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Advanced Driving
I'm going to put a number of posts up here about advanced driving, some of them will be quite long but I'll try and always keep them relevant and interesting. Please feel free to comment or PM me.
Note that these are advanced techniques, so if you're still working towards your L test feel free to read but be careful which methods you use. Some of the things that are standard in advanced driving aren't gospel with the ADIs and testers. Safest course is drive to pass your test, then learn to drive properly.
In truth, you shouldn't fail your test if you drive in the way proposed below but some instructors feel that it's too much to learn from the start and some instructors feel some of the techniques are too "boy-racer", that the positioning on some bends is not good for someone unsure of their vehicle or that brake-gear separation (more on that later) methods are too complicated. Some instructors do however teach part of the advanced syllabus to their L test candidates successfully but not all.
I'll be using a few abbreviations through the posts, I'll try and keep a list of them here:
NSL: National Speed Limit. BGOL: Brake Gear Overlap. AD :Advanced Driving. IAM: Institute of Advanced Motorists. RoADaR: Rospa Advanced Drivers and Riders. HPC: High Performance Club. ADI: Approved Driving Instructor (who charge you for the lessons).
Note that these are advanced techniques, so if you're still working towards your L test feel free to read but be careful which methods you use. Some of the things that are standard in advanced driving aren't gospel with the ADIs and testers. Safest course is drive to pass your test, then learn to drive properly.
In truth, you shouldn't fail your test if you drive in the way proposed below but some instructors feel that it's too much to learn from the start and some instructors feel some of the techniques are too "boy-racer", that the positioning on some bends is not good for someone unsure of their vehicle or that brake-gear separation (more on that later) methods are too complicated. Some instructors do however teach part of the advanced syllabus to their L test candidates successfully but not all.
I'll be using a few abbreviations through the posts, I'll try and keep a list of them here:
NSL: National Speed Limit. BGOL: Brake Gear Overlap. AD :Advanced Driving. IAM: Institute of Advanced Motorists. RoADaR: Rospa Advanced Drivers and Riders. HPC: High Performance Club. ADI: Approved Driving Instructor (who charge you for the lessons).
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First off, advanced or defensive driving is not about driving faster; it’s about driving in the safest possible way, while still making good progress. It involves increasing the amount of information you take in, concentrating at all times and thinking further ahead than you might normally do. There are some techniques that are different to how you were taught when you learnt to drive but most of advanced driving is behaviour and practise. I have assumed that you’ve passed the L test, if not, beware, some of these techniques will cause you problems on the test. The methods I’m going to write about are the ones that the police drivers developed and that’s where AD comes from. Statistically people that have taken their advanced driving assessments (either through the IAM, RoADaR, Diamond, the HPC or other such organisation) are much less likely to be involved in accidents and you can often get 30 % off your insurance premiums. This guide is not supposed to be a replacement for observed drives with a qualified advanced driver, indeed I am still in the process of finishing my observed drives and gaining my advanced test, but I’m hoping that some of the techniques will be useful. If everyone used the methods available I believe that the roads would be safer, but note should be taken that safety is the principle concern and not everything that can be done in a car should be done. Brisk acceleration may well be necessary when joining a fast road but would not be appropriate in every case.
You don’t need to join any organisation to practice more advanced driving but you won’t get the benefits (financially) unless you do, or at least take a test with one of the recognised groups. A skill for life package from the IAM costs around £85 (you can save £10 if you’re under 26) which is national and local membership, books and test costs. RoADaR is about the same, and with both of these you don’t pay for lessons; the observers are volunteers that ride along with you. Doing the test through an ADI or school like the AA/BSM/RAC will usually set you back about £350-£600. The HPC is a bit different, to join you have to have passed one of the approved master driver courses and be recommended by the assessor so you already need to be a really good driver. The master driver courses also cost in the region of £1000. Yes, that’s one THOUSAND pounds. But then, how much are you willing to spend on mods for the car?
If you want a book/reference for the material, there’s really two on the market. The IAM book “How to be an advanced driver” pretty good but the standard reference book is “Roadcraft: The Police Driver’s Manual.” And of course “the highway code” and, if you’re REALLY keen, “Know Your Traffic Signs” which is 100 pages of traffic signs. Yay. If you get one driving book, make it Roadcraft. It’s not always easy reading but it is worth it.
You don’t need to join any organisation to practice more advanced driving but you won’t get the benefits (financially) unless you do, or at least take a test with one of the recognised groups. A skill for life package from the IAM costs around £85 (you can save £10 if you’re under 26) which is national and local membership, books and test costs. RoADaR is about the same, and with both of these you don’t pay for lessons; the observers are volunteers that ride along with you. Doing the test through an ADI or school like the AA/BSM/RAC will usually set you back about £350-£600. The HPC is a bit different, to join you have to have passed one of the approved master driver courses and be recommended by the assessor so you already need to be a really good driver. The master driver courses also cost in the region of £1000. Yes, that’s one THOUSAND pounds. But then, how much are you willing to spend on mods for the car?
If you want a book/reference for the material, there’s really two on the market. The IAM book “How to be an advanced driver” pretty good but the standard reference book is “Roadcraft: The Police Driver’s Manual.” And of course “the highway code” and, if you’re REALLY keen, “Know Your Traffic Signs” which is 100 pages of traffic signs. Yay. If you get one driving book, make it Roadcraft. It’s not always easy reading but it is worth it.
This is one of the things that can be traced straight back to the police basis of AD. When the police take over a new car they run through a few standard checks, both of the vehicle’s fitness for use and a quick familiarisation of the controls and of the vehicle in general. While the only car most of us will drive will be our own so some of the checks can be skipped, some of the points are good and should be done (if only quickly) as a matter of habit. Similar to the POW(D)ER checks you may have learnt for the L test (Petrol Oil Water (Damage) Electrics Rubber (Wipers and tires).
Starting off outside, a quick walk around the outside, check the wheels for grip/cuts/bulges, lights and mirrors clean and intact and check for any new damage to the exterior then it’s inside and, first thing, check the hand brake is on. Seat belt on and ensure that everyone else in the vehicle has theirs on. It’s YOUR responsibility and legal duty. Now we check the mirror alignment, all doors closed properly, head rest and seat position good so you can reach all the controls easily, switch locations and settings and get ready to start the engine. Key in, clutch in and check the gear selector is in neutral, clutch out, foot on the brake and gently release the hand brake to check that the brake works (called a static brake test). Handbrake back on, foot still lightly on the brake, clutch in and now turn the engine onto the setting before the starter kicks in to check the electronics. When most of the warning lights go out (except for oil and engine temp usually – depends on the particular car), then turn the key all the way to turn the engine fully on. You should feel the foot brake dip slightly (assuming power assisted brakes) as the servos activate.
