Failed my class 1 reversing exercise

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
1

Hey Guys, I’m in need of some help from experienced Class 1 Drivers.

I’ve had a week of training, and all was fine in the yard before the test, practicing the reversing exercise. Everything I had been taught so far seemed to work, and I’ve never failed the reverse practicing, sometimes have had to use 1 shunt, but never 2 even.

So we went to the actual test centre to carry out the test, so it was in a different place to where I’d practiced, does this make a lot of difference in your result? I know the dimensions of the exercise are the exact same, but I literally put on my full right hand lock, got to the marker on bulk head (in right hand mirror) and what I’ve been told is to keep that marker level where it is, until the rear left of your trailer looks as though it’s touching the front left cone of the “Garage”, then left hand lock. This works where I’ve been taught, but when I did this at the test centre, as soon as I kept it level on the marker, my cab wheels were on the line before the trailer was near the “Garage” cone.

I’ve looked on youtube, and various explanations online, nowhere says to keep the marker where it is while moving back, everyone says to right hand lock until the marker is visible then steer towards the left to straighten up (Obviously you can’t get fully straight so you run wheels parallel with the line on the right hand side until you are).

Can someone explain this to me please? Maybe the dimensions at the test centre are slightly different to where I’ve practised it? Although they have assured me it’s exactly the same.

I just need someone to clarify each step of the exercise, because I feel I have been told that bit of extra information that’s thrown me off, i know in my head if I had immediately started turning left when the marker became visible, I wouldn’t have went over the lines, so is this the correct way to do it? Or do you keep moving back with the marker where it is until your trailer looks as though it’s touching the cone on the left.

Anyways, my retest is being rebooked, but this time I’ve made it clear I want my test taken from the yard where I’ve practised and not at the test centre (Which is possible).

The only upside, is that even though I instantly failed the reverse, I still told the examiner I’m happy to carry on, so I did the whole road drive, only got 1 minor, where I didn’t take enough room coming up to a roundabout (blocking both lanes) and my wheel grazed the kerb of roundabout, but didn’t mount it. Other than that no driving faults whatsoever, coupling and uncoupling was fine aswell.

Absoloutely gutted, but hopefully will pass the second time around.

Apologies for this giant wall of text!

2

Bad luck. Probably just test day nerves. My kids were always told at school that “Fail” stands for “First Attempt In Learning”. Better luck next time.

3

Sorry to hear you didn’t get it. Surprised you were allowed to join trucknet as every member on here is so good we all passed first time with no minors: (*cough complete bollerx *cough)

Can’t help with advice - I’ll confuse you. I even confuse me. Sounds like you’ve got it but had bad luck.

One for Rog

4

Cazzum1337:
so it was in a different place to where I’d practiced, does this make a lot of difference in your result?

It shouldn’t, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t.

Cazzum1337:
When I did this at the test centre, as soon as I kept it level on the marker, my cab wheels were on the line before the trailer was near the “Garage” cone.

This was the biggest issue/concern I had with my test reverse, and to try and help with that I was taught to try and pinch a bit to the left when pulling forward ready for the reverse. I had no issues once I’d got the trailer turning to get around the cone, just getting it turning without touching the right boundary line with the unit wheels.

Best of luck next time! :smiley:

5

Evil8Beezle:

Cazzum1337:
so it was in a different place to where I’d practiced, does this make a lot of difference in your result?

It shouldn’t, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t.

Cazzum1337:
When I did this at the test centre, as soon as I kept it level on the marker, my cab wheels were on the line before the trailer was near the “Garage” cone.

This was the biggest issue/concern I had with my test reverse, and to try and help with that I was taught to try and pinch a bit to the left when pulling forward ready for the reverse. I had no issues once I’d got the trailer turning to get around the cone, just getting it turning without touching the boundary line with the front offside wheel off the unit.

Best of luck next time! :smiley:

I also failed my first test on reverse, nerves as suggested above. As evil says try and get left on the approach. That extra foot or 2 makes a difference.

You might want to post in the newbies section to see what advice the trainers there have to offer.

I’m sure you will get it next time

6

Perhaps…

Going on your statement that you’ve never failed the reverse in practice, you were a touch over confident and let things get away from you?

Not sure it’s possible to teach reversing skills via the internet, it’s more a of a hands on thing. For what it’s worth, the test reverse shouldn’t be a series of two turns left, two turns right, straight back a bit etc. It’s down to you assessing the situation as it evolves and making the necessary turns accordingly. When I was learning (Guy Warriors, ERFs, Fodens no power steering etc) my instructor made our practice reverse much tighter than the test reverse. We all breezed it.

