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tl:dr - How did you start off driving and what lessons have you learnt?
So 2 years ago on the 3/11/2011 I passed my test (first time!) at the Maidstone test center with 4 minors; 1 for use of mirrors on a change of speed, 2 for the general use of speed, and 1 for judgement at a meeting. Like every 17 year old who has just passed their test with very few minors, I now assumed I was gods gift to driving.
The 1L Nissan Micra I was given by my parents was a huge step down from the 1.4 TDCi Fiesta I had learnt to drive in, but it didn't matter, to me it was a 911. In this time I probably clocked up less than 1,000 miles as the car was so uncomfortable to be in, and all other friends had much better cars that were simply put less embarrassing to be seen in. Nevertheless it gave me independence and made me appreciate how you needed to plan every maneuver way in advance when you only have 59 BHP.
This car taught me that if you ever let your dad top up your engine oil, you should always check that he has screwed the cap back on, otherwise you might return home after a 20 mile journey to find oil pouring out the front of the car and none left in the engine. Still ran perfectly fine after a top up though
School ended, I had worked my **** off and I had promised my girlfriend a holiday that summer with the cash I had earned. On the other hand I was now 18 with some decent NCB, so naturally I stuffed the idea for a holiday and bought a better car. Mazda 3 with a 2L 150BHP engine fit the bill well and was only a £300 change over cost from the Micra for the remaining 7 months.
This car has so far taught me most of my motoring lessons in the 11 months and 12,000 miles of ownership. My girlfriend moved to Canterbury shortly after I bought it so my motorway driving skill was built doing the ~90 mile return journey to see her every other weekend. This car took me to Birmingham, Devon, Winchester, Brighton, Cambridge, Norwich and everywhere in Kent. This really made me appreciate having a car that was yours and caring for it.
I showed my true love for it by binning it into a ditch just outside of Eynesford.
The dreaded phone call to my Dad to inform him of my predicament saw much abuse, but with his help and another kind member of PistonHeads, the car was finally free after 6 hours of struggling. Suffice to say I stayed out of the snow following that as I didn't fancy another £550 repair bill.
The Mazda lasted 6 more months, in that time I had quit uni, got out of retail work, aged another year, gained more NCB and starting working a proper job with a decent, steady and 100% disposable income, and had once again promised the girlfriend an even longer holiday. Naturally the BMW happened instead.
So far this has been with me to Derby, Wales, Birmingham, Basingstoke, and again all over Kent. From this point onwards I've been really active on the forum so wont bore you with it all over again. The future should hopefully see taking it abroad (would keep the GF quiet about holidays...), but I'll wait and see if the upgrade itch still strike again.
The 2 years has been managed with 0 points and only a single parking fine, hopefully now my limit has been raised to 12 points I won't start accruing them.
Now there are more people on the roads younger than me I can appreciate why everyone gets annoyed with new young drivers acting like prats (not denying that I most likely did too), but experience really does change how you drive and your attitude behind the wheel. No doubt there is still much much more to learn.
So who else has stories of their younger driving years? Should imagine older members from a time when insurance was cheaper and DOC was a cheap add on have much better experiences than the above.
So 2 years ago on the 3/11/2011 I passed my test (first time!) at the Maidstone test center with 4 minors; 1 for use of mirrors on a change of speed, 2 for the general use of speed, and 1 for judgement at a meeting. Like every 17 year old who has just passed their test with very few minors, I now assumed I was gods gift to driving.
The 1L Nissan Micra I was given by my parents was a huge step down from the 1.4 TDCi Fiesta I had learnt to drive in, but it didn't matter, to me it was a 911. In this time I probably clocked up less than 1,000 miles as the car was so uncomfortable to be in, and all other friends had much better cars that were simply put less embarrassing to be seen in. Nevertheless it gave me independence and made me appreciate how you needed to plan every maneuver way in advance when you only have 59 BHP.
This car taught me that if you ever let your dad top up your engine oil, you should always check that he has screwed the cap back on, otherwise you might return home after a 20 mile journey to find oil pouring out the front of the car and none left in the engine. Still ran perfectly fine after a top up though
School ended, I had worked my **** off and I had promised my girlfriend a holiday that summer with the cash I had earned. On the other hand I was now 18 with some decent NCB, so naturally I stuffed the idea for a holiday and bought a better car. Mazda 3 with a 2L 150BHP engine fit the bill well and was only a £300 change over cost from the Micra for the remaining 7 months.
This car has so far taught me most of my motoring lessons in the 11 months and 12,000 miles of ownership. My girlfriend moved to Canterbury shortly after I bought it so my motorway driving skill was built doing the ~90 mile return journey to see her every other weekend. This car took me to Birmingham, Devon, Winchester, Brighton, Cambridge, Norwich and everywhere in Kent. This really made me appreciate having a car that was yours and caring for it.
I showed my true love for it by binning it into a ditch just outside of Eynesford.
The dreaded phone call to my Dad to inform him of my predicament saw much abuse, but with his help and another kind member of PistonHeads, the car was finally free after 6 hours of struggling. Suffice to say I stayed out of the snow following that as I didn't fancy another £550 repair bill.
The Mazda lasted 6 more months, in that time I had quit uni, got out of retail work, aged another year, gained more NCB and starting working a proper job with a decent, steady and 100% disposable income, and had once again promised the girlfriend an even longer holiday. Naturally the BMW happened instead.
So far this has been with me to Derby, Wales, Birmingham, Basingstoke, and again all over Kent. From this point onwards I've been really active on the forum so wont bore you with it all over again. The future should hopefully see taking it abroad (would keep the GF quiet about holidays...), but I'll wait and see if the upgrade itch still strike again.
The 2 years has been managed with 0 points and only a single parking fine, hopefully now my limit has been raised to 12 points I won't start accruing them.
Now there are more people on the roads younger than me I can appreciate why everyone gets annoyed with new young drivers acting like prats (not denying that I most likely did too), but experience really does change how you drive and your attitude behind the wheel. No doubt there is still much much more to learn.
So who else has stories of their younger driving years? Should imagine older members from a time when insurance was cheaper and DOC was a cheap add on have much better experiences than the above.
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
0 points.
); but, since my sister needed it at uni, I am now driving a 1.6 Mini Cooper which i'm very happy with! Although, I cant drive it much as it is at home and I am at uni