Point Taken guys. It's normal around here for local street roads to have 2 car distance....

Ive gotten a tailgating ticket before =( stupid cop... i was 25-30 ft away from the car in front of me

how fast were you going? 25-30 feet at 85 IS tailgating :)

What's the rule of thumb here, 1 car length for every 10 mph? How can you not tailgate based upon that? I do not consider myself a tailgater. I do not intimidate, push someone out of my way or ride their arse. I'll go around them. How is it possible to keep 6 car lengths while doing the limit in NJ/NJ? Maybe in anywhere USA but not in the heavily congested areas. If it's off hours and no one is on the road, then the 1 car length for every 10 mph is fine.

no where that close..... 30-35mph on the street.
The OP occurred off the hway

it doesn't feel like I tailgate, but many people who ride with me say that I get really close to the car in front of me

The Rule of Thumb I use: When the car infront passes any stationary item it has to take me 2 seconds to reach the same spot. I got this from Rules of the Road and it works. I would love to say that I always use this rule, but in some situations it's not practical - still - a good rule of thumb IMO :)

I so clicked on this thread expecting to read about grilling out before the game. Darn.

And I may follow people but only for a few seconds. I hate hate hate tailgaters.

that there is the reason y, when i come to a stop sign or traffic light, i try and
stop far enough back that i can see their rear tires on the pavement. there are
other good reasons to give that distance also (i.e. if u get rear-ended, u avoid
hitting the guy in front of u).

there was traffic and we were all going 70... i think he pulled me over because i had out of state plates so he figured its an easy way to make money for the state...