He also assisted us no end in getting the axle precisely into the box on the test day by, raising his cup of coffee to his lips when the trailer was in exacty the right spot.

Good luck!

7

The reverse is utter bollox imo. You should have to reverse onto a proper bay not inbetween some stupid cones.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

8

Did you confuse maintaining the trailer angle with holding it on right hand lock for too long ?.IE you maintain the trailer angle by taking the lock off back to central and quick.In which case as usual it’s more about knowing how much lock and when to take off not so much the given of what you started off with.The process not being a case of going straight from right lock to left lock but right lock then quickly to no lock because at that point the drive axle keeps steering the trailer ‘then’ to left lock to reverse the drive axle steering the trailer at the right time.It’s getting the timing of the middle one of those three operations right which is the make or break point.Shown here. :bulb:

youtube.com/watch?v=asgn-pPrZzM

0.54-0.55

While on that note I don’t remember any markers used to judge the angle of the trailer in my test/training.It was just a case of real world use of mirrors regarding the trailer relative to the cones and judgement. :confused:

9

I can’t remember the actual layout course of the reverse test mate, but whatever it is you aint supposed to learn it as some A B C routine.

It is how it is on the day, you may set off one day and put on a bit more lock than you did the previous day, so there is more to take back off, it’s a case of adapt and react to what happens ‘on the day’ if you see what I mean.

Trust me … :bulb: it WILL come to you in time.
I made a complete balls of my reversing and went all round the test route thinking I had failed, luckily I reacted properly to a kid running out on me which passed me the test imo, I learned to reverse AFTER I passed my test. :unamused:

Try and learn it as a natural concept, as I said adapt and react rather than a set routine excercise.
Good luck next time mate…, and don’t worry. :wink:

10

Took a shunt me. Didn’t need it but my head went west and thought it best to straighten her out and get my mind back on it.

11

I’m 6 months in and I still can’t reverse without shunting forwards and backwards, although its gotten better now I’m driving a Volvo.

12

I can’t reverse for crap.

I passed the test though. I practiced on euro truck simulator I found it great. You could always try buying a toy truck and practice with that, I hear Eddie Stobart sells them for about £130. :smiley:

13

adam277:
I can’t reverse for crap.

Pleeeease don’t ever park next to me then mate eh? :laughing:

14

adam277:
I can’t reverse for crap.

I passed the test though. I practiced on euro truck simulator I found it great. You could always try buying a toy truck and practice with that, I hear Eddie Stobart sells them for about £130. :smiley:

You can reverse the real ones into walls and/or bridges and get paid for it.

15

I was told to imagine that I was steering the trailer with the rear wheels of the unit. I just had to turn the front wheels to make the rear wheels do what I wanted. Worked a treat and I did pass first time. We too practiced on a tighter course than the real one and no power steering either.

16

Carryfast:
Did you confuse maintaining the trailer angle with holding it on right hand lock for too long ?.IE you maintain the trailer angle by taking the lock off back to central and quick.In which case as usual it’s more about knowing how much lock and when to take off not so much the given of what you started off with.The process not being a case of going straight from right lock to left lock but right lock then quickly to no lock because at that point the drive axle keeps steering the trailer ‘then’ to left lock to reverse the drive axle steering the trailer at the right time.It’s getting the timing of the middle one of those three operations right which is the make or break point.Shown here. :bulb:

youtube.com/watch?v=asgn-pPrZzM

0.54-0.55

While on that note I don’t remember any markers used to judge the angle of the trailer in my test/training.It was just a case of real world use of mirrors regarding the trailer relative to the cones and judgement. :confused:

So as soon as I have my right lock engaged, marker is visible I should swiftly left hand lock until straight, then run my cab wheels parallel with the line until my whole vehicle is in a straight line? I think I kept too much lock on oversteering and thinking too much about getting the rear left of my trailer to look close to the cone at the garage?

