Can You Drive?

Option 2. Passed my test in '97, haven't driven since. We do have a car but my wife has to do all the driving. I am bad.

I failed the test 6 times and gave up :(

i just never got round to it, and now the opportunity to learn just isn't there, unless i pay for classes. i think i may be too neurotic to be a driver anyway :/

three failed tests in my gap year. haven't lived anywhere where i've needed a car since. but now i have the money again I should probably try and get it over with.

No. Got a series lessons paid for once and sat a test. I failed. The instructor said I lacked concentration, but that was because I found the whole shebang so intensely boring.

i took about three lessons when i was 18, and just... stopped. i have no immediate need to drive, and couldn't afford a car etc anyway, but nonetheless, kind of think i should. one day i guess i'll have elderly parents to transport. shit like that.

I'm an American!

Tom, I was the same! :-)

Option 1, obv.

Yeah, this is going to be another US/UK divide, isn't it? Or maybe a US/major metropolitan centres of the UK divide.

It's not surprising that a lot of ILXors can't/won't drive, but I'm not sure why I'm not surprised.

Workshy fops

I failed the test 6 times and gave up :(

Col. Poo you should enter Last Chance Driving School: http://www.itv.com/Lifestyle/LastChanceDriving/default.html

Why "obv", Dr.C?

I wish I lived somewhere where I didn't need a car. There's no bus on the weekend or after 7PM and the nearest grocery store is more than five miles away. The times I've been carless for whatever reason were HELL.

was thinking of getting one of these crazy newfangled things called mopeds

Can drive but hiring car works out cheaper than owning for me.

Get a bicycle instead. You can ride one without looking like a douche. (xp)

we'll see about that!

didn't have the money to learn when i was 18, didn't really have the desire to learn when i was 28 (except for holiday purposes).

i took about three lessons when i was 18, and just... stopped. i have no immediate need to drive, and couldn't afford a car etc anyway, but nonetheless, kind of think i should. one day i guess i'll have elderly parents to transport. shit like that.

me too. i'm kinda worried about how it might some day seriously hinder my chances of getting a job, but i'm honestly terrified at the prospect of learning to drive. and apparently the older you get, the harder it is to learn.

Do you have to go to driving school in the UK? My parents taught me.

You don't have to go to driving school but the test is pretty onerous and schools teach to the test.

The government might be authoritarian over here but it's not that bad... yet

apparently the older you get, the harder it is to learn.

I've never had any problems getting job due to not having a license though.

Yeah, the fiirst time in my life I had money for lessons was when I was 25-ish but I hung on until I was 28-29 to actually bother and then...I moved to London. Might have all been very different if the guy I rang about his VW Polo in late '97 had returned the call but, really, if I'd been that keen I'd have looked at more than one used car ad. Window of opportunity for refreshing skills was probably second half of 2004 (Pam got her UK licence, we didn't have kids yet) but I didn't bother.

Most people get schooled by their parents a bit, don't they? Our family only occasionally had a car in between my Dad's drink driving bans... LOL.

learned to drive aged 24, passed test and got car aged 25, drive twelve miles to and from work, no real public transport around here so needs must i guess.

xpost I used to get to drive from 17 onwards because of mum's drink drive bans, funny that

Yeah, so if I couldn't do it when I was 21 what chance do I have 10 years later?

I don't think that's true at all. Dawn's sister passed at age 40, my mum was 50 etcsetra.

"Drink driving" is one of those Briticisms that will never look natural to my eyes.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1271/1310203014_8b66bc61c4.jpg

Why "obv", Dr.C?

Well, I have posted on various driving and car-related threads over the years. Not that anyone would necessarily remember that. But anyway, I have kids and play in bands, both of which car usage pretty much mandatory.

My mum would have been in her 30s when she passed, I clearly remember her throwing a tantrum and walking off out of the car with me and my brother in the back seat due to my dad's, um, tactless way with the instruction (a scene I would repeat myself as a learner driver 10 or so years later).

