I passed!! I passed!! I passed!! I passed!!

Yay!  Congratulations! 

Thanks, Eloise!   

Good for you. I found the hazard perception test especially nerve-wracking, speaking as an experienced driver who doesn't especially like video games…

Thanks, conjunctionjunction (what's your function?)!   

Yeah, the hazard perception test is no fun.    I did some practice hazard perception videos on the DSA DVD and here http://www.theory-test.co.uk/asp/hazard_perception_info.asp

The practices help, but don't eliminate the nerves at the actual test!  I passed all the hazard perception practices I did, so I felt a little better, but still nervous!!!!

I'm also an experienced driver (12 years) and I do like video games, but I really really really don't like tests.  Glad to have this one out of the way (and the Life in the UK test!).  Just the practical test left to do, then I'm done with tests in the UK!  At least for a while. 

Yeah, tests do my head in too. I took the practical test about ten years ago, rushing into it without preparation, and not surprisingly, failed. This so traumatised me that I put it off again until this year! Fortunately I passed last month. Been meaning to write it up.

what's your function?

Schoolhouse Rock, conjunction junction

Yeah, tests do my head in too. I took the practical test about ten years ago, rushing into it without preparation, and not surprisingly, failed. This so traumatised me that I put it off again until this year! Fortunately I passed last month. Been meaning to write it up.

Oh!  You should definitely write something about it!  I know there are habits I have (maybe they're just me or maybe they're American habits) that I know I need to change.    Like using the emergency/hand brake at any uphill stop!  Hearing other people who have passed and what they had to adjust to makes me feel better prepared for my own practical test (hopefully in July, but I haven't booked it yet!).

Big (belated) congrats to you on passing!   

That hard part for me was getting into the proper mindset in the first place; accepting that I had to jump through the necessary hoops to get the prize at the end. This also meant buying into the notion that perhaps I could learn something from the experience after all, other than that the British are incredibly anal on the subject. (No offence to the British. Of which I am now, too.)

Thanks for the congrats. It still feels marvelous. I did it completely on the sly, surprising my wife with the pass certificate. To say she was shocked would be an understatement.

Anyway, I'll post about it soon.

Congrats, TF! I'm studying for it now. 

Congrats, TF! I'm studying for it now. 

Good luck, PlainPearl!

I borrowed the DSA CD & DVD set from another wonderful person here on UK Yankee and the practice tests on there were GREAT!  She said that's all she really used to study.... I doubted that at first, but in the end, that's the exact same as I did!  And it worked!   

Some of the questions were different (I think they've changed the test since they released the material) but it was basically the same.  Like, exactly the same.    I got in the habit of reading the question (or even just seeing a word or image) and knowing the answer was a, b, c or d before reading the answers!    Maybe not learning the material as much as memorising, but hey, it worked!   

Can't recommend the DSA CD & DVD set enough. 

Whew, I passed!!

Just took my driving test & am so relieved to have passed. I thought I had until Aug & only recently discovered that my US license had expired! I took about 11 lessons & passed with only 1 minor. If anyone's in the market for 2 magnetic L plates & a suction cup rear view mirror, let me know! Only used once :-)

For those of you still studying for theory & hazard, I highly recommend the free iphone apps (there are 2 of them), they really helped me.

Good luck to everyone still working toward their test!

Congrats, Shelly!   

Well done Shelly

Congrats Shelly! 1 minor is brilliant! 

Just got back from my driving test in Morden (London) and I passed with only two minor faults!    

I was sure I'd have more faults since straight away at the beginning of the test the examiner (who didn't say a word through the test that wasn't related to directions- even my instructor said she was terribly unfriendly) asked me to pull over to the side and then carry on... which I did... but I left the handbrake on a tinsy little bit.... just enough that the bell came on.    Whoopsie.  

My absolute least favourite maneuver is the parallel park.... so, of course, that's what I got.    AND I NAILED IT!    Holy cow!  I would have never guessed I'd do so well!    At that point, I was pretty sure I'd passed.    But.... I'd tilted the wing mirror down so I could see the kerb during the maneuver and forgot to put it back up after.    I sneakily put it up next time she asked me to pull over.    I'm not sure she noticed, but she didn't give me a fault for it and she didn't mention it later.  

So happy right now.    We don't have a car and don't have plans to get one anytime soon (we live in the centre of London and can easily bus everywhere we need to go) but it's nice to have one more thing taken care of.  

Oh- and I passed just before my one year anniversary (on the 27th, Saturday) so I can really celebrate!    Woohoo!  

Thanks to everyone else who has posted their stories on here.    I spent all weekend reading through the thread trying to give myself positive thoughts.    It must have worked.  

If anyone wants the name and contact details of my instructor, I'll happily pass it on, just PM me.    He was great at helping me adjust to the UK style of driving (he's British but drives in Spain a lot so makes the switch himself often) and he was very patient.    And he was recommended to me by another person on here.    I took 6 2-hour lessons with him and that was enough for me.    He's based in Morden so I took the tube down to meet him for lessons and I was able to practise around the test centre.  

Congrats!!

I agree, having an instructor who understands making that left/right switch is incredibly helpful to passing your test and being comfortable with driving here!

Thanks, evilshell!    I'm very happy to be done with driving lessons! 

I tried out one instructor who admitted she hadn't thought of the fact I'd be sitting on the opposite side of the car.        Even before that lesson, DH suggested (repeatedly) that I should try out at least two instructors.    He'd had coworkers and flatmates who said they didn't like their driving instructor.... but they kept taking lessons with them and kept giving them money (and probably needing more lessons and/or failing their tests because they weren't learning they way they needed to)!  I'm very happy I tried a different instructor and found one who regularly made the switch himself.    Definitely helped. 

After 3 years in London, I decided to learn how to drive on the wrong side of the road.  Having never driven on the left side and having limited experience with driving a manual car, it took about 12 hours to get fully ready for the test, but ended up passing with no faults! 

Message me if you want any further details on my instructor (or see http://www.london-se1.co.uk/forum/read/1/165538).  Highly recommended -- and has lots of experience with Americans who are used to driving automatic on the right.

I drove for the first time here yesterday (with my husband, not an instructor), and it was...pretty bad.  I was surprised how awkward it felt and how my sense of space felt completely different. So now I'm more nervous than ever.

I guess I'm just looking for reassurance--it does get better eventually, right? Was I just expecting too much to think I could jump in the car and adjust immediately?