Driving in USA

Mike_Hunt

Ok folks off to USA in September - been many times before but this will be my first time hiring a car and driving. (Have full licence)

Will be going to Massachusetts (Cape Cod to be exact).

Anyone got any tips for driving over there with left hand driving and all and also any good web resources for rules of the road?

Also this may sound stupid but will i have any problems getting going in an automatic or will it be a breeze compared to a manual.

kaimera

auto magic is a breeze. [so I've found]

you'll miss the clutch cos yer left foot will be so rested

ambro25

Stick to speed limits, enjoy cruise control on long roomy motorways (Interstates, that is), upgrade to a Convert and/or a new 'Tang if your budget will stretch to it (Herz and Avis were full of'em back in June in Boston and Carolina), and enjoy $2 a gallon while it lasts.

jayok

Small thing but make sure you get an International Driving license for the USA not all rental places ask for them and tbh its a bit of a rip-off - €6 odd for a piece of paper that I could print on my home colour printer. If you're renting or are stopped it could be a technicality.

You get them from the AA here - http://www.theaa.ie

Mike_Hunt

Thanks for the replies. I might just get that International Permit to be on the safe side.

and will deffo think about that Mustang. Mate of mine over there has a Mustang GT and f**k me its a monstrously beautiful machine!

The new coupe looks amazing - I can see myself cruising around in that!

el tel

Although it might sound trivial I've a bit of advice:
Be careful in car parks, esp big shopping mall ones!

I lived in the states for a while with a bunch of other Irish
guys and even though we all did the US drivers test and got
licenses within days of arriving there (and we were very well
commended by the examiners) we constanly found ourselves
on the wrong side of the road whedn driving in car parks.
It's very easy to do as the reduced traffic means the normal terms of reference that exist on the open road (e.g. lines of vehicles, signage, road markings etc) are much fewer in car parks so one is inclined to be slightly more forgetful about driving on the right.

Perhaps you may even have noticed that even in Ireland people, once they enter a car park, act like they've never controlled a vehicle before and drive around like dunderheads.

Oh yeah, and watch those right turns on reds and flashing ambers at intersections at night.

HAppy motoring!

AMurphy

Boston city drivers are among the most arrogent, I am told, so be prepared for anything.
Cape Cod is relaxed, except it is tourist season and many of the towns are like your average Irish town of the same size in tourist season, ie jammed. (should ease up a bit after Labor Day, when everyone goes back to school)

Stay with the traffic on the highway, as you'll probably find they are all exceeding the speed limit anyway.

Watch out for railway crossings with no barriers, just a pair of flashing red lamps.

Generally, rental co's are more interested in your Credit Card than international liscenses.
Pre-inspect the car for dings, etc. before driving off the lot.

While on the highway, check if there are emergency phones every couple of miles. handy if you need a tow truck, etc.
And don't stop on the side of the highway, it's extremely dangerous. if you must, get off at an exit where you can return to the highway again. That includes puncture repair also.
Safety is worth more than a shredded tyre.

Google maps, just enter to 5 digit ZIP code (02647) and there you are, among the Kennedy's. here

Otherwise, it's a great place to visit.

murphaph

el tel wrote:

Although it might sound trivial I've a bit of advice:
Be careful in car parks, esp big shopping mall ones!

This is so true. I was always grand on the right, driven in many European countries on the right too, but soon as you hit a big car park with no lines you tend to drift over to the left :eek:

Also, Boston was a horrible place to drive. It's not a grid city like NY. It's an old mess of streets like any medieval european city, not a million miles from Dublin actually. I hated driving there, but everywhere else was grand.

Alun

The other time to watch out is if you're exiting from, say, a driveway onto a road where there isn't any other traffic in sight. It's sooooo easy to drive out onto the wrong side of the road. I used to do it frequently when I lived on the continent, and came over to the UK or Ireland for holidays, usually leaving B&B's in the middle of nowhere early in the morning.

unkel

ambro25 wrote:

Stick to speed limits, enjoy cruise control on long roomy motorways (Interstates, that is), upgrade to a Convert and/or a new 'Tang if your budget will stretch to it (Herz and Avis were full of'em back in June in Boston and Carolina), and enjoy $2 a gallon while it lasts.

