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

I did awesome for my second lesson!!!  I had fun and was gaining much more confidence (a little too much because I was speeding through the 30 zones a bit.. oops!) I did take one turn a bit too soon and bumped the curb a tad bit, but other than that, it was smooth sailing through about 10 roundabouts and I did great on the turn in the road manouever, too! 

Right on, Jewlz!   Keep it up and you'll be all licensed up in no time.

It just occurred to me - do I need to be insured before I take driving lessons?

It just occurred to me - do I need to be insured before I take driving lessons?

A professional driving instructor will normally have insurance for any driver, so long as you're using his car.   If you're using your own car you might need your own insurance, just as you would for private practice with friends or family.

they will fail you on the test for doing that, apparently.

Not entirely true. I passed my test using hand-over-hand. The law is you must have one hand on the wheel at all the times.

I did ask the examiner if he would fail me for using hand-over-hand steering. He said he couldn't answer that. Well I had been driving here for 6 years (military exemption) so I was pretty comfortable driving here. I felt (and still feel) unsafe with the push-pull method so I went with what I know.

We finished the test and he said I passed. I then asked about the hand-over-hand. He stated the purpose of the test was to be sure I had full control of the car, obeyed all the rules of the road and that I posed no hazard to myself, my passengers, my vehicle or other road users. Hand-over-hand is legal as one hand is always in contact with the steering wheel as the law dictates. He went on to say that if a new driver or a driver with little experience did that, he would more than likely fail them. Unless you are very confident driving here and driving exams don't bother you, I'd practise the push-pull thing.

Good luck to all ya'll going for it. Advice - RELAX. Look at some of the nutters out there already. They passed. If they can, you can.

Had my first lesson yesterday and it went much better than I expected. 

I was petrified before it started and when I got into the driving seat I just kept thinking 'this will not go well'.  Didn't expect to be on the road right away considering it was my first time driving manual AND on the left hand side.  But there I was.

It went went well.  Not stellar but fine.  OK in the words of my instructor.  I couldn't stop staring at the road, barely checked my mirrors, downshifted from 3rd to 4th a few times and stalled out in one major intersection.

I asked the guy 'Have you ever been absolutely terrified doing this?'  His reply was a long silence and then a quiet 'Yes'.  Two hours seemed like an eternity but all turned out to be OK.  Looking forward to doing it again next week, but better this time.   

PS.  My instructor also insisted on the push pull.  Turns out that just because I know how it works, doesn't mean I remember to do it.   

Wow, hollyberry -- he took you out on the road your first time driving a stick? I wouldn't have. I'd've taken you some place to practice clutching and shifting...probably for a long time before giving you the sensory overload of doing it in traffic on the wrong side of the road.

Still, you did fine. So that's worth extra.

I had my fifth or sixth lesson today. My instructor said hand-over-hand is fine. I wonder (as I've wondered before) if there aren't regional variations in the stiffness of the test. He's awfully easygoing about things, but I know several people who have passed on the first try with his instruction.

Had my first lesson yesterday and it went much better than I expected. 

I was petrified before it started and when I got into the driving seat I just kept thinking 'this will not go well'.  Didn't expect to be on the road right away considering it was my first time driving manual AND on the left hand side.  But there I was.

It went went well.  Not stellar but fine.  OK in the words of my instructor.  I couldn't stop staring at the road, barely checked my mirrors, downshifted from 3rd to 4th a few times and stalled out in one major intersection.

I asked the guy 'Have you ever been absolutely terrified doing this?'  His reply was a long silence and then a quiet 'Yes'.  Two hours seemed like an eternity but all turned out to be OK.  Looking forward to doing it again next week, but better this time.   

PS.  My instructor also insisted on the push pull.  Turns out that just because I know how it works, doesn't mean I remember to do it.   

Awww.... well done! I stalled out on the road my first lesson, too, and I have driven manual for ages in America (though incorrectly, it seems.) Anyway, your instructor isn't supposed to admit he's been terrified! I asked mine the very same question and he told me he likes to live life on the edge, and he never gets nervous.  He goes skydiving, so I guess maybe he is telling the truth!

I did well on my third lesson last night, no major issues, still working on the basics before moving onto manouevres, but I think we will get started on those next week. I drove with my DH on Monday and that wasn't ideal. It became too stressful too fast and we started arguing.  But, my instructor wants me to keep practicing with my DH on my off days if possible and work through the pain, as he swears I am getting better and soon we won't be arguing as much. I decided to drive us to work and back twice a day (we go home for lunch) for the next week to just get a bit of practice. We only work one mile from home, so it's not a huge deal, and not a long enough distance for me and / or DH to get stressed out. Still, it gets me behind the wheel every day, so it seems worth the effort. This morning went well and I seemed to be remembering everything I've learned so far. 

