How do you go about accellerating from a dead stop?

Ive been out driving in a drivers ed car and for the most part running my own race/pace. One thing Ive seen right off, most folks seem to accellerate from a dead stop to 25/35 in a few seconds then brake before the next light. Ive found just tapping the gas petal you can go up to 30mph in 10 seconds and when the light is red ahead, just coast to it. Ive had folks pull around me to just stop at the light and as I coast the cars pile up in front of me making me half to continue slowing to keep the 4 second gap in the city on broad street in richmond, va.

Seems from what I can tell, you need to work the gas and brake hard with no coasting to make it in the city. Highway was way better.

I drive a 97 jeep cherokee. If you want any gas mileage at all you do NOT jackrabbit start one of those. Sometimes people behind me get annoyed but I can usually time it so that I never have to come to a complete stop.

I treat it sort of like a game where if I have to get on the brakes I loose points. Works well for the ultra-slow beltway traffic too although I get annoyed with the jackasses who feel the need to pull into my buffer space all the time.

I have been trying to break my wife of "Jack Rabbitting" for years. (tromping on the gas then hitting the brakes hard from light to light)

Midas and the local tranny shop love her.

I try to time the lights as well. It's frustrating though, because many lights are timed so if you drive the speed limit or below, you can't make it. I don't want to speed. And, if you know the area's lights but they have changed the timing, ugh.

Our mayor here promised to time all the lights downtown. When I was downtown last month, it was better but they were not all timed. I think the timing should reward those that stay within the limit, not those that speed.

As the price of gas continues to increase, I become increasing more aware of accelerating to speed smoothly, and then minimizing short bursts of speed where you'll have to slow down again (both on city streets and freeways.)

That addage about imagining that there is a raw egg between your shoe and the accelerator can show a markedly pronounced increase in gas mileage; especially if you drive a full sized truck or SUV.

cobb said:

Ive found just tapping the gas petal you can go up to 30mph in 10 seconds and when the light is red ahead, just coast to it.

Click to expand...

I play the "let it be green by the time I hit the intersection" game that way.

Yup, get out of my way, slow poke.

Going too slow is just annoying. It may be logical, but it's still annoying. And also the slower you take off the fewer people can get through the intersection before the light turns red, so it's inconsiderate too.

1. Push down hard on the righthand pedal.
2. Count to 3 at a medium speed, or stop when the engine noise reaches its peak.
3. Move your foot sideways so the lefthand pedal can return to its normal position without resistance.

Oh, I forgot a step-
0. Look in rearview mirror to make sure the cars behind you don't have red lights on top.

In actual practice and real-life observations, the first vehicle in at the intersection takes off and there is a big gap, then the rest of the pack follows (with the occasional idiot jumping from lane to lane or trying to pass people on the shoulder of the road.) And this even occurs when the first vehicle accelerates smoothly (again, that's smoothly, not "like a slug".)

And if you really think that a jack rabbit start will enable more vehicles to go through an intersection on a cycle, you probably need some pedestrian time at an intersection observing (or for the more severe cases, with a clipboard taking a count. ) After all, you're dealing with mainstream drivers with varying degrees of skill in an urban environment; not the green flag at a NASCAR event.

robinhood4x4 said:

Yup, get out of my way, slow poke.

Going too slow is just annoying. It may be logical, but it's still annoying. And also the slower you take off the fewer people can get through the intersection before the light turns red, so it's inconsiderate too.

Click to expand...

I don't jackrabbit but I don't creep off the mark either. I kind of roll then give it some gas. That hesitation kept me from being in front of a Semi that ran a red light last week. I don't have a car that currently likes jack rabbit starts anyway. It's tiny 1.5L engine and tranny aren't equiped to light up the tires. And my 76 non turbo diesel sure ain't gonna win any races so I'm used to slow and steady. And if you give me greif, i'll tromp on the gas and give you some black sooty smoke.

Here's an article that can be sent to people that may help convince them to chill out (note the 37% comment on gas use!):

"Want to really improve your fuel efficiency? The biggest fuel-burning culprit is frequent accelerations and stops. You see everyone doing it, racing to the next stop sign and slamming on the brakes. It may get you to work faster, but what's the cost? Reed found that people who make quick starts and stops burn up to 37% more fuel than those who coast between lights."

---------------------------
How to Ease the Pain at the Pump

By Christopher Palmeri
Wed Apr 26, 8:08 AM ET

http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/20060426/bs_bw/pi20060426284375

If I'm not pinstriping the street I'm not accelerating fast enough

I try to accelerate and decelerate smoothly, that's what I was taught to be the most fuel-effecient method af navigating city streets. But to digress slightly...

One of the reasons I'll be glad to get out of Bakersfield is our totally insane traffic control policies.

