Long in the tooth learner shite!

[SunnySouth]

Inspired to start this essential discussion when I was driving home yesterday and passed a genuine classic, a 51 plate Micra still at work on the Learnerage circuit complete with magnetic dunce hat on the roof. Unfortunately I didn’t get the full plate and so couldn’t have a snoop to find out its no doubt biblical mileage, but it made me wonder what other well past-it learning devices Shiters might have come across still plying their trade?!

I had my lessons in 2003 in an impressively dull P reg Corolla, which wasn’t entirely ancient but was certainly getting on a bit compared to the sea of shiny BSM etc material on the roads.

[RoverFolkUs]

The oldest driving school car that I see about regularly is an 07 plate Focus, I thought that was surprising! No livery on the car, the only clue is the box on the roof which makes me assume it's an instructor and not someone's own private car. 

Aside from the obvious Fiestas, it seems to be mainly Corsas, Clios, Pumas and even Jukes that I see about these days 

[SunnySouth]

1 hour ago, RoverFolkUs said:

The oldest driving school car that I see about regularly is an 07 plate Focus, I thought that was surprising! No livery on the car, the only clue is the box on the roof which makes me assume it's an instructor and not someone's own private car. 

Aside from the obvious Fiestas, it seems to be mainly Corsas, Clios, Pumas and even Jukes that I see about these days 

The Fiestas will be dying out in a few years’ time now I guess! Wonder how long the last one in learner service will cling on for!

[timolloyd]

Such a good topic! Great shout.

For me, K11 S reg Micra. Great car.

@eddyramrodany advance?

[eddyramrod]

Nothing to report immediately!  But I'll have a look over the coming days and see what leaps out at me.

[neil1971]

The Billericay School of Motoring in my home town always ran a white Morris Minor Traveller. More about the man and his cars here, which is where I pinched the photo from.  I can't remember the dates but the Traveller always stood out as being much older than the typical driving school cars.

 

[catsinthewelder]

There's plenty of variety amongst the local learner fleet but nothing particularly old.  I did see someone driving an 80s breadvan Polo on L plates the other day though.

A Nigerian guy tried to rent a car off me last week to take his test in (god knows what was wrong with the Corolla he was driving).  We could potentially have rented him something on his Nigerian licence but the thought of the sarcasm from our insurer made ringing a friend with a driving school and booking her Ibiza a lot easier.  He passed

[bunglebus]

8 hours ago, neil1971 said:

The Billericay School of Motoring in my home town always ran a white Morris Minor Traveller. More about the man and his cars here, which is where I pinched the photo from.  I can't remember the dates but the Traveller always stood out as being much older than the typical driving school cars.

 

Funny enough I was just going to post about a Minor that I used to seeing being used as a driving school car in the late 80s-early 90s in Brentwood. Has to be the same guy

[Sham]

Local fleet is mostly newer VAG stuff, and Corsas, but I'll keep an eye out for anything interesting.

[neil1971]

16 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Funny enough I was just going to post about a Minor that I used to seeing being used as a driving school car in the late 80s-early 90s in Brentwood. Has to be the same guy

Has to be, Brentwood is the nearest test centre to Billericay so a lot of the lessons took place there, certainly mine did although my instructor in 1988 had an E reg square shape Sunny

[bunglebus]

I had a K reg 5 door Fiesta Flight in Jan 95 so was almost new. I remember my mum grumbling about the Morris as she felt that learners wouldn't cope with driving a more powerful and modern car after learning in one. 

[Stinkwheel]

Not seen much interesting stuff, but i can report i did my test in a '95 Hyundai accent, as my instructor had recommended not to do it in my own Citroen Dyane as he felt it would confuse the examiner 🤣 

[Sham]

Did my test in a 1984 Fiesta. In 1991. Was quite old by the standards of the day, but not exceptionally so.

[Verysleepyboy]

A G Plate 205 Diesel for me in 1992 - fairly modern for the time I guess?

[Timewaster]

I took my test in a F reg Nova Merit. All 3 times.

My older brothers instructor had an all white MG Metro turbo. 

The instructor told him, the quicker you get to the test route, the more lesson time you have!

The same instructor was killed in a motorbike accident a couple of years later.

None of this shite was very old at the time though.

[Dyslexic Viking]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

Funny enough I was just going to post about a Minor that I used to seeing being used as a driving school car in the late 80s-early 90s in Brentwood. Has to be the same guy

I saw an old interview on I think youtube with a driving instructor who used a Minor a normal one and not a Traveler in the 80/90s could it have been him? Remember that in the interview he was also filmed while carrying out welding repairs on it in his driveway.

It's been a few years since I watched this so I don't remember everything and unfortunately can't find it again.

[horriblemercedes]

It wasn't a driving instructor car, but I saw someone in 2022 in a BMW E30 325i on L plates. Cool car

 

I learned to drive in a Skoda. I was lucky I wasn't put off cars for life

[Stanky]

At my last job I worked in Petersfield and often saw a local driving instructor out and about with learners in a dark green , R-reg Rover 25. This would have been up to approx 2018, so a 20 year old car then!