The reason you declutch while starting up the engine is to reduce the stress on the internal systems when the engine kicks in, and some autos require brake on before engine start-up. You check the brakes before starting the engine because, as one of my observers said, not much point starting the engine if there’s no brakes. My brother (a mechanic) disagrees with me about much of the AD stuff, but then he’s a pretty horrific driver at times; with the engine startup he hates it when I run through the full checks as he believes that the checks run the battery down excessively. Now he is right that it does put a greater strain on the battery (something to note with older cars/bad batteries) but again, if there is a problem there’s no point starting the engine. There are also some older diesels (much older) that require a certain length of time before the glow plugs warm up but they’re becoming rare these days. Which lights should go out and which should stay on will obviously vary between vehicles so it’s a good idea to find out what you should see if everything is going okay, and what denotes a problem. Best to check the manual or just google it.
Most important bit, check that the stereo is good for your choice of music and that the volume won’t detract from your attention of the road. You’re the driver, it’s your choice of tunes.
Now you’re ready to do your mirror checks, over the shoulder blind-spot/lifesaver checks and pull away. When you are moving, slowly and if it’s safe to do so, put on your brakes a bit sharper than you would do normally, to check that they work while moving – called a rolling brake check.
And that is the basic drill for starting the car. Yeah it’s more than most of us do, but if you think about it, if you’re the only one that drives your car then most of the settings will be as you left them and checking for damage is just looking after your car. Things like checking the handbrake when you get in soon become second nature, as does checking that the car is out of gear. I’ve recently had to leave my car in gear on hills for security so I’m glad I’ve been checking instead of just starting up and ramming the car in front.
Starting off outside, a quick walk around the outside, check the wheels for grip/cuts/bulges, lights and mirrors clean and intact and check for any new damage to the exterior then it’s inside and, first thing, check the hand brake is on. Seat belt on and ensure that everyone else in the vehicle has theirs on. It’s YOUR responsibility and legal duty. Now we check the mirror alignment, all doors closed properly, head rest and seat position good so you can reach all the controls easily, switch locations and settings and get ready to start the engine. Key in, clutch in and check the gear selector is in neutral, clutch out, foot on the brake and gently release the hand brake to check that the brake works (called a static brake test). Handbrake back on, foot still lightly on the brake, clutch in and now turn the engine onto the setting before the starter kicks in to check the electronics. When most of the warning lights go out (except for oil and engine temp usually – depends on the particular car), then turn the key all the way to turn the engine fully on. You should feel the foot brake dip slightly (assuming power assisted brakes) as the servos activate.
The reason you declutch while starting up the engine is to reduce the stress on the internal systems when the engine kicks in, and some autos require brake on before engine start-up. You check the brakes before starting the engine because, as one of my observers said, not much point starting the engine if there’s no brakes. My brother (a mechanic) disagrees with me about much of the AD stuff, but then he’s a pretty horrific driver at times; with the engine startup he hates it when I run through the full checks as he believes that the checks run the battery down excessively. Now he is right that it does put a greater strain on the battery (something to note with older cars/bad batteries) but again, if there is a problem there’s no point starting the engine. There are also some older diesels (much older) that require a certain length of time before the glow plugs warm up but they’re becoming rare these days. Which lights should go out and which should stay on will obviously vary between vehicles so it’s a good idea to find out what you should see if everything is going okay, and what denotes a problem. Best to check the manual or just google it.
Most important bit, check that the stereo is good for your choice of music and that the volume won’t detract from your attention of the road. You’re the driver, it’s your choice of tunes.
Now you’re ready to do your mirror checks, over the shoulder blind-spot/lifesaver checks and pull away. When you are moving, slowly and if it’s safe to do so, put on your brakes a bit sharper than you would do normally, to check that they work while moving – called a rolling brake check.
And that is the basic drill for starting the car. Yeah it’s more than most of us do, but if you think about it, if you’re the only one that drives your car then most of the settings will be as you left them and checking for damage is just looking after your car. Things like checking the handbrake when you get in soon become second nature, as does checking that the car is out of gear. I’ve recently had to leave my car in gear on hills for security so I’m glad I’ve been checking instead of just starting up and ramming the car in front.
There are a number of guidelines about advanced driving, some of the best are SSSS and IPSGA. The four “S”s are the most important things to consider, and consequently the order in which you need to prioritise the reasons for your actions. They are:
1. Safety – both yours and everyone around you. This is the most important aspect of driving and ALL other points must be subservient to it, in other words sacrifice anything and everything for safety where needed.
2. System – having a consistent approach to driving and applying “The System” of car control where necessary (See later).
3. Stable and smooth – one and the same, driving should be smooth and not cause any other drivers to have to take avoiding action. When driven well, most people as passengers will think that the car is doing significantly less speed than it is, whereas if the vehicle is driven badly it often feels faster than it is.
4. Speed – Not going as fast as is physically possible but making good progress at a safe speed up to the legal limit.
So in any situation you can sacrifice speed to remain smooth, smoothness for retaining the system or anything for safety. With all of this the driver should remain considerate of other road users. It’s a dance of many people together on the roads, not a lone raver loosing the plot on the dance floor – unless you’re rallying, when it’s just about having personal fun.
1. Safety – both yours and everyone around you. This is the most important aspect of driving and ALL other points must be subservient to it, in other words sacrifice anything and everything for safety where needed.
2. System – having a consistent approach to driving and applying “The System” of car control where necessary (See later).
3. Stable and smooth – one and the same, driving should be smooth and not cause any other drivers to have to take avoiding action. When driven well, most people as passengers will think that the car is doing significantly less speed than it is, whereas if the vehicle is driven badly it often feels faster than it is.
4. Speed – Not going as fast as is physically possible but making good progress at a safe speed up to the legal limit.
So in any situation you can sacrifice speed to remain smooth, smoothness for retaining the system or anything for safety. With all of this the driver should remain considerate of other road users. It’s a dance of many people together on the roads, not a lone raver loosing the plot on the dance floor – unless you’re rallying, when it’s just about having personal fun.
Or just “The System” – this is the accepted way to drive. Not just accepted by me, this is the way the police train their drivers, most of the time. For pursuit they have a few extra adaptations but we’re not going to be looking at that. This is a set way of handling hazards and consists of five sections:
1. Information – receiving and giving (where appropriate) any and all information. This continues at all times, so if anything changes, you’re aware of it quickly. Includes limit point analysis
2. Position – putting yourself in the right place on the road.
3. Speed – brake or accelerate to the right speed for the hazard, such that you can negotiate the hazard smoothly.
4. Gear – once you’ve got the speed right, select the right gear for that speed. Note that there are two steps, you finish braking/accelerating THEN change gear.
