Turnabout

Rainbow Kitty

I have my test coming up in Finglas and i have one question re the turnabout as i'm getting conflicting answers.

Everyone is saying including my driving instructor that when you're doing the turnabout you need to put on the handbrake at each turn but in the Rules of The Road it says only to put on the handbrake if the road is on a slope so you don't roll into the kerb? Surely if you put the handbrake on each time you stop it's gonna take ages to do the turnabout

ARCD

You do not NEED to put the handbrake on but it is highly recommended. Most roads have a camber (higher in the middle and slope to the sides), meaning it is quite easy for the car to roll forward or backward into the kerb. With the handbrake on you practically eliminate this risk. Best to practice using the handbrake every time as you may not always realise how sloped the road is and better safe than sorry.

Time isn't important as long as you complete the turnabout safely, if it takes you twice as long because of the handbrake so be it.

Rainbow Kitty

ARCD wrote: »

You do not NEED to put the handbrake on but it is highly recommended. Most roads have a camber (higher in the middle and slope to the sides), meaning it is quite easy for the car to roll forward or backward into the kerb. With the handbrake on you practically eliminate this risk. Best to practice using the handbrake every time as you may not always realise how sloped the road is and better safe than sorry.

Time isn't important as long as you complete the turnabout safely, if it takes you twice as long because of the handbrake so be it.

That makes sense i suppose, thanks for explaining it to me, sometimes you need someone to say things in plain english before you understand them.
Thanks a mill

ARCD

You're welcome, glad I could help. Best of luck in the test

I can't tell you why

... or you could just make sure you keep your right foot on the footbrake until you get your left foot up to the biting point on the clutch. Which is a much more efficient way of doing it when learned properly.

jamo2oo9

I can't tell you why wrote: »

... or you could just make sure you keep your right foot on the footbrake until you get your left foot up to the biting point on the clutch. Which is a much more efficient way of doing it when learned properly.

You couldn't do that with the footbrake as the engine will cut out if you press the footbrake and release the clutch or even up to biting point

I can't tell you why

jamo2oo9 wrote: »

You couldn't do that with the footbrake as the engine will cut out if you press the footbrake and release the clutch or even up to biting point

You're wrong. I'm right. But I can't tell you why. Try it.

Gokei

I can't tell you why wrote: »

I'm right. But I can't tell you why..

The engines idling revs are enough to hold a car on the biting point. (Unless you have a **** of a tester and they make you do your 180 on a hill..)

But for the test your better of using the hand break. You'll have to practice like mad to get the normal way of doing it out of your head.

MascotDec85

I can't tell you why wrote: »

... or you could just make sure you keep your right foot on the footbrake until you get your left foot up to the biting point on the clutch. Which is a much more efficient way of doing it when learned properly.

It can be done this way but using the handbrake makes the pupil pause and look in the right places before moving off.
In my experience, when someone goes from reverse gear directly to first gear without using the handbrake they often move off to the right without looking left. This is more than likely an error which causes a fail.

I can't tell you why

MascotDec85 wrote: »

It can be done this way but using the handbrake makes the pupil pause and look in the right places before moving off.
In my experience, when someone goes from reverse gear directly to first gear without using the handbrake they often move off to the right without looking left. This is more than likely an error which causes a fail.

Putting the handbrake on does not make them look anywhere. The driver having been told many times to look around is more likely to have them looking.
Not looking left as they move off at the end of a turn about will get a grade 2, not a grade 3 unless someone is there.
Look because you MUST look. Put the handbrake on IF you need to. Don't tell people to put the handbrake on to look.

MascotDec85

I can't tell you why wrote: »

Putting the handbrake on does not make them look anywhere. The driver having been told many times to look around is more likely to have them looking.
Not looking left as they move off at the end of a turn about will get a grade 2, not a grade 3 unless someone is there.
Look because you MUST look. Put the handbrake on IF you need to. Don't tell people to put the handbrake on to look.

Of course they MUST look but they often don't/forget to look if they simply go from reverse directly to first gear.

I see it every week with pupils coming from pretest.

Using the handbrake ensures they pause and in general it does make them look

miller50841

Hi best of luck in the test.

Nobody mentioned yet but sometimes going from reverse to 1st the gear won't select properly as a safety feature so using the handbrake is better because you may have to let the clutch out while in neutral and depress again and select gear.

Its better practice as it shows you have full control of the car using the handbrake.

MascotDec85

To go back to your point, many test candidates are told numerous times to stop at STOP signs. This doesn't stop them crawling through them slowly on their test and failing.

My point being at a comprehensive and conscientious instructor you have to find many additional ways of ensuring your pupil does what you need them to do.

I can't tell you why

MascotDec85 wrote: »

To go back to your point, many test candidates are told numerous times to stop at STOP signs. This doesn't stop them crawling through them slowly on their test and failing.

My point being at a comprehensive and conscientious instructor you have to find many additional ways of ensuring your pupil does what you need them to do.

