Driving

[DonnyBiz]

Afternoon all. Just a bit of marketing here. Would you be good enough to tell me please; how do you teach your Sons and Daughters to drive when they come of age?

Do you take them out in your own car and hold on for dear life whilst shouting at them to BRAKE NOW!!! Or do you go with an Instructor? Maybe you do both; do a bit yourself first, then finish off with an Instructor.

Also - how would you/did you go about their lessons? Did they do once a week or Intensive?

Does the car they learn in matter? Condition? Age? Engine size?

Would you want someone dressed properly to teach them? Shirt and trousers with professional attitude or old matey from round the corner, you know the one with shorts on all the time - if you can get him out of the bookies for an hour.

Lastly, if there's anything you want to add about this subject that I've not asked and you feel strongly about so much that you want to share, tell me about it and what you would want instead.

Thanks for your input everyone RTID.

[Filo]

First of all, I would never let a learner driver near my car, my daughter has passed her test and she is still barred from driving my car!

My Son and Daughter both arranged their own lessons, usually once a week

I think it`s less intimidating to learn in a small car with a small engine

I think the more relaxed and casually dressed instructor, the better, it helps the learner to feel comfortable

[jucyberry]

Wierdly, neither my siblings or I ever learned to drive, they both have partners who do, I love trains..lol..

If I ever were to learn, (which I never will I don't like cars) I would rather do it in a smallish car, with someone who was kind, and perhaps smart casually dressed, not that the clothes matter but someone looking like a tramp wouldn't instill much confidence I guess..

For what it's worth Rob, I was near to you, and ever changed my mind, You would be my first port of call..  

[Lewis Guys Dentist]

Instructor any day as they have dual control (can brake, clutch etc).
Every instructor has a block paying scheme thing. Where you pay for so many hours in advance. (very costly though)
I learned in a 1.2. They tend to be a smaller engine. And a smaller car so you can do the manouvers easier.
Choose instructor wisely. Check out their cars first. Newer car tends to show you the instructor is successful.
Hope the helped

[grayx]

Give Barry Cooper a ring. A qualified instructor,chatty down to earth bloke who is a genuine guy.
He taught my son when he was 17 then miraculously taught my wife to drive. Can't recommend him highly enough.
Tel. 0797 99913703. Let him teach them from day 1 & keep them away from your car.

[DonnyBiz]

Thanks to all so far, keep 'em coming if you can though please

[Viking Don]

If they're old enough to drive then why not just let them make their own choice? They're all grown up now and are perfectly capable of making their own decision - if they aren't then please just keep 'em off the roads.

[herouk87]

I had lessons (about 18 i think). Got them in blocks though

Went with an instructor before practicing with a parent. Small cars are better to learn in and dual control is a must as learners don't necessarily know what to look for when they first start driving.

Some people just have lessons with instructors.

One bit of advice, get them to take their theory ASAP cos the waiting list for the practical test in Donny was about 4 months for me

[DRFC-PERKINS]

Mine cost £18x30 lessons (average nowa days) or £170 for 10 lessons.
£50+ for the test, with my instructor charging me the same amount (she was a pelican driving instructor), which she did not tell me about until the week before, normally you just get charged the hour you use the car.
£30 for theory test.
£75 - my dad let me go on his insurance for a month to help me prepare for my test.

Spent about £800 without my mum and dad helping me out with lessons, I would of had no chance of paying. This was about 4 years ago, so prices may have gone up, hope this helps.

[GM-MarkB]

My Uncle is a Driving Instructor - John Charles School of Motoring

[RobTheRover]

I wouldnt learn at the Tijani Belaid School of Motoring!  ;-)

One serious question, though.  When I learnt to drive (1988) I passed first time after having about 11 or 12 lessons.  Why do kids nowadays need 30-40 or more lessons?  Has driving suddenly become much harder to do?  No one told me, if so.

[herouk87]

I wouldnt learn at the Tijani Belaid School of Motoring!  ;-)

One serious question, though.  When I learnt to drive (1988) I passed first time after having about 11 or 12 lessons.  Why do kids nowadays need 30-40 or more lessons?  Has driving suddenly become much harder to do?  No one told me, if so.