I passed first time when I was 17, and have owned cars on and off since then, depending on financial and domestic circumstances. I own one at the moment, but it's a luxury rather than a necessity (being the least-used of the two cars we own between us - I could get by on public transport and using Neil's for shopping and things, but I don't want to because I love me my wee car)

The last time I failed my test was a really shit reason though - I apparently turned too late on a left turn, which if I hadn't been driving a car with power-steering, would have meant I'd crossed the line in the middle of the road onto the wrong side. But... I did have a power-steering car, so I didn't cross the line! I hadn't actually done anything wrong! The cunts! etc. So I thought fuck this shit.

Holy shit, for a second I thought that was Bill Clinton.

I have posted on various driving and car-related threads over the years.

well put, sir.

Well, I have posted on various driving and car-related threads over the years. Not that anyone would necessarily remember that.

Ah right, I don't read many of the car threads (or keep dr.c.xls - double extension would fuck up my AV scans).
I thought you were just being "Dur! Of course I drive!" :)

I didn't go down the "learn at 17" route as I found at 17 that there were better substances than petrol to spend money on. Learned and passed first time at 23 and have owned a car ever since (though it's pretty much been my wife's car since we had the kids).

I will have had my licence for 14 years this Sunday, I know because I just renewed it on Tuesday. Always had a car, bit of a given in my city as the public transport is diabolical, though I try to use buses, my bike and shanks' pony where I can in line with my views on the environment. I have been a bit naughty this year as my current job comes with a car bay in town, car bays are gold here. It's back to the bus in February though when I start my new job.

I couldn't really drive properly when I took my test, but I was booked in to the test just before the examiner's Xmas lunch... he just made me drive around the block, that was it. No hill start, no 3 point turn, no parallel park. Lucky I never killed anyone really.

#2

Passed 2nd test when 17, had a car once but not anymore, drive like demon, windy scottish country roads = aces.

That's windy as in many bends, not as in fast moving air currents.

Once crashed a friend's lovely yellow golf convertible into a mini roundabout beside the Royal and Ancient golf course at St Andrews.

I meant the Old Course of course.

Golf ruined at St Andrews

#3 - failed three tests, last one was twelve years ago. I haven't tried driving a car for twelve years.

i have been driving since i was 14, legally since i was 15

I failed four times and gave up. I used cuss words at the tester dude on my second-to-last time. He was a total prick.

They usually are.

Been driving since I was 12.

What if you can drive but don't have a car?

Option 2, innit

Ok, what if you don't have a license either? L O L

xp I'm 36 and I can't drive, so I definitely feel like I'm in the same boat (or maybe car-boat). Hate driving - the possibility of causing an accident by not concentrating enough.

But the other half has been making me feel guilty for him doing all the driving, for not being able to help if he gets stranded somewhere or there's some kind of emergency. And he doesn't like buses so we end up driving to places that are right next to bus stops and really hard to park near and then it's my fault that he can't have a drink.

Sounds like kind of a dick tbh

Hate driving, am rubbish at driving, never really got my head round the internal combustion engine (used to strain hard at the wheel when going uphill for instance). Refuse to be made to feel guilty by people who say things like 'But what if there's an emergency?'

Emergencies are problematic in any situation, that's why they're emergencies. Now if you don't mind I'm going for a pootle round the lanes on my bystickle.

Being kind of dicks may be the only thing we have in common.

But I can appreciate that there are definitely times when some emergency has appeared and it's been a lot of work to sort something out without a car. It's just I look at these and go "well, I sorted it out in the end" and he looks at them and goes "but you could have saved 2 hours and a lot of money and stress if you could just get in the car and go, and maybe the next one will be even tougher". And if I cause stress and time-wasting and expense for myself, that's one thing, but if I'm letting other people down...

