I passed my British Driver's Test.... Ask me Anything

[FunkyLeprechaun]

After six tries. It was the hardest test ever.

Anything you want to know about it, I'll let you know!

[AggieGal]

1. Congrats!

[FunkyLeprechaun]

6. Thank you!

No more L plates for me!

I really do think the learner drivers in the US should have L plates.

[CottonBear]

2. Why is it so difficult? Does it include a written portion and a driving portion?

Here in the USA, practically anyone can get a license. The standards are not set very high.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

4. There's a written test prior to the practical

The written test consists of two parts, a multiple choice part and a video part. The multiple choice is pretty standard (I passed this test with one question wrong) and the video part (the Hazard Awareness Test) consists of watching a video of standard street scenes (you're in a car driving along). You have to click whenever you THINK there's a hazard. I clicked on ANYTHING that could potientially be a hazard, and couldn't click furiously (they had the test rigged so if you clicked furiously, you'd fail the test). You also had to click in enough time (they award 3 points for clicking at the right moment, 2 for a little bit late, 1 for after the hazard has occurred, 0 for missing the hazard). Everyone said the Hazard Awareness Test was easy, but it's really not!

Then I had my practical test. If you get ONE serious error you fail the test. If you get 16 minor errors, you fail the test (I got 13 minor errors! Whew!!). It doesn't matter, you only have to do a serious error once and you've failed the whole test. I heard of one guy who had NO minors and as he was driving back to the test center he hit the curb accidentally. He failed his test right then and there!

I remember taking my American test (I passed the third try) and I did something what the testers over here would call a serious but the person testing me then allowed me to try again (without my knowledge) and I made the same mistake twice and failed the test.

As a result of all this, I have gained a better understanding of driving and road rules. And seeing flies come out of my wallet!

[RetroLounge]

3. Please be careful of Billy's Car

He just got it fixed...

:hi:

and congrats...

RL

[FunkyLeprechaun]

5. Will do!

He has no worries though. I've been driving 10 years prior to taking this test so no worries for Billy!

That's what made this test so hard, me being an experienced driver! You'd think I'd have passed on the first go but bad habits got in the way!

No more bad habits for me. No worries for Billy.

[Random_Australian]

7. How far into the process are you?

I'm on my second of four licenses, each with their own test, for example.

How about you?

(I'm on my first provisional, the one after learners and before second provisional which is itself between me and my first full license)

[FunkyLeprechaun]

8. I currently now have a full licence

Previously it was a provisional, now it's a full licence. I only have a limited number of points (6) for two years so I'll have to be VERY good driving around! (If you get caught speeding by a camera here, that's 3 points on your licence and if you get caught again, you're banned from driving!)

[Random_Australian]

10. Cool. How many licenses is that, then? Your third?

And here, yeah, we have similar demerit system.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

12. Actually it's my fifth licence

Two provisionals (US and UK), One under-21 (when I passed my US driver's licence I was 16 and I got my licence but to make it easier for people to see I was under 21, they made it a different colour than the regular licence), and two regular licences (US and UK).

You'd think racking up all my licences, I'd have passed the UK test sooner! Ah well, I've passed it and I'm still celebrating!

[Random_Australian]

13. Hmmmm... ok, I'm not clear on something -

how is it that you never had a learner license in either place?

And I'll rephrase my question as this:

In Australia, to get my license I go like this:

1) Take a test
2)Get a learner license
3) Take a test
4) Get the first provisional license
5) Take a test
6) Get the second provisional license
7) Take a test
8) Get my first full license.

What is the comparable thing for Britain? For a regular pome to go from no license to a full license, that is.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

14. I'm sorry for not understanding

We don't have a second test for the provisional licence. (6 steps) Same for the US licencing test.

I do think it should be harder to get a licence these days.

[meegbear]

9. Do you think it's hard because you're driving on the wrong side of the road?

[FunkyLeprechaun]

11. Yes I think so

I'm in the wrong seat and on the wrong side of the road. I kept drifting over to the right side of the road when I first started to drive here, two months later, I started drifting to the LEFT and kept hitting the curb. I perfected it though for my test!

Also in the wee country roads, I was so scared of passing other cars because they seemed to go so close to my car! I kept hitting the bushes.

I don't know why the UK and Ireland road system is different while the continental Europe roads are like the American road system!

Another thing about the UK, if you want to drive ANY car you have to pass the test in a manual (if you pass the test in an automatic, you can only drive automatics). Before moving here, my preferred car was an automatic. Now, it's a manual.