People who do handbrake-neutral at the lights are..

[Kanga59]

..annoying. AIBU?

Why can't you just put your foot on the foot brake like normal people. Tsk

it is what we are taught to do to pass the test....

Your meant to as a safety feature to people crossing road, as if rear ended it's safer for anyone walking in front of car if you have handbrake on. Car will be shunted further forward of just foot on brake

Also I drive a Volvo which is a stop start car and you need to select neutral for it to work

To reply to a pp (can't remember who sorry!) you wouldn't fail your test if you didn't put your handbrake on. I know because I didn't in my first test (failed on another point - driving instructor didn't mark down the no handbrake thing). Reason I didn't was because I had a dodgy driving instructor and I was always stalking the car at traffic lights. But obviously you should use the handbrake and I do now, always. It's safer, is in the Highway Code and saves wear on the clutch.

I've seen something worse than not doing handbrake-neutral.

Car in front of me waiting at lights.

With a white light showing to the rear. (Everyone knows what this means!)

I waited behind with a large gap between me and them.

Sure enough, when lights changed, the car moved off... backwards!

some modern cars are designed now to stop and turn the engine off once you do this proceedure. handy if your stuck at lights for ages or in a traffic jam.
it does mean you may be a few seconds getting going again - of course, the people behind are all impatient and want to get going now! I hate driving, I always feel everyone else;s impatience even when I am doing the correct speed! the roads scare me.

DrinkFeckArseGirls

Yep really, passed first time with one minor too! And learnt with BSM. Yes to handbrake when stationary but not neutral.

I drive a full automatic and my rule has been
if the stop is likely to be short lived (and you can usually tell) apply brakes but leave the car in D
if a lengthy stop - put on parking brake and shift into N (neutral) not P as it is passing through R to get back to D !
I have never felt blinded by brake lights when someone is using them as a means of stopping at lights - are they really that blinding ?
(the stupid LED headlights on 4/4s are blinding coming towards you and when they are right behind you in a traffic queue but that is another topic )

People who do this are...

A) safer
B) kinder to their car
C) kinder to drivers behind them who don't have to put up with the glare from their brake lights.

Ya most definitely bu

You won't roll back if you actually know how to drive - you engage the clutch at the moment you move your foot from the brake pedal to the accelerator. Of course you can also stall doing this, so it does take some coordination.
Then again, I'm in the US, took the test more than 25 years ago, and never had any driving lessons - my step-dad taught me to drive, my boyfriend taught me to drive a standard I nearly said a stick-shift, that's a different thread.
But then again, again, my daughter just took driving lessons and they never even mentioned standard transmissions, I think they assume that nobody drives them anymore.

calleigh, that YouTube clip is excellent.

I don't know anyone who does this, and I don't do it. Was never taught to. I don't use my handbrake any time other than when I'm parking.

I didn't learn to drive that long ago, and I'm currently teaching my cousin to drive and she has never mentioned the handbrake, so safe to assume the driving school isn't teaching it.

I'm in Australia, though.

Ooh this has certainly got people excited

Oh, but I drive an auto and so does just about everyone I know. Manuals are a dying breed here (although I learnt to drive in one).

I don't go into neutral, sometimes I put my handbrake on and sometimes I don't.

I genuinely don't see why anyone would care which way anyone else would do it. I don't look for brake lights when I'm at the lights.

People who don't indicate at roundabouts though.. They do deserve all kind of bad things.

From a safety standpoint neutral handbrake is much safer not to mention better for the clutch. What annoys me is people hanging o the clutch, usually letting the car rock back and forward. This wears out theclutch and is dangerous.

I drive an automatic, and still do handbrake/neutral. It's all the more important given the way the car creeps forward even if I'm not touching the accelerator.

I never forget when I was sitting at the lights, on an incline, next to a car full of youngsters. I did my usual handbrake - neutral. the car next to me was revving backwards and forwards like nobodys business. Who left first at the lights? Me

I

My son passed recently and I did have to persuade him handbrake neutral, he preferred simply handbrake, but perhaps only because I told him.
Dont know what his instructor was thinking about, which is why I came on this thread.
Will have to reiterate to him, although he passed his test so he might not like to hear this from me

Why would people do such a thing? Um, because it's the safest and correct thing to do?

Noah they don't teach it like that and as someone who has recently passed my test I can tell you what a pain in the arse it is for people to constantly try and change things that you've specifically been taught by the instructor! I'd just let him get on with it

What babyroobs said about being shunted. That's what I was taught . And sometimes it's nice to give the feet a rest.

There are much worse annoying and dangerous habits to be witnessed on the roads.

I can't get my underwear in a twist about this, I probably do a mix of both and obviously use handbrake whenever there is a slight or greater hill. I drive an automatic, but in manual mode.

But someone mentioned LED headlights. They are a nightmare, far too bright. But more to the point, why do people put their full beam on when they are behind me and I don't even need it? If you are following a car, you do not need your full beam on. That does blind me and I find it superannoying.

Does it take anyone any longer to get into gear and knock the handbrake off? I'm genuinely perplexed that people seem to think that it takes longer...maybe I'm just a little odd, but I watch the lights, as soon as Amber's on, I'm in gear and the handbrake is off, I am usually waiting for the slower ones ahead to move off. I suspect it's the same for anyone in the habit?!