If you are a petrolhead, you do things like driving a car regularly. Can we think about improving our skill of driving?

You can be a seasonal driver or noob driver, there are some ways to refine your techniques to make your driving smooth, safe and more efficient. You may think these are applicable only for race tracks or high performance cars, but actually not. It’s all about mastering the control, awareness and instant decision making ability.

You want to be a better, faster, safer driver? 

Well, I’ve got three advanced driving tips for you. I’m going to share with you. 

Through them first, and then I’ll share some point-of-view examples of me applying these tips on the road. I want to stress that these are advanced driving tips. They’re not appropriate for every situation. 

You’ll need to engage in some forward planning and decision-making before applying these techniques. If used in the wrong context, things could go very wrong.

The Visibility Line

The visibility line is how you approach a corner and focus on max visibility.

This is something taught at the Institute of Advanced Motorists, and it’s especially useful for blind corners where hedges, bushes, or trees obscure your view.

Let me give you a visual. Here’s the line you would normally take if you wanted to corner smoothly and quickly, commonly known as the racing line. It can be used on the road to take the smoothest path. 

Now, here’s what I call the “visibility line”. It starts similarly to the racing line, where you begin as wide as possible into the corner. 

However, instead of cutting into the apex, you stay wide all the way around. The closer you are to the apex, the less you can see because that’s where the obstacles, bushes, or trees are. 

By staying further from the apex, your field of vision opens up, allowing you to see what’s coming sooner.

Now, let’s look at some real-life examples. Most drivers would be tempted to take the racing line – going wide and cutting inside, but we’ll stick to the visibility line. 

We’ll stay on the outside of the corner, keeping to the far side. This gives you much better visibility, allowing us to spot potential hazards earlier. 

On blind corners, this is even more crucial. Hugging the white line at the outside of a tight corner gives you the chance to react faster to what’s ahead.

However, you need to be cautious. If another driver crosses over the white line, even slightly, it could end in a collision—so keep your eyes peeled. 

The advantage of this line is that you’ll see oncoming traffic much sooner, which gives you more time to react. Don’t worry too much about lane width. You would be surprised how much space you have in your lane, even on narrow country roads.

Straight Lining Roundabouts

You should always follow the correct lane discipline around a roundabout. 

But in some situations, you can straight-line a roundabout, even when there are two lanes. Doing this can make you faster, smoother, and more efficient. 

But, be careful when choosing when and where to do this, as it can go wrong if done at the wrong time.

If you’re going straight, you should enter in the right lane and exit in the right lane. That’s the proper way.

However, in certain situations, you can enter in the right lane, cut across the roundabout into the second lane, and exit back into the first. This can make your driving smoother, and on certain roundabouts, it feels great to maintain your momentum.

Let’s look at an example. When I’m approaching a roundabout with two lanes, but I’m going straight across both. There’s no traffic on the other side, and this allows me to maintain my speed without braking or slowing down. No one is harmed, and it feels great because you keep that momentum going.

However, this technique can confuse other drivers, especially learner drivers or those waiting to enter the roundabout. 

If done incorrectly, you could endanger others, so only attempt this maneuver when you’re certain it’s safe.

The No Brake Game

This one’s more of a challenge than a tip—it’s a game. The objective is simple: avoid using the brake pedal for your entire journey. 

Of course, if an emergency arises, you must brake, but the idea is to plan ahead as much as possible to avoid using the brakes. This teaches you to anticipate road conditions far in advance, making you a smoother driver and improving fuel efficiency. 

In modern cars, being in gear with your foot off the gas gives you infinite miles per gallon. 

If you’re on a country road or navigating lots of bends, this game forces you to be smooth with the throttle, steering, and gear changes. This game works best with a manual transmission, as you can use the clutch and gears to control your speed. 

If you drive an automatic, I recommend putting the car in manual mode to help you slow down. Simply lifting off the gas in an automatic won’t provide enough deceleration.

I elaborate how this works. Approaching a roundabout, I’ve lifted off the gas already, coasting in gear. There’s no need to brake. As we go around, I’ve maintained my momentum, and the car is slowing naturally. 

On motorways, this technique is especially effective. You can often drive for miles without touching the brakes. If I need to, I downshift to slow the car even more, but notice how we’re still avoiding the brakes.

Now, the no-brake game becomes trickier when you’re driving at national speed limits.

Coming up to a roundabout, I’ve already lifted off the gas. I have decelerated enough that there’s no need for heavy braking.

You can try this game but remember—it’s not about never using the brakes. It’s about planning ahead, being smooth, and reacting early in the road. 

Don’t forget to have fun while improving your driving skills!