fed up learning

miss no stars

says it all in the title. Fed up learning to drive/being a learner. How good do you have to be to pass the test? I think my driving's fine. A couple of wrinkles to iron out but overall okay. I also know that my observation and reading of the road is good, my instructor even specifically mentioned it was particularly good over a year ago when I didn't even have a car to practice in (I do need to practice parking and reverse around the corner but I'm sure that'll be fine once I actually get around to practicing).

I was thinking to myself I'm just about test ready (aside from said parking and RATC to be practiced). My brother (who accompanies me and did his test 2 years ago) says I'm fine (apart from the obvious two mentioned things) and the couple of times I've had my bf in the car he's said I'm fine. Then my dad (who would be a really good driver and can parallel park like you've never seen before) got in the car and basically said I'm way off test ready, I'm getting there but a looong way to go but he couldn't say specifically what was wrong with my driving. I know I don't drive like I've had years of experience, but I also really did think that my driving is safe and competent, keeping up with the traffic, haven't stalled in months and months, any mechanical errors are tiny like maybe being about a second off on the ideal time to change gears (but no like chugging or engine revving like crazy of anything). I've been practicing by driving through dublin city centre and have done big roundabouts incident/panic/whatever free, like the one on the malahide road at the pavillion in swords (well, had an incident with a crazy driver deciding to take my exact position in my lane - i.e. swerve over at me - but it was a non-event really cos I knew my inside lane was empty and pulled into it).

So I'm actually genuinely confused at this stage, how good do you have to be? (I probably should mention that I did 10 lessons with an ADI but didn't have a car at the time to practice in, I then got insured on my mum's car and have been practicing about once per weekend for the last year). Like, I take off from lights the same speed as the traffic around me, I'm not overly timid, my lane positioning is fine. I don't have money for more lessons at this stage though.

So what reckon ye? Just how good is good enough?

**Timbuk2**

From the sounds of it you are fairly competent, you should apply for the test as soon as you can and see how you get on.

How your brother and father view your driving is fairly irrelevant, they are not ADIs and thus aren't qualified to make accurate judgments on how competent you are as a driver.

I know you say that you don't have money for lessons but it is the only way to accurately gauge your progress, and I'd even go as far as saying that the cost of lessons are minor if you consider the overall cost of driving (fuel/tax/insurance/price of car/repairs etc)

Don't get disheartened though, it feels like learning is a pain but once you pass the test you have the licence for life, so it'll be worth it when you pass!

jamescc

have a pretest done . then you will know for sure. and that way the instructor/tester will be bias.

H3llR4iser

This:

miss no stars wrote: »

... Then my dad (who would be a really good driver and can parallel park like you've never seen before) got in the car and basically said I'm way off test ready, I'm getting there but a looong way to go but he couldn't say specifically what was wrong with my driving...

If your dad, who has probably been driving for about three decades, says you're not ready for the test, you're not ready. Never, ever, ever listen to the advice of very young drivers; Even though the regulations allow somebody holding a license for only 2 years to accompain a learner driver, the thruth is that they are nowhere near being qualified to give you any valid advice - your brother, for example, is really still a learner driver.

Most places in the EU only allow drivers that held a valid license for at least 10 years to accompain and give lessons to learner drivers, and there's a very valid reason for it.

Follow your dad's advice, ask him where he thinks you need to improve - see if he can give you pointers. Be patient, it would avoid you bigger frustrations than being a learner - failing the test is a possible one.

miss no stars

H3llR4iser wrote: »

Follow your dad's advice, ask him where he thinks you need to improve - see if he can give you pointers. Be patient, it would avoid you bigger frustrations than being a learner - failing the test is a possible one.

He couldn't. That's the point.

challengemaster

H3llR4iser wrote: »

This:



If your dad, who has probably been driving for about three decades, says you're not ready for the test, you're not ready. Never, ever, ever listen to the advice of very young drivers; Even though the regulations allow somebody holding a license for only 2 years to accompain a learner driver, the thruth is that they are nowhere near being qualified to give you any valid advice - your brother, for example, is really still a learner driver.

I'd actually be of the opposite opinion. Very much so.

Anyone that's learned to drive within a 5 year period of the learner they're accompanying is much more likely to be a better driver in terms of the test, and much more likely to be up to date in what they know about the driving test.

Anyone that has had their license for decades, means they haven't sat a test in decades if at all. It also means they've got bad habits which are just part of their driving routine. I'm not saying they badly alter how they drive - we all get them eventually, but for the test, they're bad. They may also have rather strange and wrong views about driving, or are just bad drivers. Some I've come across can't handle roundabouts at all, won't drive in built up areas, and a multitude of other things. Things which wouldn't pass a test today, certainly.

I sat in with someone learning only 1 year after doing my test, and there was a "qualified" person also in the car to keep things legal. The reason being that I was a much more capable person of giving instruction, and passing on what I'd learned than the "qualified driver" in the scenario. I'm also damn sure they wouldn't have passed their test 1st time around if it was someone else sitting in with them for practice.

ADIDriving

Book a driving test and find out!
PS Book some pre-test lessons to get the problems fixed and help you pass.