17

Cazzum1337:

Carryfast:
Did you confuse maintaining the trailer angle with holding it on right hand lock for too long ?.IE you maintain the trailer angle by taking the lock off back to central and quick.In which case as usual it’s more about knowing how much lock and when to take off not so much the given of what you started off with.The process not being a case of going straight from right lock to left lock but right lock then quickly to no lock because at that point the drive axle keeps steering the trailer ‘then’ to left lock to reverse the drive axle steering the trailer at the right time.It’s getting the timing of the middle one of those three operations right which is the make or break point.Shown here. :bulb:

youtube.com/watch?v=asgn-pPrZzM

0.54-0.55

While on that note I don’t remember any markers used to judge the angle of the trailer in my test/training.It was just a case of real world use of mirrors regarding the trailer relative to the cones and judgement. :confused:

So as soon as I have my right lock engaged, marker is visible I should swiftly left hand lock until straight, then run my cab wheels parallel with the line until my whole vehicle is in a straight line? I think I kept too much lock on oversteering and thinking too much about getting the rear left of my trailer to look close to the cone at the garage?

You turn the wheel then keep it straight going near the line but obviously not too close then then watch the trailer and then you make the adjustment and guide it around the cone.

On approach to the two cones you wanna be straight but more over to the left before you even reverse that will give you more room but not much.

I’d most likely fail it if I did it again now lol.

They should make you approach a two trailers with a gap in imo and then position yourself and then get the truck inbetween them because the reversing you’re doing on test I doubt you’d ever do anywhere in the real world.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

18

JaxDemon:

Cazzum1337:

Carryfast:
Did you confuse maintaining the trailer angle with holding it on right hand lock for too long ?.IE you maintain the trailer angle by taking the lock off back to central and quick.In which case as usual it’s more about knowing how much lock and when to take off not so much the given of what you started off with.The process not being a case of going straight from right lock to left lock but right lock then quickly to no lock because at that point the drive axle keeps steering the trailer ‘then’ to left lock to reverse the drive axle steering the trailer at the right time.It’s getting the timing of the middle one of those three operations right which is the make or break point.Shown here. :bulb:

youtube.com/watch?v=asgn-pPrZzM

0.54-0.55

While on that note I don’t remember any markers used to judge the angle of the trailer in my test/training.It was just a case of real world use of mirrors regarding the trailer relative to the cones and judgement. :confused:

So as soon as I have my right lock engaged, marker is visible I should swiftly left hand lock until straight, then run my cab wheels parallel with the line until my whole vehicle is in a straight line? I think I kept too much lock on oversteering and thinking too much about getting the rear left of my trailer to look close to the cone at the garage?

You turn the wheel then keep it straight going near the line but obviously not too close then then watch the trailer and then you make the adjustment and guide it around the cone.

On approach to the two cones you wanna be straight but more over to the left before you even reverse that will give you more room but not much.

I’d most likely fail it if I did it again now lol.

They should make you approach a two trailers with a gap in imo and then position yourself and then get the truck inbetween them because the reversing you’re doing on test I doubt you’d ever do anywhere in the real world.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

This! The current setup doesn’t prepare you for the real world is any way shape or form. The yard at my old work place would test even a veteran driver at busy times.

19

I got really good at it with full length tandem axle trailers, then for my test I was given this really short single axle trailer, jeez it turned quick - what a mess I made of it, but the tester with his black n white bobble hat was more interested in Newcastles next home match and very impressed with my team knowledge -I doubt I would have got through if I had been a sunderland lad - LOL. (this was early 80s when life just seemed a bit more relaxed)

20

Cazzum1337:

Carryfast:
Did you confuse maintaining the trailer angle with holding it on right hand lock for too long ?.IE you maintain the trailer angle by taking the lock off back to central and quick.In which case as usual it’s more about knowing how much lock and when to take off not so much the given of what you started off with.The process not being a case of going straight from right lock to left lock but right lock then quickly to no lock because at that point the drive axle keeps steering the trailer ‘then’ to left lock to reverse the drive axle steering the trailer at the right time.It’s getting the timing of the middle one of those three operations right which is the make or break point.Shown here. :bulb:

youtube.com/watch?v=asgn-pPrZzM

0.54-0.55

While on that note I don’t remember any markers used to judge the angle of the trailer in my test/training.It was just a case of real world use of mirrors regarding the trailer relative to the cones and judgement. :confused:

So as soon as I have my right lock engaged, marker is visible I should swiftly left hand lock until straight, then run my cab wheels parallel with the line until my whole vehicle is in a straight line? I think I kept too much lock on oversteering and thinking too much about getting the rear left of my trailer to look close to the cone at the garage?

That’s the key to make sure you don’t over do or mistime the steering inputs.In that you only need to use the lock to start the trailer turning and from that point the drive axle,which is actually what’s steering the trailer,will keep it turning while you return the steering lock to central/straight.Keep watching that video where you’ll see the other key point at 1.17-1.31 where he gets rid of the left lock to keep all the angles between trailer and unit and the line correct. :bulb: