The few, the brave - those of us taking driving lessons right now!

I wonder if it's a good idea to drive around on your US license much before taking lessons?  There are a lot of little things they want you to do so maybe it's better to start out as you mean to go.  I remember the way the BSM instructor wanted me to turn the steering wheel (by sort of shuffling between your two hands, always with one hand on the wheel) was hard to get used to.

The problem is that a lot of those little things (the push-pull steering, applying the parking brake before shifting into neutral, etc.) are simply not necessary for the test.  They're just the ingrained way that many instructors teach because they were taught that it's the best way to make sure that a learner maintains full control of the car.   

They really should be making allowances for experienced drivers and concentrating on the things which are necessary, not trying to insist that you change your entire driving style to fit their rigid idea of what you should be doing.

They really should be making allowances for experienced drivers and concentrating on the things which are necessary, not trying to insist that you change your entire driving style to fit their rigid idea of what you should be doing.

I completely agree. It drove me crazy, having to pull over after every time around the block so we could talk about how to turn the steering wheel properly. We spent maybe twenty minutes out of the two hours actually driving. Even though my instructor was a nice guy and seemed generally competent, maybe I should find someone experienced in teaching "cross-over" drivers.

I find the steering wheel issue particularly petty and redundant.

In my opinion I have lost no more control of the wheel by doing the hand-over-hand method than by doing the "feeding the wheel through your hands" method. In hand over hand you still have one hand in full contact and full grip of the wheel at all times, alternating hands, exactly in the same way as in the feeding-through method. Sure you're not in the "ten and 2 oclock" position" while doing this, but if the main point is control, I'm sorry but I still have complete control while crossing my hands over. I feel it, I know it, and its bullcrap that I have to abandon it for the Uk test's petty nitpicking.

I feel it, I know it, and its bullcrap that I have to abandon it for the Uk test's petty nitpicking.

And the point is, you don't have to.  I have it on authority from both a current and a retired DSA examiner that there is nothing in their rules which says you mustn't let your hands cross over the top of the wheel.   The requirement is to maintain full control at all times - Letting the wheel spin back by itself might get you a black mark, but simply steering hand-over-hand shouldn't.

My instructor said the tester WOULD cut me some slack because I'm an experienced driver. He said that it showed (ha! I don't see how. My knucklebones were practically bursting through the skin, I was so tense). He said things they would ding a beginner on they'd let me skate for.

Here's hoping he's right.

My instructor said the tester WOULD cut me some slack because I'm an experienced driver. He said that it showed (ha! I don't see how. My knucklebones were practically bursting through the skin, I was so tense). He said things they would ding a beginner on they'd let me skate for.

Here's hoping he's right.

My instructor told me the opposite of this, which was not very comforting...

One day I specifically asked him if the fact that I have twenty years of safe driving behind me, just that it's in the US, would be taken into account by my examiner.

My instructor said a flat "no," and said the examiners don't even get to see, read, hear about or know your history when they find you on their list of "next testee of the day".....they judge everyone to the same standard and they don't care who you are or how much experience you've had elsewhere.

And this, even though my instructor also told me, too, that my experience and control of the car "showed" in the most positive sense, and that I was more than ready and prepared to pass.

This was my instructor's take on that, and what he said to me; according to him, there's no cutting slack to anyone.

I wonder if it varies by region? It certainly does in the States. My rural Tennessee driving test was hilariously inadequate. I re-tested some years later in Rhode Island and it was distinctly tougher.

Man, who knows...It could well be one of those things in the category of opening a UK bank account, and registering with a GP. There are rules that are meant to be universally applied, supposedly, but some people get waved through with barely a nod or a glance, and others get the Spanish Inquisition.

And "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition." 

I wonder if it's a good idea to drive around on your US license much before taking lessons?  There are a lot of little things they want you to do so maybe it's better to start out as you mean to go.  I remember the way the BSM instructor wanted me to turn the steering wheel (by sort of shuffling between your two hands, always with one hand on the wheel) was hard to get used to.

Well, I can definitely say it was easier for me.  The rationalle being that there's already all the silly little things to get used to - like how you steer, looking in the mirrors every time before you signal, using the emergency brake, etc. etc. - that piling all of those on top of the nerves involved in driving for the first time here might add to the stress more than it has to.

It didn't take long to figure out that normal everyday driving here is really not very different than driving in the US, and being able to figure that out without an instructor sitting next to you telling you everything  you're doing 'wrong' seemed to really help.

For me, the fact that I was already comfortable driving meant that it was much easier to add on all the other little things I had to do to pass the test, and therefore saved a lot of money and time in lessons.

