Moving off.
Moving away from the kerb is an immensely important skill. It seems obvious, but the ability to join traffic safely is a skill in itself. The driving plan used is P.O.M because the vehicle is stationary; it is just applied slightly differently to meet the requirements of the following situations.
Blind spots.
There are several blind spots around a vehicle. As you sit in the drivers seat facing forwards you are looking at your normal zone of vision. Objects directly in front of you are perfectly in focus whereas objects nearer to the side of you are blurred but you could tell if they moved. This is your normal zone of vision and it is usually just under one hundred and eighty degrees.
By moving your head slightly you can improve upon your normal zone of vision by using your mirrors. These will show you what is happening directly behind you and a little bit on either side. The remaining areas around you you cannot see without turning your head quite a bit. These are your major blind spots. They are quite large and either side of you over your shoulders. The pillars at the front of the vehicle do create blind spots to a lesser extent because you have to move your head to see around them. The pillar nearest to the driver can be quite thick in some vehicles and is worth bearing in mind when looking for hazards.
On the level.
Preparation.
Clutch down, select first gear, set the gas and find a gentle biting point.
Observation.
Check the centre mirror, right mirror and over your right shoulder to check the right hand major blind spot.
Indicate if necessary: You must apply the indicator if it will be beneficial to other road users.
If anything is moving in front of you do not indicate unless they are indicating to turn across your path.
If anything is coming from behind, indicate; do not wait for the other road user to pass you.
Manoeuvre.
When you are happy that it is safe to do so release the handbrake and move off.
As soon as the vehicle begins to move you must perform a second shoulder check; just in case anything was missed the first time.
Straighten in the road into your normal driving position and perform a full set of mirror checks.
Hill starts.
Before I explain the slight differences in procedure necessary to perform the two hill starts, I must mention the proper function of the handbrake and the effect of a 'biting' point.
The 'biting' point is so called because the clutch plates are beginning to 'bite' together and are therefore transferring the power of the engine through to the wheels.
The function of the handbrake is to hold the weight of the vehicle against the forces of gravity, and nothing else. So, when you apply the handbrake the vehicle will not roll away. However, the handbrake is not strong enough to hold the weight of the vehicle plus the power of the engine.
Up hill starts.
To move the vehicle uphill we are going to need to get more power through to the wheels, so at some point you are going to have to use extra gas. The timing of this is important. If we apply the extra gas immediately, the engine is revving away like a banshee while you are performing the observations and waiting (with the indicator on if necessary) for any vehicles that might happen along. Therefore, the extra gas is applied just before you release the handbrake to move away from the kerb.
Down hill starts.
The function of the handbrake is explained above. For the downhill start, you do not need to take a biting point when you set the gas. When the observations have been completed and you are ready to move away then you release the handbrake and bring the clutch up gently immediately afterwards. The vehicle will have started to move anyway because of gravity.
At an angle.
To check your ability to move off at an angle the examiner may ask you to pull into the kerb on the left quite close to a parked vehicle. They will then ask you to follow the road ahead.
What they are looking for is low speed and frequent shoulder checks. Because you are close to the vehicle ahead you will have to drive slowly anyway. The speed should be the same as when you 'peep & creep' out of a junction. The extra shoulder checks are necessary because moving off at an angle takes a few seconds longer than moving away normally.
I would recommend that three shoulder checks are necessary for this procedure.
As well as the normal two (before moving and immediately after moving) I would add a third just before you start to steer to the left to straighten up.
