Overtaking - Lead foot?
Discussion
I hear reducing the time spent on the opposite side of the road is a good idea, so say your behind some cretin doing 40-45 on a NSL road and holding everybody up. Your on a straight, visibility is good with a broken white line and nothing coming the otherway. So you make your observations and then get in position in the middle of the road, then make the final checks before indicating and pulling out and overtaking in a straight line before pulling back in again. Prior to the overtake, do you change down to second/third and use 2/3 of the throttle or just pin it to the floor?
Look at it this way. You can see the bit of road closest to you pretty well. 150 metres up the road, which you can't see so well, there might be something or someone hidden by a tree looking the other way before pulling out and turning left.
Being on the wrong side of the road is inherently riskier than being on the correct side of the road; you're driving very close to another car at speed which is never a good idea. So you should use all the acceleration you can safely use to get past and back onto the correct side of the road.
Being on the wrong side of the road is inherently riskier than being on the correct side of the road; you're driving very close to another car at speed which is never a good idea. So you should use all the acceleration you can safely use to get past and back onto the correct side of the road.
davepoth said:
Look at it this way. You can see the bit of road closest to you pretty well. 150 metres up the road, which you can't see so well, there might be something or someone hidden by a tree looking the other way before pulling out and turning left.
Being on the wrong side of the road is inherently riskier than being on the correct side of the road; you're driving very close to another car at speed which is never a good idea. So you should use all the acceleration you can safely use to get past and back onto the correct side of the road.
Suppose you are overtaking a vehicle with other vehicles in front of it and intending to slot into a gap. Might it be better to moderate the acceleration or ease off the throttle as you approach the gap so you can slot in neatly, rather than go as fast as possible until you're back on your own side of the road then have to brake?Being on the wrong side of the road is inherently riskier than being on the correct side of the road; you're driving very close to another car at speed which is never a good idea. So you should use all the acceleration you can safely use to get past and back onto the correct side of the road.
fluffnik said:
Hooli said:
Depends the car, the conditions, how far I can see to be clear etc etc etc
I'd change down from a cruising ratio to third or even second in pretty much every overtaking scenario but all else is variable...I put it in the lowest gear it will take in order to not require another gear change whilst overtaking.
There was one overtake when i had my mum in the car, did it in second cant remember the speeds but i wanted to ensure i was back on my side of the road before i changed gear, which meant holding it at a steady 5k revs. I got evils, with her thinking i was trying to break the car.. :-/
And yes i do boot it, pretty much every scenario. obviously overtakes where your intention is to make your way though a line of traffic (often done on the bike) then giving it the beans is clearly going to result in a higher closing speed.
As much as i try my best to stick to 60mph, i would rather boot it as hard as i could and get past before i slow down, so tbh, speeding whilst overtaking is something i am comfortable with, so the boot is lead filled until i am safely on my side of the road again.
(did i get carried away and go off topic :-/ )
There was one overtake when i had my mum in the car, did it in second cant remember the speeds but i wanted to ensure i was back on my side of the road before i changed gear, which meant holding it at a steady 5k revs. I got evils, with her thinking i was trying to break the car.. :-/
And yes i do boot it, pretty much every scenario. obviously overtakes where your intention is to make your way though a line of traffic (often done on the bike) then giving it the beans is clearly going to result in a higher closing speed.
As much as i try my best to stick to 60mph, i would rather boot it as hard as i could and get past before i slow down, so tbh, speeding whilst overtaking is something i am comfortable with, so the boot is lead filled until i am safely on my side of the road again.
(did i get carried away and go off topic :-/ )
MC Bodge said:
In most cases, full throttle, although in a(safe) Alpine downhill situation with a very-early-braking-for-a-bend car in front, then no. Just maintain speed for longer and brake later.
(drifts off into memories of Alpine driving....)
Surely if there's a bend coming up soon enough that the other car braking, then it's too late to overtake.(drifts off into memories of Alpine driving....)
MC Bodge said:
In most cases, full throttle, although in a(safe) Alpine downhill situation with a very-early-braking-for-a-bend car in front, then no. Just maintain speed for longer and brake later.
(drifts off into memories of Alpine driving....)
I remember this from a trip in Wales.. Damn campervan was so slow on some lovely downhill winding roads, could see loads of the road so popped it out, out braked him as he was braking very early and completed the overtake.. No need for lots of beens and not unsafe.(drifts off into memories of Alpine driving....)
Synchromesh said:
Surely if there's a bend coming up soon enough that the other car braking, then it's too late to overtake.
If the vehicle in front is slowing far earlier than you intend to, to a far lower speed and forward visibility is very good, then what is the problem? Overtaking before a bend is not bad practice.
Dr Jekyll said:
Suppose you are overtaking a vehicle with other vehicles in front of it and intending to slot into a gap. Might it be better to moderate the acceleration or ease off the throttle as you approach the gap so you can slot in neatly, rather than go as fast as possible until you're back on your own side of the road then have to brake?
That's the dilemma. If the gap is small then you need a smaller speed differential, meaning a greatly increased TED. The judgement needs to be to be in the opposing lane for the least time as possible without causing other vehicles to have to take evading action. If it's a momentum overtake then conceivably your closing speed is going to be more than sufficient to clear the car quickly, but for a classic style overtake I doubt that unless you were driving something super powerful that you'd be able to build up enough of a differential to need to brake harshly. Bear in mind someone behind might follow you out on the overtake, they may be stupid for pulling out without looking themselves but if you don't get out of the way smartly you'll be putting them at risk.
You'll have seen a couple of "dozy prat pulled out to overtake in front of me and then didn't accelerate" threads?
Dr Jekyll said:
Suppose you are overtaking a vehicle with other vehicles in front of it and intending to slot into a gap. Might it be better to moderate the acceleration or ease off the throttle as you approach the gap so you can slot in neatly, rather than go as fast as possible until you're back on your own side of the road then have to brake?
A good point to raise. In these situations I generally blip into second gear (speed dependant) or use 2/3rds of throttle in 3rd, so I'm moving smoothly past the overtaking target and able to slot easily into a gap. Likewise, in the wet I will only use 2/3rd or 3/4s of full throttle to prevent a loss of traction.If it's dry and there is a lot of space ahead of the vehicle I'm looking to overtake, I go flat out in 3rd gear, whooshing past on full boost.
218g said:
7db said:
Who says it's dangerous on the other side of the road?
If it is, then don't go out there.
If you've observed that it isn't, then what's the bother?
I agree. Rather than minimising time on the other side of the road, how about minimising time alongside another vehicle?If it is, then don't go out there.
If you've observed that it isn't, then what's the bother?
Regardless, I think minimising the level of danger to which you are exposed, rather than time exposed to it, is the way forward. If playing Russian roulette, I'd feel much more comfortable having check that *all* the chambers were empty first, rather than knowing I had to suffer just one pull of the trigger rather than two.
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