[Closed] How many driving lessons should I take before doing my test btw im a student

I cant resist...

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First the licence. How many lessons will depend on your current standard, any bad habits, how fast you learn and how good your instructor is. I would aim to learn to dive to a reasonable/safe standard, not just learn to pass the test.

Find yourself a good instructor and book a 2 hour session with him/her. That should give them some idea of the above and they should then be able to advise on how many lessons they think you'll need.

As for the insurance, you have not mentioned your age (unless I missed that), which will be relevant. The fact that you picked a car that is modified and designed to go fast is something insurance companies don't like, especially as you are a young and inexperienced driver. To be honest, it's something your fellow drivers won't like either! Sadly young, inexperienced drivers (especially males) are the ones most likely to crash and couse others serious injuries or worse. That's why your insurance will be very expensive......

Why get a car to drive fast if you can't go over the speed limit anyway? Do you take it on track days? Maybe I just don't get it (but then I do drive the worlds un coolest, but most usefull and cheap car, an old Vauxhall zafira).

Can't comment on your use of the English language as I am Dutch, so what do I know....

jumperalpine - Member

it would probably beat about 70% of people's first cars tbh

My first car could probably tow yours faster than it can go under its own steam 😆 But who cares? It's good to have something you love, I was the same with my bike. Which wasn't that fast, for a bike, but it was a labour of love.

(insurance-wise, if you have the original parts it'll quite likely make sense to put some back on, the exhaust'll probably be making bugger all difference to performance, might even be impairing it if it's not well designed and if the car's not tuned to use it, but it'll definitely tick a box on the "charge this dude extra" list. Not so much because of the reality but more because of what it says about the owner- I want to go fast and make a noise. Most modern cars have decent standard exhausts. And nobody in the world ever needed a faster car the day they passed their test)

Lessons, it took me IIRC 10 but I had road experience. There's absolutely no way to know. Your instructor will be able to give some advice after a lesson or two.

BSM have driving simulators in some of their offices which is a cheaper and stress free way of learning some of the basics. Not totally sure i recommend it- it's all a bit weird- but I guess it was useful for me as I didn't have to waste any time pissing about in an actual car. They were terrible as a school mind

Can't comment on your use of the English language as I am Dutch, so what do I know....

Btw you do realise the purpose of this post was to stir some Banter i feel many people have forgotten the true meaning of cycling and that is giving Banter to one another

I thought banter was banned.

Pass Plus is still going but I've not done one for about 18 months as I don't really push them and everyone promises to get in touch to do it then they get a car and never go head with Pass Plus.

BSM have driving simulators in some of their offices which is a cheaper and stress free way of learning some of the basics. Not totally sure i recommend it- it's all a bit weird- but I guess it was useful for me as I didn't have to waste any time pissing about in an actual car. They were terrible as a school mind

I don't think BSM have any Offices anymore, at least near Me they don't.

Well this has gone all sensible again! I was hoping for more "banter". I originally thought troll, then I thought nah.. He will be full of awesomeness being so young, educated and rich. Hasn't posted for a while so I assume he is out spitting on chavs or fitting a boom box in his boot so he can get some tunes pumping!

I like you. Been a while since someone like you frequented this place. I look forward to many entertaining threads.

At least Kaesae and Surf-Mat were literate. Njee hit the nail on the head, its like reading the forum at 2.0x speed. I feel exhausted just reading his comments, not to mention trying to ignore the spelling and grammar atrocities.

I passed in 11 lessons but then, I am awesome.

Joking aside, I would ignore how many lessons and focus on the number of hours on the road. I had 1 lesson a week but then made sure I drove lots with my parents. If they were going to the shops, I drove them, if I needed to go somewhere, I drove and got dropped off, I drove every day from my 17th birthday to the day I passed my test. This meant I got a huge amount of time on the road and so was much more road aware than my peers who just had the lesson and no other time on the road.

And

true meaning of cycling and that is giving Banter to one anothe

[i]Btw you do realise the purpose of this post was to stir some Banter i feel many people have forgotten the true meaning of cycling and that is giving Banter to one another[/i]

Ok if that is so, I'll add in that I only had six lessons before passing my car test (did my m/c the same week too) at 17 y/o. No other driving either. Beat that 😈

And based on what my eldest two have paid (in the North) for their insurance, if you declare all mods you'll be looking at +£2500.

