Driving on the unaccustomed side of the road

in article , Geoff McCaughan at
wrote on 9/3/04 9:29 AM:

4000 psi wrote:
Automatics are easier than manuals. With an Auto you have one less
thing
to
get wrong.

is the H pattern universal or is that also reversed down under?

Well I wouldn't say "universal", as there are some [mostly older]
cars which
do things differently, but yes the gear change pattern never
reverses with
left/right hand drive conversions. Likewise the footpedal
configuration
stays the same while switching sides.

Normally the indicators and wipers swap sides though, so you'll find
yourself trying to indicate turns with the wipers. On some cars
however
[notably Fiats and Alfa Romeos] they did right-hand drive
conversions
without switching the indicators and wipers over, so if someone used
to left
hand drive struck one of them they'd likely feel more at home.
Most European conversions are like that in my experience. I
rememeber
driving a borrowed BMW from Chch to Wanaka a few years ago. It had
faulty
wipers which could only be turned off by stopping the engine. Every
time I
overtook a campervan I turned on the wipers!!!

Vicki
--multiplaza.nl.nu--

in article , Geoff McCaughan at
wrote on 9/3/04 9:29 AM:

4000 psi wrote:
Automatics are easier than manuals. With an Auto you have one less
thing
to
get wrong.

is the H pattern universal or is that also reversed down under?

Well I wouldn't say "universal", as there are some [mostly older]
cars which
do things differently, but yes the gear change pattern never
reverses with
left/right hand drive conversions. Likewise the footpedal
configuration
stays the same while switching sides.

Normally the indicators and wipers swap sides though, so you'll find
yourself trying to indicate turns with the wipers. On some cars
however
[notably Fiats and Alfa Romeos] they did right-hand drive
conversions
without switching the indicators and wipers over, so if someone used
to left
hand drive struck one of them they'd likely feel more at home.
Most European conversions are like that in my experience. I
rememeber
driving a borrowed BMW from Chch to Wanaka a few years ago. It had
faulty
wipers which could only be turned off by stopping the engine. Every
time I
overtook a campervan I turned on the wipers!!!

Vicki
--multiplaza.nl.nu--

Alan wrote:

In re-reading this thread, I realised no-one had mentioned the main
problem I found, and which also occurred to an American friend who
visited me here.

It's OK to say "keep the white line on the driver's side" but I
consistently allowed insufficient room between the passenger side
and
the kerb. Your brain is used to seeing a certain distance between
you
and that white line, whether on the left or right; you have become
trained to position your body in a certain location relative to
those
lines. Also, you automatically stay a little further away from
oncoming
traffic in that unfamiliar position. At least, that's what happened
in
my case.

So the result was, after wiping out the passenger mirror a few times
(thank goodness they spring back now) I learned to consciously
remind
myself to move closer to that white line on the left in the US and
Europe.

For a week or two there I'd hear a strangled "too close" from my
wife
and look across to see electric poles flashing a few inches past her
window. Like I said, I hardly hit anything :-)

Cheers, Alan

A friend of mine came over to Europe last year and he experienced the
same problem.
For his first drive (with me as passenger), he drove along a quiet,
tree-lined road -
with the trees right on the edge of the road. It was rather unnerving
having them
flash by just inches from me. I believe the empirical evidence
suggests that in
collisions between trees and cars, cars come off worse.

I suggested (frequently) that he move a little to the left.

Joseph
--multiplaza.nl.nu--

Niels Osmers wrote:

I have 15 years driving experience in germany (right(hand) side). I
had
no problems driving in Australia 4 years ago. The only problem was
the
switches for windshield wiper and turn signal, because it was
changed in
the rental car as well. So I needed 3 of 4 weeks in order to
accustom me
to it. And then, back home, another 3 weeks to turn it over again.
But realy dangarous is to go with an continental european car
(right) to
England or Ireland (left).

I've done this several times and didn't have a problem. The only
'problem' I
had was in seeing around the car/truck in front of me before
overtaking.

Joseph
--multiplaza.nl.nu--

Niels Osmers wrote:

I have 15 years driving experience in germany (right(hand) side). I
had
no problems driving in Australia 4 years ago. The only problem was
the
switches for windshield wiper and turn signal, because it was
changed in
the rental car as well. So I needed 3 of 4 weeks in order to
accustom me
to it. And then, back home, another 3 weeks to turn it over again.
But realy dangarous is to go with an continental european car
(right) to
England or Ireland (left).

I've done this several times and didn't have a problem. The only
'problem' I
had was in seeing around the car/truck in front of me before
overtaking.

Joseph
--multiplaza.nl.nu--