I drove with my DH on Monday and that wasn't ideal. It became too stressful too fast and we started arguing.  But, my instructor wants me to keep practicing with my DH on my off days if possible and work through the pain, as he swears I am getting better and soon we won't be arguing as much.

   I found driving with my husband "teaching" me very stressful, especially as some of his instructions conflicted with those of my instructor.  I did practice with my husband but it wasn't fun.  Now that I have my license he just lets me get on with it, thank goodness.

Mmm. Driving with my DH is no picnic, either. He's an extremely cautious driver, and he's not accustomed to sitting in the passenger seat -- like, ever. We live down a bunch of narrow country lanes, so he's constantly barking, "YOU'RE TOO CLOSE!! YOU'RE TOO CLOSE!!" Or too fast. Or shouldn't've pulled out. Or whatever.

Driving with other people in the car makes me nervous anyhow. I'm always extremely conscious that it would be uncool to kill somebody.

I've been kind of sad that I don't have someone to practice with between lessons, but maybe that's for the best! 

I've only got a couple weeks until my test, and I'm still totally not looking in the mirrors before signaling.  I feel so awful about it--I can't tell if it is because I'm really a horrible driver and I actually never looked in the mirrors in the states, too, or if it's just that I'm used to signals then mirror (which is what I did in the states) or if it's that I'm so distracted by the instructor, plus the roundabouts, plus the speed changes that I just can't do one more thing.  I really have to find a way to make it second nature, like, stat!

I think I've gone from a state of despair to a state of boredom and frustration, which is actually more motivating.  I just want to be done with this already!

Driving with other people in the car makes me nervous anyhow. I'm always extremely conscious that it would be uncool to kill somebody.

HA.  Yes, I strongly dislike having anyone else in the car.  Especially now when I'm just really getting my feel.  And I totally could not practice with my husband--I really needed to feel confident and figure it out on my own before adding him to the mix.  Plus, we have REALLY different driving styles, so it would have been frustrating, I think.

Oh, and hollyberry, I had to drive home my first lesson too! In Manchester! It was crazy, but no one got injured. I totally stalled as well at a right turn on a busy road, though.

Great job with the lessons everyone! It sounds like the UKY crowd is doing really well!

My impressions of Leeds recently after 12 years away:  where have all these cars come from!?!  OK, there were always traffic jams on Otley Road but now all the side streets have cars parked on both sides and you have to pull in to let someone pass.  And the motorways seem to be endless delays with all the roadworks -- although they do seem to be getting rid of alot of the roundabouts.

My impressions of Leeds recently after 12 years away:  where have all these cars come from!?!  OK, there were always traffic jams on Otley Road but now all the side streets have cars parked on both sides and you have to pull in to let someone pass.  And the motorways seem to be endless delays with all the roadworks -- although they do seem to be getting rid of alot of the roundabouts.

That was exactly what hit me in my impressions of London after twenty years away! I too thought where have all these cars come, and the same goes for all the parked cars making narrow roads in which a high factor of mutual etiquette is now needed on those sidestreets.

The HUGE and very visible increase in the amount of vehicles on the roads, in people's driveways, on every bit of street parking space, really was one of my big shocks in the category of "Things that have changed while I've been gone."

I noticed how many front gardens have been paved over and walls taken down in order to create parking for the home owners. There has been a huge leap in the number of cars on the roads, and in car ownership. London has always been congested with traffic, but still when I left the country not everyone you knew even owned a car; now it's much more like the US at least from what I see in the London region: almost everyone does now, and everyone I personally know does, whereas twenty years ago I had friends and family who were not car-owners.

Oh, and hollyberry, I had to drive home my first lesson too! In Manchester! It was crazy, but no one got injured.

   When I first started thinking about driving lessons I pictured myself starting the car and running right into a tree. 

Thanks for the well-wishes and sending the same to all!   

Mungo, I'm sure you are doing great. If all you have to worry about is whether you are checking your mirrors before signalling, then I suspect you are going to pass your test. I think they might count it as a minor fault, and you get 15 of those, so I am sure you will do fine.  I'll be taking my theory test and hazard perception on 17 October, but I'm not exceptionally worried about that as I have been studying my CD-Rom and everything, and I still have some time to study. 
Good luck to everyone else on your driving lessons! I'm starting to learn the manoevres next week, so we will see what trips me up.