i failed twice in ny. we had to parallel park behind a car. i think it was the testers' fault. the third guy i had was nice even though i got so nervous i turned right when he said to turn left and i made a couple other mistakes. i am now the best driver in maryland.
― sent from my butt (harbl), Sunday, 16 March 2014 16:55 (ten years ago) link
1 (written)
― andrew m., Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:00 (ten years ago) link
I thought you all drove automatics!
The last car I bought in 2000 had manual transmission (and automatic was much more expensive) but apparently since then it's become less commonly available in new cars.
― carl agatha, Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:05 (ten years ago) link
also no-one will steal a manual (according to my Brit friends in the US)
― kinder, Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:06 (ten years ago) link
It's been nine years since I've owned a car at all so I couldn't speak to that but nobody tried to steal that one.
― carl agatha, Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:10 (ten years ago) link
I'm learning automatic - but that doesn't include the instructor applying the break.
― bets wishes (jel --), Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:19 (ten years ago) link
― kinder, Sunday, March 16, 2014 1:06 PM (14 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
Pretty much, yep:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/16/car-thieves-stick-shift-foiled-massachusetts_n_4609801.html
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:26 (ten years ago) link
my 1 actual fail was my first Aus test - wheel up on the curb during a botched parallel park
oh the shame :(
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:26 (ten years ago) link
yeah manual transmission has nearly disappeared in america, i don't know if it's ppl not ever having learned how to drive stick or if ppl just need to multitask too much while driving
― balls, Sunday, 16 March 2014 17:51 (ten years ago) link
Didn't realize manual was fading.
My first cars were all manual. Thought I was a grown-up when I finally got an automatic. "Now I can drive and eat a cheeseburger at the same time!"
― pplains, Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:15 (ten years ago) link
I think pretty much the only new cars you can easily get it on are highish-end enthusiast dealies. And dealers know there's no point to stocking manual Fiestas if no one can even test drive them.
I suspect it's mostly down to more and more people never having learned; I have friends in their 40s who have never driven standard. I actually miss it, though; my first car was a standard, but my two cars after it were/are automatics (although most minivans were never available with standard anyway).
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:20 (ten years ago) link
I learned on a manual and 2 out of 3 cars I've owned were manual but if I were to get another car, even if I could get a manual I would get an automatic. The less I have to worry about while driving the better.
― carl agatha, Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:38 (ten years ago) link
The things that come standard now irk me. I would love to buy a car (and save money) by getting a new one without power locks, power windows, CD player or auto transmission. I've never driven a car that had GPS on it or had DVD players in the backseat, and I'm afraid I'll be forced to buy that crap on the next one.
I'll keep things like the defroster and passenger rear-view mirror. I'm not a Luddite, for god's sakes.
― pplains, Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:49 (ten years ago) link
i like manual when you're speeding up on the freeway voooom (chik) voooooooom (chik) VOOOOOOOOM
so good
i hate manual in traffic jams
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:50 (ten years ago) link
OTM.
Manual's also great in the snow. But it sucks at a drive-thru.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Sunday, 16 March 2014 18:53 (ten years ago) link
I learned on a manual after driving an automatic in the States and thought I'd want to get an automatic as soon as I could, but now I like doing the gears :)
― kinder, Sunday, 16 March 2014 20:01 (ten years ago) link
2 failed tests so far :(
First one, hit the accelerator when I meant to hit the brake.
Second time, botched turn in the road and undue hesitation :(
Dammit.
― bets wishes (jel --), Thursday, 9 October 2014 11:16 (nine years ago) link
7 :(
― Colonel Poo, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 08:47 (five years ago) link
1 (don't remember why, but it was a fair cop)
― Anne Hedonia (j.lu), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 14:33 (five years ago) link
five tests taken, four fails achieved \o/
― “I'm the sexy gorilla and I'm going to hell“ (bizarro gazzara), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 14:36 (five years ago) link
i'e been driving legally and regularly since i was 15 but tbh if i had to drive on the wrong side of the road i'd almost certainly fail as well
― A-B-C. A-Always, B-Be, C-Chooglin (will), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 14:42 (five years ago) link
;)
In theory I should be able to do it, I can drive on lessons, but I get so nervous and shaky I do stupid things on the test, and it's so easy to fail. I had to do country lanes and one of the things my instructor had told me was important there was that if the speed limit goes up (it was 60) I have to make sure to do more than 30 or they'll fail me for going too slow. Which resulted in the examiner telling me to slow down and I knew that was it (it was). Then I got another fail for blocking a side road which I thought was a bit harsh, it wasn't a Keep Clear or anything and I was there for a few seconds at most, but I guess I'll hopefully remember not to do that again. The examiner said it could cause road rage, and I thought, no, what causes road rage is the person with road rage, if they can't handle tiny inconvenience like that maybe *they* shouldn't be driving, but whatever.
