Driving tests
What do hydraulic systems do? Hydraulic systems are used to raise, lower, turn, contract, expand, turn and otherwise move attachments and parts of many different types of equipment such as forklifts, backhoes, excavators, loaders and truck loader cranes. When an…
It’ll be a mental challenge for you when you first get in a car and drive on the other side of the road, but your brain will adapt quickly. There are just a few pitfalls you need to be aware…
A forklift is usually the best way to unload palletised freight from a truck, but if you don’t have a forklift, what can you use? Manual pallet jack Cheap, durable, but a bit dangerous if you’re on a slope. A…
While everyone knows that riding a motorbike comes with more risks of injury than driving a car, there are choices motorcycle riders can make that make crash risk much worse. Sports bikes: riders on these have a greater risk of…
Heading away snowboarding this winter? You’ll almost certainly need to drive on mountain roads, as you will if you are crossing the ranges for work or family visits. Roads on mountains vary from well-maintained state highways down to rough tracks.…
We’ve covered the interior cab checks a driver should do in a pre-trip inspection. Here are the exterior checks. There are two ways to do it: all around the truck and trailer in one direction, then all around in the…
A hubo or hubodometer measures the distance a vehicle has travelled by counting axle revolutions and displaying them on a counter. In New Zealand, they must be calibrated to read in kilometres. How are hubodometers used? Accurate trailer mileage: trailers…
Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) helps heavy vehicle drivers achieve Euro-5 emission control standards by reducing the level of nitrogen oxides emitted. As the spotlight is turned on pollution caused by diesel vehicles, it has gained popularity due to European trucks…
Unlike in Europe where flat-fronted cab-over tractor units reign supreme, we have a good mix of the North American bonneted trucks (also called ‘conventional’) where the engine sits in front of the cab, and cab-over, where the engine is under…
There are three ways to turn a corner on a motorbike and the method you use depends on your speed and how tight you want to turn. Using only the handlebars At speeds below 10-15km/h steering is mostly accomplished by…
Periodically an argument surfaces in the media that we should raise the minimum driving age (currently 16) to 17 or 18 like in the UK or Europe. We have a graduated driver licensing system or GDLS. This means that you…
What is a speed limiter? A speed limiter is a device that prevents a vehicle from exceeding a certain speed. Some vehicles have an electronic control that analyses road speed data and uses that to restrict engine power, while others…
When flammable hazardous goods are stored, sometimes a Hazchem emergency information panel (EIP) is required that gives codes that let emergency responders such as firefighters know exactly what products are on board and how to deal with them. On a…
The general speed limit tolerance has been 10km/h for automated cameras, however, according to the police, this has been reduced and they are remaining tight-lipped about what the actual tolerance is. There is no official tolerance used by road police…
Cars and trucks have blind spots that aren’t covered by the mirrors. When you open your car door, it can be a hazard to cyclists, scooter riders, motorcyclists and pedestrians. So, how do you ensure that you’ve seen anyone approaching,…
Coasting is where you either take your car out of gear and put it into neutral, or you push the clutch in to disengage the transmission. Pushing the clutch in only works in a manual vehicle, but it is possible…
A semitrailer or ‘semi’ is a combination vehicle comprising a tractor unit towing a trailer via a fifth wheel coupling. The trailer only has wheels at the back (hence being called a semitrailer rather than a full trailer), and the…
There are restrictions on importing left-hand drive (LHD) vehicles (where the steering wheel is on the left). Most have to be converted to right-hand drive before they can be registered and driven on the road in New Zealand. There are…
There are three main vehicle combination types in New Zealand: A B-train is a tractor unit towing a semitrailer that has a dolly with a fifth wheel on the back of it, to which another semitrailer is attached. It’s called…
Driver training can be done either online, in-class, in-vehicle or a mix of the three. Online training: learning materials are completed using a computer, tablet or smartphone In-class: learning is done with an instructor in a classroom In-vehicle: learning is…
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