5. Acceleration – use the accelerator to MAINTAIN your speed through the hazard then, once clear, accelerate up to the safe speed for the road.
You don’t have to follow it slavishly, sections (apart from 1) can be left out if not needed but it does help. For example you can overlap the Braking and Gear changing (Brake-Gear Overlap or BGOL) but only if you’ve planned it.
1. Information – receiving and giving (where appropriate) any and all information. This continues at all times, so if anything changes, you’re aware of it quickly. Includes limit point analysis
2. Position – putting yourself in the right place on the road.
3. Speed – brake or accelerate to the right speed for the hazard, such that you can negotiate the hazard smoothly.
4. Gear – once you’ve got the speed right, select the right gear for that speed. Note that there are two steps, you finish braking/accelerating THEN change gear.
5. Acceleration – use the accelerator to MAINTAIN your speed through the hazard then, once clear, accelerate up to the safe speed for the road.
You don’t have to follow it slavishly, sections (apart from 1) can be left out if not needed but it does help. For example you can overlap the Braking and Gear changing (Brake-Gear Overlap or BGOL) but only if you’ve planned it.
As an example, let’s take a left handed bend in a national speed limit road with a hedge on the side of the road by the bend. There’s no traffic on your carriageway, the road surface is clean, dry and there aren’t any pot holes or drain covers sticking up. Looking ahead, you try and see past the bend, looking as far ahead on the road as you can over or through the hedge where possible. Can you see how the road bends? Are there any large vehicles visible? Are there any clues to other road users like fresh horse dung or a cyclist? Can you note any other possible hazards like cross-winds from gaps in the hedge, buildings in the distance suggesting a speed limit change, skid marks on the road suggesting an unseen hazard, a football suggesting a small child running out for it? I know this seems like a lot but with practice you do automatically look for these sorts of things. (What others can people think of? Things like churches on Sunday – more people around, bus stops – buses stopping/pulling out suddenly or people running to/from the stop.)
So let’s say there aren’t any other hazards. While continuing to monitor the available information you position yourself on the road. Here’s one of the bits where AD differs. For the left hand bend you place yourself near the right hand side of the bend. That’s right, the outside. Obviously if there’s someone else coming you sacrifice your position to give them more room, but you put yourself as far across your side as is safe to do so. This has a couple of benefits, principally that it gives you better visibility through the bend. If there’s something coming from the other direction you can see them earlier and take more leisurely avoiding action. In addition, by taking the outside line, when you turn in around the apex you can keep your speed better and you end up pointing more in the correct direction (this last is open to lots of debate).
Assuming that the bend is a 20 mph bend, you brake on the straight down to 20, take your foot off the brake, then put your clutch down and change gear to second (showing clear separation of brake and clutch). Off the clutch and you should be still on the straight before the bend.
Now you start to turn in, following the limit point (see later) to make sure you haven’t over cooked the bend. While turning you use a bit of accelerator to maintain your safe speed through the bend, you don’t want to be gaining or loosing speed, both of which destabilise the car. Try it on a safe corner, go into the corner and (within safe limits of course) take the corner three times. Once you’re past the apex of the bend and the road starts to straighten out you can start to increase your speed, smoothly returning to the safe speed up to the speed limit.
No, this isn’t the fastest way to get round a corner but it is the safest way
So let’s say there aren’t any other hazards. While continuing to monitor the available information you position yourself on the road. Here’s one of the bits where AD differs. For the left hand bend you place yourself near the right hand side of the bend. That’s right, the outside. Obviously if there’s someone else coming you sacrifice your position to give them more room, but you put yourself as far across your side as is safe to do so. This has a couple of benefits, principally that it gives you better visibility through the bend. If there’s something coming from the other direction you can see them earlier and take more leisurely avoiding action. In addition, by taking the outside line, when you turn in around the apex you can keep your speed better and you end up pointing more in the correct direction (this last is open to lots of debate).
Assuming that the bend is a 20 mph bend, you brake on the straight down to 20, take your foot off the brake, then put your clutch down and change gear to second (showing clear separation of brake and clutch). Off the clutch and you should be still on the straight before the bend.
Now you start to turn in, following the limit point (see later) to make sure you haven’t over cooked the bend. While turning you use a bit of accelerator to maintain your safe speed through the bend, you don’t want to be gaining or loosing speed, both of which destabilise the car. Try it on a safe corner, go into the corner and (within safe limits of course) take the corner three times. Once you’re past the apex of the bend and the road starts to straighten out you can start to increase your speed, smoothly returning to the safe speed up to the speed limit.
No, this isn’t the fastest way to get round a corner but it is the safest way
Hand position. When changing gear the palm is more open and for first and second the thumb points down so you are pushing the gear stick away, for all other gears (possibly excepting reverse – depends on the car) the thumb points up and you are pulling the stick. This is a small thing but makes a bit of a difference.
On the wheel, ten to two (or quarter to three) is usually best, but with the thumbs OUTSIDE of the wheel. Off-roaders and some racers do this incase the wheel spins and brakes your thumb. We do it because we usually use a similar steering system to the L test one of push-pull. We use pull-push. Your hands are always sliding around the edge of the wheel and if your thumb is inside the radius it’s likely to catch on the spokes. We use pull-push as it’s smoother than push-pull. To start the turn, slide one hand up to the 12 o’clock position and then smoothly pull it down, with extra turns as necessary. Try some turns with the push first and some with the pull first, hopefully you’ll see a difference. There are other forms of steering, mainly constant input (your hands stay in one place on the wheel at all times. Great unless you need to apply more turns.) and “reach-over” where you release the wheel with one hand and reposition it while the other hand is making a turn. Both of these have their place, but fixed input really needs a dedicated steering wrack to work properly. The one style of steering (aside from “using the force”) that I would NOT recommend is letting the wheel spin back to central position with your hands off the wheel. There’s all kinds of things can go wrong with this, most of them obvious.
Speed: As I said, AD is not about driving fast, but you can get better speed using the system, however driving fast will make your economy suffer. There’s a well known fact that driving with the revs never going over 3000 rpm will make your fuel last longer, but it’s dull as heck. That being said, when you start driving each day it doesn’t do the engine any harm to not exceed 3000 rpm until the engine’s warmed up enough for the warning light to go out. And, if the cold engine light doesn’t go out by the time you’ve finished your journey there’s either something wrong with the engine or you might want to question why you’re driving such a short distance. Or it’s just REALLY cold outside.
Another little thing, indicators provide you with one piece of information that you can be absolutely certain of:
The indicator bulb is working.
Unless you have seen the application, it is impossible to be certain that the driver hasn’t left it on for the last three hours. It’s safest to look for extra information to back up the indication such as road position, turning or braking.
