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Post by D.C. Burtonshaw on May 8, 2020 18:10:52 GMT
I passed (not first time) in November 1990 in a white H reg Peugeot 205 diesel, yes I had nerves on the previous test, but managed to stay calm well, the day I passed. I had taken my earlier lessons on an F reg Metro City X 5 door but I packed in that instructor as he a pensioner and getting a bit forgetful and told me it was OK to pull out on one lesson before changing his mind and slamming the dual controls on. I went with a new driving school later with an instructor my workmate recommended to me, a Scotsman who was very good. You've just reminded me. I learned in a diesel and the instructor was forever telling me "you wouldn't have got away with that in a petrol car!" (ie about just about not stalling). I've only ever had petrol cars and there is something about it I do miss - it seemed to have more torque. Since it's no longer looking like a good option for the future, though, perhaps I'm better off without one. I sometimes think I'd have passed faster with a different instructor. There were so many things that, on the lead up to the test, he was insistent that we had done and I can say wholeheartedly we had not covered them!! But never mind. Amounted to the same in the end, I guess! The first driving school I went to was a one man band bloke, and I initially went as he was the cheapest in the town. But cheapest is not always the best. Also I heard a story that the same instructor later on "caused an accident" according to a work colleague, once they found out, who I was learning with previously!
After I passed my test and bought my first car, a 1979 MK2 Escort 1.3L, my dad went out with me for several journeys to give me a bit of extra tuition and experience, and it was probably a good thing, as I still did a few silly manouvres, but I eventually was driving about on my own shortly after, starting with local journeys, taking my younger brother to football etc.
I remember earlier when having lessons on the 205, with the second better instructor one day, the gear shifting got more and more difficult and the instructor wondered what I was playing at, so I said "I think there's something wrong with this gearbox" (as previously and after, it was a lovely smooth gearchange and better than a Metros). The instructor then said "oh pull over then and let me try", so he did and then it was "You're right, somethings nor right......"
I never did find out what when wrong but it may not have been a major problem as the same car came back for my lesson the following week, but the car was due to be used in a driving test, for one of his other pupils next day which miffed him a bit (hopefully the person was able to pass their test in the same model car as the Driving school had a fleet of 205's). He also said it only had, a major service 3,000 miles ago but he had to grudgingly accept it wasn't my fault! Perhaps it was just a linkage problem, as it still changed gear, just was getting harder and harder to.
On other lessons, twice cars overtook me and cut me up and then braked at the last minute to turn left at a corner (first one was a Maxi, the other a Cavalier MK1 Sports Hatch - like the Opel Manta). In a traffic queue once on another lesson, further back a Transit pick up had hit the back of another car! All good practice for the real world of driving I suppose!
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Post by Deleted on May 8, 2020 21:24:21 GMT
I learnt to drive in a talbot Samba in 1985! Can’t believe prior to this I used to drive it around on a provisional’ with no L’ plates on! always remember once I was showing off with my mates in the back, and absolutely leathered it over a blind hump back bridge! I literally took off like in the Jukes of hazard! Lol!! As I come back down to earth the force of the impact caused me to lose control and I ended up on the wrong side of the road with the wheel knacked!
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Post by John Steed on May 22, 2020 20:08:45 GMT
I bought my first car 2 weeks before my 17th Birthday in March 1986 and booked a driving lesson with a driving school for 9am on my Birthday. (I had previously had loads of goes driving my dad's Rover SD1 and his Mk1 Transit van on industrial estates etc from the age of about 15 so was competent with the clutch etc). When the driving school car arrived it was a Mk2 Escort and was actually a couple of years older than my own car! My first lesson went ok and he let me drive a few miles on the roads. My second lesson was booked for the following Saturday and off we went again. He seemed quite a stern sort of bloke and nearly at the end of my lesson (about a mile from home) I was going from 2nd to 3rd gear and missed the gear. The instructor was quite sharp and said something like "come on, 3rd gear, what you playing at?" in quite a harsh tone. When we arrived at my house he said "same time next week?" to which I replied "No, i'll phone you when I want another lesson." I applied for my test and then spent loads of time driving about in my own car accompanied by mom or dad and passed my test on 18th June 1986 (3 months after my Birthday). My car was a Triumph Dolomite 1850HL which had Dolomite Sprint Alloys. Registration number was MHG 182T. I kept the car for 3 years and then bought a Rover SD1 2300 which was an absolute money pit!
Steed
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on May 22, 2020 20:32:51 GMT
NIce story John. All worked out ok in the end. My daughter had an instructor who was taking the pee and she'd hardly progressed in 10 months of lessons and wasn't ready for the test he made her apply for ! I bought her a Micra and went out every other day with her for 4 weeks and she improved so much we only needed to use the instructor to use their car for the test. Bloke was useless.
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Post by John Steed on May 22, 2020 20:54:05 GMT
NIce story John. All worked out ok in the end. My daughter had an instructor who was taking the pee and she'd hardly progressed in 10 months of lessons and wasn't ready for the test he made her apply for ! I bought her a Micra and went out every other day with her for 4 weeks and she improved so much we only needed to use the instructor to use their car for the test. Bloke was useless. He did me a favour by his abrupt manner as he ended up saving me some money and i'm sure that I passed my test quicker than I would have done if I had continued with the lessons. I used to go out in my car with my mom or dad every single day! Steed
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Batgirl
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Post by Batgirl on May 23, 2020 13:33:23 GMT
Learnt and tested in a Toyota Camry GLi liftback. It wasn't mine, belonged to the instructor.
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Three Litre
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Post by Three Litre on May 23, 2020 19:30:17 GMT
Some people on here must have had a fairly challenging route for lessons of the test?
Mine was a fairly quite, flat city so no difficult hill starts or nasty junctions.
That I can remember from June '77 anyway.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on May 23, 2020 19:35:43 GMT
I took a cancelation test for an8.45a.m start and the test centre route always took you along a major London trunk road The A20. Needless to say the roads were packed and no sod would let you out so I got three stripes for hesitating. Should have left that iffy time alone and saved my dough.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on May 23, 2020 19:38:08 GMT
Learnt and tested in a Toyota Camry GLi liftback. It wasn't mine, belonged to the instructor. Is this the model Batgirl?
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Post by Dirty Epic on May 23, 2020 21:05:53 GMT
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