Well, I can definitely say it was easier for me.  The rationalle being that there's already all the silly little things to get used to - like how you steer, looking in the mirrors every time before you signal, using the emergency brake, etc. etc. - that piling all of those on top of the nerves involved in driving for the first time here might add to the stress more than it has to.

It didn't take long to figure out that normal everyday driving here is really not very different than driving in the US, and being able to figure that out without an instructor sitting next to you telling you everything  you're doing 'wrong' seemed to really help.

For me, the fact that I was already comfortable driving meant that it was much easier to add on all the other little things I had to do to pass the test, and therefore saved a lot of money and time in lessons.

With the exception of it being "not much different" driving here (I think it's very different in some ways) I agree with this -- getting in lots of "pilot hours" behind the wheel all by yourself actually confers a confidence and loss of any initial fear that is invaluable to focusing on the rest of the "little stuff" that is new and petty and has to be learnt for the test.

Having said this, I failed, but on one major f*ck-up on a very nasty and complicated roundabout -- even my examiner said the rest of my driving was near-perfect, strong and confident, which I know came from driving every single day by myself until I got over what had been an initial bout of numbing fear.

I was forced to drive by myself because of the job I held at the time, and at first I was white knuckling every single day and hating the entire thing. But over time I went from "I hate this, I don't want to ever drive in London or the UK again once I quit this job!!!!!" to "Oh my God I'm having a blast driving again!"

After getting over my fears (and London traffic can be pretty high in the fear factor) you couldn't keep me out of the car alone. I know now that it will stand me in good stead when I take the test again, because at least I'm not a nervous driver here but one who came to enjoy it here as much as I used to in the US.

If you get back your comfort level by throwing yourself out there alone a lot, it is so much easier to "add on" all the other things you have to learn for the test, as Robert points out.

If I hadn't gotten rid of that fear by just getting out there, I would have failed on MUCH more. Which isn't much comfort. But I still believe driving by yourself if you get the chance does amazing things to help. You do have to be self-disciplined about keeping up the new methods rather than driving the way you would back in the US. But it's still of great value, in my opinion.

Plus, surprisingly it's actually EASIER to focus calmly on everything you're doing, observing, and where you're going, WITHOUT anyone in the car yammering your left ear off.

I've been lurking on this thread for awhile, and it's really REALLY helped me in my urgent quest to get a British driving licence (needed for a job!).  This thread and the "I passed!" thread were my go-to places during my low points (of which there were many)!  THANK YOU , and sorry I haven't contributed until now.

Just wanted to say I passed my driving test on Friday while using the cross-over steering method.  Nothing was mentioned about it by the examiner in my debrief and I didn't get any minors/faults for anything relating to it.

I had to switch driving instructors because my first one was too obsessed with push-pull steering as well as leaning back in the driver's seat (another "bad" habit I have - I have my seat back very upright and still often lean a bit forward).  I switched to another instructor and basically told him flat out that I am not going to be able to change these habits, and he understood and was fine with it.  He told me that the way I drive isn't ideal, but it wasn't necessary to change for the test.

I passed in an automatic after 9 lessons over 1 month (7 over the week before the test) and no private practice.  5 minors.  I had never driven in the UK before (been here 7 years).

I live in London, and, contrary to what I thought, taking the test during rush hour (8:10) made it easier.  There is one big roundabout on the test, and I only had to go left - my instructor said he's never had someone have to go right during the 8:10 test.  Also, when merging onto a dual carriageway, the traffic was at a standstill so it was simple.

Congratulations, Kellwie!   

I can't wait for that huge sense of relief after I finally take and pass my test. And it's good to hear that there's hope for my steering yet.

One day I specifically asked him if the fact that I have twenty years of safe driving behind me, just that it's in the US, would be taken into account by my examiner.

My instructor said a flat "no," and said the examiners don't even get to see, read, hear about or know your history when they find you on their list of "next testee of the day".....they judge everyone to the same standard and they don't care who you are or how much experience you've had elsewhere.

I think I mentioned this on an earlier thread -- that an American friend of ours was failed on his first attempt at getting a UK license, in spite of many years experience of driving in the US.  As he was leaving the testing centre he overheard his "tester" saying to another "We can't have these Yanks thinking they can just walk in and get their license".  He complained and was given a re-sit with another tester and passed.

Congrats, Kellwie!!!! 

I'm sending off for my provisional today. Can't wait to take my first lesson and report back! I'm thinking to signing up for the theory test right away and taking it before I take the lessons, just so we can focus on the actual driving only (I have studied for quite a while, and feel pretty confident I can do this part on my own with a week or two's serious study.) Haven't made up my mind yet, though.