Seen on the news that some of the NE Scotland councils (Moray and Aberdeenshire) are part funding the Pass Plus. I think that's a great idea and if you can get on it, it's worth it. It's not generally seen as "advanced" training but it's a good start and certainly better than not doing it. They're helping out 17-26 year olds, so I'm a year too old. Ah well, did mine two years ago now, just would have been nice to get some money off....
On the wheel, ten to two (or quarter to three) is usually best, but with the thumbs OUTSIDE of the wheel. Off-roaders and some racers do this incase the wheel spins and brakes your thumb. We do it because we usually use a similar steering system to the L test one of push-pull. We use pull-push. Your hands are always sliding around the edge of the wheel and if your thumb is inside the radius it’s likely to catch on the spokes. We use pull-push as it’s smoother than push-pull. To start the turn, slide one hand up to the 12 o’clock position and then smoothly pull it down, with extra turns as necessary. Try some turns with the push first and some with the pull first, hopefully you’ll see a difference. There are other forms of steering, mainly constant input (your hands stay in one place on the wheel at all times. Great unless you need to apply more turns.) and “reach-over” where you release the wheel with one hand and reposition it while the other hand is making a turn. Both of these have their place, but fixed input really needs a dedicated steering wrack to work properly. The one style of steering (aside from “using the force”) that I would NOT recommend is letting the wheel spin back to central position with your hands off the wheel. There’s all kinds of things can go wrong with this, most of them obvious.
Speed: As I said, AD is not about driving fast, but you can get better speed using the system, however driving fast will make your economy suffer. There’s a well known fact that driving with the revs never going over 3000 rpm will make your fuel last longer, but it’s dull as heck. That being said, when you start driving each day it doesn’t do the engine any harm to not exceed 3000 rpm until the engine’s warmed up enough for the warning light to go out. And, if the cold engine light doesn’t go out by the time you’ve finished your journey there’s either something wrong with the engine or you might want to question why you’re driving such a short distance. Or it’s just REALLY cold outside.
Another little thing, indicators provide you with one piece of information that you can be absolutely certain of:
The indicator bulb is working.
Unless you have seen the application, it is impossible to be certain that the driver hasn’t left it on for the last three hours. It’s safest to look for extra information to back up the indication such as road position, turning or braking.
Seen on the news that some of the NE Scotland councils (Moray and Aberdeenshire) are part funding the Pass Plus. I think that's a great idea and if you can get on it, it's worth it. It's not generally seen as "advanced" training but it's a good start and certainly better than not doing it. They're helping out 17-26 year olds, so I'm a year too old. Ah well, did mine two years ago now, just would have been nice to get some money off....
Speed Limits
There are really three different speed limits for any stretch of road and any conditions. These are the legal limit, the physical limit and the safe limit. Drive at a speed you feel comfortable with up to the lowest of the limits
Legal Limit Like it says on the tin, this is what the government says is the maximum that you should do, so this is as high as you will go. Honest. No, really officer, I wouldn't dream of going faster. If you do exceed this you risk fines and loosing your license. Speed doesn't kill it just makes everything MUCH worse.
Physical Limit This is as fast as you can go before :
a: the car can't go any faster (usually between 80-140 mph) or
b: the grip from the wheels becomes less than that required to stay attached to the road, ie you spin/loose grip on the corners or roll/do serious damage. This includes when the road conditions change, for example in the wet or in icy conditions when the grip on the road is compromised.
If you try to exceed the physical limit of the car you will usually cause yourself massive damage and can kill yourself.
Safe Limit This is the hardest one to judge, and the one most open to debate. This is the speed that gives you time to react safely. If there were no other roadusers (which includes drivers, riders, horseriders and grannies walking the dog), this would be the physical limit. Whenever there are others using the roads, the safe limit is one that is safe FOR THEM. So if you are driving past a school at kicking out time, the safe limit may be 20 mph, in most residential areas it'll be 30 or less. It may be that there's good visibility and no hidden kiddies, if so the safe limit may be much higher. The safe limit is dependant on who else is around, how good the visibility is of them and the impact of hitting anyone. If you exceed the safe limit the damage to yourself is the same but the damage to others is worse and you put them in more danger.
As an example, you're driving on a NSL (National Speed Limit) road, it's straight, dry, there's no big hedges/private driveways/farm entrances/horses hidden behind anything. The safe and physical limits may be 80-100 mph, but the legal limit is 60, so 60 is the MAX that you do. You approach a village so you know that the NSL will become a 30, it's 3.30 and there's a school just round the bend so you slow down to 25 which is the safe limit in this case. You pass the school, the 30 becomes a NSL so you could speed up to 60 but it's been a bit frosty and there's a hedge that casts a shadow across the road. You know it's going to be icy so you slow down to take the corner at 15 mph, which may be the physical limit for that bend in icy conditions. Clear of that hazard you accelerate back up to the new safe limit, which is now the national limit again.
One of the things that I personally find annoying is the type of driver that speeds at 40 mph through a 30 zone and keeps the same speed on a NSL road when there’s no reason not to go faster. It’s not wrong to go at less than the limit, although it’s bad manners to unnecessarily slow down other drivers, but it’s ALWAYS wrong to go faster, especially in 30s where there are usually more pedestrians. These seem to be the same type of drivers that give you an evil look if you overtake them and will often speed up as you overtake, just to be difficult. (Usually, but not always 50-70 year old men).
There are really three different speed limits for any stretch of road and any conditions. These are the legal limit, the physical limit and the safe limit. Drive at a speed you feel comfortable with up to the lowest of the limits
Legal Limit Like it says on the tin, this is what the government says is the maximum that you should do, so this is as high as you will go. Honest. No, really officer, I wouldn't dream of going faster. If you do exceed this you risk fines and loosing your license. Speed doesn't kill it just makes everything MUCH worse.
Physical Limit This is as fast as you can go before :
a: the car can't go any faster (usually between 80-140 mph) or
b: the grip from the wheels becomes less than that required to stay attached to the road, ie you spin/loose grip on the corners or roll/do serious damage. This includes when the road conditions change, for example in the wet or in icy conditions when the grip on the road is compromised.
If you try to exceed the physical limit of the car you will usually cause yourself massive damage and can kill yourself.
Safe Limit This is the hardest one to judge, and the one most open to debate. This is the speed that gives you time to react safely. If there were no other roadusers (which includes drivers, riders, horseriders and grannies walking the dog), this would be the physical limit. Whenever there are others using the roads, the safe limit is one that is safe FOR THEM. So if you are driving past a school at kicking out time, the safe limit may be 20 mph, in most residential areas it'll be 30 or less. It may be that there's good visibility and no hidden kiddies, if so the safe limit may be much higher. The safe limit is dependant on who else is around, how good the visibility is of them and the impact of hitting anyone. If you exceed the safe limit the damage to yourself is the same but the damage to others is worse and you put them in more danger.
