downshifting when overtaking

**blackmoon06** · February 24th, 2009 02:28 AM

Originally Posted by shadow

pero kung meron gusto mag overtake dapat talaga palusutin, parang isa sa violation sa LTO yun hinde mo papalusutin eh.

hirap kasi dito sa pilipinas eh pag meron gusto mag overtake lalo pang bibilisan at iipitin nun nasa harap.

pa-join po sa thread mga bro & sis. paano po kung moderate traffic sa nlex with 5 to 6 cars infront * 60kph, then a car at your back eh flash ng flash to overtake (di naman emergency situation yung car sa likod), would you be annoyed? kakainis po kasi lalo na kung gabi.

sorry po kung medyo OT sa original thread. salamat po.

**oj88** · February 24th, 2009 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by blackmoon06

pa-join po sa thread mga bro & sis. paano po kung moderate traffic sa nlex with 5 to 6 cars infront * 60kph, then a car at your back eh flash ng flash to overtake (di naman emergency situation yung car sa likod), would you be annoyed? kakainis po kasi lalo na kung gabi.

sorry po kung medyo OT sa original thread. salamat po.

Kung nasa overtaking (inner) lane ka, dapat kang tumabi para palusutin sya. Ok nga ginagawa ng NLEX eh, sumunod na sa international highway standards. Lahat ng kotse dapat nasa middle lane. Punta lang ng inner lane para mag overtake then balik na sa middle lane.

Nga lang, maraming driver either di alam ito or pasaway.

**CVT** · February 24th, 2009 08:57 AM

Agree,- he can do this if he is in the passing lane (innermost lane). So, you have to give the lane to him and let him pass....

7505:bravo:

**jumpman138** · March 12th, 2009 08:20 AM

there is this term called "slipstream" which basically means that there is less pressure or let's just call it drag behind the car in front of you. meaning you'll have less fuel consumption if you would stay in the slipstream, and better, you can have more power right before you overtake. medyo tricky lang kasi you really have to time your pass...saka baka biglang mar-brake ung nasa harap mahirap na. hehe...

pero this is effective when done properly...rev it 1/2 to 3/4 of the way (gas pedal, at lower gear) while in the slipstream or basta match kayo nung nasa harap to get your rpm higher...then when the time is right to make the pass, hit it full throttle. you would really feel the torque...tapos ako usually shift-up pag entry na ulit sa lane, pag naka-bwelo na. :D sarap ng hatak...lalo na pag racing exhaust...vrrroooom...vrrraaaahhhhh! hehe

*reminder lang please be alert dun saoto sa harap niyo ah...and do this with every bit of caution. wag ung padalus-dalos...always be safe and practice defensive driving.

**s_quilicot** · March 12th, 2009 09:34 AM

Originally Posted by jumpman138

there is this term called "slipstream" which basically means that there is less pressure or let's just call it drag behind the car in front of you. meaning you'll have less fuel consumption if you would stay in the slipstream, and better, you can have more power right before you overtake. medyo tricky lang kasi you really have to time your pass...saka baka biglang mar-brake ung nasa harap mahirap na. hehe...

pero this is effective when done properly...rev it 1/2 to 3/4 of the way (gas pedal, at lower gear) while in the slipstream or basta match kayo nung nasa harap to get your rpm higher...then when the time is right to make the pass, hit it full throttle. you would really feel the torque...tapos ako usually shift-up pag entry na ulit sa lane, pag naka-bwelo na. :D sarap ng hatak...lalo na pag racing exhaust...vrrroooom...vrrraaaahhhhh! hehe

*reminder lang please be alert dun saoto sa harap niyo ah...and do this with every bit of caution. wag ung padalus-dalos...always be safe and practice defensive driving.

why do this?

its a very risky and dangerous maneuver.

**oj88** · March 12th, 2009 12:13 PM

^^ Also known as drafting. Track racers use this to "slingshot" past opponents or team members. They take advantage of the temporary vacuum created at the back of the vehicle in front.

Hyper-milers use this to be more fuel-efficient by following semi-trucks or large SUVs, etc.

Though, it's scientific fact that it will improve FE, and would probably help you "slingshot"/overtake the car in front, it is considered unsafe when done on public roads. In fact, in most parts of the world this is also known as tailgating and it is illegal.

