Tips on Driving in the hills.

I recently visited Darjeeling Hills. The driver who was with us during our tour was very nice and a very intelligent driver. He was very controlled, smooth in his driving and very nice to the fellow drivers.

I found following very important tips from him regarding driving in the hills.

1. Give way to the vehicle that is driving towards the hill. Give preference to the vehicle if your are going down and the other vehicle is coming up.

2. Please do not be in a hurry to overtake the vehicle in front of you. This can be very very dangerous.

3. The last but not least, the most important was the importance of the 1st gear. Generally the drivers who drives in plane and even area are of the opinion that the 1st gear is for just starting the movement of the vehicle. This is true, but not in the hills. In the hills 1st gear is the most important tool while driving down as well as up. When you are going down the hilly road do not hesitate to put the 1st gear in steep down road. Same is the case while climbing up. Please do not be in a hurry to change the gear to the 2nd one. If you are driving down in the gear other than the 1st gear, you will have very little control over your vehicle. Excessive braking may cause brake fail.

While driving up, do not feel that you have been driving the vehicle in 1st gear for quite some time so you should change to the 2nd gear. Do not make this mistake. If the movement stops it can be very very risky. The vehicle may start moving back. Here it may become very tricky for you to keep your foot on the brake as well as lifting the vehicle, when it is facing up in a steep hill.

4. You have to be an expert in starting and moving your vehicle forward, maneuvering the brake, clutch and also the accelerator.
Happy driving... Keep yourself cool when driving.