As an example, you're driving on a NSL (National Speed Limit) road, it's straight, dry, there's no big hedges/private driveways/farm entrances/horses hidden behind anything. The safe and physical limits may be 80-100 mph, but the legal limit is 60, so 60 is the MAX that you do. You approach a village so you know that the NSL will become a 30, it's 3.30 and there's a school just round the bend so you slow down to 25 which is the safe limit in this case. You pass the school, the 30 becomes a NSL so you could speed up to 60 but it's been a bit frosty and there's a hedge that casts a shadow across the road. You know it's going to be icy so you slow down to take the corner at 15 mph, which may be the physical limit for that bend in icy conditions. Clear of that hazard you accelerate back up to the new safe limit, which is now the national limit again.
One of the things that I personally find annoying is the type of driver that speeds at 40 mph through a 30 zone and keeps the same speed on a NSL road when there’s no reason not to go faster. It’s not wrong to go at less than the limit, although it’s bad manners to unnecessarily slow down other drivers, but it’s ALWAYS wrong to go faster, especially in 30s where there are usually more pedestrians. These seem to be the same type of drivers that give you an evil look if you overtake them and will often speed up as you overtake, just to be difficult. (Usually, but not always 50-70 year old men).
Let’s take the system step by step.
The first stage in the system is information. This is receiving and giving as much information as you can that is useful. This can be everything from looking as far ahead as you can on the road to looking underneath cars as you approach to see if there are any feet visible. As mentioned earlier, there are many visual clues that you can look out for, the way a hedge or wall bends can tell you how the road bends, the path that telegraph poles follow can do the same (unless they cross the road or go across a field). Reflections in windows, shadows or the track of headlights can all give you advanced warning. Looking over the brow of a hill to see how the road continues in the distance and if there are any HGVs on it all help. Other things like clusters of lamp posts can be useful as a suggestion that there is a round about coming up, if you see houses think “speed limit change” or a school after hours “is there an after school activity on or is that little Jonny breaking in?” All of these things give you more information and it’s a good idea to also learn to apply that information to the other road users. “Is that car going to slow down in time for the speed limit I’m assuming is by the houses round this bend or will they slam their brakes on at the last minute?” This applies to vertical and horizontal visibility. Can you see round a bend or over a hill? Could there be an unconscious biker in the road? You don’t need to drive dead slow, just be able to stop in the distance that you can see to be clear.
As a practice, on a normal route, try reading aloud every road sign that you pass. For one thing you’ll probably realise that there are way too many road signs, but also how much information is there for the taking.
This stage also includes GIVING information, from indicators to warnings. Another of the ways that AD differs is that we’re not supposed to give an indication if there is no one there to benefit. So if there were no drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, horse riders, unicyclists, or anyone else that uses the road, you wouldn’t signal. Conversely, if there is a case were an extra signal would be of use, that is given. An example is if you are stationary at the end of a queue of traffic, handbrake on and feet clear of the brakes. If a car was coming up behind you, a gentle application of the foot brake to put the lights on would highlight the fact that you are stationary and hence not moving. We’re supposed to use the horn more as well, never as a retaliation but as a warning. If someone is stood by the side of the road about to step out and not looking our way a quick double tap on the horn should let them know you’re there. Likewise someone pulling out without looking. The problem here is that people don’t use their horns correctly. As a result most people think the horn is only used out of anger. I’ve found that moving to cover the horn just in case is a good habit and if you need to use it a few quick taps rather than a long blast sound less aggressive. Flashing your lights can also be used as a warning of your presence, unfortunately, the habit for most people is to flash to let someone through, so this one is also open to misinterpretation.
With information it’s worth noting that it’s always your responsibility, even if someone waves you through a space, it’s you that needs to check that it’s clear.
This stage of the system is always happening. You’re always looking for information.
The first stage in the system is information. This is receiving and giving as much information as you can that is useful. This can be everything from looking as far ahead as you can on the road to looking underneath cars as you approach to see if there are any feet visible. As mentioned earlier, there are many visual clues that you can look out for, the way a hedge or wall bends can tell you how the road bends, the path that telegraph poles follow can do the same (unless they cross the road or go across a field). Reflections in windows, shadows or the track of headlights can all give you advanced warning. Looking over the brow of a hill to see how the road continues in the distance and if there are any HGVs on it all help. Other things like clusters of lamp posts can be useful as a suggestion that there is a round about coming up, if you see houses think “speed limit change” or a school after hours “is there an after school activity on or is that little Jonny breaking in?” All of these things give you more information and it’s a good idea to also learn to apply that information to the other road users. “Is that car going to slow down in time for the speed limit I’m assuming is by the houses round this bend or will they slam their brakes on at the last minute?” This applies to vertical and horizontal visibility. Can you see round a bend or over a hill? Could there be an unconscious biker in the road? You don’t need to drive dead slow, just be able to stop in the distance that you can see to be clear.
As a practice, on a normal route, try reading aloud every road sign that you pass. For one thing you’ll probably realise that there are way too many road signs, but also how much information is there for the taking.
This stage also includes GIVING information, from indicators to warnings. Another of the ways that AD differs is that we’re not supposed to give an indication if there is no one there to benefit. So if there were no drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, horse riders, unicyclists, or anyone else that uses the road, you wouldn’t signal. Conversely, if there is a case were an extra signal would be of use, that is given. An example is if you are stationary at the end of a queue of traffic, handbrake on and feet clear of the brakes. If a car was coming up behind you, a gentle application of the foot brake to put the lights on would highlight the fact that you are stationary and hence not moving. We’re supposed to use the horn more as well, never as a retaliation but as a warning. If someone is stood by the side of the road about to step out and not looking our way a quick double tap on the horn should let them know you’re there. Likewise someone pulling out without looking. The problem here is that people don’t use their horns correctly. As a result most people think the horn is only used out of anger. I’ve found that moving to cover the horn just in case is a good habit and if you need to use it a few quick taps rather than a long blast sound less aggressive. Flashing your lights can also be used as a warning of your presence, unfortunately, the habit for most people is to flash to let someone through, so this one is also open to misinterpretation.
With information it’s worth noting that it’s always your responsibility, even if someone waves you through a space, it’s you that needs to check that it’s clear.
This stage of the system is always happening. You’re always looking for information.
Once you have all the information and know what’s happening, you’re ready for step two, getting into the right position for the hazard. Always remember that your aim should be for the safest progression so place yourself where you can see best without compromising anyone else’s safety. The outside line on bends is one example where visibility takes preference over speed. When going over a hill move to the left somewhat to allow for someone being too far into the middle of their lane without seeing you as they come over the hill.