― Colonel Poo, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 14:56 (five years ago) link
My mum failed hers about 6 times until she passed when she was 40, but is a very good driver. I've never even taken driving lessons - even when a former boss offered a payrise and to pay for my first few ones, I turned him down. Because I know I am not fit to be behind the controls of a vehicle and never will be either.
― calzino, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 15:01 (five years ago) link
I failed 4, passed my fifth.
But hey, I'm an official Advanced Driver now!
― Mark G, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 15:11 (five years ago) link
i passed my first but i didn't even attempt it until i was 24
when i had driver's ed in school the driver's ed teacher passed me, but called my mom after and told her he'd only passed me because he never wanted to be in a car with me again and to not let me out on the road under any circumstances
― The Elvis of Nationalism and Amoral Patriotism (rushomancy), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 15:18 (five years ago) link
v ethical!
― “I'm the sexy gorilla and I'm going to hell“ (bizarro gazzara), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 15:27 (five years ago) link
1 - Sydney - Didnt stop at a stop sign. Just kind of gave way.
― Right column Leftist (sunny successor), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 18:55 (five years ago) link
1. Never bothered since.
― Wee boats wobble but they don't fall down (Tom D.), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 18:56 (five years ago) link
(I wasn't paying for the lessons or the test, otherwise I wouldn't have bothered)
... at all)
― Wee boats wobble but they don't fall down (Tom D.), Wednesday, 23 January 2019 18:57 (five years ago) link
oh wait i can do this. took my test once. five major faults and 30 minor faults and at one point the adjudicator or whatever tf they are had to apply the passenger side brakes because i’d misjudged a gap. never bothered since, but excitingly for all london based road users and pedestrians i am thinking of giving it another go next year.
― Fizzles, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 19:54 (five years ago) link
sorry CP :(
I have never taken a test but I have had probably well over 20x as many lessons for my 0 tests as any other human has needed per test
my last instructor did not turn up to my next scheduled lesson, contact me or answer the phone after I misjudged turning into my own road which I'd turned into every week for a billion lessons and terrified some poor mother and kid coming the other way :(
― a passing spacecadet, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 19:59 (five years ago) link
sorry CPThe test is the worst bit, you're kind of second-guessing a lot of stuff like thatMr kinder is starting lessons soon eeeek
― kinder, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 20:41 (five years ago) link
I see I answered this 4 years ago. My daughter has her test next week, which is making me feel very old.
― thomasintrouble, Wednesday, 23 January 2019 22:08 (five years ago) link
still 7!!!!!!!!!!!111111111!!!!!!!!!!!!!
― Colonel Poo, Wednesday, 20 February 2019 17:24 (five years ago) link
you know what they say, 8th time lucky
wait is that good or bad
― ɪmˈpəʊzɪŋ (darraghmac), Wednesday, 20 February 2019 17:25 (five years ago) link
lol it means last time I revived this thread I'd failed 7 times. this time I have still failed 7 times. but I've had 8 tests. what do you think? :D
― Colonel Poo, Wednesday, 20 February 2019 17:26 (five years ago) link
hurrah
― ɪmˈpəʊzɪŋ (darraghmac), Wednesday, 20 February 2019 17:27 (five years ago) link
congrats!!
― kinder, Wednesday, 20 February 2019 18:17 (five years ago) link
:)
― Fizzles, Friday, 22 February 2019 19:41 (five years ago) link
Zero fails. He told me take a corner which I ignored. He was pissed off. I made a Kundera related joke so we talked about the book. Lol. I fully expected to have failed but he said:"You passed but there's room for improvement." Lol
― nathom, Friday, 22 February 2019 19:48 (five years ago) link