Pretty much covers it

About the speed limits, no one will bother you if you stick to speed limit (real limit so adjust for overstated speedo) + 5mph

Doh is it $2 now? Last time I was over there in my airconditioned, cruise controlled convertible I paid about $1.30

jayok wrote:

Small thing but make sure you get an International Driving license for the USA

Not required afaik. A full EU driving license will do fine. Got stopped once and had to produce my Irish license, which was studied by stereotypical cop with great attention

Make sure you don't get out of your car when pulled over though! Just sit there with your hands on the steering wheel

preilly79

im doing the exact same trip on september the 1st to cape cod, it being a small world i might bump into you. i've already gone and booked my mustang, but am trying to get an upgrade to a thunderbird

Borzoi

Mike_Hunt wrote:

Anyone got any tips for driving over there with left hand driving and all and also any good web resources for rules of the road?

Also this may sound stupid but will i have any problems getting going in an automatic or will it be a breeze compared to a manual.

Keep your head/door towards the centre of the road, keep your passenger towards the kerb. Actually it becomes very easy, though watch two dual carraigeway intersections as the tendancy is to go to the wrong side! Just be more alert and keep an eye on what other traffic is doing.

Auto is a breeze, watch the long trips on cruise control though, the highways are dotted with gaps in the surrounding vegetation as the driver fell asleep and gone off - it's very easy to do on a long straight road when you've no real input into the driving

JohnBoy

my tip for first time driving an auto is to cross your left leg in behind your right one for a bit.

I nearly drove everyone through the windscreen in my first auto experience, went to change down a gear, clutch to the floor, OH **** that's the brake pedal

you get used to the auto fairly quickly, car parks is so true, but I tend to do it here too.

pulling out onto empty dual carriageways is the one to watch for though, just stop and think for a sec, after a day or two it will become second natue

PaddyFagan

Borzoi wrote:

Keep your head/door towards the centre of the road, keep your passenger towards the kerb. Actually it becomes very easy, though watch two dual carraigeway intersections as the tendancy is to go to the wrong side! Just be more alert and keep an eye on what other traffic is doing.

Good advise - very easy to get caught out.

You may not _need_ an international licence, but if you get stopped it will make things a bit simpler. By and larger, cops in the USA won't except that your irish licence is the real thing - proper drivers licences are plastic and the size of a credit card, wtf is this piece of paper - tends to be the standard response.

I know someone mentioned the "right on red" rule - tends to catch everyone out at first, also watch out for the 4-way junctions. (A cross roads, with a stop sign on every entrance to the junction with a small sign "4 way" under it.) The rule is the first person to the junction has right of way, it then proceeds clockwise around the junction, one car from each entrance road. Very popular around Silicon Valley, haven't seen them in the other parts of the states I been too (NYC & LA), but you never know.

Pady

LegacyUser

Just a few pointers to remember over there.

Driving an automatic is fairly simple, although you still are propelling a hunk of metal down the road. There are usually 6 separate settings on the gear stick, only 3 of which you will use. When the care is stationary it is in the P (Park) gear. While there are handbrakes on automatics, you don’t need to use them; the P gear acts as a stationary neutral and brake at the same time.

For going forward the D (Drive) gear is the one. Conversely, going backwards is the R (Reverse) gear. One thing to note, when you have started the car, you need to compress the brake pedal to shift the stick from P to either D or R. If you do not have your foot on the brake, you will not be able to take the car out of park, and you may also look like a complete prat!! One other thing to note when driving, when you feel that it should shift up a gear, give it a sec and don’t accelerate as hard and the car will shift up itself. It will rev higher if you don’t ease off when you think it’s going to shift up.

On the road things are pretty much the same. Obviously it takes some time getting used to the opposite side of things, left-hand drive etc. One fundamental difference with red lights is that in most places you can turn right on a red light. If there is no crossing traffic through the junction, you are usually allowed to turn right on the near side. For obvious reasons you cannot cross the junction and turn left!!! If you are turning right, think of the junction as a Yield sign; you have to stop and assess the traffic crossing, as they have the right of way. Don’t just cruise thru and merge with the traffic, you will be pulled over. As well as that, bear in mind that you are automatically liable if you turn right on red and are in an accident. By keeping your wits about you, you’ll avoid any mishaps.

