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Any comments or top tips? I've never done it before, and am quite looking forward to it. (Sitting in the passenger side of a LHD car always feels pretty strange!)
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Are you driving it here, or abroad? I've done the former but never the latter.
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Feels entirely natural when driving on the right. Can't say I notice any significant difference. If anything, I actually prefer changing gear with my right hand.
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I find it completely natural, in fact as a left-handed person I possibly find it easier than an RHD car.
I've never driven an LHD car in the UK mind you but I have driven my RHD UK cars in Europe a fair bit and that isn't exactly difficult either.
It is no big deal, simply don't worry about it.
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The only thing I really find is that gear changes feel very awkward at first. It's probably worst for me being left handed, but I find myself almost doing the slow, deliberate shifts of a learner driver for the first few miles. It is amazing how quickly it feels natural though. I drove a left hook Audi A4 in Germany for a fortnight a few years back, and getting back in my car at Gatwick felt very odd indeed initially.
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It's not really a problem, like above the gear change is a bit odd at first but that's about it. You'll pick it up quickly.
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Abroad.
Unimpressed nobody has yet warned me the pedals are the wrong way round too... ;)
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And don't forget the steering wheel is reversed too - turn it left to go right.
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>> And don't forget the steering wheel is reversed too - turn it left to go
>> right.
Seriously? Is that easy to get used to?
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>> >> And don't forget the steering wheel is reversed too - turn it left to go right.
>>
>> Seriously? Is that easy to get used to?
Just turn around so you're facing backwards and hold up a mirror so you see what's in front, but reversed. Simples.
:)
Even I managed to drive round the States for 2 weeks 'on the wrong side' without mishap, so I'm sure you'll be fine.
EDIT: I like gmac's suggestion about post-its
Last edited by: Focus on Thu 5 Jul 12 at 12:17
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>> >> And don't forget the steering wheel is reversed too - turn it left to go right.
>>
>> Seriously? Is that easy to get used to?
If you did what Clarkson did with his Signum roadtest, then the steering will be correct again (i.e. connect pieces of string from the wheel and feed though the sunvisor mounts.)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phm6fREnK-A&feature=youtube_gdata_player
(approx 6 mins in)
Last edited by: VxFan on Thu 5 Jul 12 at 13:06
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>> And don't forget the steering wheel is reversed too - turn it left to go
>> right.
>>
And the pedals are in reverse order.
Actually, why does the whole world, afaik, use the UK orientation of clutch/brake/accelerator?
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A post-it note with keep right stuck on the windscreen/top of the steeringwheel each time you park for the first couple of days. Especially useful when driving after dark when you may be a little disorientated.
Last edited by: gmac on Thu 5 Jul 12 at 12:06
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I've always found that particular care is required at the first few roundabouts...
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>> I've always found that particular care is required at the first few roundabouts...
>>
It's that first left turn onto a dual-carriageway at a T-junction that's the real pitfall, all too easy to end up on the wrong side of the road you just turned into the first few times. Just as likely on single-carriageway roads, but you're far less stuffed....
Also pulling out of a side turning. Stop completely every time, think very carefully about which way to look and in what order and then get stuck in to the maneuver. That instinctive "Oh, nothing coming, I'll just quickly go" will likely get you something stuffed into the "wrong" side.
The secret is to suppress everything your years of driving experience have down as instinct and you do on "autopilot". Your autopilot is wrong. It's the simple, quiet junctions that'll get you, not the busy and complicated ones.
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>>Use a post-it note.
Funny, I'd have thought the entire "getting into a car on the wrong side and using a steering wheel that's on the wrong side" thing might be a bit more obvious...
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Tee hee, Just a bit !
S'easy, much ado about nowt etc... I find watching what other vehicles are doing is a huge clue !
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>> Tee hee, Just a bit !
>>
>> S'easy, much ado about nowt etc... I find watching what other vehicles are doing is
>> a huge clue !
>>
Unlike the UK, there isn't always someone else around to copy off. Some of the booze fuelled locals you don't want to copy.
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>> Tee hee, Just a bit !
>>
>> S'easy, much ado about nowt etc... I find watching what other vehicles are doing is
>> a huge clue !
Everything's easy once you're good at it.
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Sorry if that sounded a bit dismissive ! Wasn't meant to, what I suppose I was trying to say is that as an experienced driver there's no need to worry. You'll pick it up in no time. Especially so if you hire a smaller / less powerful car than you normally drive I find. Easier to park and less tempting to bash on at high speeds etc.
