I am trying to find a translation for the french idiom: avancer par à-coup
. Google translate proposes to move jerkily
but I am not sure this is correct.
The idea I want to express is: something is advancing by little shocks, or abrupt steps, not smoothly.
For example when somebody is learning to drive and the car moves fast and then slow and then fast again and then slow again, several time in 10 secondes, we will say:
la voiture avance par à-coup.
According to Google translate the translation would be:
the car moves jerkily.
Is this a good translation?
I have seen that The car kangaroos along
could be used but I am not sure this will be understood in US. Also I am not sure fits and starts
will work as the idea I want isn't that the car stops and restarts but that the car doesn't move smoothly.