Gary’s Q&A

Listener question & Gary’s response · Transcript passage

Terry Laurie asks My daughters are going to vacation in Scotland/England at Christmas time. Any hints on driving on the opposite side of the road that would help them out? Are most rental cars automatic drive? Thank you. Love what you do, and I’m a member of the Michigan Chapter of the Completionist Club.

The idea of driving on the other side of the road, no matter which side of the road you are used to can be terrifying. If you are an experienced driver, much of your driving is instinctual.

The first time I ever drove on the other side of the road was in 2007 in New Zealand. I rented a camper van that I was going to stay in for two weeks, driving around the country.

However, I had to pick up the van in the middle of Auckland. When I got to the van, I turned off the radio to avoid all distractions, put both hands on the wheel, and focused.

Once you spend an hour or two doing it, you get the hang of it. One of the things I do is not think of right and left but rather have myself as the driver on the middle of the road.

Almost all rental cars in North America have automatic transmissions. There are many more manual transmission cars in Europe, but automatic transmission cars are usually available, even if they are at a higher price. If you drive a manual transmission, the way you shift is usually the same. So, when you are in a left-hand drive car like you find in much of the world, you increase your gear number my moving out from where you are sitting. In a right-hand drive car, you shift inward.

Basically, it’s doable. You just need to be very focused when you first start.