As a professional truck driver, can I offer some guidance on how to control an automatic to avoid hesitancy and slow changing?

I drive trucks for a living and read most weeks about people passing comments regarding the hesitancy and slow changing of automated manual transmissions. Trucks also have them and I could pass the same...

Why do some automatic drivers still not use left-foot braking, especially when starting the engine?

A friend came to see us. When leaving he sat in his new-to-him, 2008/58 Mercedes-Benz A180 diesel auto. Without putting his legs anywhere near the pedals he turned the key and started the engine. To my...

Why does the traffic flow more smoothly at junctions where traffic lights have failed?

You are quite right that traffic flows much more freely at a junction where the lights have failed. It is all to do with drivers' psyche. For that moment, other drivers are team mates rather than opponents;...

Why don't you condemn tailgaters when you write about obstructive drivers?

In your reply to TM of Tunbridge Wells you supported his view regarding obstructive drivers. I would also have liked you to condemn tailgating, as there is never an excuse for it for whatever reason. It...

Why can't drivers obey the basic commands of the original Highway Code?

The very first sentence of the very first Highway Code of 1930 reads - "Always be careful and considerate towards others." The paragraph goes on "As a responsible citizen you have a duty to the community...

Why aren't drivers taught how to drive properly on motorways?

The reason the public have problems driving on motorways, and which lane to use, is because motorway driving is never taught. Whatever lane a motorist is using, drivers should stagger their positions in...

Should I allow my Lexus RX300 automatic's brakes to cool before using them to hold the car stationary at traffic lights etc?

I have just bought an automatic Lexus RX 300 (2003, facelift, 5-speed auto). In many ways a silly concept, I am delighted with it, because the large number of speedbumps on our road (I live opposite a...

Highway Code and parking

My granddaughter is about to take her driving test, and consequently I have been revising my highway code, via the AA's 2007 edition. There seems to be very dubious, if not erroneous, advice on the topic...

Left-foot braking

I have read many times in your Saturday column about left-foot braking with automatics. As you suggested, I tried it on a quiet road and I'm glad I did. I nearly went through the windscreen. Unlike...

Is there a technique to driving my Peugeot 308 automatic to prevent it lurching when changing gear?

I have just taken delivery of a Peugeot 308 1.6 Diesel Feline Automatic. I ordered it with an autobox, expecting the Techtronic box from my old 307SW. Far from being a smooth cat, it is a dog. I have renamed...