If you get pulled by the cops, for whatever reason, don’t panic and have manners. He will ask you straightaway for a licence and registration, which will usually be in the glove box, and do not get out of the car unless he specifically asks you to. Address the officer as Sir/Ma’am, which ever applies. Don’t be embarrassed, this politeness is considered normal in the US, especially down south.

The last thing is, on the interstates, there are usually two, maybe three lanes. The outside lane (i.e. the very left hand one) is the over-taking lane, and is actually used as this. Despite the Yanks bad rep as drivers, the one thing they can do is respect the over taking lane. Do not be surprised if you’re doing 5 under or even the actual speed limit and some car is up your ass flashing lights etc. If you’re not overtaking, then you shouldn’t be in this lane; (which is something I wish the M50 drivers would learn!!) If your just cruising, the middle or inside lanes are fine.

Most of all have a safe trip and enjoy yourself

bru

Mike_Hunt

Thats great advice from the lot of ye. My mind is much more at ease now.

For deffo the Boston drivers are absolutely insane. My first time in Boston our bus driver came within about two inches of creaming this pedestrian cos the driver was looking back and joking with the passengers. He slammed on the brakes and shouted a lot of racial abuse at the pedestrian who was white (bus driver was black)!

im doing the exact same trip on september the 1st to cape cod, it being a small world i might bump into you. i've already gone and booked my mustang, but am trying to get an upgrade to a thunderbird

Cape cod is so much more relaxed - won't be hiring the car until the last of the summer visitors more or less leaves after labor day weekend so should be quiet enough. I love cape cod! How bout you preilly have you been there much. I've been every year since 1999 (ever since J1)

Mustang sounds more and more tempting!#

Great advice for driving the automatic bruachain...cheers

preilly79

well i spent three days in boston after i finished my leaving cert, but that was 6 years ago now!

i guess you could say this will be my first real visit there, and im using it as a taste tester as im planning on moving there this october. my girlfriend lives in Phily but is moving to NY, and i cant bear to be away from here so it looks like i'll be applying for a visa!

do you know any nice hotels in cape cod?

AMurphy

bruachain wrote:

Just a few pointers to remember over there.

Driving an automatic is fairly simple, although you still are propelling a hunk of metal down the road. There are usually 6 separate settings on the gear stick, only 3 of which you will use. When the care is stationary it is in the P (Park) gear. While there are handbrakes on automatics, you don’t need to use them; the P gear acts as a stationary neutral and brake at the same time.

For going forward the D (Drive) gear is the one. Conversely, going backwards is the R (Reverse) gear. One thing to note, when you have started the car, you need to compress the brake pedal to shift the stick from P to either D or R. If you do not have your foot on the brake, you will not be able to take the car out of park, and you may also look like a complete prat!! ......

bru

When you drive an older auto you forget about these little got-ya details in modern vehicles.

True, manyof the modern cars will not shift out of REV unless you have your foot plonked on the brake.
most will not allow you take the ignition out of the lock unless it is on Park, and most will not start if in any selection other than P or N.

In many of them the hand-brake is activated by your left foot, so don't reach for the "clutch" and lock the rear wheels.

On sime there is hand release to the left of the steering sonwehere, careful not to grab the hood/bonnet release in error, on others, you have to press the foot pedal again to release it, bit like a Biro. (presson, press off).

Sometimes, if you do not use the Park Brake on a hill/slope, after putting it in P and releasing the foot brake it will roll forward a few more inches, not good if the nearest object is less than the roll distance. Also, the load may make it difficult to get it out of Park later. Use the Park Brake to avoid these problems.

i have also found a few rentals with automatic headlights lights, (and/or Daytime Running Lights) confused the carp out of me, as they insisted on switching themselves off and at their own pace.

Last rental Mustang I drove has ABS that hammered like hell when activated, like hard braking at a stop sign I failed to notice.

How many traveling in total, the back of a Mustang may be a little cramped for 4 or 5. especially if a 2 door.