Going down in gear (test)

Idbatterim

hey guys, have test on thurs and i get everything bar one thing, which once i 100% understand it will be able to do immediately, when it comes to dropping down the gears im fine, just adjust gear to your speed and circumstance, but what is the exact procedure when you are coming up to lights or stop sign etc? say your in 4th, how late do you leave it to drop down to 2nd? and then what into neutral and put handbrake on? i know you can skip gears etc, just want to get exact instructions thanks

Creamy Goodness

my driving instructor drilled this into me all the time.

the car can be stopped in any gear be it 6th/5th/4th/3rd etc.

now when i did my test and was in 4th and came to a stop sign or red light, i stopped the car completely with the foot brake and sticking in the clutch just as the car was coming to a stop. i applied the handbrake and placed the car in netural.

hope that helps ya.

Idbatterim

thanks, ok so basicly you stopped in 4th and then threw it into neutral?

Wishbone Ash

If you leave it too late the engine will 'labour' and could stall. If you do it too early the engine will over rev and act as a brake. A bit of practise should enable you to attain a happy medium.

As far as I know you do not have to go down to second anymore . (I'm open to correction on this as it's many years since I did a test in category .

Creamy Goodness

Idbatterim wrote:

thanks, ok so basicly you stopped in 4th and then threw it into neutral?

always apply the handbrake before putting into neutral and yeh it's what i did.

Idbatterim

anyone got anything else to ad?

Wolverine_1999

I would never come into a junction in 4th and then go into neutral. Better driving instructors would tell you to change down gear as you approach the junction/lights so you can adjust your speed accordingly and you are therefore more in control of the car. I'm almost certain they would mark you down for not changing down gear during the test (if the tester is awake anyway).

I was always advised that you should be in 2nd gear when approaching a junction.

TheWaterboy

i wouldnt bring the car to a stop in 3/4/5 gear....personally i think it is bad driving..u need to show these guys that you can drive.

My instructor told me to go down through the gears..Clutch, take hand off steering, down one gear, hand back on steering and repeat until you get to a stop. Normally drivers just do it all in one motion as in clutch..go down each individual gear and then return or hands to the steering wheel but this is bad as far as the instructor is concerned

hope this helps

kippy

I was told what has been said in the last two posts.
Mainly because it is a more controlled stop and you are in more control of the car.
Kippy

Squirrel

You should change down so you're in the correct gear to pull away if need be, don't go up to a red light in 4th, try and approach it in second so if it changes you don't have to find the gear, you can just accelerate. My €0.02

Wolverine_1999

Squirrel wrote:

You should change down so you're in the correct gear to pull away if need be, don't go up to a red light in 4th, try and approach it in second so if it changes you don't have to find the gear, you can just accelerate. My €0.02

Exactly. Common sense driving

Vegeta

TheWaterboy wrote:

i wouldnt bring the car to a stop in 3/4/5 gear....personally i think it is bad driving..u need to show these guys that you can drive.

My instructor told me to go down through the gears..Clutch, take hand off steering, down one gear, hand back on steering and repeat until you get to a stop. Normally drivers just do it all in one motion as in clutch..go down each individual gear and then return or hands to the steering wheel but this is bad as far as the instructor is concerned

hope this helps

Perfect ^^^^^

Otherwise if the traffic begins to move and you are in 4th one of two things will happen.

you accelerate and the car will labour as you are at low speed in high gear
Or
you will get flustered and try and put the car into 2nd from 4th. Which looks a mess.

Either way follow waterboys advice to the letter