Will be taking test soon...

Jo2009

Jo2009

Jo2009

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9 Dec 2009
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I'm 17 so I can drive a car now. So when ever I can book a date, I'm going to take driving leasons.

Can you guys reccomend me and books or any thing what will help me pat the test's.

Also, how much will I kind of need for a 2nd hand 4door car?

Thank you.

P.S: Just to make sure. The driving age in UK is 17?
 
id budget to spend about £1000 on your first car. A fiesta or Clio or Corsa or some other dross box. Buy based on condition and buy the best car for the money you can find in the area.

Budget another £2000 for insurance, and then budget another £500 to have in the bank for the first years running Expenses. It will need tax , tyres etc.. and being a £1000 car will probably need stuff fixing. You'll need fuel on top but this can come out of your bank as and when you need to so can be budgeted for.

As for learning, most important thing is to get yourself a decent instructor. Go with somebody that has been recommended to you, not some random bloke out of the yellow pages.

And last piece of advice about the theory test, its all straightforward stuff, so any book will be as good as another. Its just memorising stuff. Its not stuff to "learn" as such. Just make sure you get one that has a CDrom to practice the hazard perception test on your PC.
 
Lethal` said:
Highway code, maybe theory test answers although you shouldn't really need any...


Yes.
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the hazard perception test is a bit funny in what they consider a "hazard" You quite often have a different idea to them as to when you should consider it a hazard and what should be considered a hazard. Is a bus stop a hazard because somebody can walk out from behind it ? no is the answer, it only becomes a hazard when the person appears...

Its pretty obvious stuff, but id want to have ahd some practice first.
 
MrLOL said:
the hazard perception test is a bit funny in what they consider a "hazard" You quite often have a different idea to them as to when you should consider it a hazard and what should be considered a hazard. Is a bus stop a hazard because somebody can walk out from behind it ? no is the answer, it only becomes a hazard when the person appears...

Its pretty obvious stuff, but id want to have ahd some practice first.
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Yep, forgot about the HP. When I was practising for my test I sometimes clicked too early, before the scoring window had opened resulting in a score of 0 for those clips. I sorted that by clicking more than once for each hazard.
 
Insurance is once a year or you can pay it over a year, but you'll get shafted with a high interest rate. Best to pay it off all in one go.

Aim for a £1k-£1.5k, same if not a bit more for insurance and yeah about £500 tucked away just in case. Going from not having a car at all to driving will mean it's unlikely you'll do moon mileage so petrol hopefully wouldn't be too much of an issue.

Look at getting a decent condition slow first car, don't dick about trying to get a chav'd up Nova or anything stupid like that as it'll end in tears.
 
Get your provisional sorted nowish. I waited around a few months and seriously regretted it.

Theory test is easier than I thought it was going to be. Whilst it doesn't hurt to learn braking distances/Random Traffic signs, etc, REALISTICALLY you should be able to scrape through the test with common sense alone. Please note in no way that I condone you not revise the highway code, I'm just saying that you might not need to devote days upon days memorising it from cover to cover to pass like some people believe is necessary.

Driving instructor - Get some recommendations and get a good one. I seriously lucked out with my instructor who genuinely wanted to see his students succeed. Put it this way, my first lesson was with a random guy through a small franchise that was doing a free half price lesson, I did the lesson, came back home (learning nothing) and he said that I would need at least 40 hours before I was ready to book my test, and that if I bought 25 hours now he'd give me a 10% discount on the 15 others. Okay then... I didn't like his attitude when I saw his face drop when I told him I was booked in for a Half price lesson. I then went on a lesson with the guy who would become my instructor. After my first lesson with him (second in total) the guy told me to book my practical as soon as I got indoors because I only needed a few hours of touching up that he could find inside the few weeks waiting time. I passed my test with Zero Minors 15 instructed hours later :). He could have told me I needed the 40 hours and dragged out the process, but didn't, and I'm grateful for that. This is what a good instructor should do

I have heard rumours that the theory test/practical test structure may be changing soon. It may be rubbish (probably is), but I'd still get your test sorted out as soon as possible just in case.

Insurance - It'll be very, very, very painful. Even more painful if you don't do your homework, so I'd start getting quotes TBH.

Tax - Once a year (if you choose). Worth noting that cars with a displacement with 1,549 (1.5L) will quality for a lower tax band (at least on pre 2001 cars), but chances are your first car is going to have a sub 1.5L engine anyway!

Mot - Once a year, but make sure that you get a car with as much MOT as possible. While it's not a iron clad guarantee that a car will be in good condition, it certainly helps.
 