Jumperalpine, you do realise Njee used to work in insurance industry, is well articulate and polite man.
As you mentioned cycling, hell he would humiliate you on his racy 29er and you will end up in tatters with your smashed ego to see his smug MAMIL face.

Don't you start, cheesy young man.

Given your obvious talent for listening to advice and taking it on board, I don't think you'll need more than half a dozen lessons. 🙂

You should have one of those black boxes put in your car, that will bring down the cost of your insurance when they see you're not ragging it around beating people off the lights.

A student, well-paid bench joiner and bike mechanic. This country needs more articulate and hard-working [s]trolls[/s] men such as yourself.

...ragging it around beating people off the lights

Did you miss the bit about it being a 1.2 Corsa? 😉

This thread is moronic, thankz cardigan you highly paid carpenter you! 😉 (who lives with his mum). Chavtastic!

Does it really take 20+ lessons?

I just passed my theory test (for the 2nd time) yesterday. I drove in the UK for a year before that on an international license (5 years ago). Moving to London meant I didn't need a car. Moving out of London I now need to start driving again.

I drove for years in another country and can drive, but 20+ lessons even with practice seems like loads.

But it has a loud exhaust and it is slammed innit!

Did you miss the bit about it being a 1.2 Corsa?

It has Recaro seats and skirts for extra aero. It has to be a seriously fast bit of machinery.

Driving tests now are very different to how they were 10 or more years ago. The folk above talking about 8-12 lessons should also include what year (/decade) they're on about. You just can't do ten lessons and pass these days.

I did 12 and passed in '99 at 18yo. First car bought for £320 on the night I passed, a shite Uno.insurance was 700quid. Sold a week later then I bought an astra.

I paid for all my lessons, test, insurance, car etc myself off a highly paid summer binman job.

i cant stop myself...

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Does your ground have neon lights underneath it to make it extra rad?

I did an intensive course to pass my test, I had some practice in my dad's car for a few months then had an hour every day for a week and a half.. Started on the Monday and was passed by the following Thursday. That was 15 years ago mind u.

I had a Nova 1.2 diamond (with electric windows don't u know). Cost me £1200 to insure, these days I pay less then £250. Marvellous!

I do wonder where this lad is a bench joiner. I employ a fair few of them, it would be amusing if I found one of mine posting here......

Jumperalpine, you do realise Njee used to work in insurance industry

I still do, but I try and keep that quiet 😉

Anyway, I'm glad we've ascertained it's all just banter, jumperalpine you're clearly the Bantersaurus Rex.

Driving tests now are very different to how they were 10 or more years ago

That's correct.

A lot of my Students Parents haven't got a clue what's involved in the modern test.

In 1999, they were made a bit longer, they now take roughly 37 mins. Around 2010, they introduced Independent Driving were the Student has to follow Traffic Signs or a pre planned diagram for 10 mins instead of the usual " turn left, turn right " as a result they only do 1 reversing exercise.

The Car Safety questions are easy but does add to the stress for some students.

Students passing these Days are a lot more Independent in their decisions than I was when I passed 20 years ago.

What happens if you get lost during the independent driving? Is it an automatic fail?

I like this new guy by the way. Bet he can ride better than me too. But that doesn't take much. Welcome jumperalpine!

1997, about 10 lessons though could have gone earlier, drove loads on the farm before getting out on the road.
and modded corsa young new driver massive tick in every box on the accumulator to give a grand total of more than the car is worth, that is before they have a read of this thread 🙂

One of the worst things about Ozzie roads is it seems insurance isn't a deter ant to getting stupid cars, the number of young kids with overpowered RWD utes that skip out at the slightest opportunity is a recipe for disaster. If you want to pick the best car for a new driver think along the lines of what your gran drives.

Another way to look at things is that insurance is ‘dead money’. Even if you’re able to afford the premiums, paying around £4.5k (I have no idea if that’s a realistic figure) might be difficult to justify if you think of what else you’d be able to spend that money on. Of course, you’d have to look at the differential between your Corsa and a car which was cheap to insure to determine what the Corsa might actually cost. However, it’s likely to be significantly higher, and you may decide that it would be better spent on something else. For example, you could buy and maintain a decent mountain bike with the difference. Alternatively, you could save up the money and buy a really nice car after three years, by which time your insurance premiums would be lower, especially if you’d managed to build up a No Claims Bonus.

