should L platers drive 4bys.
Submitted: Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 19:59
ThreadID:
31301
Views:
2964
Replies:
24
FollowUps:
25
This Thread has been Archived
nowimnumberone
this is not so much a question of weather or not we let our daughter drive our jackaroo while on her L plates because she will be any way but more a tale of an anti 4wdriver.
story goes like this.
our daughter got her L plates yesterday(will have them for 2 yrs) and we decided she can drive the jackaroo for the first 18 months or so because its an auto and theres probly nothing more scarier than getting out on the road and trying to deal with idiots and learning gear ghanges ect.this might not be the case for most but you dont know our daughter lol.
then the plan is in the last 6 months to tewach her in the manual car.
the wife goes to work today and was yacking with the guy there about what we are doing as far as drivng is concerned and then it starte.
something like this.
are you and jim mad letting your 16 yo daughter drive a 4wd while on her learners.
dont you see the news about how unsafe 4wds are how they roll over all the time ect ect.
4 wd drives shouldnt even be allowed on local roads.
there to big there unsafe you cant see out of them there to heavy they roll
you cant control them if something happens STATISTS prove than you more likely to be killed or injured in a 4wd than a car.
the wife says where the hell do you get all this crap from i bet you havnt even been in a 4wd so how can you say that.
he says your right ive never been in one and never will(this is the bit i love)dont you watch tv today tonight ect there always doing a story on some one being killed in a 4wd or a 4wd killing someone.
goes to show that the bad publicity really is working against us isnt it.
ps this is a true story.
cheers
Reply By: Exploder - Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 20:33
Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 20:33
Personally I couldn’t care less, as long as they are being taught and getting road time in all conditions.
At least learning in a 4WD you will gain more confidents from driving a large car and have more ability from learning how to Park it, maynover it in traffic and in tight car parks and control on the open road.
Then when you jump into a small car everything will be a breeze, She will go from reverse parallel
parking a 2-ton 4WD to reverse parallel
parking a lancer or something, my thought are you Kid will walk throe her driving assessment no worries if she can confidently handle a 4WD on L plates.
I remember when I was doing my Truck license 2 years ago, would jump out of the Truck and into the Explorer and it felt like driving a Sports car LOL.
AnswerID:
157913
Reply By: Peter 2 - Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 20:59
Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 20:59
I taught the eldest to drive on a troopy, got his licence on an auto car, the middle one learnt on an turbo auto car and the Humvee, the youngest on a 2 litre auto.
Depends on the person and their attitude and confidence when learning and will vary from person to person.
Also what you as the supervsing driver feels they can handle.
Remember as the supervsing driver you are responsible the L plater is under instruction.
They are all careful drivers but the girls are more careful than the
young bloke.
AnswerID:
157922
Reply By: timglobal - Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 22:34
Wednesday, Mar 01, 2006 at 22:34
I'd rate learning in a 4x4. To learn a manual it is arguably the best as the clutch is v strong, the gates easier, etc.
I learnt and passed my test in a Landy. Understanding the size, control and power of such a vehicle wasn't lost on me. Especially when I pulled "careless" friends cars from local ditches.
Being able to learn on an airfield or large area of paddock helps. Get boxes or barrels and practice parallel parking. Learn to judge gaps at speed. Try cadence braking, brake-lock in safety, etc.
Just don't instil they're invincible - a few trips to the ex-army wreckers for spares taught me that even Land-Rovers are very vincible in the hands of anyone, esp. squaddies.
When they get a faster car though, be sure to teach speed skills. Vigilance, anticipation, control. When I got my first "fast" car, I went on an advanced and then (arguably unnecessary) close protection course and hell they show you some tricks in any car.
The advanced course teaches you to a higher level what you should be doing safely normally. The close protection course teaches you how to do everything you "properly" shouldn't, to get out of abnormal situations, safely. But they teach you the onus and responsibility of such knowledge - it isn't a hoon academy and I was with "real" professionals learning their trade. Hadn't J-turned an armoured Rangie (or BMW 7) before, or indeed any 4x4 before. Only needed those skills once in real world, but that was enough. That's a side anecdote as it moreover taught the responsibility of such techniques and the empirical nature of defensive driving that must be drilled.
So to sum up - learn in a 4x4, but don't take it's weight or size as a cover for your skills. And finally, practice emergency techniques off with space, not on public roads - gravel ones included.
Amen.
T
AnswerID:
157956
Reply By: chump_boy - Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:21
Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:21
Howdy all.
I learnt in an LJ Torana, and the day I got my P plates I picked up an ex-army series 2 landrover.
I rekon I leant more after about 2 weeks in the landie than I did in 12 months in the Torana. There was no radio, no air con, and solid steel all the way round. I could see above all the traffic, and the speed was governed to 80km/h - sweet for an 18 year old.
I only ever had one incident in the landie - some idiot was parked behind me, and swung out into traffic. She went straight under the back of the car, stuffed her bonnet, side panel, lights, the works. She offered to pay any damages, and was really nice, so I showed her the small scratch on the quarter inch steel jerry can holder.......
When my kids are learning, I will definitely try to get something similar for them. No radio, no air con, nothing to distract them from their driving is pretty important. The 80km/h limit is also excellent, as it ties in nicely with the max speed for P Platers. The soft top and no noise protection also lets them hear whats going on round them, so they can hear that motor bike scooting up the inside, or hear that car in the blind spot.
Off the road, I was a bloody idiot. I used to drive down hills so steep that I had to lean the bull bar against trees to stop rolling down, only to watch the bull bar bend back under the weight of the car. Or slide down muddy hills sideways, or drive through real deep water (old land rovers do'nt float....but sierras do).
All this taught me a lot about driving as well, and let me get a feel for the vehicle in different circumstances away from other traffic. I leant quickly how to break properly on steep muddy hills, a skill which transfered nicely to extreme braking
on the road. The manual transmission skills were learnt quickly as well.
All up, I think learning in a 4WD is great, especially if it is old and slow, and you actually take it off road and put yourself in extreme situations. You learn a lot about yourself, your vehicle, and what to do in different circumstances.
Enough of my ramblings now. Time for a prozac....
Cheers,
Chump
AnswerID:
158064
Follow Up By: Member - Stephen M (NSW) - Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:53
Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:53
Hi there chump_boy, any more news on the nunes up at Lithgow on the 11th of this month in regards to the greenies trying to close any accsess. Have a few blokes lined up ready to go, not sure if it was you or truckter that posted it. Regards Steve M
FollowupID:
412433
Follow Up By: chump_boy - Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:55
Thursday, Mar 02, 2006 at 12:55
I think it was Truckster - I said I would go though.
I've got at least 2 4bies lined up at the moment. We'll probably be meeting at Sunny Corner fairly early, and come along that track to be at Capertee by 11.
I'm kinda waiting for information though.
Cheers,
Chump
FollowupID:
412435