UK aspies: driving test, how many tries did it take you?

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Ok so Im trying to pass my test right now, I had lessons for around 9 months before I took my first test. I failed for the 4th time this morning. When Im with my mother or sister in my own car I drive absolutely fine in my opinion, but when I am with my instructor or with the examiner I just seem to make silly mistakes. I just get so nervous to be in such an enclosed space with a stranger that my attention is drawn away from the task at hand.

I hate that the tests are so strict too, we seem to be so much tougher on new drivers than any other country in the world but I guess thats just me making excuses. Im not going to give up though, Ive set my mind to it now and have already booked another one for later this month, taking the grand total spent on tests alone up to over £500, on top of the £700 odd spent on lessons before hand, the price is another thing that erks me, why cant they teach this stuff to us in school like they do in america?


So am I alone in finding it hard to pass this most important of tests? How many times did it take you guys?

As an aside I found the motorcycle test much much easier, probably because it was me alone on the thing with just the instructors voice in my ear through a headset. If only car drivers were a little more aware of bikers on the road Id just stick to riding I think.

two

maybe the 'lessons' with relatives are hindering you?

In my forties and I still can't drive.

Passed on second go. I failed the first time for going the wrong way round a tree....

The second time I had the famed 'examiner from hell' (every centre has one). Went the other way round the same tree, and was told I had failed again! I then looked in my mirror, signalled, and pulled into a parking place... and argued with the examiner about which way I was supposed to go round said tree. He agreed that the 'right thing' was ambiguous in that context, we carried on the test, and I passed!

Apparently the best place to do the test used to be Lampeter (Ceredigion) - no roundabouts, no traffic lights, but you could be stuck in sheep for an hour on market day... When I lived near there in the early 1980s I read a report in the local paper about a man who passed his test there in a steam car (they had to bring in a special examiner). The car caught fire in the middle of the test but the driver extinguished the fire and completed the test, which he passed. The examiner told the reporter that catching fire was a regular event with that make of steam car, but that the candidate had dealt with the problem in a safe manner....!

It took me four attempts; like you, I was a reasonable driver outside the actual test. The first time, I failed by going through a red light leaving the test centre car park... On the second, I messed up the reversing around a corner; on the third, the only way of not committing the 'fault' would have been to drive into another car so that felt rather unfair!

On the last one, I thought I'd failed really early on and that must have relaxed me a bit, because I finally passed!

I passed second time on my theory, and I passed third time on my practical test.

I've got an NT friend who passed her practical test on her eighth one!

Passed 1st time. Unlike many other aspies, I never found driving particularly difficult.

Passed first time.
Once I got used to the unusual view from the driver's side and cracked my instructor's heavy accent I didn't have much of a problem with learning to drive. Now, I love driving: it's one of the few times I stop churning things over in my head so it's actually a relaxation.

I can definately drive, I dont have any real trouble with the actual act of driving itself, its just the damn nerves keep f*cking up my chances on the tests. I always seem to make one stupid "major" fault that screws up the thing. My last three goes I only got 4, 7 and 8 minors respectively.

Im taking the next one at a test centre more local to me though, where I know the roads pretty much like the back of my hand, I would have tekn the tests there before if there wasnt a month long waiting list for that particular test centre usually. Hopefully it'll help me.


Would taking diazepam beforehand be a bad idea do you reckon?

Just thought id update this thread and say that I managed to pass my driving test today after taking it 5 times. Such a relief! Even though I actually got more minors today than I ever have in the past (12, so 2 more would have seen me fail again). My examiner was a real old battleaxe though. She got angry with me because my license was folded up when I handed it to her in the car at the end, and looked at me like I was stupid after I asked her to repeat the independant drive instructions. Guess she just got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. But whatever, I PASSED waaaheeeey!

Bad news is with the oil refinery in canvey island closed yesterday and all the pumps in my town are dry, and my car has hardly any diesel left lol.

I aced the knowledge test, but it took me two attempts at the road test to pass it. The problem the first time was I couldn't parallel park. I would have had so much more trouble learning to drive if I lived in Europe and had to learn to drive manual transmission like most of you guys do. Driving a stick is just too many things to do at one time for me. My dad tried to teach me but I was really horrible at it. Maybe I could eventually learn after a lot of practice, but I would just just be terrible at it, so it'd be a safety issue, honestly.

I passed both my theory and practical first time. My examiner was getting over throat sugery, which made his direction difficult to understand. I turned up for my test and was told the car I was taking my test in had just had a new clutch, which made controlling it very difficult. My driving instructor had taken me on specific routes because she knew that the examiner would use the same routes... he didnt! The examiner took me on to the ring road, which I had never driven and at this point I thought I had definately failed my test. I had earlier in my test stalled the car at a junction TWICE! I passed the test, because as my examiner explained, I had gone around my test route with a very logical approach.

Phil.

I passed the theory first time round. The practical I passed on the third go, although I made the same mistake I got failed for on the second attempt. Second examiner put it down as major fault, 3rd examiner put it down as minor fault.

The first was a complete disaster because I was so nervous I turned into a complete gibbering wreck and nearly crashed into a tree (examiner had to emergency break ). I had no further lessons between the tests as my instructor said my driving was fine, it was my anxiety which was the problem.