[theonefrombrum]

I've had about 12 lessons so far and by now moving off at junctions and from the side of the road is easy. If I'm waiting at a junction I'll usually just keep my foot on the brake and raise the clutch to just below the biting point and then when I take off I ease off the brake, raise the clutch and freeze it and it will begin to move forwards slowly and at this point I'll begin to apply gas.

I was wondering however if I could stop, put the car into 1 st gear and keep my right foot in the accelerator and have the clutch just below the biting point so it doesn't move off? I say this because the car moves off quite slow and it annoys me because it seems really amateur like to move off at this speed. Sorry if this sounds silly, I'm a good driver but at the moment I'm not too clued up about the internals of cars but I do plan to learn more about them soon.

[Runninground]

If you are at the junction for a while put the handbrake on, it's easier to pull away quicker.

You could do what you said, but you'd be wasting petrol.

Don't worry about not being able to pull out fast, you'll get it with time. If you want to pull out fast then you have to add more gas when you put the handbrake down to set off. Other drivers won't worry about you pulling off slowly, they were learners once too.

[theonefrombrum]

(Original post by Runninground)
If you are at the junction for a while put the handbrake on, it's easier to pull away quicker.

You could do what you said, but you'd be wasting petrol.

Don't worry about not being able to pull out fast, you'll get it with time. If you want to pull out fast then you have to add more gas when you put the handbrake down to set off. Other drivers won't worry about you pulling off slowly, they were learners once too.

Generally I will do this if I'm waiting for about 15 or more seconds but I find it a lot easier to just not use it as it can be quite time consuming and most people I see who move off fast at junctions have their brake lights on when they're stopped so obviously they must not be using the handbrake.

I'm glad to know I could do it though, im not too worried about the petrol, I'd only do it if I felt that I could move out relatively soon after I've observed the cars on the road I'm looking to to onto.

[A Mysterious Lord]

You'll burn the clutch out if you do that too often.

[e1usive]

Your not a good driver from what your asking


This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

[Mockery]

By my twelth lesson, my use of the brake at junctions was limited unless of course I was facing downhill.

[theonefrombrum]

(Original post by e1usive)
Your not a good driver from what your asking


This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

Why's that? You don't have to know what the car is capable of or how it works internally to be able to drive it well, up until today I didn't really have a clue what the clutch did and I've only stalled a few times and never really had any problems with changing gears or anything clutch related.

So yeah, why am I not a good driver?

[theonefrombrum]

(Original post by Mockery)
By my twelth lesson, my use of the brake at junctions was limited unless of course I was facing downhill.

It seems like an obvious inference but this is presumably because you did what I was asking is possible?

In my head it seems ok but I just wanted to make sure before my next lesson because I'm going to tell him that when I'm at the front of traffic lights, I want to be moving off a lot faster.

[Mockery]

(Original post by theonefrombrum)
It seems like an obvious inference but this is presumably because you did what I was asking is possible?

In my head it seems ok but I just wanted to make sure before my next lesson because I'm going to tell him that when I'm at the front of traffic lights, I want to be moving off a lot faster.

If you're able to keep a car stationary at a junction holding the biting point without stalling, and more importantly rolling back, then it only shows how confident you are in your abilities. This is one of the things my examiner praised me on in my test.

[Advisor]

(Original post by theonefrombrum)
I say this because the car moves off quite slow and it annoys me because it seems really amateur like to move off at this speed.

It annoys the examiner and other road users too. You should drive like you would out there in the real world, and "real" drivers don't take an age to move away from junctions; they use gas and make swift progress. This is especially important if you're moving away into a gap in traffic and you're trying to get away from the approaching car. You must not slow the traffic down.

I'm surprised your instructor hasn't picked up on this.

[ReadMyMind]

I've never used the brake when stationary on the road. I stop, put the car into first gear, hold it just below the bite and have my foot on the gas pedal ready to go...

[james1211]

I'd use the handbrake.

This was posted from The Student Room's Android App on my HTC Wildfire S A510e