Driving tips

[Straha]

So, long story short, I grew up in New York City and went to College/Worked in a town with a pretty decent public transit system so I never really needed to drive and never got my license. Now, however, I need to drive long distances on a regular basis safely. I'm already taking driving lessons from a certified driving instructor, and have been driving long distances with friends lately, but I know there are at least two (I think?) people here who have had to drive as a job and I was wondering if y'all could give advice to a novice driver?

[Aaron]

On driving long distance?

[Zod]

Just remember, everyone else on the road is out to kill you.

[Aaron]

Its right in there too.

Stay hydrated. Stop every hour or so, get out and stretch. Try and avoid coffee and pop, they dehydrate you and you'll crash after the caffeine wears off.

Don't eat and drive or text.

[Straha]

On driving long distance?

Yes, but also driving in general.


A bunch of other people's lives will be in my hands during this which is why I'm reaching out to a bunch of different sources at once just to make sure I'm covering every possible angle.

[RogueIce]

Pay attention, always check your blind spots, use your signals, don't tailgate (the general rule I always hear is one car length per 10 mph) and generally just keep your cool.

Also don't get cocky, kid. Sounds flip but it isn't; if you think of driving as routine you can start to develop bad habits. OTOH, don't be all super tense about it either. Aaron's suggestions are pretty good so go with that as well.

Oh, and because it's Testing: just remember, stop signs are not suggestions.

[adr-admin]

i don't drive but on the road my rule is to just be patient and if in doubt wave the others on or wait or whatever

it ain't gonna kill you to wait an extra 10 seconds at the stop sign

but it might kill you not to

[zhaktronz]

Car dash cam, $60, can get you out of trouble if you are in an accident.

[Phantasee]

Always make sure you get a good night's sleep. Don't drive tired, be aware of side effects from medications.

Maintain 5-8 second gap between you and the car ahead of you, depending on the speed (greater gap with greater speed/worse weather).

Don't tailgate.

Keep cashews or trail mix on hand, if you feel yourself losing focus, munching on something can help get you to the next rest stop or your destination.

Caffeine doesn't help in the long run. Hydration is more important.

Don't think that hands free means you're a safe driver. Delegate communication duties to whoever is shotgun if you can.

Always take extra care at a left turn, there's no rush to make the turn if you're unsure about oncoming traffic. Don't ever let anyone pressure you into rushing anywhere, not passengers, nor other drivers on the road.

[Phantasee]

i don't drive but on the road my rule is to just be patient and if in doubt wave the others on or wait or whatever

it ain't gonna kill you to wait an extra 10 seconds at the stop sign

but it might kill you not to

greatest advice ever

[Flagg]

Something I learned the hard way: Just because you're going with the flow of traffic doesn't mean a cop won't still single you out for a ticket. So go the speed limit and fuck anyone trying to rush you.

[zhaktronz]

check tyre pressure regularly

[Phantasee]

Check your oil (know the proper way of checking your oil), at every fueling or once a week, whichever is greater. If it's an older vehicle, check it more often (as in, don't skip a week).

Tire pressure: make sure you're at cold pressure indicated by the sticker in the driver's door jamb, so check after it's been sitting for a few hours. Pressure will be higher after driving around the neighbourhood, never mind running up to highway speeds, so don't think you have to bleed air if you check it after a trip and it's high.

Consider getting convex mirrors to stick to your side mirrors to help cut down your blind spots, if it's your vehicle.

The proper way to set your mirrors: eliminate as much overlap as you can between the side mirrors and the rear view. It's tempting to keep the side of the vehicle in view, but you should be able to maintain an awareness of where your vehicle is without seeing it. What this does is makes your blind spot almost right next to you, so you're not cranking your head all the way over to see to the side and behind when shoulder checking. This maximizes the area covered by the mirrors, minimizing your blind spot. In my car, I can track a vehicle from behind, see it pull beside, and by the time it's disappeared from the side mirror I can usually almost see the nose beside me.

[Phantasee]

Proper way to set your seat: you need to be able to rest your wrist on the top of the wheel, while pushing the brake or clutch all the way in without straightening your knee. Use that to guide your seat adjustment and you should be in the optimal position for a long drive. Also this helps maximize distance between you and the air bag, which is very important for your safety in the event of an air bag deployment.

Hold the wheel at 3 and 9, fuck what anybody says about 10 and 2. 3 and 9 give you maximum control and feedback from your steering, and you'll notice it's easier to hold over a long drive. 10 and 2 is too high up, doesn't give you the best control and people's hands always drift down to 5 and 7 as they get tired.

[joviwan]

Get in the habit of, without looking, asking yourself what color the car behind you is. If you can't answer, you aren't checking often enough. Don't panic over it, just keep it in mind, like a way to help remind you to keep your eyes open.