In California, any street which has a median is automatically rated for a 55 mile an hour speed limit unless altered by the local government. Between the numb-skull traffic planners, and our own 'NASCAR' wanna-be's, the speed limit on many of our residential streets is 55. That means that everyone accelerates to 60 (gotta add 5 mph don't ya' know), before breaking for the next light, then repeating endlessly all over town.

Insane.

Now add in the fact that our local traffic planners set the other street speed limits by measuring the average traffic speed and then adding 5 mph. So Bakersfield has almost no streets that possess a 25 mph limit, and most allow for 35, 45, or 55 mph limits. Even in residential areas. No wonder we have 100's of miles of bike lanes that nobody uses...would you ride a bike on the freeway? I won't.

Now is it just me, or is this totally insane? Nuts. Crazy.

BTW, I believe we also have the highest pedestrian death-rate in the state...go figure.

Brighteyez said:

In actual practice and real-life observations, the first vehicle in at the intersection takes off and there is a big gap, then the rest of the pack follows (with the occasional idiot jumping from lane to lane or trying to pass people on the shoulder of the road.) And this even occurs when the first vehicle accelerates smoothly (again, that's smoothly, not "like a slug".)

And if you really think that a jack rabbit start will enable more vehicles to go through an intersection on a cycle, you probably need some pedestrian time at an intersection observing (or for the more severe cases, with a clipboard taking a count. ) After all, you're dealing with mainstream drivers with varying degrees of skill in an urban environment; not the green flag at a NASCAR event.

Click to expand...

It doesn't matter. People who go slow are still annoying. Much like lane hogs who insist on staying in the fast lane going below the normal flow of traffic.

Now mind you, I'm not talking about when there's heavy traffic. It's stupid to dodge in and out of lanes only to hit more traffic. I rarely change lanes to pass. I'm talking about when traffic is light and there's nobody in front of the slow poke.

I assume it's the fast cars, not the slow ones, that kill roughly 50,000 of us every year, and seriously injure another 250,000.

but that has nothing to do with drivers like Chevrofreak, does it.

TedTheLed said:

I assume it's the fast cars, not the slow ones, that kill roughly 50,000 of us every year, and seriously injure another 250,000.

but that has nothing to do with drivers like Chevrofreak, does it.

Click to expand...

I would think it's the people talking on the phone, reading, putting on make-up, picking their nose, digging around the glove box and yakking away at the passengers that cause deaths..
Most people who accelerate rapidly are very conscious of their driving, as they accelerate they are monitoring their surrounding as well as speed, it's the ones going slow you have to worry about, most people speed, if they aren't then they are preoccupied..

best stats I could find in 5 mniutes at the moment;

http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/speed_manage/brochure.htm

(It says; excess speed causes a third of all fatal crashes..now that's just fatal -- can any one find the other stats we need on slower speed-related non-fatal injuries? )

"...Travel at safe and reasonable speeds on highways promotes the nation's productivity. Most highways and motor vehicles are designed and built for safe operation at the speeds traveled by most motorists. Speeding – exceeding posted limits or driving too fast for conditions – involves many factors including public attitudes, personal behavior, vehicle performance, roadway characteristics, enforcement strategies, and speed zoning (a safe and reasonable limit for a given road section or zone). Nevertheless, speeding on the nation's roadways is a contributing factor in as many as one third of all fatal crashes. Fatal crashes are only a small part of the total safety picture. In addition, many people are injured in speed-related crashes. The economic cost to society of these crashes was estimated to be $27.7 billion per year in 1998..."

When I'm driving in the city and there are traffic lights (we have a lot of roundabouts here and _very_ few killed. In fact, no person has even been killed in a roundabout here in Sweden, ever! How many have been killed in US cross ways?) I try to act a low-pass filter on the traffic. For example, if it's read ahead of me, I try to match my speed so it will turn green by the time I get there unless I have to obstruct traffic too much to do that. It's especially funny with a big engine and lots of gears when you can go really slowly without stalling the engine.
I however wish that I had a eclectic car with regenerative breaking. Then I could accelerate and break as much as I wanted to in the city without it affecting my fuel economy that much.

The worst thing about traffic lights and drivers is when you ride with someone who have high blood pressure or who can't relax. Just about all bus drivers in my town will probably die very early due to their blood pressure because when they are standing in line before a red traffic light, they want to stand as close as possible to the car in front of them. If the car moves forward to get closer to the light, the bus driver do the same thing, wasting one liter of diesel to gain 0.2 meter. Furthermore, they seem to have digital controls for both the breaks and acceleration - either fully on or fully off. People who are standing in the bus are flying around like gloves (Swedish expression, you understand it anyway...) and the driver does not notice. :shakehead

I accelerate about as gently as I possibly can. I try to get the shifts so soft I can't feel 'em.

I WON'T do that in town, but out here in the sticks it works okay.

My whole being about driving is to get the best mileage out of my vehicle that is possible.

I think I've made it clear in another thread.

Usualy I feather the throttle other wise the tires just go up in smoke and people behind me get mad and honk because I'm not going anywhere.