Position also applies to your position relative to other road users. One of the things I’m guilty of is driving too close too often. By too close I mean less than 2 seconds separation. The two-second rule is blooming marvellous. For anyone not aware of this, when the car in front passes an object say some thing that takes two seconds to say and if you’ve passed the object before you finish, you’re too close. Favourites are “only a fool breaks the two second rule” or “only a **** drives as close as that.”
If it’s raining, add “in the rain” to the end to give yourself an extra second. Or longer in snow and ice.
Two seconds, especially at motorway speeds, does seem like a very long gap and people will try and fit into it, but just drop back a bit further. Think about it, you’re TWO SECONDS behind the person in front. That’s how much longer your journey will take than theirs will. That two seconds may give you the chance to react better to a situation, ease off the accelerator rather than brake, see a problem earlier or other fun things. Not having it and even with the best reactions in the world, things can go very wrong very quickly.
Sorry if this stuff is obvious but driving too close is a BIG problem, and one almost all of us do at times.
Position also applies to your position relative to other road users. One of the things I’m guilty of is driving too close too often. By too close I mean less than 2 seconds separation. The two-second rule is blooming marvellous. For anyone not aware of this, when the car in front passes an object say some thing that takes two seconds to say and if you’ve passed the object before you finish, you’re too close. Favourites are “only a fool breaks the two second rule” or “only a **** drives as close as that.”
If it’s raining, add “in the rain” to the end to give yourself an extra second. Or longer in snow and ice.Two seconds, especially at motorway speeds, does seem like a very long gap and people will try and fit into it, but just drop back a bit further. Think about it, you’re TWO SECONDS behind the person in front. That’s how much longer your journey will take than theirs will. That two seconds may give you the chance to react better to a situation, ease off the accelerator rather than brake, see a problem earlier or other fun things. Not having it and even with the best reactions in the world, things can go very wrong very quickly.
Sorry if this stuff is obvious but driving too close is a BIG problem, and one almost all of us do at times.
You might notice that speed is in front of gear in the system. We try and get to the right speed for the hazard BEFORE changing to the right gear. As previously stated, you’re looking for safety and stability, rather than getting there as fast as physically possibly.
The correct speed for a hazard is one where you can stop safely on your own side of the road in the distance you can see. Let’s say that you’re pootling along at 50 so the Highway Code says you’ll take 53 M to stop. Let’s also assume that you’ve tried braking from 50 and know you can stop in these conditions in 45 m. You approach a corner and the curvature of the road means that you can only see for 30 M, so you slow down until you’re doing about 35mph, at which point the distance you can see to be clear is equal to or greater than the distance you’d need to stop. As you go further into the corner you can still see the same distance in front of the car (assuming the bend doesn’t tighten or open out) and so you can still stop. As you come to the end of the end of the bend the road opens out so you can see further down the road. This means that you can speed back up to the original speed. Helps to imagine that there’s a cyclist come off their bike just around the bend and is lying in the road. As you come round the bend they’ll suddenly come into view but you know that you can stop before you hit them.
This is a version of what’s called “Limit Point Analysis” (the “limit point” being the furthest point you can see) and is the main method we use to judge the maximum safe speed for a bend/hill (you can use it for vertical visibility as well). The maximum physical speed is usually higher than the safe speed but you always use the lowest speed.
As well as being able to stop in time, one of the characteristics of AD is how smooth it feels, often making the speed seem lower than it is. Part of this is that the vehicle should be stable as it corners and braking/dropping speed and accelerating should be smooth. You can use engine braking (let off the accel) if you’ve got enough time before a hazard or you can brake as gently as is appropriate. Finding the right speed for a corner does take some practice and limit point analysis can help to gauge how fast a corner can be taken, but over cook it and you’ll find yourself braking during the turn, which generally causes understeer (not a good thing) and also makes it less comfortable, and hence less stylish.
The correct speed for a hazard is one where you can stop safely on your own side of the road in the distance you can see. Let’s say that you’re pootling along at 50 so the Highway Code says you’ll take 53 M to stop. Let’s also assume that you’ve tried braking from 50 and know you can stop in these conditions in 45 m. You approach a corner and the curvature of the road means that you can only see for 30 M, so you slow down until you’re doing about 35mph, at which point the distance you can see to be clear is equal to or greater than the distance you’d need to stop. As you go further into the corner you can still see the same distance in front of the car (assuming the bend doesn’t tighten or open out) and so you can still stop. As you come to the end of the end of the bend the road opens out so you can see further down the road. This means that you can speed back up to the original speed. Helps to imagine that there’s a cyclist come off their bike just around the bend and is lying in the road. As you come round the bend they’ll suddenly come into view but you know that you can stop before you hit them.
This is a version of what’s called “Limit Point Analysis” (the “limit point” being the furthest point you can see) and is the main method we use to judge the maximum safe speed for a bend/hill (you can use it for vertical visibility as well). The maximum physical speed is usually higher than the safe speed but you always use the lowest speed.
As well as being able to stop in time, one of the characteristics of AD is how smooth it feels, often making the speed seem lower than it is. Part of this is that the vehicle should be stable as it corners and braking/dropping speed and accelerating should be smooth. You can use engine braking (let off the accel) if you’ve got enough time before a hazard or you can brake as gently as is appropriate. Finding the right speed for a corner does take some practice and limit point analysis can help to gauge how fast a corner can be taken, but over cook it and you’ll find yourself braking during the turn, which generally causes understeer (not a good thing) and also makes it less comfortable, and hence less stylish.
You shouldnt have to keep on the brakes. If youve got anything bigger than a 1.4 then the engine can brake mainly. Just knock it down to 2nd or 3rd, as you approcach the hill and tap the brakes ocasionally if it speeds up. I wouldnt try and go down the gears if the engine already has a lot of the braking because youll have real problems getting from 3rd to 2nd say.
To my way of thinking there are three gears available at most speeds, and all of them represent a compromise of sorts between power and efficiency. I know I can drop about 20 mpg by working the gears constantly to give the best performance (a relative term, I drive a Daihatsu) or I can drop about 5 seconds off my 0-60 and use much less fuel. I think of the gears in terms of Power, Cruise and Economy.
Example using my car’s data at 40 mph, power gear is third, I’m at 3000 rpm at the bottom of the power band, cruise is forth, about 2000 rpm, not good acceleration, not bad efficiency; economy is fifth at 1400 rpm. If I’m going uphill or need to accelerate I can’t use fifth, and forth just won’t pick up speed or hold it on much of an incline. If, however, I’m going on the flat or downhill and don’t need the power I can drop down a gear or two and save some money.
For a bend or indeed most hazards, I’ll usually aim to be in the power gear for the speed. This is because, as mentioned in the speed section, you’re aiming for stability. If you try and apply power in a bend to maintain your speed (see acceleration later) or if you need to suddenly get more power down, having to get through 1000 rpm before there’s any effect is not good. If you can see that you won’t need the power, cruise can be used but I wouldn’t go for economy. As a test, try pulling away in a higher gear than usual (if it’s safe to try) and see how the performance changes.
