What Every Driver Must Know (Michigan Edition): Day 1 Notes

What Every Driver Must Know (Michigan Edition): Day 1 Notes

*Note: Some information is extracted from What Every Driver Must Know, from the Michigan Secretary of State's Office.

Day 1:

  • Immaturity and inexperience contribute to deadly crashes by young drivers
  • Michigan Point System: 12 pts. max.
    • Points are taken off for violations, accidents, etc.
    • Teenagers are in the "high risk" category for insurance
    • Points stay for 2 years (validity period)
    • Insurance rates double for teen accidents/violations (in other words, tickets)
    • Don't run from the police; it's a felony
  • Risk: the chance of injury or loss of life

Characteristics of Risk:

  • It's always present
  • The perceived risk may differ from the actual risk present
  • Risk is shared (in this case, with other passengers, drivers, etc.)
  • It can be changed/analyzed/altered

Pre-entry Checks (before you enter a car!):

  • Broken glass
  • Body damage
  • Fluid leaks
  • Objects
  • Children & pets (they are small and could potentially be playing somewhere dangerous, such as behind the car; if you back up, then you could run them over)
  • Tires
  • When driving, keep the car in the middle of the lane
  • Always wear a seatbelt
  • Air bags act with a lot of force
  • The steering wheel should be held at least 10 inches away from the chest
  • Head restraints protect in a rear impact (in other words, so you don't break your neck)
  • Center head restraints on your skull
    • Avoid ponytails and buns for comfort
  • Never put a living organism between you and the airbag (be smart!)
  • Seatbelt: primary restraint
  • Airbag: supplementary restraint
  • Other restraints include head restraints and child passenger seats

Child Passengers:

  • Birth - 12 months: Rear facing car seat until at least 12 months old or 20 lbs.
  • 1 - 3 years: Rear facing as long as possible, forward facing car seat at least 1 year old (12 months) or 20-40 lbs.
  • 4 - 7 years: Forward facing car seat with harness untill outgrown, then the child can ride in a booster seat
  • 8 - 12 years: Booster seats until big enough to fit in a safety belt properly, still in the back seat

ke = (1/2)mv^2

As your speed doubles, your kinetic energy quadruples.

New Advances in Vehicle Safety Found Today:

  • All-wheel drive
  • Anti-lock braking system
  • Electronic stability control
  • Telematics (etc. OnStar)
  • tire pressure monitoring
  • Active head restraints
  • Adaptive cruise control
  • Adaptive headlights
  • Advanced airbags
  • Fatigue warning
  • Forward collision warning systems
  • Lane departure warning systems
  • Park assist and back over protection
    • Obviously, this cannot be used to assist you on the driving test
  • Side view assist
  • Yes, there's a lot of them
  • With Park (P) and Neutral (N), you can start the engine
    • You can't with Drive (D) or Reverse (R)
    • When going downhill, use the low gear
    • Heat is a byproduct of friction (thermal energy)
    • Turn signals can be accessed with the left lever
    • A multifunction lever does multiple things (shocker, right?)
      • Every manufacturer is different
    • When the emergency flashers are on, turn signals cannot be on
  • Right turn = shift turn signal lever up
    • You can visualize this; when you move the steering wheel to turn right, your left hand moves up
  • Left turn = shift turn signal lever down
    • You can also visualize this; when you move the steering wheel to turn left, your left hand goes down