Read the title and the original post. No mention of STOP signs. This thread is about turnabouts.

I can't tell you why

MascotDec85 wrote: »

Of course they MUST look but they often don't/forget to look if they simply go from reverse directly to first gear.

I see it every week with pupils coming from pretest.

Using the handbrake ensures they pause and in general it does make them look

And while they are changing from 1st to R & visa versa they can simply forget to look.
That can be seen frequently too in pupils going for a test.

Using the handbrake ensures they use the handbrake. Telling them that they must have ANY brake applied, look and get the bite, tells them that they must have ANY brake applied, look and get the bite. Stressing the important things makes them more likely to do them.

I can't tell you why

miller50841 wrote: »

Hi best of luck in the test.

Nobody mentioned yet but sometimes going from reverse to 1st the gear won't select properly as a safety feature so using the handbrake is better because you may have to let the clutch out while in neutral and depress again and select gear.

Its better practice as it shows .

The point you bring up is a good one. It is important to mention that it is more common for the new gear not to mesh properly if the clutch is not fully down. This requires fully lifting the clutch in neutral.
Using the footbrake IS perfectly acceptable and shows you have full control of the car using the FOOTbrake.

MascotDec85

I can't tell you why wrote: »

Read the title and the original post. No mention of STOP signs. This thread is about turnabouts.

So a thread can't evolve to highlight a point?

What experience do you have in teaching people to drive?

I can't tell you why

MascotDec85 wrote: »

So a thread can't evolve to highlight a point?

What experience do you have in teaching people to drive?

I assumed when you said, "To go back to your point" without quoting anyone that it referred to the OP. If you were evolving / going off thread then it does not do well to highlight your point. Stop signs mean stop. Sure, they don't mean yield. But they do not mean put your handbrake on. Marks can be given and have been given for people putting their handbrake on unnecessarily at junctions.

Mascot{ I have roughly twice as many years teaching people to drive, then you do. A problem with usernames is you don't know who is writing. It can be frustrating.
PS: I'm not attacking you. I honestly thought that post was way off the point and still think it is ( all be it, less so ). }

I will argue against posts where people say this one way is the correct way. There are often several correct options and a driver who has a range of techniques in their arsenal for a manouver and the ability to choose the best one for that specific situation, will be the better driver.

The OP was concerned that their turnabout taking too long. If this is the only issue, a perfectly good solution is to not use the handbrake. Without seeing their driving, this is as much as can be done. The fact that their instructor is telling them they must leads to another problem though.

MascotDec85

I can't tell you why wrote: »

I assumed when you said, "To go back to your point" without quoting anyone that it referred to the OP. If you were evolving / going off thread then it does not do well to highlight your point. Stop signs mean stop. Sure, they don't mean yield. But they do not mean put your handbrake on. Marks can be given and have been given for people putting their handbrake on unnecessarily at junctions.

Mascot{ I have roughly twice as many years teaching people to drive, then you do. A problem with usernames is you don't know who is writing. It can be frustrating.
PS: I'm not attacking you. I honestly thought that post was way off the point and still think it is ( all be it, less so ). }

I will argue against posts where people say this one way is the correct way. There are often several correct options and a driver who has a range of techniques in their arsenal for a manouver and the ability to choose the best one for that specific situation, will be the better driver.

The OP was concerned that their turnabout taking too long. If this is the only issue, a perfectly good solution is to not use the handbrake. Without seeing their driving, this is as much as can be done. The fact that their instructor is telling them they must leads to another problem though.

Point taken about the quote but I thought it was obvious enough myself.
Using that point was to demonstrate that it often doesn't matter how many times you tell someone not to do something they often do it anyway.
I didn't say that the handbrake should or must be used at a STOP sign, in fact, I hate to see it used in most circumstances.

I like to see the handbrake used in a turnabout for the reasons I gave earlier. If a pupil can show me that they can observe adequately without just changing gear and going I don't particularly care, as long as they get it right. Often the handbrake helps this IMO.

Reason I asked about your experience was earlier in this thread you said, "you're wrong, I'm right. I don't know why"

I can't tell you why

MascotDec85 wrote: »

Reason I asked about your experience was earlier in this thread you said, "you're wrong, I'm right. I don't know why"

No! I did not say that.

That said my statement was a little abrupt. But I find it annoying that there are restrictions on driving instructors saying that they are driving instructors.

MascotDec85

I can't tell you why wrote: »

No! I did not say that.

That said my statement was a little abrupt. But I find it annoying that there are restrictions on driving instructors saying that they are driving instructors.

Sorry, misquoted you. I replied in a hurry.

Rainbow Kitty

Hi all, just to let you all know i didn't use the handbrake on the turnabout on my test and i passed and the road for the turnabout was so narrow but i did it in 3 and just used the footbrake, the tester said the handbrake was optional, up to the person driving but i'd recommend if there is a camber in the road to use it, so you don't roll into the kerb. Just in case anyone else has a test coming up and is worrying about it the way i was

Gokei

Congrats