The Art of Mechanical Sympathy: Mastering the Manual Gearbox

 With thanks to Gordon Morrison for letting us use his original material

A hallmark of an advanced driver is the ability to maintain a vehicle as a stable platform. While we often focus on smooth steering and progressive braking, one of the most common sources of instability is the engine itself. 

Truly advanced driving requires "mechanical sympathy"—the art of managing engine momentum to ensure that gear changes do not unbalance the chassis.

Understanding Kinetic Energy and Balance

Every moving part in your engine has mass and momentum. When you change gear, you are essentially asking the vehicle to reconcile the difference between the engine’s rotational speed and the road wheels' speed. If these are not matched, the car will "lurch" or "squat," transferring weight and potentially reducing the tyre’s contact patch efficiency. We call this pitching, a fore-and-aft movement caused by sudden acceleration or engine braking. What we are looking for is stability, a balanced car that is distributing its weight evenly, providing maximum grip and passenger comfort.

The Upshift: Timing the Decay

When changing up (e.g., 3rd to 4th), the engine speed must drop to match the higher gear. The secret is timing. If you re-engage the clutch exactly as the revs naturally decay to the required RPM, the transition is seamless. Re-engaging too early forces the car to "drag" the engine down; waiting too long forces the car to "pull" the engine up. Both scenarios cause an avoidable longitudinal jolt.

The Downshift: The "Rev Match"

Downshifting is more complex because the engine speed must increase. By finishing your braking first, your right foot is freed to press the accelerator while the clutch is depressed. This raises the engine’s RPM to match the lower gear’s requirements. The Benefit is that you avoid using the clutch as a "brake" to drag the engine speed up. You avoid excessive "coasting" (travelling with the clutch depressed for extended periods) and ensure that the car remains balanced.

Why Synchromesh and Reve Matching Technology Isn't Enough

Manual gearboxes (apart from very old classics)  have synchromesh to prevent "crunching" gears, but they do not match engine speed to road speed—that is the driver’s job. Relying on a slow clutch release to mask a speed mismatch is a common habit that leads to instability and unnecessary wear. By mastering the rev-matched change, you gain the flexibility to select the correct gear at the precise moment it is needed, ensuring your progress remains swift, smooth, and unobtrusive. This is particularly important at speeds above about 20mph.

Some more recent manual cars will automatically rev match when the lower gear is engaged, but the timing of the gear change and lifting of the clutch is crucial for this feature to function properly.

Quick Reference: Managing Engine Momentum

To achieve a seamless transition, your goal is to synchronize the engine's revolutions per minute (RPM) with the vehicle's road speed for the gear you are selecting.

Experiences on the Roads of India

 The highlight of the recent Member’s meeting was a talk given by Committee member Andrew Burnett about his experiences on the roads of India. The overall impression was that all rules are open to interpretation, or simply ignored most of the time. The picture which sticks in my mind is that of a family of five - Mum, Dad, 2 kids and presumably Grandma - riding a relatively small motorbike without a single helmet between them!

 

Not quite five but you get the picture

Rural Road Safety Report & Code

 NFU Mutual  have recently produced a code for driving on rural roads. The Code follows a survey that they carried out a year or so ago. 

According to NFU Mutual, collisions on rural roads are around four times more likely to result in deaths than collisions on urban roads. In 2023 the 969 rural deaths corresponded to “an average of one in every 32 collisions” being fatal — versus one in every 122 on urban roads. This prompted NFU Mutual to publish a guidance code — the Code for Countryside Roads — targeting drivers, cyclists, horse-riders, walkers and other countryside road users. 

Graphics courtesy of NFU Mutual

The Code was developed in consultation with multiple partner organisations (farming unions, safety charities and user-groups, although I don’t know whether IAM RoadSmart were involved) and with feedback from 700+ members of the public. The guidance covers safe practices tailored to rural conditions — for drivers of cars, agricultural vehicles, cyclists, horse-riders, pedestrians/runners. 

Key recommendations are: plan your journey carefully, adapt to road and weather conditions (e.g. visibility, brakes, tyres), expect narrow/winding roads, respect slower traffic (e.g. tractors), watch out for vulnerable users, and avoid distractions (like adjusting sat-nav while driving). 

You can see the Code here: Code for Countryside Roads | NFU Mutual

Highway Code Changes - Scotland and a New Style Roundabout

 

Courtesy of Hemel Today

Motorists living in Scotland and driving within Scotland, should be aware of advisory rules, which in Scotland are now enforceable through criminal prosecution.

The rules refer to parking and waiting and relate to dropped kerbs and pavement parking.

Rule 243 Do not stop or park where the kerb has been lowered to assist wheelchair & mobility scooter users, except when forced to do so due to stationary traffic. - The Transport (Scotland) Act states you Must Not double park or park anywhere the kerb has been lowered to help pedestrians or cyclists. Exceptions are allowed in limited circumstances.

Rule 244 which bans pavement parking entirely in London, has been amended to add “or Scotland”.  Elsewhere in the UK, pavement parking remains a “should not” rule.  (Courtesy of FBHVC)

Another new roundabout to learn how you negotiate it!

A new “Dutch Style” roundabout has been installed in Boundary Way, Hemel Hempstead.  This reflects the mantra in the latest version of the Highway Code that motorists must give way to pedestrians and cyclists in this instance, on the way into and out of this roundabout.

As you approach the roundabout you have to give way to both cyclists, who have their own cycle lane and also pedestrians who have their own crossing, on the entry of the roundabout approach road.  When you wish to leave the roundabout, once again you must give way to cyclists and pedestrians at your chosen exit.

