Reversing Manoeuvres

Introduction

For your Practical Driving Test you will need to master three manoeuvres which involve reversing the car. On test you will be asked to demonstrate two of these...your examiner will decide which two on the day.
You will be marked on the level of control you demonstrate, and how safely you carry out the exercise. They need to be near-perfect for success.

Because observation and judgement are critical to these manoeuvres, it is difficult to give a comprehensive description of how to do each one. This is because every driver is different. For instance a tall driver will have a diferent view to that of a shorter driver, and may use different reference points and lining-up markers.

For this reason you will need to learn your own way of doing them, guided by your instructor.

The Manoeuvres

Reversing around a corner:

You will need to reverse the car around a corner into a side-road to the left. The car must stay within about 1/2 metre of the kerb throughout, and travel about six car-lengths back into the side-road to the stop position, where it should be straight and close to the kerb. Once you finish, secure the car.

Parking:

There are two parking manoeuvres to learn.

PARALLEL PARK: You will need to pull up next to a parked car, and reverse into the space behind it, as if you are parking between two parked cars. There will not be a second car behind you on Test, but the manoeuvre must be completed within two cars length, and with your car straight and close to the kerb at the end of the exercise. Once you have finished, the car should be secured.

BAY PARKING: You will need to demonstrate that you can safely and accurately reverse into a parking bay, between two other cars. Effective rear observation and appropriate use of the door mirrors will be required. Once you have finished, the car should be secured.

Turning in the Road:

You will need to turn the car round to face the opposite direction. This is the classic "Three Point Turn", and you should complete the manoeuvre in three "points" if possible, although a "Five Point Turn" may be acceptable on a narrow road. Avoid any contact with the kerbs. Normally you will be expected to drive on after this exercise.

General Advice

There are some basic steps you can take which will always help.
Firstly, ALWAYS keep the road-speed of the vehicle extremely low.
If driving a car with a manual gearbox you may need to "slip the clutch", whereas in an automatic you may need a light touch on the footbrake throughout the manoeuvre to achieve this.
Your examiner will expect you to take reasonable time over these.
Also, be astute in your observations. Most of the time you should be looking out of the back of the car (to see where you are going!), but checks to the sides and front will also be needed to confirm your position.
Safety checks are essential throughout the manoeuvre, and should cover a 360 degree field of vision (all around the car, in other words). These checks will need to be made frequently to allow you to notice approaching traffic, and deal with it.
Be prepared to act upon what you are seeing. Many people fail to do anything about other traffic, or the manoeuvre apparantly going wrong, and come to grief as a consequence. Stay calm and tackle any problem as soon as you become aware of it. Normally the sooner you act, the less work will be involved, and as a general rule, do keep any corrections simple. It is far too easy to over-complicate things.
One question often asked regards moving forward. The answer is YES, if at any time moving forward will help you complete the manoeuvre, or correct a problem, then you are allowed to move forward.