What did you do your driving test in?

[PhilA]

In a P-reg "sad face" Diesel Fez, in dark purple.. September 1st, 1997 at 3:45pm, last test of the day.

It was difficult to stall. That was about the only redeeming feature of the vehicle.

 

I hesitated coming out of the test center onto the main road, which is a hill start onto a dual carriageway going over railway tracks, knowing that the car was heavy and sluggish.

Tester said "well, go on then!", so I kangarooed out of the junction, figuring I'd failed there and then. Got back after a fairly quiet drive around town and was informed I'd passed.

 

Cue three months of not driving (barring doing pass plus) because I didn't have a car.

 

Phil

[wuvvum]

Peugeot 205 diesel.  Great car to learn in.  Bizarrely, I still haven't got round to owning a 205 - must remedy that soon.

[bub2006]

My driving instructor had a y plate black fiesta zetec s. Very stiff suspension but Damn nippy. Took it on bypass and he told me to put my foot down. Which i did,told me not to go much over 90 as the roof sign starts to lift!

[carlo]

A 1972 Fiat 850 Coupe, my mum's car which was a mistake as the examiner was too big to do his seat belt up in it properly.  I failed, retook it in the driving school's Austin 1100 and passed..

[ayrshirelad]

Blue Peugot 2o5 1.9 Diesal Howard School of Motoring. Tawas a good car to learn in.Although i had to relearn how to drive a petrol and to giv it a wee bit more revs when pulling away. Was for ever stalling my mums Astra on the rare occasions i was allowed to drive it. Perhaps why i never did and still dont like Astras!

[daveb47]

Renault Dauphine.

[purplebargeken]

Took it in 1981. Had been a Dolomite 1300 but that was sold a week before my test and replaced by a brand new Datsun Sunny IIRC. Light metallic green and so quiet I couldn't tell if it was running. I passed first time. 

[oldford]

A bright yellow Metro, from BSM, HPU 844Y.

[Mr Lobster]

Basically identical to this other than the instructors car was an F reg.

 

Haven't been in one since either.

 

[Ghosty]

BSM C***a.

[alf892]

Failed with BSM in 1978.....have erased from my memory and don't even know what car it was.

 

Passed in about 1980 in a Kennings Scholl of Motoring Metro......spend the previous couple of years driving on and off but had to take test in the end as got job and they wanted to see a licence

 

Took bike test on a CG125 about a week before the 125 restriction came in. A bunch of us clubbed together to buy the CG and loads of safety gear so we looked like 'Joe Commuter' rather than the 250 yobs we were. Had a new 250LC which lasted 14 months before I stuffed it into the side of a new mk1 Astra. Considering I rode it like a twat it did well to last that long. I did well to survive.

 

Took my class 1 in a Leyland with a crash box.......with John Coates in Leicester......this was about 1990. Pressure was on as I got a job as vehicle examiner but needed to pass test to keep it.   

[Mr Livered]

 

A Toyota Corolla 4wd estate belonging to my mum.

 

My driving instructor was using a K-reg Golf of some sort, with no power steering. One day the clutch went on it so we did the lesson in my mother's car instead. When the instructor had a go he was seriously impressed: the Corolla was the first car he ever drove with power steering!

 

So from that point on we stopped using the instructor's Golf and had all lessons in the Toyota instead, plus my test, which I passed first time despite the fact that I didn't deserve to pass. I made some significant errors.

 

Instructor: turn left at the next junction please.

 

Me: <indicates>

 

Instructor: turn left at the next junction please.

 

Me: yeah yeah.

 

Instructor: you're indicating right.

 

Me: whoops

 

A bit like Mr Norfolk above, I was flabbergasted at that end of the test, when he told me I'd passed.

[hennabm]

Back in 1979 the Ford dealership I was with had its own driving school as well. Just before I started driving lessons the car of choice was an 1100cc Escort MKII.

 

As I started driving the Escort was swopped for a new Fiesta 957 in white.

 

I passed my test on 31st January 1979 in the Festa.

 

BTW driving lessons were £1.25 an hour.

[Fatchance]

A 1966 HA Viva in 1979.

 

It was a 2-door, as were all HA Vivas and being pre-whatever date didn't have safety catches on the front seats, which just tipped forward to allow access to the back seat. The examiner slammed his hand down on the dashboard to indicate when I should do the emergency stop, which I duly carried out. The car stopped remarkably well, especially seeing it wasn't actually particularly good at anything, and he flew forward hitting the windscreen. Fortunately sitting the test in a pile of (admittedly road legal) scrap and almost ejecting the examiner through the windscreen wasn't a category on the fail sheet and I passed.

[RichL]

1999 Fiat Punto 60 SX, T916 ELP I think it was. Instuctor loved it, I didn't but it was far better than the 110,000 mile 55 S it replaced!

[Lord Sterling]

Passed first time in 2004 in my instructors 2002 Fiat Punto in Blue, like this one:

 

 

Took a bit of getting used to after I learned mostly in a Mk6 Fiesta. He went independant and bought the Punto hence the change from the Fiesta.

[Eric]

A Renault 19 GTR in dark-blue from 1990

Passed the test in 1990 also..