(I had a bad Easter Sunday one time when the cat got sick at night and I lived alone in the middle of nowhere and had to coordinate the only vet available being open for another hour 6 miles away but you have to book now, with the only taxi available being maybe able or maybe not to get me in 40+ minutes but the cat better not bleed on the seats, with the cat hiding under furniture and bleeding and glaring at me and definitely not wanting to come out and sit in a box, plus neither I nor the driver knew exactly where the vet was... but we got there. and back!)

I like driving and do it a lot when living in the USA but I'm not very good with a manual transmission and I'd like to be if I am going to relocate to Old Europe someday soon. It's just tough: there's a decent chance I'm going to burn the clutch out practicing, so is it cool to rent a car and then just practice for a few hours, given this risk? I can only practice with friends' cars for a short time since they obv don't want me destroying their clutches either.

still don't really get why you'd want a manual transmission; a friend who drives a car with one in the USA says it makes him feel superior to all the saps who don't know how to do it. I guess I can ride with that?

My parents have had a couple of automatics and I don't like 'em, they're always just a little too slow to change, especially uphill where they often just tried to struggle up in too high a gear. Also was never sure how to go about overtaking on a single carriageway, where sometimes you want to drop down a couple of gears to give yourself the power to get past in time.

They are great in urban traffic though.

This may be a matter where the monstrous engines of your typical car in the USA these days explains things. The cars I've driven in Europe have been a lot less powerful & so I can see what you mean, ledge. A few weeks ago we rented a car in France, yes, an automatic, and all they had was a Chevy SUV. So I was expecting some serious power from the engine but no, it struggled to make it up to 130 kph (took several minutes to reach that speed) and passing was a chore. On the other had it was a weird automatic/manual fusion: it had no clutch but I had to shift gears up/down with the stick. So I could drop down to pass if I wanted to. Since it's not my habit I didn't & it worked out fine.

Aren't all automatic cars like the one you're describing Euler? Automatic with a stick to shift gears IF you feel like it?

you can shift them into a lower gear for climbing mountains but that's about it

manuals get better gas mileage than automatics.

some cars come with a 'tiptronic' transmission that does let you shift up and down - not sure how it compares to a regular auto or a manual though

If you pass your driving test in the states using an automatic car, does it qualify you to drive a manual as well?

i have no intention of ever learning to drive.

driving is the best, but then my nearest city is an hour away and it would struggle to qualify as aa decent sized town anywhere else, so i basically live on my own scenic racetrack

Tomofthenest- yes. Not sure if you're kidding.

Driving seems like something that students should be required to learn, like reading. Not just for their own benefit, but for the safety of others who are put at risk with 40 year olds getting behind the wheel for the first time.

Instead we're put at risk having 16 year olds at the wheel.....

Jesse, I normally am kidding, but that was a straightforward, innocent question. UK licenses do make the distinction, 'nother example of US/UK o_O, I guess.

does seem a bit bizarre to let someone drive a manual shift without ever having used one, it's not completely trivial.

Yes, after I answered I thought about how much sense it would make to have a restriction on driving sticks if you don't GD KNOW HOW TO DO SO.

I passed my driving test in an automatic-transmission car, but both of my parents drove manuals, so I had to wait a few months after I turned 16 to get my license, so that my dad could teach me stick.

I wasn't sure if the "you can drive only automatics if you passed the test in one" was one of those received wisdoms that got debunked on QI...

I hated manual transmissions so much, and then, boom, my first car was manual. I'm very glad it was b/c otherwise I might not have learned to drive them well, and it's a useful skill.

I still don't like them and I hear sometimes that people like them b/c "I just feel more in control," and I think, WTF, you're not a Formula 1 driver, you're on stop-and-go Chicago streets! The automatics I have known (except for my poor, ancient BMW) have been very responsive and more than sufficient. That sort of preference for sticks seems annoyingly back-to-the-basics, like people who don't use their dishwashers.

if ur dishwasher makes your dishes shitty and no fun, then don't use it imo

a used manual trans car is significantly cheaper than an otherwise-identical automatic, that's the only reason i bought mine.

spacecadet, my husband doesn't drive either. He's the one who fully admits to being unobservant while I am naturally a defensive driver - I'm not sure I'd feel safe in a car with him driving as I know how he can only concentrate on one thing at a time. We've survived up til now without driving so I figure we should be fine with just the one of us doing it.

i have no intention of ever learning to drive.

