Car control
Clutch control when pulling up
In a manual, coming down through the gears as you slow keeps the car balanced and under control, rather than coasting in neutral toward the kerb. (In an automatic you just brake smoothly and let the gearbox do the rest.)
This video has no narration. Follow the written steps below.
Practical test
Why it matters
Coasting - rolling in neutral or with the clutch down while still moving - reduces your control and can be recorded as a fault. Examiners expect the car to stay in gear until it's almost stopped.
Key steps
- 1 Once you've decided where to stop, ease off the gas and brake progressively rather than braking hard at the last moment.
- 2 Change down through the gears as your speed drops, matching gear to speed rather than jumping straight to neutral.
- 3 Select neutral only once you're almost stationary, not while you're still moving and braking.
- 4 Secure the car with the handbrake (or Park in an automatic) and confirm it's holding before you take your foot off the footbrake.
Common mistakes
Selecting neutral too early and coasting to the kerb
Stay in gear and keep braking control until you're nearly stopped.
Braking hard at the last second
Start slowing and changing down as soon as you've chosen your stopping point, not once you're already close.
Highway Code
This lesson is a revision aid, not a replacement for The Highway Code.
Rule 122
Coasting - travelling in neutral or with the clutch pressed down - reduces your control: you lose engine braking, the car can gather speed downhill, heavy footbrake use can fade, and steering response suffers. Stay in gear.
Read Rule 122 on GOV.UK