Unit Three Subject 5 - Gears: Step 3 - Selective changes

Unit 3 - Basic Skills:
Home page

1 - Show/Tell:
1. Overview

2 - Drivers Eyesight:
1. Introduction
2. Eye checks
3. Eyesight problems
4. Project

3 - Cockpit Drill:
1. Introduction
2. The drill
3. Explanation

4 - Moving off:
1. Introduction
2. The basics
3. POM Introduction
4. Prepare
5. Observe
6. Move
7. Brake tests
8. Stopping
9. Summary
10. Project

5 - Using Gears:
1. Introduction
2. Observation
3. Selective gear changing
4. Smooth changes

6 - Hazard Routine:
1. Introduction
2. Easy starting point
3. Mirrors
4. Signals
5. Manoeuvre
6. Project

7 - Junctions:
1. Introduction
2. Emerging
3. Approaching
4. Approaching right
5. Crossroads
6. Roundabouts

8 - Hills:
1. Introduction
2. Downhill safety
3. Parking
4. Uphill starts
5. Downhill starts

9 - Emergency Stop:
1. Introduction
2. The method
3. Skids
4. The driving test
5. Project

DRIVING HOME PAGE

Selective gear changing

In the previous step we mentioned 'Gears to go', changing gear in order to maintain speed or accelerate making best use of the engine power. This will often mean missing out intermediate gears - this is referred to as 'selective' changing, 'block' changing or 'skipping intermediate gears'.

If you have not yet studied the DriverActive information about gears please do so now.

Get into the habit of making selective downward gear changes and stopping without changing down during your daily driving.

Practise changing: 4th to 2nd, 3rd to 1st, 4th to 1st (on the move at about 2mph), 5th to 3rd, 2nd or 1st and so on.

Driving the getaway car!

The most common use of selective gear changing will be skipping intermediate gears when changing down, however, there are occasions when you might skip gears changing up.

Upward selective changes are usually made after accelerating fairly hard in a lower gear, for example after overtaking on a clear open road or when getting away from a bank robbery. Note that in most situations firm acceleration is not an eco-friendly driving method.

Eco driving is about smooth balanced acceleration – however there are times when this is not appropriate. We should always aim to drive in an eco-friendly way, but sometimes this might be overridden by safety considerations, safety always comes first.

An example might be overtaking a cyclist on a 60 mph road. Apart from the cyclist it is safe to drive up to 60 – the gaps in the oncoming traffic make it safe to overtake, but only if the manoeuvre is done quickly… In this situation you might accelerate to 50 or 60 in second or third gear and then change directly to fifth or sixth. This is not good eco driving but is good use of gears because:

You avoid changing while passing the cyclist
You avoid changing while on the ‘wrong’ side of the road
You use the engine powered to pass swiftly and safely
The gear is selected to match the cruising speed after passing

Skipping gears when changing up will often be necessary when demonstrating the ability to make progress. It is probably also the best method of gear use when 'keeping up' with fast flowing traffic.

Develop the feel for your car and its acceleration capabilities by practising some selective upward changes.

Find a quiet stretch of road and accelerate to about 20mph in 1st gear (or to the red-line if you have a rev counter) and then change directly from 1st to 3rd or 4th. Keeping the car smooth as you do so.
Practice changing from: 2nd to 4th and 3rd to 5th using a similar 'accelerate and change' method.

Repeat these exercises several times until you are happy with the results.

Stop sign reminder

As you know, you must stop at a Stop sign. While the handbrake is not required unless you are stopped for more than a moment, the wheels must stop turning. A problem with many experienced drivers and some learners is that although they slow down to a 'trickle' where the car feels as though it has stopped it is, in fact, still moving. This is most likely to happen if the driver uses a 'rolling first gear' on the approach.

A way that many instructors and trainers have got around this is to insist on use of the handbrake at a Stop line. This certainly demonstrates to a test examiner that the car has stopped, but if the road you are entering is clear it could raise the question "Why is the driver putting on the handbrake when we are not intending to wait!" On rare occasions it might lead to missed opportunities to proceed when it is safe and correct to do so, this incurring an error for being hesitant.

One way that you can help to ensure a complete stop, even at a clear junction is to avoid the 'rolling first gear' used at Give-Way junctions. Keep both hands on the wheel until the car has come to a complete halt and change to first after the car has stopped. You can then decide whether the handbrake is necessary or not based on the prevailing traffic situation.

In the video below, Graham demonstrates stopping completely with this approach in a situation where the handbrake is not required.

Next: Step 4 - Smooth gear changes