I ran a search in the forum, as well as looking at the first page manually and couldn't find anything, so being new to the forum I'm sorry if this topic is already under discussion elsewhere.
When it comes to changing gear there are a number of opinions and we all know that it does depend on the car, the conditions, the driver's ability etc. That said there are generally considered to be some basic rules you can follow and I wondered what other people think they are? Let's assume, for the sake of discussion that you're driving on flat, good quality roads.
When I was learning to drive in the early 2000s I was told by my instructor that 1st gear is basically for manoeuvring (with clutch control) and very slow speeds of 0 - 10 mph. 2nd gear was then for speeds of 10 - 20 (most often used on the busy and cramped residential roads around where I lived), 3rd for 20 - 30, 4th for 30 - 40 and 5th for 40+. Obviously this was approximate and you still had to listen to the car. When it comes to shifting down gears, you should slow the car to the appropriate speed and then select the appropriate gear.
My Dad, on the other hand, has a very different view and believes that you should go up the gears quickly and get into 5th as soon as you can, often doing so between 20 and 30 mph. This gives a better fuel economy and allows you to basically sit back and relax, only shifting down a gear if you really have to - usually because you've been forced to slow down to the point where the car is really complaining about the higher gear. He still uses 1st gear for manoeuvres of course but he always applies power when doing so; I don't think I've ever seen him use clutch control.
The third point of view I've come across is that of an older gentleman I worked with once who felt that you should be shifting gears constantly, moving up each in turn as you go faster and moving down each in turn as you go more slowly. He said it was safer. He also tended to use power when manoeuvring - a lot of it and heavy use of the break!
Obviously people from different generations were taught differently but my thoughts at the moment are that 'my way' is the modern way of safe driving and that 'my Dad's way' is the way of economical driving (which would very much appeal to him :D). In other words it's driving the best way you can vs driving the best way for your car/bank balance. When it comes to the older gentleman I mentioned, I think that the difference has more to do with the change in technology over the years - we just don't need to shift so much any more. I'd like to hear other people's views though.
When it comes to changing gear there are a number of opinions and we all know that it does depend on the car, the conditions, the driver's ability etc. That said there are generally considered to be some basic rules you can follow and I wondered what other people think they are? Let's assume, for the sake of discussion that you're driving on flat, good quality roads.
When I was learning to drive in the early 2000s I was told by my instructor that 1st gear is basically for manoeuvring (with clutch control) and very slow speeds of 0 - 10 mph. 2nd gear was then for speeds of 10 - 20 (most often used on the busy and cramped residential roads around where I lived), 3rd for 20 - 30, 4th for 30 - 40 and 5th for 40+. Obviously this was approximate and you still had to listen to the car. When it comes to shifting down gears, you should slow the car to the appropriate speed and then select the appropriate gear.
My Dad, on the other hand, has a very different view and believes that you should go up the gears quickly and get into 5th as soon as you can, often doing so between 20 and 30 mph. This gives a better fuel economy and allows you to basically sit back and relax, only shifting down a gear if you really have to - usually because you've been forced to slow down to the point where the car is really complaining about the higher gear. He still uses 1st gear for manoeuvres of course but he always applies power when doing so; I don't think I've ever seen him use clutch control.
The third point of view I've come across is that of an older gentleman I worked with once who felt that you should be shifting gears constantly, moving up each in turn as you go faster and moving down each in turn as you go more slowly. He said it was safer. He also tended to use power when manoeuvring - a lot of it and heavy use of the break!
Obviously people from different generations were taught differently but my thoughts at the moment are that 'my way' is the modern way of safe driving and that 'my Dad's way' is the way of economical driving (which would very much appeal to him :D). In other words it's driving the best way you can vs driving the best way for your car/bank balance. When it comes to the older gentleman I mentioned, I think that the difference has more to do with the change in technology over the years - we just don't need to shift so much any more. I'd like to hear other people's views though.