John Exley - Driver Training
Driving School / School of Motoring
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More information about towing trailers & driving large vehicles.
B+E Trailer Towing Training / Lessons
Category B+E Car & Trailer Towing
Driving Test Reverse Manoeuvre
This exercise is usually carried out at the start of the test.
Remember to use all round observation throughout the exercise.
Keep all wheels within the boundary line throughout the exercise.
If you get out of the vehicle stop the engine.
The Manoeuvre
1. Drive forward in a straight line and stop with the exrteme front of your car level with, and in between, the cones A & A1
2. Reverse so that you pass cone B on the offside of your vehicle.
3. Stop in the bay so that the extreme rear of your trailer is within the yellow / black painted box area.
Smaller manoeuvring area for LGV, PCV and B+E tests introduced from 26 March 2012
From Monday 26 March 2012 the size of the manoeuvring area for the ‘S’ shaped reverse exercise in large goods vehicle (LGV), passenger carrying vehicle (PCV) and car and trailer or caravan (B+E) practical tests is being reduced.
The new manoeuvring area measures 66m x 11m, compared to the previous 92m x 18m.
The change will mean:
it will be easier for trainers to become ‘customer sites’ and host tests on their own premises
DSA will be able to make more tests available at its existing test centres
it will be cheaper and easier for DSA to develop new centres
Trials have shown that the smaller area:
requires the same level of skill and judgement
does not make the test harder
maintains the integrity of the test
This only affects the ‘S’ shaped reverse exercise; other parts of the test are unchanged.
Cones A & A1 are poistioned one metre into the area from the boundary line.
Distance A to A1 is one and a half times the widest part of the vehicle / trailer.
A to B is twice the length of the combination.
The overall length of the manoeuvering area will be five times the length of the combination,
or the full length of the area if 5 times the length of your combination is greater than the overall area.
The width of the bay will be one and a half times the widest part of the vehicle / trailer.
The length of the bay will be in the range of the length of the combination plus one metre
& the length of the combination minus two metres, at the discretion of the examiner.
(The precise length of the bay won't be disclosed before the start of the exercise).
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