“Feet, brakes, seat belts and in general, What does it mean to drive a car? (Hva er bilkjøring?)

In the first part we established at which points we hold the wheel; now we take “feet in our hands,” that is we look down and find 3 pedals and understand that we are sitting in a car with a manual gearbox (manuelt gir). And that means that your two feet (venstre fot og høyre fot) — left and right — will take an active part in the driving process. The left foot has its advantages — it “presses” only the clutch (koplingspedalen trykkes inn). As our instructors put it, “press the clutch to the floor.” The brake pedal (bremsepedalen) is in the middle, and the gas pedal (gasspedalen) is on the right. And so on the right foot there is a load of as many as 2 pedals, which you MUST NOT confuse!

And now, having made sure that your feet reach the pedals, that is you are sitting correctly and comfortably, you can fasten yourself with the seat belt (bilbelte). Of course in the further process the bilbelte must always be in FIRST place for you. This is important for your safety, and in Norway EVERYONE who is in the car must be belted. And if this is not fulfilled, it is strictly punished!

Now ask the ledsager where and how to switch on the turn signal, because we start moving by switching on the left indicator (venstre blinklys). And now I advise you to remember the scheme for starting to move:

  1. We approach the car and must make sure (forvisse seg om at kjøretøyet — the car and its components — er i forsvarlig og forskriftsmessig stand (everything is in full order and the car is ready to drive).
  2. We open the door with the key (bilnøkkel), sit down, immediately insert the key into tenningslåsen (the ignition), adjust the seat and fasten the bilbelte.
  3. With the left foot we press the clutch all the way, and the right presses the brake pedal all the way.
  4. Not sharply, calmly we turn the key so that all the “little lights” come on, and once more — we have already started the engine.
  5. We engage first gear and take off the parking brake (parkeringsbremsen).
  6. Smoothly we transfer the right foot from the brake pedal to the gas pedal (don’t press the pedal hard) and at the same time release the clutch pedal.
  7. We switch on the left indicator and “cast a glance at the left mirror” (what if a bicycle or a car is going past, then we must let them through).
  8. We start moving in 1st gear. If we need to change to second, first we press the clutch and only after that do we change.

And now let’s analyse what “driving itself” means — Hva er bilkjøring? You are already driving the car and this is called the kjøreprosessen. In the kjøreprosessen are included your perception and senses (sanse), understanding of what you are doing now (oppfatte), you assess the situation and decide (vurdere, beslutte) how to act (handle) further.

One of the main “senses” I would like to draw attention to, because there is a question in the test, is vision (synet). Synsfeltet is our ability to see when driving a car (forgive me, I cannot find an exact translation). Synsfeltet is divided into sentralsyn or skarpsyn, and also sidesyn. Let’s work out what sentralsyn (skarpsyn) means. When you look straight ahead and drive straight along the road, concentrated — that is your central vision at an angle of 3–5 degrees, that is you drive fast and you do not look to the sides, only for 1 second you can look in the mirrors, starting with the left mirror. Don’t stare into the mirrors! I emphasise this because when taking the driving test, the examiner is sometimes strict and silent, but sees everything and records all your mistakes for as much as 60 minutes!

Sidesyn is your vision of 180 degrees. If you take your eyes (and not the whole head) to one side, then to the other, that is your ability to see 180 degrees. And when do we manage to look to the sides? When we drive at a low speed. In Norway there are very many places with a speed limit of 30 km. In the country (på landet). And when you move at such a low speed, you see everything that happens at the edges of the road, and that may be pedestrians and children, and cyclists and animals. And when you increase speed, your field of view shrinks, and on a motorway at 100 km you no longer have time to look at anything to the sides.

Now I will explain why I have written all this so primitively in detail. When you buy tests and try to memorise the right answers, not everyone may succeed. Some moments and situations you have to “run through in your head and think” in your native language. Which is what I have just done for you. And also, if you drive in glasses, then studying on courses in Norway, don’t forget to book an appointment at the optician and have your eyesight checked, and they will write you a certificate on a special form, which you will give to the secretary at the courses. A health certificate is required only after 75 years.