Christ knows. When i learned to drive (6 years ago) they all said it takes at least 30 lessons to pass. Bunch of b*llocks. Some instructors do it to make money as well as guaranteeing you pass first time. You need about 10 lessons to learn how to drive properly then lots of practice in a parents car.

My instructor also came out of the test centre and shouted \"I expected you to fail for speeding!\" across the car park. Good times

[i_ateallthepies]

I learned to drive with my dad, a long time ago admittedly, and then had seven lessons with an instructor.  Passed first time.

I remember all too well that feeling of needing three pairs of hands and eyes in the back of my head.  For me, the key to it is not giving them too much to do early on.  Learn pulling away and stopping at first and just keep giving them more to do at a rate they can cope with.

I'm now teaching my daughter and she's doing really well.  Apart from the speed of decision making, which only comes with practice you wouldn't tell her from a qualified driver, she makes good decisions all of the time and handles the car with ease.
She's now started taking instructor lessons to help get her ready for the test.

Whether you feel confident enough to teach someone yourself is entirely a matter of personal preference.  It's simple really, I can teach someone to drive perfectly well, but they'll have a better chance of passing early with the help of an instructor who, apart from having a better grasp of what examiners look for will also know the test routes used.

[GM-MarkB]

I didn't pass first time, but I put that down to the fact that the instructor I had was crap..seriously. Although you can never tell untill you pass I guess just how good he was.

Failed then moved to BSM...it was like chalk n cheese. Had some more lessons with them until my re-test came through and passed first time with them. The difference was obvious.

So if you're reading this (lol) thanks Bill Roe

[Nudga]

I got put through my test after six lessons, by the time it came around i'd done ten lessosns. It helped having a saturday morning job at my grandads garage from the age of 14. I would drive customers cars over the MOT pit, little did they know a spotty 14 year old kid was driving their lovely car. When my kids get to a certain age i'll take them down golden mile to go through changes gears and braking. Then if it snows we'll then go dougnutting around Asda car park.

[Filo]

I wouldnt learn at the Tijani Belaid School of Motoring!  ;-)

One serious question, though.  When I learnt to drive (1988) I passed first time after having about 11 or 12 lessons.  Why do kids nowadays need 30-40 or more lessons?  Has driving suddenly become much harder to do?  No one told me, if so.

Chuffing eck you`re a slow learner!

I passed mine in 1980 at the age of 17 years 4 months, first time after 6 lessons

[RobTheRover]

To be fair, cars came with a bloke who walked in front waving a flag when you passed your test,   Filo

[jucyberry]

I would think it would make more sense to go to a qualified instructor like yourself Biz, than to be taught by a parent who might have gotten into sloppy ways and short cuts... Plus as an instructor, you would have hopefully more patience than a parent..

[Redandwhitewhizards]

I tried to teach my ex partner how to drive in my own car (with no dual controls etc) and I only went out with them twice in a car park and ended up with a sore leg from the number of times I was trying to press an imaginary brake! I was a rubbish teacher and passing on my bad habits straight away, I thought that after me ferrying them around for 4 years they would just know how to use the clutch... With this in mind, I would almost certainly send kids to a proper instructor!

I had weekly lessons (normally 1.5 hour ones) and I passed 3rd time, passing 3rd time would indicate that I wasn't ready for my first two tests but there were mitigating circumstances and towards the end of learning I did feel like my instructor was taking the piss to get more money out of me. On the odd occasion I did 2 hour lessons and found them dull and tiring and with this in mind I don't think i'd ever recommend an intensive course but its personal preference.

I learnt in an old car that didn't have power steering (and this was only about 5 years ago) and went from that to driving a brand new SXI and it terrified me as it was so much quicker and easier to handle, I wouldn't encourage anyone to learn to drive in a shit car.

I would want someone with a professional attitude but also someone who is approachable and you can get along with, I don't think clothing really matters either...