I would strongly urge you to reconsider. I had the same motto. Then I met my husband and had two kids. My husband has a visual handicap. But even if he didn't, a license is ace. What if he has an accident or whatever and you need to get some place?

Noodles, how's the driving going? I'm always astounded when *older* people tell me they don't drive. I know lots don't, but I always thought I was the only one. lol

I did my first roadtrip. Okay, this is Belgium so it was only 1,5 hour (and 1,5 hr back). I was pretty fucking nervous (as I always am) but it went well. YAY. I still feel very uncomfortable driving. I am insecure on the whole. :-(

Thinking of taking the plunge and getting my driving licence. Can any Californians help me with a question - do I need to take the written test and obtain the 'permit' before even taking driving lessons? The DMV website isn't too clear. I'd prefer to take the written test after having a few lessons at least.
(In the UK you have to have a 'provisional' licence before taking lessons that afaict just confirms you're over 17, but you don't need to take the written test or anything to get it. This is why I'm slightly confused.)

So apparently you can start practical lessons before you get your permit, as long as you have a 'student license' which some of the driving schools will issue for you. So I've got my written test booked in and my first lesson behind a wheel since 10 years ago, next week... eek...

I can empathize w/ the anxiety of driving some of you express; I didn't get my license until I was 23, which made me an anomaly with my friends and in the social environment I grew up in. I didn't actually regularly drive and own a car until about 6-7 years ago.

In my case, the hang-up basically boiled down to a lack of self-confidence, which I had obscured over the years w/ various rationalizations. The turning point for me was getting into a relationship and being frustrated with myself yet again for not being able share equally in driving, whether it was mundane trips around town, or (especially) road trips. The lack of parity in this area became a point of contention between us. I'm grateful for how patient my partner (now wife) was with me while I got over it.

I found that small, repetitive trips (like to the supermarket, laundromat, etc.) were very helpful. Using the same round-trip route each time made it much easier to pay attention to variations in traffic, weather conditions, etc. Incrementally expanding my driving radius, and regularly trying things out of my comfort zone (e.g. dipping in and out of the freeway during commute hours) helped build up confidence, too.

And FWIW, I'm 42.

I was very nervous as a teenager, and didn't feel like I really "belonged" on the road. It's the exam situation that I absolutely hated and made me unable to think properly about what I was doing (or overthink it so much that it shot my mental processes to bits). I think in the 10+ years that have passed I'm generally more confident and I don't now automatically see every adult as an authority figure, so I'm hoping I can do this with a minimum amount of stress. Plus, everyone knows it's easier in the US, and I've had a few years of Mario Kart training now :)

I wish you success, NtVP!

And after reading this thread, I can't help but think of the film 'Happy-Go-Lucky'.

Thanks!

Ha. The first lesson was ok but it was my first time driving an automatic. It was a dual-control car so whenever my foot was off the brake but also not on the accelerator I assumed it was the instructor driving us forward as he did initially do all the gas/brake while I just steered. But it was the car! I didn't realise until the end of the lesson! This should be a piece of piss if I'm basically driving Herbie.

Also: in the California driving test - NO emergency stop, NO parallel parking and NO reversing round a corner.

I heard Arizona's driving test is written only!

Holy shit. That is so messed up, if it's true.

and they give it in braille

Didn't learn to drive properly until my early 40s. Enjoy it now, out of town, but have gone back to a bicycle 90% of the time in town because urban driving is crap and parking is expensive - as it should be. There should be no incentive at all to drive in a city, if you can do the journey another way.