Send off for your provisional asap, I can't remember how much it is.
To pass the theory I'd recommend study up on the highway code and get one of those practise dvds, especially for hazard perception, get the theory done, asap so start this right away.
Ask yourself if you can afford £20-£25 per hour of lessons, with a decent instructor you'll most likely need 20-25 hours worth of lessons over a few months, don't go with BSM or AA get a decent indie through recommendation, the big companies will take you more lessons (BSM stick you in a simulator for gods sake) you wanna be out on the road on your first lesson to learn properly.
Then taking the theory test is £32 (i think)
Practical test will be £62 plus whatever it costs you to get a car for the day, I used my instructors, 2 hours for warm up and testing time. £40. So £102 in all for the test.
If you pass, you can send off your licence and pass certificate get your full licence.

Then your in the finance and soul destroying business of running a car at a young age.
A £300-500 shed, about £1500 for insurance, money for tyres, tax, mot and repairs (£500+) and money for fuel. This is true cheap motoring, you need to put the hours in at work or if your parents are loaded, get them to pay for it to even afford to do this.
Or get insured on your parents car, a much cheaper option, depends whether they'll let you drive their car.
 
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Thank you.

Well, the money for tax etc should not be that bad. I've already got about £100 saved up and I get around 200 - 300 a mounth.

Ill look around for some cd or something for computer to help.
 
Be careful on the hazard test, click too many times and you score 0 on that particular one.

I only just passed it. Thaory is pretty easy just read THC.

Test is very easy just practice a bit before and always check mirrors (and blind spot).
 
Jo2009 said:
Thank you.

Well, the money for tax etc should not be that bad. I've already got about £100 saved up and I get around 200 - 300 a mounth.

Ill look around for some cd or something for computer to help.
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Well for me it worked out £150-200 off my wages to run a car at least, get used to doing overtime is all i'll say.

£100 minimum for insurance
£40 minimunm for petrol (more like £80-100 but a lot of the time mates would chip in for whatever was used on drives)
then saving for tyres, parts, mot, tax etc.
 
I get around said:
Ask yourself if you can afford £20-£25 per hour of lessons, with a decent instructor you'll most likely need 20-25 hours worth of lessons over a few months, don't go with BSM or AA get a decent indie through recommendation, the big companies will take you more lessons (BSM stick you in a simulator for gods sake) you wanna be out on the road on your first lesson to learn properly.

If you pass, you can send off your licence and pass certificate get your full licence.
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BSM dont stick you in a simulator if you dont want to, it is YOUR choice (yes i am a BSM instructor) most of my customers have never been in the sim.
you will get driving on the first lesson with any decent instructor.

you will find most indies were BSM instructors, dont avoid either BSM or AA, just because they are not indies, we dont keep people longer than needed, (some might, but then so do some indies) go with recommendations for any of the above, as prices are usually very simalar, some indies charge more than either BSM or the AA, ring and ask for the cheapest price as most including me can, and will charge less than the normal price, but you must ask.

how can you say
"with a decent instructor you'll most likely need 20-25 hours worth of lessons over a few months"? you have never seen him drive, and once we have taught you what, and how to do something its essentially down to you to get it right often enough to drive safely, and pass the test.

the examiner will send of your licence if you pass your practical as you paid in the original cost of your provisional.
 
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Everyone I've known who've learned with BSM/ AA have needed 40+ hours including simulator. And tbh, whats the point in paying for a company name, if you really want a BSM instructor, like you say, some indies are ex BSM, but will cost less. And not drive a silly fiat 500, stupidest choice for a learner car ever if you ask me.

My instructor taught about 15 of my mates and a few of their parents, all of them passed first time after ~20 lessons, all are good drivers. Indies are the way to go, through recommendation obviously. As long as you're not a complete spack 20-25 lessons should be easily adequate for young learner.

What is bsm £25-£30 an hour depending on location. I really don't see the point, all you have to go on is a company name. If you go on recommendartion you've a better chance of finding a good instructor.
 
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I've got my test booked for the 5th of Jan had 16 hours instruction so far with an instructor that helped a few of my friends pass. I'm paying £19 a lesson and passed my theory a 2 months ago

I was surprised to find out that the theory test dvd had exactly the same questions as the test even down to the pictures used. Got a 47 pass mark, the hazard perception was totally different to the dvd I was clicking too early and over clicked on one of them which got disallowed, still got 48 out of 75 which is still a pass lol (44 being the cut off)

Have got 1 more lesson before test day. And think I'm there now only getting 2/3 minors on mocks. Hopefully ill be ok

Good luck...
 
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