Also, you may find that some insurance companies will offer discounts if you have taken some additional driver training after passing your driving test. I’m vague on that, but perhaps if you pass the Institute of Advanced Motorists’ test you would qualify for cheaper premiums. In any case, courses are probably worthwhile in themselves. The standard driving test ensures you’re fairly competent, but it doesn’t really teach you to think ahead, or how to drive quickly and safely under different conditions.

I didn’t require too many lessons when I sat my test. However, I was 19, and had been riding mopeds and motorbikes since I was 16, so I had some road sense. I was also able to have a few goes in my parents’ car. The main thing which caused me problems was learning to turn the steering wheel! I initially was under the illusion that you just had to move it slightly up or down in order to make a turn, but once I’d sailed across a few junctions I started to get the hang of it! The other thing which took some learning was that some manoeuvres required extremely low speed – it felt like the world had stopped compared with a motorbike, but it’s necessary when driving a car.

I’d applied for my test, but was taking college exams until the tail end of the week before my driving test. I ended up phoning a driving instructor on the Thursday and asking if he get me ready for my test on the following Tuesday. I think I had 3 lessons. However, as I say, I already had some road sense, and I did have a basic grasp of driving – it was the manoeuvres and driving in town which I needed to learn.

I thought I’d failed my test as I had a few problems during it, including trying to do the hill start in 3rd gear, and then running out of road trying to select 3rd gear on the emergency stop exercise. My instructor’s car, in which I sat the test, was an old Fiat, and it had a terrible gearbox and barely-functioning handbrake. However, the examiner must have been happy that I recovered from the mishaps safely. After passing the test I didn’t drive a car for months, and when I next did drive, it turned out to be quite an experience!

Driving tests now are very different to how they were 10 or more years ago

20 years maybe, don't think they've really changed in 10 years, aside from the 'follow directions' driving, which I think is less stressful anyway.

I passed in 2004 (forget how many lessons, about 15 I think), my 'technical' questions were "can you please demonstrate use of the horn" and "show me where to open the bonnet".

About to top the story!!!!! I bought a car, insured it, and drove with the mrs in the passenger seat, for about 300 miles over two months. then took my test and passed! Only just, but still passed. I was very chuffed i passed with no propper lessons, but then again I had been riding a motorbike for 11 years, so knew how to use the road etc..

Seriously though, 9 months later and I'm only just feeling like a decent driver who can operate a car as well as I can motorbike. You hear a lot of horror stories about the test, but It's actually quite easy if you're prepared. I studied this site -

http://www.drivingtesttips.biz/driving-test-tips.html

And just did what it said.

As for insurance, see if you can talk someone (with loads of no claims) into being a named driver?

did my test this year (at 34) and chatting to mates who did theirs in the late 90s and early 2000's the consensus seems to be that it's a lot more picky these days. My instructor's wife was even failed for not driving in a bus lane outside its hours of operation.

I was learning in the worst city for congestion in the country and it took me 30-odd lessons. Although part of that was during the 4-month driving test waiting list...

As for insurance, see if you can talk someone into being a named driver?

Adding your parents or other low risk drivers is sensible (they don't actually ever have to drive the car after all). Even now at 28 I bring down the cost of ms njee20's insurance (she's also 28) as I have no claims on a higher insurance group car. Insuring the car in someone else's name and adding yourself as a named driver is illegal, and stupid. I realise you weren't advocating that, but worth spelling it out for anyone hard of thinking...

My instructor's wife was even failed for not driving in a bus lane outside its hours of operation.

Same happened to a friend of mine, ridiculous. Another failed after being undertaken at a junction - LH lane was left turn, RH lane was straight on, he was in the RH lane, someone came up the left and cut in, he failed for not keeping up with the cars in front. Seemed hideously unjust as I suspect accelerating harder would've been met with equally raised eyebrows!

Couple of words of advice OP:

1). Don't ask for advice and then rubbish it because it goes against your views. If you don't like it just ignore it
2). Don't talk about money. Not only does talking about how much money you have make you look like a show-off it also makes you look like a prize dickhead as there are quite a few people on here obviously with six-figure incomes or private means. In comparison as a joiner you will earn peanuts...
3). The 'banter' defence doesn't work. Also 'banter' is funny - you haven't been intentionally humorous

Hope that helps.