If you need the performance, stay in the power gear until kicking down will keep you in the power band of the next gear. If you’ve got good response from 3000-4200 rpm, and changing down at 3800 will drop you to 2700, leave it in gear until changing down will be at 3000. The engine will be somewhat louder but the performance will be better. There’s a debate in the AD community about this, but the general consensus is that the engine works less to accelerate at the top of the power range than the bottom so it’s better for the engine to do so.
Example using my car’s data at 40 mph, power gear is third, I’m at 3000 rpm at the bottom of the power band, cruise is forth, about 2000 rpm, not good acceleration, not bad efficiency; economy is fifth at 1400 rpm. If I’m going uphill or need to accelerate I can’t use fifth, and forth just won’t pick up speed or hold it on much of an incline. If, however, I’m going on the flat or downhill and don’t need the power I can drop down a gear or two and save some money.
For a bend or indeed most hazards, I’ll usually aim to be in the power gear for the speed. This is because, as mentioned in the speed section, you’re aiming for stability. If you try and apply power in a bend to maintain your speed (see acceleration later) or if you need to suddenly get more power down, having to get through 1000 rpm before there’s any effect is not good. If you can see that you won’t need the power, cruise can be used but I wouldn’t go for economy. As a test, try pulling away in a higher gear than usual (if it’s safe to try) and see how the performance changes.
If you need the performance, stay in the power gear until kicking down will keep you in the power band of the next gear. If you’ve got good response from 3000-4200 rpm, and changing down at 3800 will drop you to 2700, leave it in gear until changing down will be at 3000. The engine will be somewhat louder but the performance will be better. There’s a debate in the AD community about this, but the general consensus is that the engine works less to accelerate at the top of the power range than the bottom so it’s better for the engine to do so.
Brake Gear Overlap -or BGOL- is a way of completely separating the two stages for smoothness and stability so the Overlap bit is what we try and avoid. Basically when you are braking the weight of the car goes forwards, loading the steering wheels but the engine is slowing with the speed of the car. When you put the clutch in the engine can speed up unconnected to the road speed of the car. In addition the weight of the engine is now pushing forwards so if you are tring to steer at the same time the momentum of the car will be in the direction of initial travel and steering will involve working against that force. So before the corner – for example – we brake on the straight, get down to the speed for the bend, take the foot off the brake and once that’s clear, put the gear change in. Moving the left and right feet together is one of the best ways to ensure full separation, without them passing each other as the brake comes up and the clutch goes down. This is “full separation” and is usually the best way.
Full overlap can be used but we try and only do them as part of a planned move. If you’re going downhill, chances are you’ll need to use some form of planned overlap, as you will if there’s someone on your backside that’s expecting you to brake nearer the corner. Mostly you should aim for full separation so give yourself time to do it, about 2 seconds is usually enough, which can be about the length of one or two artic lorries.
Most people will expect you to grab a gear change during the turn so won’t expect you to slow down and change gear BEFORE the turn. In this situation full overlap can help the flow of traffic, but remember that your aim is for safety, not to save a few seconds.
Solemn Wanderer, yeah, downhill is one of the cases where full separation wouldn't be safe so we step away from the system and plan an overlap. As Cj-Tj said, selecting a lower gear should give you an element of engine braking that will help to limit your speed but if the hill is steep and/or you get some tight corners you will need to overlap. As with everything always try and plan your actions ahead of time.
BGOL is a bit of a bugger of a subject, there’s better guidence on the web or PM me and I’ll try and explain more.
Full overlap can be used but we try and only do them as part of a planned move. If you’re going downhill, chances are you’ll need to use some form of planned overlap, as you will if there’s someone on your backside that’s expecting you to brake nearer the corner. Mostly you should aim for full separation so give yourself time to do it, about 2 seconds is usually enough, which can be about the length of one or two artic lorries.
Most people will expect you to grab a gear change during the turn so won’t expect you to slow down and change gear BEFORE the turn. In this situation full overlap can help the flow of traffic, but remember that your aim is for safety, not to save a few seconds.
Solemn Wanderer, yeah, downhill is one of the cases where full separation wouldn't be safe so we step away from the system and plan an overlap. As Cj-Tj said, selecting a lower gear should give you an element of engine braking that will help to limit your speed but if the hill is steep and/or you get some tight corners you will need to overlap. As with everything always try and plan your actions ahead of time.
BGOL is a bit of a bugger of a subject, there’s better guidence on the web or PM me and I’ll try and explain more.
For gear changes, there’s a few phrases that are sometimes used. “Ghosting the gears” is one my old instructors favourates, “clutchless changes” or “matching the revs” mean roughly the same thing. They all mean “smooth gear changes.” To explain this, again using the 30 mph data from my car, say you’re in 3rd, clutch in, (gear to neutral if you de clutch by lifting off in neutral but usually don’t bother) let the revs drop to 2000, gear to 4th and when you lift the clutch off you should find that the rev counter needle doesn’t move much. To go down, when in neutral or with the clutch down, blip the throttle slightly to bring the revs up to the value they’ll be at when the clutch is lifted off. Again, when the clutch is lifted the revs shouldn’t change. This is sometimes called a constant rev gear change because the revs stay constant while the clutch is lifted.
The point of smooth changes is that it’s less wear on the clutch and makes the whole drive smoother, which is always a good thing. The reason they’re called “clutchless changes” comes from the fact that if you’re good at it, you don’t need to use the clutch, just knock the gear into neutral, match the revs to the target gear and engage the right gear. If you’ve got the engine speed right the movement between gears should be smooth, if you’ve got it wrong by anything over about 140 rpm the gears will grind, snarl and sound truly horrible and do some serious damage to the clutch mechanism. Personnally, I don’t do many truly clutchless changes, but I try and match the revs for smoothness.
For the real smooth touch, if you pause during the change while in neutral and let off the clutch, let the revs drop for up shifting or add a bit for down shifting down then put the clutch in again and continue the change. This is called double de clutching and is useful if you’re in an older vehicle (coughs “Landie”) where the clutch isn’t so good.
The point of smooth changes is that it’s less wear on the clutch and makes the whole drive smoother, which is always a good thing. The reason they’re called “clutchless changes” comes from the fact that if you’re good at it, you don’t need to use the clutch, just knock the gear into neutral, match the revs to the target gear and engage the right gear. If you’ve got the engine speed right the movement between gears should be smooth, if you’ve got it wrong by anything over about 140 rpm the gears will grind, snarl and sound truly horrible and do some serious damage to the clutch mechanism. Personnally, I don’t do many truly clutchless changes, but I try and match the revs for smoothness.
