Major Controls

Learning to Drive

Major Controls

The major controls are those used to actually drive the vehicle.

Accelerator (gas)

The accelerator as shown below is the pedal on the right. It is usually referred to as the gas pedal by the majority of driving instructors. Operated by the right foot, it is used to control the flow of fuel into the engine and therefore the speed of the engine. When the engine is connected to the wheels (more on this later) the gas will control the speed of the car.

Pedals in a Manual Car

Brake (footbrake)

The brake pedal is the middle pedal as shown here. Operated again by the right foot, it is used to apply force to all the wheels of the car to slow it down or stop it completely.

The brakes should normally be applied progressively, which means gently at first, gradually increasing the pressure as the vehicle slows. Brake pressure should be relaxed as the vehicle comes to a stop for smoothness and passenger comfort.

Even a gentle pressure on the brake pedal will bring on the vehicle brake lights to warn those behind (known as following traffic) that you are slowing and may stop. Brake lights are red and are located on the rear light clusters. There is usually another, known as the high level brake lamp, at the top of the rear windscreen or boot lid.

Clutch

The clutch is the pedal on the left and is operated by the left foot only. It should not be used as a foot rest when not in use.

You can think of the clutch as a connection between the engine and the driven wheels of the vehicle. The connection is made when the clutch is up and broken when the clutch is down.

Model of a Clutch

In simplified form, the clutch consists of two rotating discs. The first, called the flywheel, is connected to the engine. The second, the clutch plate, is connected to the wheels via the gearbox.

Bringing up the clutch when in gear will reduce the gap, called the free-play, between the clutch plate and flywheel until they start to make contact, This is called the bite point, or biting point of the clutch.

The bite point region of the clutch travel is very sensitive. When at the bite point a small amount of engine power is being delivered to the wheels, but even very small upward movements of the clutch pedal will increase the power transmitted through to the wheels very rapidly.

A spring mechanism inside the clutch is always trying to pull the clutch plates strongly together. This means that the driver can push the clutch down fairly quickly, but must bring up the clutch slowly. Otherwise the the spring mechanism would slam the flywheel and clutch plates together.

When manoeuvring the car at very low speeds a technique called clutch control is used. This involves carefully operating the clutch around the bite point region to finely control power to the wheels.

Handbrake (parking brake)

The handbrake, also sometimes known as the parking brake, is used to keep the car secure when it is stationary. You must always firmly apply it before getting out of the vehicle.*

It is most commonly a lever operated system which via a cable applies friction to the rear wheels. It is off when the lever is fully down and on when up. The higher the position of the lever the higher the force applied. It does not activate the brake lights.

More major controls

The steering and gears will be explained in forthcoming posts.

References

*Highway Code (HC) Rule 239.

Driving Lessons

If you are interested in taking driving lessons in Chester please visit our website at:
www.stevepaddydrivingschool.co.uk.