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Old 5th April 2022, 10:16   #21
Dashnine
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Originally Posted by another_clean_sheet View Post
That is not logical. So you change down through the gear box rather than change straight to 2 which was the correct gear to be in. You should alter your driving technique to suit the circumstances
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Well I would not pull away from a few mph in third would I? You change gear according to the actual circumstances which could mean changing down through the gear box but could also mean block changing.
Yes, but we're talking about what happens from 60mph down to the 5mph where I would be in second too.

What gear are you going to be in at 40mph?
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Old 5th April 2022, 10:19   #22
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Yes, but we're talking about what happens from 60mph down to the 5mph where I would be in second too.

What gear are you going to be in at 40mph?

4th gear if flat, straight road and there is nothing happening in front of me and I was not in a rush.
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Old 5th April 2022, 10:28   #23
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4th gear if flat, straight road and there is nothing happening in front of me and I was not in a rush.
No, that's not the point (again). You're decelerating / braking from 60 mph to a stop, but something happens, the lights change, you decide to overtake the slowing car in front, etc. You're at 40mph - what gear are you in to accelerate?

5th with the clutch dipped? Gear change to 3rd.
2nd ready to pull away? Gear change to 3rd.

Both cases involve a delay, or a missed opportunity to react quickly.

Decelerate through the gears - you're already in third and good to go.
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Old 5th April 2022, 10:35   #24
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Keeping your foot off the brake pedal is by far the best way to improve fuel consumption. Amazes me how some people just look at the car in front of them and are constantly on and off the brake pedal. When I taught my kids to drive I made sure they were aware of what was happening in the distance to save fuel. See the lights change to red further down the road, then take your foot straight off the gas pedal - no point in continuing to add fuel only to hit the brakes a few seconds later. Give a bit more space between you and the car in front and keep an eye on the horizon and you can reduce wasting fuel by braking.

And as I'm old school I still engine brake - the diesels shut off fuel when the car is above engine idle speed.

Drove coaches back in the day and you had more choices of braking - exhaust brake and an hydraulic retarder were options.

but Mike, if you take your foot off the throttle on the approach to red traffic lights, think how much time you waste getting to those red lights.

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Old 5th April 2022, 19:07   #25
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No, that's not the point (again). You're decelerating / braking from 60 mph to a stop, but something happens, the lights change, you decide to overtake the slowing car in front, etc. ...
Decelerate through the gears - you're already in third and good to go.

Thanks Phil, you've explained it much better than I did.

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Old 5th April 2022, 19:47   #26
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The reason engine braking is frowned upon is because the latest drivers? Can not change down a gear, and certainly can not double de clutch. Reason I was told was because it takes your concentration from the road. Well all I can say is if changing gear takes your concentration away, you should not be driving. Such a lot of rubbish talked these days about driving, and most of it is because of useless drivers in the ‘teaching ‘ trade. I was asked to go out with a friend of my wife’s who was going for her fourth , yes fourth driving test, and believe it or not she could not do three point turns, or reverse properly. When I showed her how to do a three point turn, and she managed to do one after about six times, she told me that I had showed her the prper way. The ‘teacher’ had shown her a totally different way. Showed her how to use the three mirrors when reversing, and she said she had only been told to use the ‘two outside mirrors’. No wonder there are people who can not reverse or do correct three point turns. About time some of these teachers learnt drivers to use the indicators also.
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Old 5th April 2022, 19:52   #27
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The reason engine braking is frowned upon is because the latest drivers? Can not change down a gear, and certainly can not double de clutch. Reason I was told was because it takes your concentration from the road. Well all I can say is if changing gear takes your concentration away, you should not be driving. Such a lot of rubbish talked these days about driving, and most of it is because of useless drivers in the ‘teaching ‘ trade. I was asked to go out with a friend of my wife’s who was going for her fourth , yes fourth driving test, and believe it or not she could not do three point turns, or reverse properly. When I showed her how to do a three point turn, and she managed to do one after about six times, she told me that I had showed her the prper way. The ‘teacher’ had shown her a totally different way. Showed her how to use the three mirrors when reversing, and she said she had only been told to use the ‘two outside mirrors’. No wonder there are people who can not reverse or do correct three point turns. About time some of these teachers learnt drivers to use the indicators also.

Double declutching - that's nothing!

Real men used to ride motorbikes with broken clutch levers!
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Old 6th April 2022, 06:36   #28
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My daughter has been learning for 12 months and her driving is appalling. I took her out she didnt know what to do about islands, went into first gear at 5 mph at islands and didnt understand what I meant by looking ahead and speeding up to go up a hill as the car does not know it needs more power and taking your foot off the pedal when going down a hill. I was trying to teach her to drive at a constant speed rather than slowing up hills and speeding down them! Needless to say a new instructor has been found and she is coming on leaps and bounds. And she had never been into 5th gear!
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Old 6th April 2022, 07:05   #29
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My daughter has been learning for 12 months and her driving is appalling. I took her out she didnt know what to do about islands, went into first gear at 5 mph at islands and didnt understand what I meant by looking ahead and speeding up to go up a hill as the car does not know it needs more power and taking your foot off the pedal when going down a hill. I was trying to teach her to drive at a constant speed rather than slowing up hills and speeding down them! Needless to say a new instructor has been found and she is coming on leaps and bounds. And she had never been into 5th gear!

We parents can really help our children before they are old enough to drive, for example, getting them to learn and explain road signs when they are in the car with us ( the children explain that is, not the road sign ), reading the road ahead and telling us of the dangers, knowing speed limits for their vehicle and others, traffic light colour code even listening to the engine for gear changes, what lane to use.

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Old 6th April 2022, 08:14   #30
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Originally Posted by Dashnine View Post
No, that's not the point (again). You're decelerating / braking from 60 mph to a stop, but something happens, the lights change, you decide to overtake the slowing car in front, etc. You're at 40mph - what gear are you in to accelerate?

5th with the clutch dipped? Gear change to 3rd.
2nd ready to pull away? Gear change to 3rd.

Both cases involve a delay, or a missed opportunity to react quickly.

Decelerate through the gears - you're already in third and good to go.
The premise of good driving revolves around the basics: All round observation, awareness drawn from those observations and anticipation using all information.
With your "What if something happens" point, we can extrapolate that. Firstly, it is rare indeed for an event to occur without warning. Secondly, before responding to an event situation awareness is critical before even thinking of accelerating. In the rarest of events where a hazard pointed to accelerating out of it, a competent driver assesses the circumstances by way of observation and awareness. Gear selection should, in tandem, be actioned for a worst case scenario. With awareness there will be no missed opportunities.
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