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It will feel strange to begin with Mm, but you'll soon get the hang of it, we all do, that's where complacency can step in!
Example (1) I did a U turn and drove through a mountain village in Tenerife on the wrong side of the road scaring the life out of a villager in his Fiat 124.
Example (2) I had been driving most of the day around said Island and was a tad weary to put it mildly, I came up to a semi-weird junction layout and had a senior moment (age 40!) I was completely flummoxed as to who had priority and where were the other vehicles likely to be coming from!
I just did what any gutsy sowf lundener would do and shut my eyes and hit the loud pedal.
Have a good holiday :)
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I've done thousands of miles on the right side of the road, just not on the wrong side of the car. IYSWIM.
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The one big difference with the pedals is the amount of room available. In a RHD car they tend to be restricted by the centre console, whilst in the LHD there is plenty of room because the foot-rest can be positioned over the wheel arch
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My vintage car (a Morgan 3 wheeler) has a right hand gear change. No problem in getting used to that. In fact, the brakes not being linked front and back, a pedal operated rear brake and a handbrake on the fronts takes far more in getting acclimatised.
I think it would be confusing to drive a left hand drive car in the UK, although I know of a couple who had one for years (it was a total bargain) with no problems.
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I wonder if Road-Sweeper drivers find it easier to own a LHD car! - after 8hrs driving left handed it must be confusing suddenly reverting to a right-hander!
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>> I wonder if Road-Sweeper drivers find it easier to own a LHD car! - after
>> 8hrs driving left handed it must be confusing suddenly reverting to a right-hander!
At least they're able to get an equal sun tan on both arms ;)
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I wouldn't know which would be more difficult. Driving a left hooker, or driving on the wrong side of the road. I'm guessing the latter as we're used to driving on the left in the UK.
Driving a left hooker would be just like being a passenger with a steering wheel and pedals in front of us. Something we all dream of when sat next to a maniac driver ;o)
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>> Driving a left hooker would be just like being a passenger with a steering wheel and pedals in front of us.
The first time I drove a LHD car was in the UK. Dave's right, it is just like sitting in the passenger seat. You have to consider very carefully where you place the car on the road as the temptation is to drive so that you (the driver) are just to the left of the white lines instead of being a foot away from the kerb.
The worst part was that I took it about 15 miles back to a customer, who then insisted we go straight back to the dealer with me driving.... Nice car too, so I really didn't want to look like an amateur. I think I got away with it ;)
I've driven RHD in France before, just mirror everything - where you park, priorities at roundabouts etc. Easy, until you take it solo through Boulogne McDonalds drive-thru :)
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We have both left and right hookers. The biggest problem I have is remembering which side to get in to drive if I've been driving one more than the other.
That's why I love my bike...
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>The biggest problem I have is remembering which side to get in to drive if I've been
>driving one more than the other.
I do that - walk to the wrong side of the car.
The most annoying problem, if I'm driving the Chevy, is with ticket machines at carpark entrances and exits.
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The controls aren't a problem - it will either start to feel natural, or it won't.
A serious piece of advice though. The problem I have to watch out for as an occasional Euro motorist is turning on to the wrong side of a road when going left out of a service station. The instinct to look right and come out on to the wrong side of the road is so strong for me that I now decline altogether to use fuel stops on the 'wrong' side of the road and I'll only pull into those on the right.
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Always found driving abroad in a LHD as natural as a RHD here.
The thing that did throw me, only through my own ill preparedeness, was that blasted "Vous n'avez pas la priorite" or "Priorité à Droite" thing in France, and also who exactly has right of way on Dutch roundabouts in various circumstances, especially when it comes to cyclists.
Couple of interesting moments, although nothing serious luckily.
Last edited by: Crankcase on Thu 5 Jul 12 at 14:33
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Don't press remote and open the passenger door to get in! It takes a while to get used to the bulk of the vehicle being over on your right not the left with rear view mirror up to your right. I find keeping to the right hand lane OK but almost forgot exiting a Spanish car park!
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There is a tendency to drive too near the kerb initially when you change sides. Especially worrying to your partner when driving in the mountains with sheer drops on your nearside!