I think there is no doubt, if you happen to be in this area and approach that roundabout, be very cautious.  All those Dutch ideas of course are ways of slowing the traffic and saving lives.

(Courtesy of the ‘Volvo Driver’ August 2025)

Blue Badge Theft on the Rise – What Drivers Need to Know

Across the UK, thefts of disabled drivers’ Blue Badges have risen sharply in recent years, driven by the growing black market for permits that allow free parking and access to restricted zones. For many badge holders, losing a Blue Badge isn’t just an inconvenience – it can mean being unable to work, attend appointments, or even leave the house independently.
Thieves often target parked cars displaying the badge, particularly in city centres, hospitals, and transport hubs. A broken window and a stolen badge can happen in seconds. To reduce the risk, always remove your badge when you’re not parked in a disabled bay and never leave it visible overnight.
If your Blue Badge is stolen, report it immediately to the police (ask for a crime reference number) and contact your local council to request a replacement. Councils can usually issue a new badge within a few weeks.
You can also reduce your risk by parking in well-lit areas, using car parks with CCTV, and avoiding leaving valuables in sight. A simple precaution today can prevent significant disruption tomorrow — and help protect a vital mobility lifeline for disabled drivers.

How do you make sure that your electric car is actually running on renewable energy

 

or, When Is Your Electric Car Really Green?

Plugging in your electric car feels like the clean, modern choice — and it usually is. But the environmental impact of charging your EV depends less on which tariff you’re on and far more on when you charge. The electricity system has to keep supply and demand in balance every second of the day. Renewables like wind and solar are always used first because they’re the cheapest and cleanest sources available. However, they can’t be turned up or down instantly, so when demand changes — for instance, when millions of cars start charging — flexible gas turbines step in to fill the gap.

That means the extra electricity your car draws often comes from gas-fired generation, regardless of your “green” or “off-peak” tariff. Your supplier may match your usage with renewable certificates over the year, but in real time, your car might still be indirectly using gas power.

So how can you make your charging genuinely greener? The key is timing. Midday on sunny or windy days is often the cleanest time to charge, when renewable output is high and demand moderate. Overnight, especially on windy nights, can also be a good option: wind farms tend to keep running when demand is low, helping to cut the need for gas. Early evening (around 4–8 p.m.) is usually the dirtiest time to plug in, as demand peaks and gas plants ramp up to meet it.

If your charger or energy supplier offers “smart charging,” take advantage of it. Apps such as Octopus Intelligent, ev.energy, and Tesla’s scheduled charging can automatically choose the lowest-carbon and cheapest hours to charge your battery, saving you money while reducing your footprint. You can also check the live carbon intensity of the UK grid using the National Grid ESO “Carbon Intensity” app or website, which shows the best times of day to use electricity with the smallest environmental impact.

Finally, if you have solar panels at home, charging your EV in the middle of the day can make it genuinely zero-carbon. Even without solar, a little attention to timing goes a long way.

Your tariff sets the price, but the time you charge determines the carbon. Choose your hours wisely and your electric car will run on a much greater proportion of renewable power than gas.

Roadside Medical Emergencies

As advanced drivers there is an expectation that we will have at least a rudimentary knowledge of how to act in the event of a roadside medical emergency. But what knowledge or skill do we actually have and what should we have?

I am an IAM full member, having proudly passed my advanced test in 2021. By profession I am a registered nurse with the extra qualifications of Emergency Nurse Practitioner and Advanced Clinical Practitioner. This means I have specific skills and experience in emergency care but these days my job is more akin to a GP. I’ve also published a book on injury management, and crucially here, I’ve stopped to deliver emergency care at a fair few Road Traffic Collisions (RTCs) over the years. I’m not a paramedic and don’t carry their extensive kit but I do believe that I have made a significant difference to outcomes over the years, with one stark case in particular.

RTCs are often chaotic and unpredictable situations. There may be no casualties at all or there may be several in different states of trauma and distress. There is an old adage: “lead, follow or get out of the way” and I’m a great believer in that. Sometimes the situation needs someone to take charge. Sometimes the situation is being well-managed and our assistance in a given task is invaluable. Sometimes we need to realise that we are contributing to chaos and just get out of the way. We would hope that as advanced drivers who make decisions on how to act that we would know which of these three paths to take. In every RTC that I’ve attended I’ve taken the lead on assessing and treating casualties until I’ve been able to hand over to paramedics and I have to add that the police are always very grateful for my actions. I’ve also been grateful for those who help me along the way. As to the “or get out of the way…” rubberneckers are a bigger problem now than they’ve ever been and we need to assume that everything that we do at an incident is being filmed on a smartphone. 

How up to date is your first aid knowledge? You don’t need to know a lot in order to make a big difference, including saving lives. 

Do you know what’s in your first aid kit and how to use it? Is everything in date? Are you familiar with the “DR ABC”* approach? It’s easy, it’s logical and it works. And do you have a way of recording your actions for your own records for any future statements but also to help the police and ambulance?

In addition to this we all surely know how to call 999 but can you describe the location? what3words is an excellent tool for describing your location down to three square metres and the app is free to use.

www.what3words.com

It makes sense to have a degree of first aid or emergency incident training as part of our advanced driving. Courses are readily available and must surely enable us to be better contributors to overall road safety.

Peter Jones BN (Hons.) MSc RN (Adult) MIAM

Full Member, IAM

Author of Ninja Nurse: The Essential Guide to Injury Management in Martial Arts

*DR ABC is a simple memory aid used to guide what to check first when dealing with a casualty. It helps you prioritise life-threatening issues in the right order: