After the near death experience of Porlock Hill, we made our way along to Coombe Martin, where there are no less than FIVE BRAKE AND TYRE businesses in a row along the high street!
I had only just had my brakes renewed for the journey, so the were slipping....the car was just rolling backwards and I had children in the back, it was HELLLLLL!
we came down it yesterday i bout crapped myself , the worst hill i have ever experienced in my life , there was smoke coming from our brakes we had to pull over and let them cool down , i will not be ever coming down there again,
OMG, our little T reg fiesta didn't enjoy that road - got to the bottom a bit stressed out and parked up to let her cool down. The landlady at the local pub said they regularly see brakes on fire!!! - I bet the local garage do a good trade though..
I should be driving this road soon, looks hairy. Mind you I have driven Sutton Bank on the A170 which is just as steep but maybe not for as long a distance. I look forward to it.
@j4wn I drove up Porlock last week , purely by accident as I took the wrong turning ! My advice to you is DONT DO IT !!! I've been driving for 37 years & can honestly say it was the scariest experience behind the wheel that I've ever had ! If you still want to go up it then all I can say is good luck & take a spare pair of pants with you !
@j4wn Driven on the A170, in the White Horse area. I first had a crack at Porlock hill in 1977, on a Honda CD175. Not a problem at the time. With Porlock, its not the going up bit that's disconcerting. I might take another crack at it next week, in the Honda Jazz 1.4. Its not the max bhp rating that matters, its the Honda's quad disk brakes that stop you smashing into things that counts.
@clemstevenson I actually only went up and didn't go down, because I took A361 on the way back from Ilfracombe, much quicker than A39. It was ok in the end, I had a new rental car, but an older 4x4 got stuck right on the steep turn, so had to do an uphill start, but it was ok. Going down the other side at Countisbury hill was also an experience, I would not like to have to go DOWN Porlock hill. Enjoy it the next time.
@j4wn Yes, going down Porlock hill is a psychologically daunting task. It feels like the car is going to flip over onto it's roof. For this reason, my wife and I have used the old toll (scenic route) road on past occasions. We are actually going to Herefordshire for a short holiday. But as this is a lease car, with a mileage allowance that is more generous than we can realistically use, we're not worried about doing an odd couple of hundred extra miles.
I was happily following my tomtom one day and went up that hill I had been driving for 5 months and I shat myself I have never clenched my arse so much LOL! My poor little Skoda diddnt like it!!
i took a 7.5t truck up this hill,following a council truck,i thort going up was bad,but going down was worse,and sutton bank a170 is a piece of piss to get up,not a patch on porlock hill
just1bloke, it is a 1 in 4, almost a 1 in 3, believe me hahahahahahaha. I got to the top and stalled on the hairpin bend after a car drove at me from around the corner. My brakes wouldnt hold, cos they were brand new, the car just wouldnt pull away , I was a gibbering wreck, I have never been so terrified in my life. When we got to Combe Martin, guess what, there were 5 clutch and brake repair garages in the highstreet alone, some next to each other. I would not relive that experience for £1M
Driving down isn't much better. Had the car in second gear, the revs were too high even though I was applying the brakes on and off and going about 15 miles an hour. My girl friend was having kittens (she wasn't even pregnant at the time) as we decended. The brake pads started to smell as we got about half way down. I shall avoid this part of the A39 whenever I can in the future. At least we now have a few cats to keep us company in the evenings. Titter ye not. Never again! LMAO.
My girl friend tells me that when she was younger, she and her parents have seen coaches negotiation Porlock Hill, but I find this very hard to accept as fact. The tight bend at the top would not allow for this. The sceneic route is very nice and not so steep. You are expected to pay at the top, though. Locals just seemed to drive past the toll shed (that's all it was, a shed) without putting any money in the box. We decided to pay the £2.50 toll fee.
I believe you. I drove up this 'hill' back in 2008 and nearly had to change my pants! LOL. My car would not accelerate in second gear and was going slower and slower. Had to bang it into first part way up. Most standard cars cannot negotiate 1 in 3 hills. This is the steepest I have ever driven up. When we arrived at the hotel in Lynton, the female owner, after I had told her of how I felt, merely said 'dont' you drive up hills?' This is a cliff face covered in tarmac, not a hill.
@mrslovesit No its a 1 in 4, and a 1 in 3 at places, and it really is the steepest hill in England, have you driven it? If you do, remember....take a fresh pair of pants.
Me and some friends were camping at Doniford and noticing that Porlock Hill wasn't too far away we tricked one of our friends, who was a new driver, into driving up the hill in her 1.1 1996 Ford Fiesta fully laden. On the way back down she had a foot flat to the floor on the brakes and the clutch dipped because she was panicking about not slowing down. We noticed her car smoking on the way down and stopped at the bottom. Lets just say she was lucky to have any clutch left!!!
I keep seeing signs that it's a 1:8 and I think a 1:6 in one place. This isn't the steepest A-road in UK, The A170 going into Sutton-Under-Whitestonecliffe is steeper, if a good bit shorter. Also, the A169 into Sleights, N. Yorks is steeper - both are a 1:5 (20%)
i have driven up and down this hill many times in a loaded 1963 VW Split Screen camper and trust me its hairy. 1st gear all the way and hoping i dont have to stop! 1st gear coming down aswell trying to keep off the brakes as they overheat. If you stand at the bottom of the hill quite often there is a strong smell of burnt brakes! Great fun.
LOL! the whole or porlock sticks in the summer as vistors, ethier burn their clutchs going up the hill! or have glowing red discs with smokin pads on the way down!
Must be one of the quitest A roads in Britain as well!
keithcresswell2 6 months ago
crap MUSIC
joydivision808 6 months ago
It's brilliant- very nearly as steep as Hardknott Pass in Cumbria.
hedleythorne 7 months ago
My Grand dad did this hill in a bus with no brakes , only riding the gears and clutch !
Sniperkiller333 7 months ago
Claire Balding did Porlock on a bike, wow, shes a tough old bird! Deserves a medal!
mrslovesit 7 months ago
After the near death experience of Porlock Hill, we made our way along to Coombe Martin, where there are no less than FIVE BRAKE AND TYRE businesses in a row along the high street!
I had only just had my brakes renewed for the journey, so the were slipping....the car was just rolling backwards and I had children in the back, it was HELLLLLL!
mrslovesit 7 months ago
we came down it yesterday i bout crapped myself , the worst hill i have ever experienced in my life , there was smoke coming from our brakes we had to pull over and let them cool down , i will not be ever coming down there again,
14dib 7 months ago
OMG, our little T reg fiesta didn't enjoy that road - got to the bottom a bit stressed out and parked up to let her cool down. The landlady at the local pub said they regularly see brakes on fire!!! - I bet the local garage do a good trade though..
PlasticSprout 8 months ago
Its 1in3 at the first 2 turns but its a very tight turn which make it seem steeper.
albion2742 9 months ago
I went up it in a 18 ton lorry last week, im going back down it tomorrow.
kempie26 1 year ago
I should be driving this road soon, looks hairy. Mind you I have driven Sutton Bank on the A170 which is just as steep but maybe not for as long a distance. I look forward to it.
j4wn 1 year ago
@j4wn I drove up Porlock last week , purely by accident as I took the wrong turning ! My advice to you is DONT DO IT !!! I've been driving for 37 years & can honestly say it was the scariest experience behind the wheel that I've ever had ! If you still want to go up it then all I can say is good luck & take a spare pair of pants with you !
naja46 1 year ago
@j4wn Driven on the A170, in the White Horse area. I first had a crack at Porlock hill in 1977, on a Honda CD175. Not a problem at the time. With Porlock, its not the going up bit that's disconcerting. I might take another crack at it next week, in the Honda Jazz 1.4. Its not the max bhp rating that matters, its the Honda's quad disk brakes that stop you smashing into things that counts.
clemstevenson 1 year ago
@clemstevenson I actually only went up and didn't go down, because I took A361 on the way back from Ilfracombe, much quicker than A39. It was ok in the end, I had a new rental car, but an older 4x4 got stuck right on the steep turn, so had to do an uphill start, but it was ok. Going down the other side at Countisbury hill was also an experience, I would not like to have to go DOWN Porlock hill. Enjoy it the next time.
j4wn 1 year ago
@j4wn Yes, going down Porlock hill is a psychologically daunting task. It feels like the car is going to flip over onto it's roof. For this reason, my wife and I have used the old toll (scenic route) road on past occasions. We are actually going to Herefordshire for a short holiday. But as this is a lease car, with a mileage allowance that is more generous than we can realistically use, we're not worried about doing an odd couple of hundred extra miles.
clemstevenson 1 year ago
Who is going to push me on my bike up here! Been up there a few times in the car and it really is flippin' steep!
KBramhill 2 years ago
I was happily following my tomtom one day and went up that hill I had been driving for 5 months and I shat myself I have never clenched my arse so much LOL! My poor little Skoda diddnt like it!!