Also: in the California driving test - NO emergency stop, NO parallel parking and NO reversing round a corner.

Easy as hell then. Just kidding. But if you don't need to parallel park - which I can understand cause it's not that necessary in California as opposed to Belgium - then you should be okay. Many here stumble over this. Reversing round a corner? I had to look that up. This is something we were never taught nor did we have to do this during the exam; We do need to make a u-turn (?) in a street. The important thing is not to go over the curb. But you'd have to be an idiot to do this (during the exam). You just need to do it slow enough (but not to slow lol).

Anyway I am still exceptionally nervous driving. Had a debacle the other day (had to pass a tractor while a car came from the opposite direction). Fuck I panicked like fuck. My friend waved it away saying I was overreacting.... I have been driving to "unknown" places though. Like on sunday I drove to parents in law which is 100 minutes going and again same amount of time back. I was tired and still am. lololol

everyone knows it's easier in the US

Apparently so.

Oh yeah, I was on a crossroads. I WAS ON IT. And even so I came from the right. But this fucking SUV with a bleeding idiot kept fucking driving! ARGH!!!!!! I scowled (?) at her when I went around her. GRRRRRRR. I hate people who take priority from the left.

I have to take a driver's test some time this week, assuming my friend with a car holds up her end of the deal of letting me use it to take the test in. Hope she does!

History shows that I have good reflexes in a crisis, but I'd get into fewer crises if I paid more attention to the boring parts of driving. :/

Same here. I'm easily distracted by pretty much everything on the road.

Tbh the first lesson was quite a bit harder than I was expecting - just getting in a car and getting used to how big it is, how much space you take up on the road, and trying to look in mirrors/all around as well as actually learning how to control it... it's a lot to do all at once. I think when I get a bit more used to controlling the car the rest of it should flow a bit more easily.

My driving instructor was nice, he got me to parallel park with my eyes closed... it was a total cheat under the guise of teaching me the best way to turn the wheel (and he was controlling the gas/brakes) but a nice trick!

Also: someone sent me some test questions for the written test (from an iPhone app). Some great multiple choice answers such as:
Q: What is the benefit of a space cushion around your vehicle?
"It inflates to protect you from injury in case of an accident"

when i was a kid, the test (in pennsylvania) wasn't standardized -- people would travel an hour and a half to a location that didn't require parallel parking.

i used to be a good driver, but now i feel like i'm not as aware of everything around me as i used to be. which is rough, because most of my current driving is done in nyc.

I think when I get a bit more used to controlling the car the rest of it should flow a bit more easily.

absolutely- and getting used to the dimensions of the car will make a big difference too.

I think when I get a bit more used to controlling the car the rest of it should flow a bit more easily.

I don't think of shifting gears anymore, it comes naturally.

That said, I'm still very nervous driving. Esp when you have a kid in the back screaming for mommy. :-)

I'm beginning to think I'm a hopeless case on this. I feel like I'm over the hump and basic driving around is easy enough now but every so often I do something just completely stupid, with no idea why I did it. Like not paying attention to oncoming traffic when turning left at an intersection. I feel like at pretty much any point in driving there are so many possible scenarios of what could happen that I can't react properly to them.

I'm a motorist.

NTRVP, I'm so relieved someone else feels that way. I last drove in 2005 and felt I could kill someone at any moment for that reason.

I drove on vacation, and it was awesome! Apparently I haven't forgotten a thing in the last 10 or 12 years.

OTOH, a fair amt of driving is assuming that other people will continue to do more or less what they're currently doing -- consistency is key -- while at the same time staying open to the chance that they will not.

Last drove regularly in 1994. A few refresher lessons in 2005 leading to nothing (and involving turning into oncoming traffic). Just had a 3-hour lesson today, driving in the US for the first time, and the first time driving an automatic. Removing the need to think about the gears has made all the difference in terms of not feeling overwhelmed by the road system. Actually enjoyed it (a bit).