I also find myself occasionally glancing left for the rear view mirror instead of right
Last edited by: CGNorwich on Thu 5 Jul 12 at 15:45
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In the early 90's I drove a LHD Citroen AX 2,319 miles to Tenerife, and on my way back I 'took in' Portugal as well.
You have absolutely nothing to fear Mm, except fear itself (I wish I had said that!)
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Driving a LH drive car abroad is the most natural thing going. Don't even give it a second thought.
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You'll probably try and change gear in the driver's door pocket for a bit...
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>> You'll probably try and change gear in the driver's door pocket for a bit...
>>
My first ever car was a LHD Beetle at the same time as my mum had a Morris Minor. My hand would creep towards the window winder in anticipation of a gear change. Later I had a LHD Citroen Dyane 4 which could never overtake anything anyway so no problem being LHD
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Fear is the Key.Alistair Maclean story quite good.
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Just one question, Dog. How did you drive to Tenerife? It's on an island in the Atlantic, isn''t it?
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Dog wouldn't remember he drove in the middle.>:)
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There's a regular ferry from Cadiz to Santa Cruz De Tenerife, Londoner, very expensive though if you take your car:
www.directferries.co.uk/cadiz_santa_cruz_de_tenerife_ferry.htm
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Have mostly driven my own car, that I was familiar with, on the continent with no trouble. But resisted hireing LHD, biggest problem I found when I did try it was looking at the top of the door pillar for the rear view mirror. Soon got used to it though.
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Soon got used to it though.
Exactly, and so will MM. I remember being anxious about each of my three first times - LHD in the US, RHD in France, LHD manual in Spain - but all three were easier than I'd expected. I helped myself by preparing everything I could in advance, so I could concentrate on the driving without worrying about the route.
The hazard, as Manatee suggests, isn't the first day, when you're concentrating like mad and double-checking every manoeuvre; it's usually about a week in when you're on a quiet road, or one with an unorthodox arrangement of lanes (service roads in American shopping malls have caught me out a couple of times, and I remember a featureless moorland road in southern France) and habit takes over. It hasn't happened on my last few trips to France, though, so maybe even that is something we get used to.
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>> The hazard, as Manatee suggests, isn't the first day, when you're concentrating like mad and
>> double-checking every manoeuvre; it's usually about a week in when you're on a quiet road,
>> or one with an unorthodox arrangement of lanes (service roads in American shopping malls have
>> caught me out a couple of times, and I remember a featureless moorland road in
>> southern France) and habit takes over. It hasn't happened on my last few trips to
>> France, though, so maybe even that is something we get used to.
The time to worry is a week after you get home. You suddenly find yourself exiting Tesco's on the wrong side....
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The only time(s) I've driven a left hand drive car was in the 1960's. The car(s) were my employer's test cars. On a largely deserted section of the Fosse Way in Warwickshire we used to get a left hand drive car and a right hand drive car side by side (LHD car on the right), and the drivers opened their window and put their arms out and drove along holding hands.
Ah, the good old days.
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By coincidence, I had to load and unload a LHD car for the first time ion Friday.
I don't know if it's because I've driven so many different cars in this job lately, but it was no bother at all. Straight on the trailer dead centre, and straight off at the other end, then I drove it with no trouble at all into a car park and reverse parked it between two other cars. All very expensive press cars too.
Don't know what I was worrying about :)
Last edited by: Dave_TDCi on Mon 9 Jul 12 at 16:46
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Straight on the trailer dead centre, and straight off at the other end...
Full marks for innovation there, Dave. Saves all that tiresome reversing.
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>> Saves all that tiresome reversing
OK, OK, at the other end of the journey then*... Trickier than you'd think to end up with both sides the same distance away from the tie-down rails, it's normally an inch off one way or the other. The car was about as wide as they come, too - 6'8" with mirrors out.
*Although we do have a drive-through trailer as well.
Last edited by: Dave_TDCi on Mon 9 Jul 12 at 17:25
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Driving a left hand car in the UK.No problem had a LHD for ten years.Be carefull overtaking but that is obvious.
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L/H drive car is fine on the A14, you got no chance of overtaking the trucks along there anyway
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I've driven a few left hookers, mostly Yanks. I used to move cars for Dutton Forshaw at Mann Island, Liverpool, usually US forces private cars passing through the country.....apparently it cost less for me to drive one from Harwich to Liverpool than to leave it on the ship.