BoeingBonkers 2 years ago
good choice of music
importedmusic 2 years ago
i went to combe martin for a bike part, didnt go back the same way tho
it started snowing.
bulldogbrawn 2 years ago
i took a 7.5t truck up this hill,following a council truck,i thort going up was bad,but going down was worse,and sutton bank a170 is a piece of piss to get up,not a patch on porlock hill
bulldogbrawn 3 years ago
just1bloke, it is a 1 in 4, almost a 1 in 3, believe me hahahahahahaha. I got to the top and stalled on the hairpin bend after a car drove at me from around the corner. My brakes wouldnt hold, cos they were brand new, the car just wouldnt pull away , I was a gibbering wreck, I have never been so terrified in my life. When we got to Combe Martin, guess what, there were 5 clutch and brake repair garages in the highstreet alone, some next to each other. I would not relive that experience for £1M
mrslovesit 2 years ago 2
Porlock Hill has a 1/4 sign at the bottom, it is the steepest hill in England.
mrslovesit 2 years ago
@mrslovesit
Driving down isn't much better. Had the car in second gear, the revs were too high even though I was applying the brakes on and off and going about 15 miles an hour. My girl friend was having kittens (she wasn't even pregnant at the time) as we decended. The brake pads started to smell as we got about half way down. I shall avoid this part of the A39 whenever I can in the future. At least we now have a few cats to keep us company in the evenings. Titter ye not. Never again! LMAO.
ALNEAL 7 months ago
@mrslovesit
My girl friend tells me that when she was younger, she and her parents have seen coaches negotiation Porlock Hill, but I find this very hard to accept as fact. The tight bend at the top would not allow for this. The sceneic route is very nice and not so steep. You are expected to pay at the top, though. Locals just seemed to drive past the toll shed (that's all it was, a shed) without putting any money in the box. We decided to pay the £2.50 toll fee.
ALNEAL 7 months ago
@mrslovesit
I believe you. I drove up this 'hill' back in 2008 and nearly had to change my pants! LOL. My car would not accelerate in second gear and was going slower and slower. Had to bang it into first part way up. Most standard cars cannot negotiate 1 in 3 hills. This is the steepest I have ever driven up. When we arrived at the hotel in Lynton, the female owner, after I had told her of how I felt, merely said 'dont' you drive up hills?' This is a cliff face covered in tarmac, not a hill.
ALNEAL 7 months ago
@mrslovesit No its a 1 in 4, and a 1 in 3 at places, and it really is the steepest hill in England, have you driven it? If you do, remember....take a fresh pair of pants.
mrslovesit 7 months ago
i take it 50cc scooters have no hope of getting up his hill
missielovelie 3 years ago
wimps dont know you were born!
jimmerjames7 3 years ago
Try it with new brakes
mrslovesit 7 months ago
If you look at the bottom on the way up, it says 1 in 4, but I have been told its also a 1 in 3 in parts. Try it with new brakes, GREAT.
mrslovesit 7 months ago
Me and some friends were camping at Doniford and noticing that Porlock Hill wasn't too far away we tricked one of our friends, who was a new driver, into driving up the hill in her 1.1 1996 Ford Fiesta fully laden. On the way back down she had a foot flat to the floor on the brakes and the clutch dipped because she was panicking about not slowing down. We noticed her car smoking on the way down and stopped at the bottom. Lets just say she was lucky to have any clutch left!!!
TJLR9 3 years ago
I keep seeing signs that it's a 1:8 and I think a 1:6 in one place. This isn't the steepest A-road in UK, The A170 going into Sutton-Under-Whitestonecliffe is steeper, if a good bit shorter. Also, the A169 into Sleights, N. Yorks is steeper - both are a 1:5 (20%)
Feel free to call me a petty nerd.
just1bloke 3 years ago
i drove up this hill at night in the rain in an eight wheel foden with twelve ton hiab crane fully loaded with to eighteen ton...very hairy moment
chrisrkelly61 3 years ago
This nd the hill that links lynton and lynmouth, sre two of the steepest, longest roads in Somerset, also not how short the escape sand pit is.
fatboymombassa 3 years ago
my b/f and were driving down it two years ago, half way down, he started feeling dizzy, i had to take over and drive the rest of the way!!! LOL
Glitterbomb222 3 years ago
i have driven up and down this hill many times in a loaded 1963 VW Split Screen camper and trust me its hairy. 1st gear all the way and hoping i dont have to stop! 1st gear coming down aswell trying to keep off the brakes as they overheat. If you stand at the bottom of the hill quite often there is a strong smell of burnt brakes! Great fun.
tilerman 3 years ago
skate that for sure
georgehayford 3 years ago
wts the quilty like coz i wouldn't mide boarding down that
jsfrench007 4 years ago
LOL! the whole or porlock sticks in the summer as vistors, ethier burn their clutchs going up the hill! or have glowing red discs with smokin pads on the way down!
hickyxsi 4 years ago 2
lovely view though
mikex182 4 years ago
that would be cool to cycle down. Its long but i have seen steeper hills in the uk, but not as long though
chunder123 4 years ago
I have cycled down this hill when I was 13 or so, my speedo read 45MPH and my mate went pased me. His speedo broke!
mcorner4 4 years ago
Highway 299 east of Redding California is so steep and twisty I make myself carsick driving it.
lesbois63 5 years ago
You would be surprised how many people go down on their brakes, I should know as I used to live there. You should try going up it....in the winter!
mcorner4 5 years ago