[sierraman]

I learnt to drive in a Peugeot 106 diesel, can’t remember what size engine, assuming it was a 1.5. It had a private plate on it but I’m guessing it was from about 97-98ish? The guy that was teaching me was constantly trying to extol what a great car it would be when it came up for sale, like fuck did I want that after everyone had been having a go in it. Plus it stank of shit. 

At the time I had a Sierra for when I passed, the boring old bastard teaching me was going ‘but it’s a big car that is’. Oh do fuck off I used to think. 

[New POD]

I bet at some stage DVLA orwhoecer runs driving tests will decide they have a duty of care to examiners, and demand tests can oy be taken with an NCAP rating of 15. 

[New POD]

3 minutes ago, sierraman said:

I learnt to drive in a Peugeot 106 diesel, can’t remember what size engine, assuming it was a 1.5. It had a private plate on it but I’m guessing it was from about 97-98ish? The guy that was teaching me was constantly trying to extol what a great car it would be when it came up for sale, like fuck did I want that after everyone had been having a go in it. Plus it stank of shit. 

At the time I had a Sierra for when I passed, the boring old bastard teaching me was going ‘but it’s a big car that is’. Oh do fuck off I used to think. 

My driving instructor had a datsun sunny, and my parents had a dangley mirror base sierrra estate in beige.  Which was the car I took both my tests in.  Reversing around corners was easy, as the thing had no overhang, and lots of glass. 

[lisbon_road]

You're only allowed up to 30 years old cars for the actual test.  That's why I have just a couple of years to get my daughter through her test in my '96 Astra.

I did my lessons in an early Metro, that's just showing my age. 

[sierraman]

A mate of mine took his in a 2005 Focus last month. It had a day to go on the MOT and we had to knock the engine management light out just before the test. That’s doing it shite style! 

[neil1971]

1 hour ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I saw an old interview on I think youtube with a driving instructor who used a Minor a normal one and not a Traveler in the 80/90s could it have been him? Remember that in the interview he was also filmed while carrying out welding repairs on it in his driveway.

It's been a few years since I watched this so I don't remember everything and unfortunately can't find it again.

It's possible, I can only remember him having having Travellers, was a while ago though and my memory isn't the best!

[horriblemercedes]

Does anyone remember this?

 

There was a guy who used to write to Autocar who just made up shit all the time. Maybe some kind of trolling from before internet forum days, or maybe he was just a fantasist. They would print his letter and put in a little reply that humoured him or similar.

 

I remember once they had an article about learner driver cars and this guy wrote in that his ex had passed her driving test in his 1928 Bentley Blower, got no advisory notes and immediately drove it away as soon as the instructor got out while honking the horn.

 

I just thought, "Of course that happened pal. Definitely a true story."

[tooSavvy]

A young laydee at my work passed in a Metro...

I had occasion to journey with her in her own car [Metro 🙄] a week or two after she passed.

Sitting at the lights, handbrake on, 'biting point' held >> I gave her a swift chat, on the realities of driving, advising about grabbing 1st when the lights change and NOT always doing roundabouts in 2nd.

🚙💨

[sierraman]

57 minutes ago, horriblemercedes said:

Does anyone remember this?

 

There was a guy who used to write to Autocar who just made up shit all the time. Maybe some kind of trolling from before internet forum days, or maybe he was just a fantasist. They would print his letter and put in a little reply that humoured him or similar.

 

I remember once they had an article about learner driver cars and this guy wrote in that his ex had passed her driving test in his 1928 Bentley Blower, got no advisory notes and immediately drove it away as soon as the instructor got out while honking the horn.

 

I just thought, "Of course that happened pal. Definitely a true story."

A lad I used to hang about with made some bullshit up about failing the test for handbraking it. As if! 

[mk2_craig]

Me - Aug 95 in an L-reg Micra Super S. Test centre was Bathgate. 

My mate shortly afterwards took the test in his instructors 88 Fiesta which was replaced a few weeks later so he bought it from the driving school.  Then briefly returned it as the dual controls were still fitted!  The car was on nearly 100,000 miles which was quite impressive for any car of that age in the Channel Islands, however I think it was on about its seventh clutch.  We did replace the engine with a lower mileage one about a year later.  

[grogee]

I learned/passed in a red Mazda 323, probably 88 vintage and this would have been 1992 so relatively new by my standards.

Once I passed I immediately started driving a 1970 Mini 1275GT with four point harnesses, no carpets, no radio, no sun visors etc. 

[outlaw118]

Lessons in late 1986 in an A plate gold Corolla saloon with 230k on the clock.  Week before my test my instructor turned up in a Doom blue Rover 213S. Had an hour in it that day, hour before the test. 200 miles on it.

Failed.

Retest 6 weeks later, same car had 3000 odd miles on it.

Passed the second time.  Preferred the Toyota tbh