I remember discussing how tough and unfair the test was with my last driving instructor (fortunately a young guy in his 20s who was pretty with it) and he said there was no ideal way of assessing whether someone is truly ready to be given a full licence, it wouldn't be realistic to get an examiner to travel with a learner over many hours (over various seperate days), so having you have to fit it all into a 1 hour test and get everything right (in real life, most people make tiny errors all the time). They seem to be making it more and more stringent, but still it doesn't seem to prevent hooligans from getting onto the road. Some people I've known say that with the amount of dickheads on the road at the moment the test obviously isn't tough enough.

It's just something in life you have to get past if you want the privilige of driving in Britain (now I've got my licence I don't want to lose it and go through the whole bloody process again) just like the way you have to pass silly job interviews for jobs, although some people get put off from driving after they fail 3 times or so.

I used my Granpa's 1987 Cutlass Supreme sedan. It was really easy. First the guy had me show him that I knew how to use the basic features (i.e. horn, signals). Then he had me parallel park... got it in one forward and 2 reverses. Then we went on the road for about a mile. The only thing is I forgot to signal the one time but I passed.

I passed the test by the first try, but it was very narrow at one traffic light. I went over in the last mili-second at "very dark yellow", we say in Germany.

If it would be "cherry-green", it would have been over.

Ahhh... after all these months this forum topic finally applies to me! This afternoon, I drove a car for the first time. Now of course, I have driven a car before, but only in and out my parent's driveway. Today, I took my first driving lesson, which means driving on REAL roads with REAL traffic. I was so nervous at first that the instructor made me pull over to the side of the road and take a deep breath. After a while though I relaxed a bit and everything went quite well. I got an "S" (for "satisfactory") in every category on the scoring list. The only thing that the instructor said I should improve on is braking quicker for stop signs and stopped traffic.
While today's experience was certainly no test, it was the first time I really drove. I must say I am quite proud of myself that I did so well too I still have to take 5 more hours of driving lessons over the next three weeks, and then after the mandatoy 6 months and 50 hours of supervised driving time, I can take the test and get my license.

The car I drove by the way was the instructor's own personal car, a silver Oldsmobile Alero, equipped with a passenger's side brake pedal and the giant "student driver" block of cheese on the roof of course.
It was a pretty cheap car, manual windows, locks, mirrors, and hard plastic everywhere. But it was good enough for me, comfy and clean. And in the end that's all that really matters in a car isn't it? I thought it handled quite nicely actually (although it is the only car I've ever driven so who am I to judge). I must say though, rear visibility was quite bad, as with many newer cars these days due to their higher deck lids.

Is it possible to do it wrong with an automatic?



6 months?! that's an eternity!

Hey, I still could have taken out an old lady or crashed into a mailbox



I still get to drive during those six months, I just get a "learner's permit", which basically just means one of my parents has to be in the car with me while I'm driving. They just want people to have a few months of experience driving before they get their full license.

Not the case in Spain, it is possible to get it all in less than two months, many people studying and with just the summer holiday to get the license make this, and in two months or so they have the license.

Jsut 2 months? Wow, you lucky Spainish

I took just one month of driving lessons, i took more for the writting exam but because i didnt pay much interest in it since it is the "boring part", but once i got with the car? it was probabaly just four weeks and the license was mine, then, during the first year you have to put an "L" on the rear windscreen and you cant go over 80 KM/H on the motorway, once that years is gone (this June to me) you are a "normal" driver, jsut like the rest.

I did pass on first time, drove the same Typ 89 Audi 80 1.6 Diesel I drove all the driving lessons.

My aunt had held a French driving licence for over thirty years, and had regularly driven in Paris and Antwerp. When my uncle retired from the British army, they moved to Hull to be near their son. Jack had had a British licence for years, but Katie had to take a test to get a British licence.
She arrived at the test centre in a left-hand drive Hillman Minx with Belgian plates, which gave the examiner a bit of a shock. However, he tested her on hand signals – which he was required to do in a LHD car – and the test went ahead … for about five minutes. He then instructed her to pull in to the kerb, and said: ‘Mrs ------, this is a complete waste of time; you’re a better driver than I am. Let’s go for a coffee so we don’t get back to the centre too soon.’

interesting story

In Australia once you get your learners permits (16) you have to clock up 120 hours of driving with a parent or family member (who has a full Australian lisence) in 2 years. Then you get a probationary lisence with different laws and after another 3 years you get your full lisence.

Did you say 120 hours and TWO YEARS???

It is only 50 hours and six months here, and I thought that was bad!

Boy do I feel sorry for you, that's really too bad