[maddy42]

One small tip i would like to add is know your vehicle well. Know at which point the clutchj releases and your car wil start moving. It helps a lot.

[sbasak]

Don't know since when this "use right indicator to allow passing" came into picture! In earlier days, bus/truck drivers used to wave their hands out of window to let following vehicles know that they can overtake.

In most European countries, slow drivers on sometimes use kerb side indicators (left on UK/Ireland, right on elsewhere) to inform fellow motorists that they are slowing down so that followers can pass safely. Using offside indicators to let pass is really weird and can often be dangerous!

In India, we also flash headlight to tell "hey, I'm coming, get out of my way" where as in Europe/America, it means flashing vehicle is giving you right of way.

I fail to understand all this fuss about hill driving.. is it really that hard ??

It depends on where you are driving! In advanced countries (eg. Germany/Switzerland/UK etc.) the roads are wider with fences/marking etc. and slopes are not so steep. Also, people there hardly breaks the traffic rule. However, when I drove on Cypriot mountains, the roads were poor and in some places it was single lane, so when suddenly a car came from opposite direction, it was a really frightening moment
Since on Indian context, lane discipline is rare scene, hill driving does require much more concentration. Now add snow and fog, it will become even more demanding.

[maxj2005]

Guys,

Since I am from Dehradun, Uttranchal I too would like to share my experiences and tips to drive in hills.
I have seen a lot of accidents occurring in the hills. Most of them are fatal.
Here a few points(I could re-collect) and the common mistake people do which ends up being deadly.

Mistake 1: You see a oncoming car/bus in the wrong lane, you swirl to your left and let it pass.
Do this only if you are sure there is ample space in your left. If not go for a head-on collision deliberately. This
has saved my life too. The chances are better that you will come out alive from a head on than slipping off a
hill. Drivers in the Gharwal region follow this rule and will head on any vehicle coming in the wrong lane.
Mistake 2: Turning off engines. Please do not do this as turning off the engines cuts the power off to you power stearing
and power brakes(I guess everyone here know this).But still I have seen people doing it while coming down
from Mussoriee.
Mistake 3: Parking on Steep Hill: Try avoiding parking at such places. If it is required. Put you car in Gear +Hand brakes +
A Brick behind two tyres at least.
Mistake 4: Going up A very steep hill: Do not use Clutch to power up the engines momentum. This will burn it out. Make
sure you are using a lower gear 1,2 to go up a steep hill.
Mistake 5: Speeding up while going downhill: A big NO. Speeding is easy going downhill. But you never know how steep a
turn is.


Here are a few more observations that I could come up with.

Climate: Sunny
Driving: Up hill

• Make sure your tyres and brakes are not worn out. This is important as worn out tyres would not give you a good grip. The road though may look but might have gravel at places due to flash rains.
• Do not drive at speeds above 60 Kmph.You never know what kind of turn is coming up next. It may be steep you may not be able to make it and slip.
• Do not overtake vehicles if you can’t see long ahead or there is a blind turn.
• Do NOT go on the wrong side of the road.
• Do not drive in front of a speeding bus or truck. Let it pass.
• Buses in particular are very hazardous .They tend to turn turtle while turning. So avoid overtaking them while they are turning.
• The buses tend to come on to the wrong side while they make turns as they are big and take more space to turn. Be cautious and stay away while they turn.
• Do not drive too close behind .

Driving: Downhill

• All of the Above
• Make sure you are in control while turning .The angle on the road helps but only up to a certain speed.
• Since a lot of braking is required while going downhill brakes shoes may wear out and give you that burning leather smell. If you feel the brakes are not breaking enough take a break and try cooling them off.

Climate: Rainy/Cloudy/Fog/Hail – Up hill or Downhill

• All of the above
• Make sure your head lights are turned on.
• Since the roads are slippery be extra cautious on turns.
• Do not drive (bikes only)while it rains/snows. Look for a safe spot and wait because the thunderstorm may turn bad and churn out a lot of water/snow on the road.
• There is a chance of a landslide .This happens normally in muddy mountains. Make sure you stay away if you see one happening .I have seen a km of road being swept away due to landslides.

In case of snow try to check in a hotel(have a second honeymoon) and wait for the weather to clear up.
If you are stuck in the middle of a snow storm. Drive very slow because snow is very slippery.
In case of heavy snow and less traffic i.e. no tracks or you are stuck in snow (this I have tried my self) deflate tyres for better traction. If your car is stuck and would not start look for a safe place – help.

I hope this helps.

Originally Posted by maxj2005

Guys,

Since I am from Dehradun, Uttranchal I too would like to share my experiences and tips to drive in hills.
I have seen a lot of accidents occurring in the hills. Most of them are fatal.
Here a few points(I could re-collect) and the common mistake people do which ends up being deadly.

