Gear changing and braking help

This the best advice

 

This depends on the truck and drive train setup. For example, let's say you are on the freeway coming over a hill and see very slow traffic ahead. Engage the Jake on high while you brake until the Jake cancels itself at 800 rpm. KEEP on the brake and get into neutral and watch your speedometer. As soon as you are at a safe speed select the gear you need. For example, in my current 10 speed at 20 mph I will select 7th if I want to sip along at about 1100 rpm and be ready to accelerate, or I will select 6th at about 1500 rpm if I anticipate needing to slow some more.

Get to know your truck's speed at the shift points. THAT will tell you what rpm's and what gear you need. For some of my trainees I had them make a speed and shift point chart and taped it to the dash.

 

If I'm approaching a stale green light I prepare by downshifting as necessary to make sure my rpm's are at least 1500, then while maintaining a steady foot on the throttle I turn the Jake on to the highest setting (I don't leave the Jake on all the time).

Why get into high rpm's? Because the Jake gives you more holding power from 1300 to 1800 rpm. Below 1200 rpm the holding power drops rapidly.

Since I have a muffled Jake I do this even if there is a No Jake ordinance. By setting up with high Jake power you can smoothly come to a quick stop with very little psi on your service brakes, with room to spare on service braking power as needed (like that 4-wheeler that wants to change lanes and stop in front of you).

 

When I get down to a low speed, like 10 mph, I move my feet back over to left on clutch and right on brake. Then i slip it into my takeoff gear before I come to a stop. In my case, thats 1st or 2nd loaded and usually 4th empty. It's actually very easy, just takes practice.

I also agree with the other poster about the Jake working better at higher rpms. Just for me personally, I don't go by the rpms or speed when downshifting. I know for a newer driver that might be the only way, but I really think your better off learning your truck and you just get a feel for it after a while. You can bring up the rpms slowly and pull it into a lower gear gently. I don't like bumping the throttle and jamming it in because sometimes I miss.

Really the best advice is to always go slow enough that you have time to react to these situations. Go slow enough that you can stop if a light changes, or someone pulls out in front of you. You need to anticipate the worst case scenario happening. The most important thing is keeping your driving record clean. You should put that above everything else. That's how you separate yourself from other drivers when applying for the few very good driving jobs that are left.

 

That is horrible advice. It is bad enough all of these new drivers are driving down the road with their eyes glued to the tachometer (instead of watching the road) in order to hit these magical shift points you speak of. Now, you're suggesting they write them down and tape them to the dash too? Then we wonder why so many trucks are barreling into stopped traffic...bet the driver was just looking at his chart to see how many RPM's to look for on the tach to get into the next gear!

This isn't rocket science. Best thing you can do for a trainee is cover up that #### tach and make them forget everything they learned in school about watching it so that they learn to LISTEN and acquire a feel for the truck. The tach is at best a crutch, and at worst a distraction, and the sooner a person learns to drive without relying upon it, the better off we all are.

Listen to the engine. Watch the road.

 

I agree with this completely. I have seen this first hand. We have one other driver where I work that just makes local deliveries, usually within a 10 mile radius. He has been licensed at least 5 or more years. He relies on speed and rpms for both upshifts and downshifts. He misses or grinds at least half the time. He has memorized what gear should be at certain rpms and speed. I think this is how they are taught in driving school. They teach them how to pass the test, not how to really drive.

 

Be careful with the left foot on the brakes. That's why:

During my apprenticeship as a car mechanic, the automatic transmissions were very few. Synchronized standards were standard, we could handle that. When a car with automatic had to be moved, we were eager to do it and got instructions from the older mechanics how to drive an automatic. Left foot on the brake, the right on the throttle. Backing out of the shop was no problem. Once out, you've seen the other guys lined up behind the daylight doors watching you.
Put it in forward gear, rev up the engine and then the desire to shift.... Big laughter in the shop when you banged the head at the windshield.

Be careful switching duties on your legs. It takes a lot of experience and could be dangerous with a loaded truck.

 

If someone is grinding gears the issue isn't whether they take time to glance at the speedometer to select an appropriate gear in a fast stopping situation. I think we can all agree that getting all Happy Feet, going between the service brake and the throttle, is the wrong idea when you need to stop quickly.

By familiarizing my trainees of the speed range of gears they quickly adapted to selecting the right gear with a quick glance at the speedometer. In this scenario the rpm's are at idle, so listening won't help you select a gear. Listening is absolutely fundamental to driving by ear, without referencing any gauges. The OP's question is how to handle the situation when you are having to stop or slow quicker than normal, beyond the easy fix of skipping a gear or two at a time. I doubt any veteran would not glance at the speedometer in this situation to find a gear and appropriate rpm. Fixating on the gauges? That would be a problem.