HowToDoThings.com Driving & Safety

How To Parallel Park

Staff468 — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 15:03:00 -0600

I could assume that you're reading this article in frantic preparation for the behind-the-wheel test that determines whether or not you get your driver's license. But frankly, so many of us proceed through our driving lives (having utterly failed the parallel parking portion of the test) without ever mastering this crucial driving skill. We end up paying astronomical parking fees just to avoid parking our car on the street. I wonder how much money we've spent in the efforts to hide our shame...

Well, no more of that! Whether you're a teenager or a Baby Boomer, it's time to learn how to parallel park once and for all.

How To Find Car Seat Safety Ratings

Victoria116 — Sun, 27 Aug 2006 12:43:00 -0500

Your child's car seat is one of the most important purchases you will ever make. Most states require car seats for children under the age of 4 year old-- and booster or other safety seats are often required for children up to age 8. When shopping for a car seat for your newborn or toddler, it is important that you do some research to make sure that you are getting the safest product for your child. Here are some tips on how to find car seat safety ratings:

How To Take a Practice Learner's Permit Test

Joshua281 — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 12:55:00 -0500

It's really not very difficult to get a learner's permit, but nearly half of first timers fail the test. That means you might want to practice the learner's permit test before taking the real thing. Here are a few methods I've found to do just that:

How To Get a Motorcycle Permit

Joshua281 — Fri, 19 May 2006 11:15:00 -0500

You've bought your first motorcycle and you're eager to get out on the road. First, though, you must get some type of motorcycle certification from your state. Generally, there are two levels of motorcycle certification.

Motorcycle Learner's Permit: The permit is similar to a driver's permit that you receive before getting your license. Usually a permit is a restricted motorcycle license that does not allow you to carry a passenger. Additionally, many states do not allow you to drive after dark if you only have a permit. In order to remain legal, you will need to get your permit before learning to ride on the open road.
Motorcycle Endorsement: In the motorcycle world, an endorsement is the equivalent of a driver's license. You can carry a passenger, and you can drive after dark if you have a motorcycle endorsement.

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How To Drive a Stick Shift Car

Staff468 — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 14:33:00 -0500

A high school tennis coach once told me that he'd never drive an automatic. His reason? Stick shift keeps the monotony out of driving. I thought he was out of his mind, but over the years of growing accustomed to driving a stick shift car myself, I find that there may be truth in his words. When driving my parent's automatic, I find myself missing the manual controls. If you just started learning to drive stick shift, you probably think I'm out of my mind. Give it a few years... you'll see.

The control differences.
- That third pedal... With an automatic, you should have never used your left foot for anything. One of the major differences between manual and automatic transmission is the use of your left leg to work the clutch (the left-most pedal). That left leg is going to get a workout!
  
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How To Ride a Motorcycle

Joshua281 — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 11:54:00 -0500

Motorcycles are inherently more dangerous than their four-wheeled counterparts, but many people have come to love the open air and freedom they feel when riding a motorcycle. While you can't eliminate all of the danger when riding a motorcycle, you must make it a primary goal to reduce as much risk as possible. If you don't know what you're doing, then you should seek help from experienced riders before you even start the motor.

How To Drive on Black Ice

Victoria116 — Sat, 24 Jun 2006 05:44:00 -0500

Winter driving conditions can be tricky for even the most experienced drivers. While a snow-covered road can be an obvious driving hazard, a road that just looks wet can also be deceivingly slippery.

Black ice is a dangerous wintertime hazard because the icy road may not always be visible to the driver. Indeed, melted snow or ice that refreezes may still look deceivingly like a dry road. And temperatures don't have to be below freezing for black ice to develop. Black ice can occur if temperatures are near the freezing mark--or even a few degrees above it.

How To Prevent Engine Overheating

Joshua281 — Tue, 27 Jun 2006 10:31:00 -0500

Engines burn gas and produce explosions in each cylinder. Rapid expansion from the explosions pushes the cylinder heads downward and does work to move the car. Much of the energy from each explosion does not do any work at all and is lost as heat. Over a short period of time, an engine can produce considerable amounts of heat. In fact, your engine can get hot enough to melt or weaken some of its parts.

The whole engine doesn't have to overheat in order to failure to occur. If only a single part of the engine overheats, the engine will begin to fail.

How To Pass Your DMV Driving Permit Test

davenkit — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 12:29:34 -0600

In order to pass your DMV permit test, and assure you will "know your stuff" when you hit the road, you really need to take a good quality driver education course. Then take as many practice permit tests as possible prior to going in to DMV.

How To Calculate Your Braking Distance

Joshua281 — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 18:13:00 -0500

While you might not think of your braking distance every time you drive across town, you will eventually be very interested in slowing down as fast as possible. All sorts of things can go wrong, and highway driving is deceptively fast. Children can run into the road, animals can wander in front of you.... the possibilities are endless, and they're very real. Here's a few tips I've put together to help you understand what kind of braking distance you can expect and how speed affects your braking distance.

Braking Distance: "Braking distance" is the distance your car travels after the brakes have been applied. According to auto industry standards for deceleration, if you are traveling at 70 miles per hour, it takes 315 feet to stop an average car once the brakes have been applied.

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