Mistake 1: You see a oncoming car/bus in the wrong lane, you swirl to your left and let it pass.
Do this only if you are sure there is ample space in your left. If not go for a head-on collision deliberately. This
has saved my life too. The chances are better that you will come out alive from a head on than slipping off a
hill. Drivers in the Gharwal region follow this rule and will head on any vehicle coming in the wrong lane.

just wondering, could we not use the brakes to come to a complete halt rather than continue to drive at this maniac in our lane?
if a truck is coming at you at 50kmph, and you are travelling at 50kmph, would you rather hit it at combined speed of 50+50kmph or at a speed of 50+0kmph.
I would prefer the 2nd option.
but, we all know by now, hill driving is for experts and natives of hilly areas only
they know better.

@maxj2005- maybe you meant something different in your post. but when you are giving advice on something as crucial as hill driving, please take time to read what you have typed. the message coming off your post looks extremely dangerous.

[maxj2005]

Originally Posted by rippergeo

just wondering, could we not use the brakes to come to a complete halt rather than continue to drive at this maniac in our lane?
if a truck is coming at you at 50kmph, and you are travelling at 50kmph, would you rather hit it at combined speed of 50+50kmph or at a speed of 50+0kmph.
I would prefer the 2nd option.
but, we all know by now, hill driving is for experts and natives of hilly areas only
they know better.

@maxj2005- maybe you meant something different in your post. but when you are giving advice on something as crucial as hill driving, please take time to read what you have typed. the message coming off your post looks extremely dangerous.

You are right my friend I did not mean it in the wrong way.
But if you travel diversely in the hilly areas specially Gharwal and notice how the trax/jeeps'd drivers drive,you will see the same pattern.
It would be obvious that you would slam the brakes and try stopping before the headon.

[anupmathur]

LOL, that 'Mistake 1' does sound rather like a kamikaze style of driving!
I'm sure the real intent of the post was quite different.
Will leave it to the author to clarify what is meant by this advice!

[watashi75]

Originally Posted by maxj2005

• Do not drive too close behind .

Once I was driving close behind a loaded truck. During a turn the truck could not gather enough momentum, stopped and to my horror it started rolling back. I quickly braked, put gear in neutral and rolled back a little and managed to avoid hitting the truck.

Another thing we should keep in mind is that if the vehicle stalls while going uphill the power assisted brakes won't be available.

[GTO]

Don't know since when this "use right indicator to allow passing" came into picture!

This is the most silly practice on our roads today! Think about it:

RIGHT TURN INDICATOR:

The driver could be turning right

OR

He is signaling you to pass

LEFT TURN INDICATOR:

The driver is turning left

OR

He is signaling you to overtake

Clearly, the latter is safer as either situation allows you to overtake. Imagine the disastrous consequences if you read the message wrong in the "right turn indicator"?!

[sudev]

@GTO nicely put.
I refrained from commenting on this special hilly billy practice...... KISS use turn indicators to indicate where you are going and not where the guy behind. Standard operating procedure anywhere in the world - left hand or right hand drive - does not matter.

Nice thread and i would like to add an practice that I have picked up....

When driving in hills (especially downhill) keep as much away from center line as possible. Many a times I have seen 'winged' accidents (not serious but damage to vehicle neverthless) because the vehicles from both sides were trying to take the "fast" line which means some where you are going to either cross the median or get pretty close to it.

Always remember that going uphill you get braking by just lifting foot off the accelerator but downhill your breaking distances increase drastically with speed.

[silver_shadow]

lol i never knew about these hill driving *rules*. i've always seen people make the hand signals only.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by sudev

When driving in hills (especially downhill) keep as much away from center line as possible.

Sudev, you should perhaps clearly state which side of the centre-line one should be!
If you read some of the earlier posts on this thread there has even been talk of lane switching 'on the fly', at hairpin turns!

[ravikn]

Checkout this link.

Hope this would help the beginners

Chandigarh traffic police, promoting road safety, traffic safety, India road signs & rules, safe responsible driving, first aid India.

[sudev]

Originally Posted by anupmathur

Sudev, you should perhaps clearly state which side of the centre-line one should be!
If you read some of the earlier posts on this thread there has even been talk of lane switching 'on the fly', at hairpin turns!

What ever the correct side is...the advise is country neutral. In India it is keep as far left as possible. If it was USofA I would have said right.
Of course (and before you ask) in a multi lane situation the advise is keep to center of your lane and not stick to extremes.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by sudev

What ever the correct side is...the advise is country neutral. In India it is keep as far left as possible. If it was USofA I would have said right.

Alas, Sudev, you have not read the earlier posts on this thread!

[maxj2005]

Originally Posted by anupmathur

LOL, that 'Mistake 1' does sound rather like a kamikaze style of driving!
I'm sure the real intent of the post was quite different.
Will leave it to the author to clarify what is meant by this advice!

kamikaze
@Anup
The point is rather than going off the clif of a mountain into a deep ditch its better to stay on the road.The chances of surviving a head on is more than rolling off a clif.

Check this out.

Uttarakhand bus mishap kills 21-India-The Times of India