I've been told that if you cannot accelerate in order to change lanes, you probably shouldn't change lanes right now.

[timmy]

Driving is like speaking a foreign language; you won't learn how to do it unless you're practicing it regularly, and unless you remain self-aware you are liable to make habitual mistakes that you won't notice until disaster results.

When I was young I went out cruising back roads with friends and car clubs learning car control through dangerous driving. I can't really recommend that; you're taking your life into your hands and potentially other people's lives, and punishing a vehicle practicing your drifts on mountain passes get expensive after a while. That was how I learnt car control.

Then someone called Charlotte came into my life and suddenly situational awareness shot up like crazy. I'd done defensive driving courses and was aware of the practices, but didn't apply them until precious High Value Cargo became a factor in my daily driving.

In summary, it took me years after actually attaining a licence to properly learn to drive.

[Bounty]

Listen to what Phant says, because everything he posted in this thread is textbook good advice.

Make sure you car is reliable and well cared for. If you go long distance, take along everything you could reasonably need in an emergency. I always drive with a small toolkit, a roll of electrical tape, a blanket, a first aid kit, a sturdy flashlight, a quart of oil, a paper map and a copy of my car's Haynes manual. Check tires, oil, coolant and the condition of your wipers before you set off.

Follow the rules of the road. Slow down even if you think you can drive faster than the speed limit, stop for stop signs even when the road is empty. Especially on roads you're not familiar with it's better to be safe than to be sorry.

Be courteous. I don't know if it's much appreciated in the US, but you don't lose time by letting people pull into traffic.

Don't turn up your music all the way, hearing is an important sense when driving.

And if you can't already, learn to drive stick.

[Phantasee]

There is one thing I wish more people understood: construction. A lane is blocked ahead. The ideal way to navigate this, if you are in the blocked lane, is to drive to the roadblock, and merge in there. If you're in the open lane, let in one car at the end. This creates a zipper effect and let's everyone get thru quicker. People are stupid as fuck and start merging early, and people in open lanes block others from driving to the end sometimes, and all that does is. And the roadblock hundreds of meters longer than it needs to be.

[Straha]

Phant, thank you so much for your help. All of your advice is golden, I did the mirror thing today and it worked out so much better. I'm super appreciative for everything.

On the Dashcam: are those transferable between cars? I'll be driving a lot of rental cars, and I'm definitely not opposed to the investment but I just want to make sure it's doable.


Finally, I still freak out a ton when it comes to merging into highways. Would y'all have any advice on how to do that safely/sanely?

[Flagg]

Finally, I still freak out a ton when it comes to merging into highways. Would y'all have any advice on how to do that safely/sanely?

Gun it and pray.

Seriousely though, gun it and make sure no one is where you're aiming your car. Alot of people will let you merge, but never count on it because there's always some cunt who won't and that will be the one time you don't look.

[Flagg]

I'm glad Straha is too smart to listen to flagg

Have you ever driven in America?

[zhaktronz]

Yeah straha there are alot that just mout like a gps and plug into cigarette lighter

[timmy]

I'm glad Straha is too smart to listen to flagg

Have you ever driven in America?

I drove a few thousand thousand miles of US interstate a few years ago and the principles of merging are no different than here. Check mirrors for vehicles closing as you begin to indicate, then turn your head and sight visually in the direction you're about to vector to check blind spots(motorcyclists can often be found there). Having given yourself the all clear, make the appropriate steering inputs and complete the lane change. This should take between 3 and 10 seconds from the time you make the conscious decision, if all is clear.

[Phantasee]

People usually let you in when merging from a ramp onto a freeway or highway. Just match their speed, or try going a little ahead or behind if it looks like there's a car in the way. Most people let off the throttle to let a merging car in, though. That's if they can't change lanes to completely clear it for you.

[Phantasee]

Not as much a driving tip, but if you're renting a car, try to get it from your nearest airport rental location. Usually the rate is identical to the other locations of that chain, but the car is nicer. Renting from the nearest Enterprise will get me a base Fusion, renting from the airport got me a fully loaded model with Sync and AWD.

OH

Learn understeer and oversteer. There's lots of great videos and diagrams all over the internet. In the winter, find an empty snow-covered or iced-over parking lot (no concrete blocks) and practice throwing the car into a spin to recover it. Handbrakes help with this. Do it at low speed so you don't go tumbling into something, of course.

Read up on the difference between FWD and RWD. If you're renting passenger vans they'll be RWD, and it helps to understand what differences you should expect before you drive it. AWD is also a different beast. All three make your vehicle handle differently. Engine placement matters too but I sincerely doubt you'll drive a vehicle with anything other than front engine set up.