If the ground is very slippery, try varying the throttle to give you the best of both worlds: acceleration gets the momentum going, and backing off gets the tyres biting.

The same technique of 'working' the steering wheel from side to side and varying the speed of the wheels applies also to help maintain forward movement when crossing very muddy rutted areas on the level too.

Having reached the top, make sure you back off the throttle to slow down the spinning wheels to enable you to carefully negotiate your route ahead. Crest the hill before stopping, as the last thing you want is to have only the front wheels on the top and not the back. Trying to restart just below the top of the hill with the back wheels not actually making it can be a problem!

Failed Hill Climbs

If you fail to climb the hill or bank for whatever reason, it's important that you come back safely to the bottom. Maybe the tyre treads clogged up quickly, the surface was too slippery, or the approach speed too slow. You will need to come straight back down the hill or bank to the bottom in reverse gear in complete control of the situation.

Taking manuals first: Hopefully your engine has not stalled - good!

Having done everything in the book to get up the hill, the moment that forward movement is lost, it's important to get the vehicle into reverse gear in order to come back down off the hill or bank under engine braking. The moment you decide that it's time to give up climbing, do the following:

Depress the clutch and footbrake simultaneously. Pressing down on the clutch pedal obviously enables you to select reverse gear. The footbrake helps hold you on the hill for a split second, and if your four wheels were spinning trying to climb the muddy hill, you need to stop them turning in that direction to make it 'crash free' into reverse on the gearbox.

Select reverse gear and take your feet off both the clutch and footbrake at the same time. Go on, and come off the pedals steadily. Caress them, don't bash them, or you could cause lurching, not good on a hillside!

You should then be returning down the hill in a controlled fashion using full engine braking, with both feet clear of the pedals.

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(c)Goodwinch Limited 2006