Driving technique
How to change down gears smoothly
Brake to the speed you want, then take the gear that suits it - and why you can drop from fifth to second without touching the gears in between.
Quick answer
- Brake first, then change gear. Use the brakes to reach the speed you want, and take the gear that suits the speed once you are at it.
- You do not have to come down through every gear. Fifth straight to second is a normal change - one movement of the lever instead of three.
- Match the gear to the speed you are actually doing, not to the hazard you are approaching.
- Change down early enough that both hands are back on the wheel before the steering starts.
- Stay in gear while the car is still moving. Rolling in neutral or with the clutch held down is coasting, and rule 122 sets out what you lose by it.
Changing down gears: the sequence and the timing
The learners I see fighting this are almost never fighting the clutch. They are doing two jobs in the wrong order: the gear is being used to slow the car, and then the clutch is asked to absorb the difference between the speed they are doing and the speed that gear wanted. Put the two the right way round and there is nothing left to smooth out, because the mismatch never happens.
Brake to the speed you want, then take the gear that suits it
The brakes slow the car. The gear you pick afterwards is simply the one that matches the speed you have arrived at. Rule 117 describes the braking half: brake early and lightly, more firmly as you begin to stop, and ease the pressure off just before the car comes to rest to avoid a jerky stop. Do it the other way round - dropping a gear to scrub speed off - and the work goes through the clutch instead of the brakes, which is what makes the change lurch and what wears the clutch.
There is one place the Highway Code does put a gear in charge of speed, and it is worth knowing precisely because it is the exception. Rule 160 says to select a lower gear before you reach a long downhill slope, because that will help to control your speed. A long descent is the case where the brakes would otherwise be working continuously; an ordinary approach to a junction is not.
Do you have to change down through every gear?
No. Coming off a fast road towards a junction you can go from fifth straight to second without touching fourth or third on the way. It is called a block change, and it is how it is taught rather than a shortcut: one movement of the lever means your hand leaves the wheel once, briefly, on an approach that is also asking you to steer, look and judge. Rule 160 asks you to drive with both hands on the wheel where possible, and every gear you skip is time you spend doing exactly that.
Across the Code's rules from 103 to 203 - general rules and techniques for all drivers, and using the road - gears come up exactly twice: rule 122 on coasting, and rule 160 on long downhill slopes. Neither sets out a gear-by-gear procedure, and neither is worded as law. They tell you what happens to your control and leave the sequence to you. What gets marked on test is the result - the controls used smoothly and at the right time - not which order you took the gears in.
Changing down, in order
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Read what is coming, early
The junction, the queue, the bend. Everything below happens on the approach to it, not in it.
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Brakes to the speed
Progressively, and eased off before the car settles. You are aiming for a speed, not for a gear.
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Clutch down, gear in, one movement
Take the gear that suits the speed you have reached. If that means going straight from fifth to second, go straight there.
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Clutch up smoothly, hand back to the wheel
The change is not finished when the lever arrives. It is finished when both hands are back on the wheel, and that should be before the steering starts.
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Listen to what the car tells you
A jerk through the car, or the engine suddenly revving as the clutch comes up, both say the same thing: that gear was too low for the speed you were doing, or it came too early. It is information, not a failure.
What an examiner is watching when you change gear
DVSA lists the clutch and the gears among the primary controls you have to use smoothly and at the correct time, monitored throughout the test under Control. Two of the common faults it publishes for that area are this page in miniature: "keeping the clutch pedal held down (coasting) reducing your control of the car", and "selecting the wrong gear causing a sudden reduction in your speed, forcing vehicles behind you to slow down". GOV.UK's own advice for improving in that area is to read rules 117 to 126 of the Highway Code - the braking and control block that rule 122 sits inside.
Frequently asked questions
Do you have to change down through every gear?
No. Going from fifth straight to second is a block change, and it is the normal way to come down for a junction. One movement of the lever means your hand leaves the wheel once instead of three times, on an approach where you also need to steer and look. The Highway Code sets out no gear-by-gear procedure.
Should you brake or change gear first?
Brake first. Slow to the speed you want with the brakes, then select the gear that matches that speed. Using the gearbox to scrub speed off sends the work through the clutch rather than the brakes, and it is the usual reason a change down lands with a lurch.
Why is my gear change jerky?
Almost always because the gear was too low for the speed you were doing, or it came too early. The clutch then has to absorb the difference, and you feel that as a jolt or hear it as the engine suddenly revving. Slow to the speed first, then take the gear that suits it, and the jolt has nothing to come from.
Is it wrong to use the gears to slow down?
The brakes are what slow the car, and they are the part built to do it. The one place the Highway Code puts a gear in charge of speed is rule 160, which says to select a lower gear before you reach a long downhill slope because it will help to control your speed. That is a specific situation, not a general method.
Is coasting a fault on the driving test?
It can be. DVSA publishes "keeping the clutch pedal held down (coasting) reducing your control of the car" as one of the most common faults under Control. Rule 122 explains what you lose: engine braking, steering response, braking effectiveness, and the ease of selecting the gear you are about to need.
What gear should you be in for a junction?
Whichever gear matches the speed you have slowed to - the gear follows the speed, not the junction. At the sort of speed most junctions are taken at that is usually second, but that is a rule of thumb rather than a rule: if you have had to slow further, first is the honest answer, and if the way is clear and you are still carrying speed, it may be third.
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