I call the slinky effect. I live this daily now. That’s where traffic backs up enough to come to a standstill. People go as fast as the traffic will allow once it starts moving again. Which invariably ends up so congested, it’s goes back to a standstill. This process repeats like a slinky moves. In theory, if they set the speed limit based on the vehicle volume, they should all be able to keep rolling at a steady pace. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast…BUT, there’s always those people that cannot play along…
I drive a long section of interstate that suffers greatly from slinky effect. However, I see more and more people slow rolling, creating gaps that can take up the slack when the inevitable slinky stop happens. This helps eliminate some fraction of those but not all of them. People see the gap and dive in, thinking they will get ahead. And then it screeches to a halt again…lather, rinse, repeat.
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Been there too often, so many times it may be one car pulled over off the expressway. Gapers delay!
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Not just gapers. Semis slow down and take forever to get back up to highway speeds. Any traffic issue that slows down progress can lead to a couple hour snarl if traffic is heavy enough. I’ve seen several backups on I-95 without any vehicles or broken parts on the shoulder.
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… and then, when traffic suddenly gets back to normal speeds, you have to wonder… What the heck was that all about?
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