Just thought I'd add to my post... This is the absolute worst time you could ever try to enhance the performance of the car. Partly because it'll bum you for insurance, and partly because the extra performance is pretty useless at this level

But also, because it means it's not so easy to do it later- if you start out standard, you can add performance later to keep it interesting, if you start up upgraded (er, in theory) that's harder and more expensive to do. You've not known the car as standard so your "upgrade" has become your "standard" essentially and you'll not really feel the (perceived, possibly nonexistant) benefit

Tuning and performance is hardly ever about absolutes unless you're racing or a dyno queen, it's about relative increases based on what you're used to. Especially with a car that'll run a quarter mile in about 20 seconds at 70mph. Modding a car's about evolution and growing with you not about trying to make it "perfect" on day 1, that's for trailer cars.

Keep it standard for a couple of years then jam an extra litre and a turbo in it.

Sorry, but I cant help thinking that the OP (who only joined 4 days ago) is either markdatz mk.2 / alter ego of an existing member or just a troll.

Fred's latest incarnation was banned about a month ago, but he's generally very literate...

You hear a lot of horror stories about the test, but It's actually quite easy if you're prepared.

I think the biggest thing you can have on your side is good luck. If someone does something completely daft whilst you're on your test it's almost always going to give the tester something to think about - even if it's just because it puts them on edge.

Also, as I posted in the thread about speeding there are some strange pressures involved in the driving test which seem to me to be misplaced priorities.

I got a minor on my test for doing 25 in a 30 - near a school, about 8.30, kids all over, cars parked on both sides of the road, lots of traffic - it was considered to be undue hesitation. I got another for waiting behind a cyclist rather than overtaking where I could only have left about 3 feet of space. The driving test's priorities are a bit messed up.

If I were driving through the busy area now, not on test, I'd probably actually go slower than I did because I would be less concerned about "making progress" than I was on my test.

OP's actual car:

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😉

There's no set number of lessons, as others have said, it varies from student to student. If you're doing weekly lessons instead of a condensed course over a weekend, your instructor will give a recommendation as to when he thinks you're ready to do your test. In your case I don't imagine it'll take many lessons at all, as you appear to already know everything.

As for insurance, after everything you've written here I'd suggest you consider fully comp insurance. You'll be glad of it inside of six months when you have to retrieve a rubber-side upwards Corsa from a field.

Also, as I posted in the thread about speeding there are some strange pressures involved in the driving test which seem to me to be misplaced priorities.

Absolutely - my instructor told me of a student who failed for doing 'only' 45 on an NSL road. A slightly narrow, slightly twisty road, in damp and poor visibility conditions. He sat in on the pupil's test and later told the pupil that he even wouldn't go over 45 himself on that road in those conditions. He used to make me barrel down the ****er at speeds that felt blatantly unsafe!

Can I GoPro my test?

If your question is related to estimated cost, then you need to factor in the possibility of not passing your test first time.

Not sure why you would spend a load of money buying a car and not have it insured already?

Absolutely - my instructor told me of a student who failed for doing 'only' 45 on an NSL road. A slightly narrow, slightly twisty road, in damp and poor visibility conditions. He sat in on the pupil's test and later told the pupil that he even wouldn't go over 45 himself on that road in those conditions. He used to make me barrel down the **** at speeds that felt blatantly unsafe!

It's a 50 but the lane is very narrow (and has pedestrian refuges making it even narrower further down) and in the morning there's usually a long queue of standing traffic coming towards you which makes the sightlines crappy. My instructor had had people failed for dropping down to 40 on that stretch so he'd be constantly telling me to keep my speed up - which felt like a daft idea.

oof. Yeah, [url= https://www.google.co.uk/maps/ @51.4968145,-2.654988,3a,75y,193.81h,75.04t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s4xgAtrdRQS75uXtx2_1fBA!2e0]this was my road in question...[/url]

Presumably they just have to fail a given ratio of people?

As well as when you passed you should probably also add how well you passed. Scrape through with a dozen or more minors or do it with awesomeness (like me 😉 ) and only get one. For steering, I think he just didn't want to let me pass with a perfect score.

This thread needs more chaved up car pictures. Never understood why people buy corsa and do them up. Why not justbuy a decent car?

No lessons..past first time 1989ish, twas easy.

wilburt - Member

No lessons..past first time 1989ish, twas easy.

Back then you only had to make the horse move forward two feet though. 😉 😛

Back then you only had to make the horse move forward two feet though.

Have you ever tried parallel parking a two horse Phaeton? Bloody murder.