hi everyone,
I am interested in becoming a hgv driver, i plan on doing my class 2 first getting 6-12 months experience in that and then progressing to the class 1 as i don’t feel confident doing the combined course and jumping straight into class 1.
Ive spoken with a few training providers near me and they all offer their training in automatics, whats concerning me is if i learn in an auto then when i find a job i wont be ready to drive a manual truck.
So my question is do you think this will be a problem learning in an auto then potentially driving a manual when i get a job or would i be able to just figure out the manual drive on my own if i already can drive a manual car with ease.
Also how big of an issue is it if they dont offer an assessment drive as one of the company i spoke to that seemed very helpful and professional said they stopped doing them after covid.
How much do you drive a manual car?
I think the point is that very many jobs you subsequently go for will have auto trucks. I believe you will always have an assessment for any new job so you will be able to see if you can do it if there is a manual, you will just have to say you it’s new to you and they can make allowances. I don’t think anyone would leave you to fend for yourself.
All of us newbies are in the same boat learning in autos, I’m just happy at the prospect that it will be easier to pass the test, and will worry about jobs if it ever arises.
I would blank them if they were using Covid as an excuse.
Covid wasn’t just an excuse to stop doing assessment drives, there’s no point potentially putting instructors at risk fir the sake of giving someone a free hours driving.
As for driving manuals, with class 2 you will find some manuals, but they aren’t common. Those that are out there tend to be basic 6 speed boxes, so just like most modern cars.
Finding class 1 vehicles with manual boxes out in the wild is incredibly rare, we’re talking hens teeth, unicorn horn, levels of rare. They do exist, but they will almost all be old vehicles, or used in some types of specialised works, although none spring to mind at the moment
You could seek out a training provider offering manuals, but that would make the training and test possibly slightly harder. Then you could end up working somewhere with just automatics for years and the manual training will be so far back in your memory to be of little assistance.
I would say that learning to drive larger vehicles (size, weight etc) with an automatic is good. Then when a company presents you with a manual, you will be in a much better position to concentrate on learning the shifting.
Having said that I did learn in a 4 over 4 gearbox and it has been quite handy to have touched one before whenever I have been presented with one since. Any reasonable company should be asking the question if you have touched one before though because they should be aware that many drivers haven’t. If you are not offered specific training or at least a few laps round the yard to find your feet, insist on it, citing safety as the reason.
I can understand what you mean. I drove manual cars for years, and a few years back I decided to buy an auto because I liked the car. I found it boring to drive. So I bought another auto in case it was just that car. While they were both fast and had manual modes, they weren’t engaging. When I hired a massive manual van to help a mate move house, I had more fun driving that big van than I did driving my car.
My point is, you won’t forget how to drive a manual. I didn’t drive a manual for well over a year at one point, and it was second nature when I went back to it. It’s like learning how to ride a bike. You could hire a manual truck when you’ve passed to try it out but it might be a waste of money. Presumably you have a manual car so you should be fine. You won’t forget clutch control.
thank you to everyone that responded to my post your comments have been very helpful and have addressed the concerns i had regarding training in an auto.
Just to clarify the general consensus is that once i get a job i will most likely be driving an automatic anyway these days and if not it will just be a gearbox similar to that of a manual car and not the 4 over 4 type, therefore it wont take much time to adjust and shouldn’t affect my ability to do the job.