Yielding to readers’ questions about speed bumps

Today’s question: Sometimes I see drivers trying to go over speed bumps at an angle? Does this make for a smoother ride? What is the best speed to use for speed bumps? In the interest of full disclosure, these are amalgamations of some speed-bump questions that seem to be coming in a lot lately.

You people sometimes just seem to generate similar questions spontaneously. I’ve also been getting a lot questions lately about handshakes, apparently because of our president. I don’t understand it. So let’s just move along, shall we? Some people try to sort of walk their low-slung cars across speed bumps, approaching them at an angle.

This is not an especially good idea.

If you go over a speed bump the usual way you are stressing your car’s suspension in one direction — front to back.

If you go over a speed bump at an angle you are stressing the suspensions not only front to back but also sideways. So why bother? As for speed, use some common sense, OK?

I’d say about 20 mph or less, but some of those little skinny bumps probably are best approached down to walking speed.

The really dumb thing you sometimes see drivers do is to slow down for a speed bump and then accelerate rapidly just to have to slow down a hundred feet later for another bump. They do the same thing with stop signs.

It’s dumb because of the extra wear and tear on your brakes and also because I said so.