For the real smooth touch, if you pause during the change while in neutral and let off the clutch, let the revs drop for up shifting or add a bit for down shifting down then put the clutch in again and continue the change. This is called double de clutching and is useful if you’re in an older vehicle (coughs “Landie”) where the clutch isn’t so good.
And now we reach the corner.
Your speed should be right to go through the corner safely and we use a little bit acceleration to hold our speed constant. Neither speeding up or slowing down. The reason we hold our speed is all about stability. If the car is speeding up the weight will be more towards the back of the vehicle and less on the steering wheels, if the car is slowing down the weight will be further forwards, giving slightly better grip to the steering but there is a trade off between the amount of grip available for steering and for braking/grip. More of one, less of the other. If the car is stable and balanced it’ll perform better, and feel more comfortable. If you can find a safe bend, try going round it without any acceleration, letting the corner scrub a bit of speed. You should find that the car wallows more and feels slightly unstable. Go round the corner with too much gas and the car can oversteer somewhat and also feel unstable (btw, try this too fast and you’ll stack so BE CAREFUL!). With the right amount of acceleration the car will feel stable and smooth.
Once you’re out of the bend and the limit point starts to run away from you (or, in other words, the road opens out) you can accelerate back up to the safe limit of the road. Or, if the bend tightens, you go back to the information phase and change your behaviour to suit the conditions of the road.
It might seem like a bit of overkill to go through all of this for each corner/hazard/roundabout but it’s like anything else that you learn. Habits form and soon you don’t notice that you’re braking earlier and changing gear before the corner and watching for the bend tightening, looking at the shadows and reflections for people appearing and looking over the tops of hills to find out where that artic is going to be in five minutes.
Your speed should be right to go through the corner safely and we use a little bit acceleration to hold our speed constant. Neither speeding up or slowing down. The reason we hold our speed is all about stability. If the car is speeding up the weight will be more towards the back of the vehicle and less on the steering wheels, if the car is slowing down the weight will be further forwards, giving slightly better grip to the steering but there is a trade off between the amount of grip available for steering and for braking/grip. More of one, less of the other. If the car is stable and balanced it’ll perform better, and feel more comfortable. If you can find a safe bend, try going round it without any acceleration, letting the corner scrub a bit of speed. You should find that the car wallows more and feels slightly unstable. Go round the corner with too much gas and the car can oversteer somewhat and also feel unstable (btw, try this too fast and you’ll stack so BE CAREFUL!). With the right amount of acceleration the car will feel stable and smooth.
Once you’re out of the bend and the limit point starts to run away from you (or, in other words, the road opens out) you can accelerate back up to the safe limit of the road. Or, if the bend tightens, you go back to the information phase and change your behaviour to suit the conditions of the road.
It might seem like a bit of overkill to go through all of this for each corner/hazard/roundabout but it’s like anything else that you learn. Habits form and soon you don’t notice that you’re braking earlier and changing gear before the corner and watching for the bend tightening, looking at the shadows and reflections for people appearing and looking over the tops of hills to find out where that artic is going to be in five minutes.
I'll try and cover commentry driving and a few other topics when I get the chance but for now I'll leave you with the definition of Advanced Driving that the DSA, IAM, RoSPA and DAM agreed on in 2000:
"Advanced driving is the ability to control the position and speed of the vehicle safely, systematically and smoothly, using road and traffic conditions to make reasonable progress unobtrusively, with skill and responsibility. The skill requires a positive but courteous attitude and a high standard of driving competence based on concentration, effective all round observation, anticipation and planning. This must be co-ordinated with good handling skills. The vehicle should always be at the right place on the road at the right time, travelling at the right speed with the correct gear engaged and can always be stopped safely in the distance that can be seen to be clear."
Remember SAFETY first, then system, smoothness, speed. But have fun with your driving and if anyone's got any suggestions/hints/questions, please, feel free...
"Advanced driving is the ability to control the position and speed of the vehicle safely, systematically and smoothly, using road and traffic conditions to make reasonable progress unobtrusively, with skill and responsibility. The skill requires a positive but courteous attitude and a high standard of driving competence based on concentration, effective all round observation, anticipation and planning. This must be co-ordinated with good handling skills. The vehicle should always be at the right place on the road at the right time, travelling at the right speed with the correct gear engaged and can always be stopped safely in the distance that can be seen to be clear."
Remember SAFETY first, then system, smoothness, speed. But have fun with your driving and if anyone's got any suggestions/hints/questions, please, feel free...
Solemn Wanderer
Yes - a similar question to my previous one. I usually try to slow down before bends and then accelerate through them as you've described (I was taught to do this by my instructor for the L test), but what if the bend itself is sharply downhill? Even no acceleration will result in the speed getting out of hand, so surely the brake is necessary?
Yes but use it smoothly...its not exactly scientific but if you have Gran Turismo on playstation, go to Laguna Seca and practice on the infamous cork screw. The physics engine in GT is quite accurate...
Think it mainly comes down to holding the speed at the correct speed for the corner. If anyone here has driven the Sutton Bank in North Yorkshire (about a 1 in 3 with sharp bends) on the descent I'll try and do the "slowing down" braking on the straight sections and the "stopping the car trying to speed up" braking during the corners. So although the brakes are pretty much on all the time, they're only stopping the car from accelerating. Sorry, should have made it clearer in the first post.
One other thing, if you do have to brake and steer sharply (not thinking about downhill here) and you haven't got ABS, there is a technique where you apply firm braking, release and steer, brake again and repeat. It's a system taught in skid pan sessions so you can brake in a cadence style and still steer.
One other thing, if you do have to brake and steer sharply (not thinking about downhill here) and you haven't got ABS, there is a technique where you apply firm braking, release and steer, brake again and repeat. It's a system taught in skid pan sessions so you can brake in a cadence style and still steer.
Solemn Wanderer
Yes - a similar question to my previous one. I usually try to slow down before bends and then accelerate through them as you've described (I was taught to do this by my instructor for the L test), but what if the bend itself is sharply downhill? Even no acceleration will result in the speed getting out of hand, so surely the brake is necessary?
If your speed gets out of hand youve misjudged the corner. There will always be times when things go "tits up," especially on unrestriced roads, when you need to grab the anchors, and thats fine, but for normal driving then the time you take to got through a corner (2-3 seconds maybe?) your speed wont increase that much if you have it in the right gear. If its in 3rd say, doing 50mph then my engine revs at about 4000ish, which has ample breaking when my foot is not on the throttle, but plenty of power to go out the corner if I need to. I probally use the engine breaking more than I should, but thats the way Ive learnt to do it from driving construction and agricultural machinary, and it may not apply as much to cars. *shrug*
mountainmetman; very interesting stuff.
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