Handling gears skillfully
By H. Kishie Singh

WE have seen how disc brakes on the front wheels help in slowing down or stopping a vehicle. There is yet another way to brake and that is by using the gears.

If you have seen a Formulae One race on TV, you may have seen Schumacher and other drivers shifting gears to slow down.

To gain speed, the drivers go up through gears 1 to 6. When rally drivers need to slow down, they shift down through gears 6 to 2. The point is, as they use the immense power of the engine to zoom up to 200 km per hour, they use the same power to slow down. At those speeds, the brakes heat up tremendously due to friction and are less efficient. Also it makes sure that the driver is in the right gear to harness the power to accelerate again.

There are three ways to slow down:

1. Deceleration i.e. releasing the accelerator

2. Using the brakes

3. Using the engine via the gear box

The way you use your gears will determine your competence as a driver. It will decide the fuel consumption of your car. Two drivers with different driving and gear changing habits will get different "kilometres per litre" — up to 30 per cent more or less from the same vehicle!

This depends upon using the gear box judiciously. Skillful use of gears means matching the road speed to the right gear. And using the clutch and accelerator in perfect harmony. Be in tune with your car. Be responsive to the road conditions.

For example, if you’re breezing along Madhya Marg at the legal 65 km. per hour, you will need to slow down to about may be 30 km per hour to negotiate the roundabout ahead. As you take your foot off the accelerator, the car begins to slow. Slow it further with a gentle pressure on the foot brake and change into a lower gear.

The top gear produces speed but no power, while the lower gears produce power but not speed.

It is a great help to be responsive to the road conditions. Learn to forewarn yourself.

While entering the roundabout, try and assess the traffic. Ideally, you should be in the gear required to zoom you back to 65 km per hour!

But 65 km per hour is too fast and dangerous a speed for Chandigarh roads. The speed limit on NH 1 is 75 km per hour.

You, the driver must adapt to the present road conditions. You cannot drive today in Chandigarh as you did 10 years ago.

If you learn to handle the gear box skillfully, you will enhance the performance of the car, get better fuel average, save on brakes, tyres, and suspension.

You can also learn to overlap braking with a gear change.

As you come to the end of your braking, change into a lower gear. It helps in slowing the car, keeping it stable. It certainly helps the engine, as it won’t labour when it comes out of the situation that necessitated braking and the gear change.

Changing into a lower gear before entering a roundabout has a distinct advantage. You won‘t be fumbling with one hand on the steering, the other on the gear shift lever, and working the clutch and the brake in the middle of the chaotic traffic.

A rushed gear change or last-minute braking may cause the car to skid at precisely the point when you need maximum control of the car.

Using a low gear while going down will keep the car in full control. Do not depend on the brakes alone.

Our monsoon provides plenty of water, mud and slush. The mountains provide snow and ice. These are really very slippery road conditions. It is important to master the use of the gear box to drive safely in such conditions.

Happy motoring!