[Formula Autos]

May '98, in a Fiesta 'Classic' 1.8 n/a dizzler. Absolute misery spec, in dark blue with no radio or PAS. The instructor told me he'd bought it a car auction and had it convereted by 'He-man' dual controls before pressing it into service. It was apparently even more mingebag spec than Joe Public could buy, having been part of a big fleet order when new. It was about three years old then, and had well over 100K on it (I think it might even have gone round the clock, having insufficient digits to cope with recording this figure).

 

Heaving it into parking spaces wasn't easy, but I passed somehow. At my 2nd attempt, mind.

[Lord Sterling]

Probably down to the practise in my parents Rover Sterling...

PLEASE say you have a picture of this car!

 

Your a lucky so and so for practising in a Rover Sterling. What I wouldn't have given to drive a Rover 800 before or even after passing my test. I didn't get to drive one until about 4 years after I passed my test when I bought my first Rover 827Si

[Partridge]

PLEASE say you have a picture of this car!

 

Your a lucky so and so for practising in a Rover Sterling. What I wouldn't have given to drive a Rover 800 before or even after passing my test. I didn't get to drive until about 4 years after I passed my test

Know that feel. I'm contemplating hanging up my keys if I don't get this job I've applied for. Makes you wonder you bothered learning to drive in the first place.

[martybabes]

In 1969 (aged 16) I took the motorcycle test which consisted of riding up and down a road several times but past the Examiner who stood still.  He had no idea what happened each time I turned around to return cos I was out of his vision.  The emergency stop was a laugh.  Pink slip duly acquired tho.

 

Mark I Escort in 1970 (aged 17) allowed another pink slip to be added to the collection.

 

IAM test taken in 1984 in a Metro. 

[oman5]

Metro 1.0 city.

[Pillock]

Instructor: you're indicating right.

 

Me: whoops

 

A bit like Mr Norfolk above, I was flabbergasted at that end of the test, when he told me I'd passed.

My old instructor told me that as long as I do whatever I do safely, they can't fail you for not following instructions. He reckoned it was better to just turn the wrong way at a junction than try to correct what lane you were in....

[Bren]

Back in 1991 I passed my test in this -

 

 

BRENS ROVER 2 1992.bmp

 

 

 

BRENS ROVER 1 1992.bmp

 

 

An early series 2 with utterly miserable spec - no power steering, central locking, keep fit windows - it did have a five speed box and glass sunroof.

 

It was the first year of parallel parking, which I had to do.

 

When I passed my test, the examiner told me about a 2.6 he once owned that shat it's top end.

[Bren]

It would appear that my photos are so old they cannot be opened.

 

It was an sd1 2.0 by the way.

[tooSavvy]

 

1974.

 

Driving school guy had squeezed two matchsticks into the rear screen rubber, inside, to give a reference for us learners >>

 

1. When to full lock on the 'sharp corner' reverse.

 

2. Where to keep the kerb aligned, when executing a reverse on a 'radiussed corner'.

 

That man was a Prince, in my eyes 

 

Passed first time, great reverse turn!...lol lol lol....

 

 

TS

[Lord Sterling]

I've managed to download and see the photos Bren. SD1, KLG 92Y. If I had one of those when I passed my text, I'd have been a right happy one.

 

Also, I now know where you got your avatar picture from. The Doctor from The Cannonball Run which I watched the other day.

[eddyramrod]

I passed in June 1978 in an almost-new BSM Fiesta, UYM717S, Peppermint Green.  Back in April I failed at the first attempt, in a mk2 Escort 1.3 Popular.  The Escort was the allocated car of another instructor as my bloke was on his hols.  I didn't get on with it, as I hadn't with another school's Escort previously, and have completely failed to be an Escort fan ever since.  If I'd passed in that one, I would have been 18; having to go for a re-test meant my birthday had been and gone, so I was now 19.  My instructor was on his hols again just before my re-test, but his first day back (first job in fact) was my test.

I've owned a couple of Escorts (mk1 estate, mk3 van) but without any enthusiasm.  Somehow I've totally failed to own a Fiesta since then.  However I did have a mk5 Cortina in Peppermint!

[Vin]

I passed my driving test in the instructor's E-Reg Renault 5 GTL. It was beige. It was also 1993.

 

During the summer of 1992 I actually learnt how to use the clutch and manoeuvre a car in this POS. I learnt to do three point turns and drive in and out the garage without crashing into the back wall...which is always handy.

 

A Renault 20 TS. It belonged to my mum. She had an accident in it, so I spent the summer of 1992 chopping the back with the intention of turning it into a pick-up. It was scrapped by October...

 

 

All my non-driving school learning was done in the Renault 20 replacement - a Panda 750L...

 

The day of my 17th birthday in 1993...That is a Reliant Robin estate to the left. It was my Grandad's. JFE 380T if you're interested...

 

[tooSavvy]

Had a 750L.... great for ragging, they will not explode just sit on howl mode all day.

 

I fitted a selecta 'electronic/Hall' Dizzy... bolted straight in.

 

I experienced one problem, in the winter, it would be very hesitant after a long run.. a bit fluffy under foot.. The dealer (getting a bleed nipple) advised turning the inlet neck around to behind the block not, as factory, in front. End of....

 

fitted a ARB from a Lancia Y10... Yep... stopped it going straight over wet roundabouts  !!

 

Loved it.

 

TS