I do remember being called to a breakdown in Rawtenstall, some Yank sports jobbie. The owner had left the keys at a filling station and gone home. I collected them, walked across the forecourt and jumped in. Spent the next few minutes wondering why it had no steering wheel until the dollar dropped !
Ted
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>> Driving a left hand car in the UK.No problem had a LHD for ten years.Be
>> carefull overtaking but that is obvious.
>>
Overtaking is easy. Shove the nose out, and keep one ear open for the high-pitched whimper from the passenger seat which indicates the presence of oncoming traffic. ;-)
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Feedback. Much more natural for driving on the wrong side of the road than a RHD car. (No need for post-it notes...)
I only once went to the wrong door of the car...
The only time I had trouble with which hand to use for the gear lever was when I was taking the ticket out on the motorway tolls. Operating the window with the left hand and the gear lever with the right, as well as starting off again, and dealing with the ticket was more than the little brain could really cope with.
What I did find difficult was reversing into a parking space. I reckon I'm pretty good at this. However this was a bit of a struggle. This may be down to the very strange cardboard-box shape of a Meriva but I'm sure being in the wrong part of the car for where the mirrors showed me I was didn't help.
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Operating the window
>> with the left hand and the gear lever with the right, as well as starting
>> off again, and dealing with the ticket was more than the little brain could really
>> cope with.
>>
Proof, if it were ever needed, of why American cars are almost without exception, automatics. ;-)
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We used to take the Westfield abroad a lot. Runs through the Alps were a favourite. With a soft bag bungeed on top of the boot behind the rollbar there was no rear visibility other than from the wing mirrors. ( before anyone starts there were no doors to speak of so they weren't door mirrors ) :)
It was RHD and you were peering through a letterbox windscreen and very low to the ground so overtaking was sometimes an act of faith. My then girlfriend ( now wife ) and I developed a code. She acted as spotter when we wanted to overtake. I'd hang back a good way from the vehicle in front, move the car slightly to the left to give her a line sight, drop a cog and when I was reasonably happy to make the move I'd ask her to confirm. We started off with a simple two option command from her. "Go" or "No!". This proved potentially fatally flawed against the roar of the straight through exhaust and the inevitable windrush. It was fairly swiftly replaced with "Safe" or "No!"...
Fortunately the little car could accelerate like a stabbed rat and handled with pin sharp accuracy so even if the gap wasn't entirely suitable there were options.
I haven't tended speak about the Westfield much so some of you might not have known about it I imagine.
:-)
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>>>We started off with a simple two option command from her. "Go" or "No!". This proved potentially fatally flawed against the roar of the straight through exhaust and the inevitable windrush. It was fairly swiftly replaced with "Safe" or "No!"...<<<<
I learnt that lesson 48 years ago - NO and GO can sound remarkably similar although terror in the voice of the FS passenger can raise NO by an octave or two on a second utterance. At the time we were driving a Bedford CA12 seater crew bus. Not with the accelaration or handling of a Westfield :)
The big thing about the CA was the ability to change drivers on the move - just make sure that you do not fall out of the open door.
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>> The big thing about the CA was the ability to change drivers on the move
>> - just make sure that you do not fall out of the open door.
>>
A mate who served in the army many years ago told me that you could do that in the old Antar tank transporter. The cab is low-slung (big gun barrel above) and the engine sits in the middle, the driver and his mate can just talk over the top.
Around the back of the cab is a narrow walkway. The vehicle has a primitive cruise control, which basically consists of a method for locking the throttle position.
The "swap on the move" drill is that the throttle is locked open, one lad goes over the engine and the other opens his door and walks around the back.
One day two lads from two different crews were sent out together. On going for the swap, they met on the little walkway behind the cab.........
Apparently an Antar with a Chieftain tank very thoroughly secured to it is a difficult thing to move when the whole arrangement is upside-down in a large ditch.
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Simple, change gear with the window winder and wind the windows with the gear lever.
At least the indicators are on the correct side of the steering column (like my KIA).
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>> Simple, change gear with the window winder and wind the windows with the gear lever.
>>
>> At least the indicators are on the correct side of the steering column (like my
>> KIA).
>>
You overlook the fact that on a KIA Pride, changing up with the window winder has as much effect as using the gearbox... ;-)
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>> changing up with the window winder has as much effect as using the gearbox... ;-)
Closing the window reduces drag, much more effective than gears.
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Driving a LHD car - Badwolf