Drive responsibly.

**iRevoLution_mo** · March 12th, 2009 12:17 PM

Slipstream or Drafting they usually call it.

tipid sa fuel consumption at the same time gains you more power and speed.
kasi it reduces air drag nga naman.

i usually do this all the time at the expressway, i always stay behind these huge large buses and trucks with a one car away clearance from it. proven nga na when you are side to side with this buses and trucks may wind pressure/drag ako nararamdaman, parang nahahagip ng hangin yung buong oto pag may bus or truck na mabilis na napadaan sa side ko.

**jeDi13** · March 12th, 2009 12:31 PM

although proven na may economical benefits ang pag-ddrafting, sobrang risky ito na driving style/technique. ginagawa ko lang 'to sa PC game (Need For Speed). tska dapat always naka-step sa gas pedal ang sasakyan sa harap niyo. pero pag natapakan ang brake pedal, hindi na kakayanin ng reaction time mong mag-brake lalo na pag sobrang dikit. ending, hindi ka rin nakatipid kasi may violation ka pa.

btw, napanood ko yung episode ng Myth Busters yung about sa drafting. hindi porket mas malapit ka sa sasakyan in front, mas optimized ang drafting. may certain distance lang dapat sa vehicle in front. any distance farther or nearer, hindi na magiging economical.

**iRevoLution_mo** · March 12th, 2009 03:46 PM

Originally Posted by jeDi13

btw, napanood ko yung episode ng Myth Busters yung about sa drafting. hindi porket mas malapit ka sa sasakyan in front, mas optimized ang drafting. may certain distance lang dapat sa vehicle in front. any distance farther or nearer, hindi na magiging economical.

tama. when drafting/slipstream with cars yung clearance mo dapat below 2.5 meters (tansyameter) and when in terms of buses/trucks tolerable pa ang 1 car apart. ang theory kasi dito is to avoid the wind velocity/air drag and retarded force so as long as sakop ka pa ng shadow ng katapat mong vehicle mas okay.. so mas mahirap talaga at risky gawin to in front of smaller type of vehicles. at lalo na dun sa mga walang brake lights which oftens sudden breaks.

**niky** · March 12th, 2009 04:13 PM

Yup.

Drafting is often effective, but very risky, especially if you can't see around the car in front of you.

Ideally, you want to maintain four or five car-lengths of distance from the car in front of you at 80 km/h... or even more, if what's in front of you is a trailer-truck which you can't see around, or if it's a model with better brakes than you (hint: he's in a Civic, you're in a Crosswind).

Most of the advice here is right... maintain a good distance from the guy you're overtaking, so you can see around him and plan for your overtake. Start accelerating when you see an anticipated opening. Signal your intent to overtake with your turn signal or flasher. Go at least 10-20 km/h faster than the other guy. And pull back into your lane right away. If someone else is overtaking behind you, it's your duty to ensure their safety (and yours) by leaving a clear space between yourself and the guy you just overtook. Don't overtake a guy then settle in in front of him going at the exact same speed... if you didn't need to go faster, why'd you overtake in the first place?

---

*blackmoon06: If you're not overtaking anybody, then pull over. If you're overtaking somebody, but taking a long time to do it, either speed up or pull over. The leftmost lane of any road is reserved for overtaking. Even if I'm going faster than everyone else, I pull back to the middle of the road after finishing my overtaking maneuver.

Most Filipino drivers don't understand this. They stay in the left lane to avoid obstacles in the right lane. Like stopping jeepneys, buses, tricycles... now, wait just a cotton-picking minute... there aren't any stopping PUVs on the highway, now, are there? By staying in the left lane, you're ensuring that faster cars behind you are overtaking you on your blind side, where you can't see them, and you might possibly hit them when you need to merge right to get off the highway... and you're driving closer to incoming traffic. Now, I know there's a median between northbound and southbound on the NLEX, but you're driving closest to a potential 200 km/h collision (you going 100 km/h one way, the truck jumping the median going 100 km/h the other) in the left lane.

Not to mention the problem of being blinded by motorists on the other side at night... which is minimized the further you are from the left.

So... if you're not going twice the speed limit or actively overtaking, stay to the right. It's the proper thing to do.