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Things you struggle with mostly while learning to drive

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Original post by ALYAMAANI
roundabouts​ are one of the toughest for me as my positioning is wrong. Also it's confusing when to put on you indicators.


I get confused too. :/
Original post by TheonlyMrsHolmes
I believe I'm on my 10thlesson now and a lot of it is coming quite naturally which is shocking to me as I'm a ridiculous anxious mess usually, suprisngly not so much behind the wheel!

The only thing that makes me anxious for now is roundabouts, I've only done them once a a couple of weeks ago and that stressed me out a tad. Other than that, doing suprisingly okay. :redface:


You'll get there in the end, you just need confidence :smile:


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Original post by TheonlyMrsHolmes
I believe I'm on my 10thlesson now and a lot of it is coming quite naturally which is shocking to me as I'm a ridiculous anxious mess usually, suprisngly not so much behind the wheel!

The only thing that makes me anxious for now is roundabouts, I've only done them once a a couple of weeks ago and that stressed me out a tad. Other than that, doing suprisingly okay. :redface:
Course yeh are. Yeh roundabouts are fun, as are hill starts. but it does come together. Soon you'll be bopping around the town like a crazy fecker.
Original post by TheonlyMrsHolmes
I get confused too. :/


I had my driving lesson yesterday and we did a load of roundabouts and junctions. At first it was confusing but I'm slowly learning which is good.
Are you good with junctions? It's hard because you have to do a lot of stuff in a short period of time e.g. control car speed/correct gear/clutch control/positioning/msm
I really struggled with clutch control and changing gears smoothly, fine now but I didn't master it until just before my test!:h:
Hmmm...

5 months after passing my test and having done over 1100 independent miles, I still can't parallel/reverse park and I only learnt how to put my car in 5th two days ago or so :biggrin:

During lessons though I struggled with hill starts A LOT, coming down gears and passing cars in tight spaces. But now that I've got used to my Mighty Corsa, I only use the handbrake for hill starts if there is a car right behind me on my bumper :angry:, I operate gears without a second thought and I can easily pass other cars at 30mph (but not buses/trucks because their drivers are evil).

I don't know what it's like outside London, but here in the SE where I live and drive mostly, it's 10% your driving skill and 90% predicting the idiotic behaviours of other road users and avoiding collisions.

One tip my dad gave me when I was struggling with gears was to change them in two moves so, rather than going from first to second, I pull First and stop it in the middle for literally a split second, then pull it down to Second. This helps immensely with Fifth, as it's such an awkward movement to make!

I am yet to go on the motorway though, but I have mastered dual carriageways and my black box score is at the highest level, plus I only get honked at if I follow the road rules which other people in a certain area seem to ignore (lane markings on roundabouts, 20mph zones etc.)

So yes, currently I'm still struggling with parking (majorly!) and joining into high speed traffic like on a dual carriageway/motorway. But it will come, I'm sure :tongue:
Original post by nymphielymphie
Hmmm...

5 months after passing my test and having done over 1100 independent miles, I still can't parallel/reverse park and I only learnt how to put my car in 5th two days ago or so :biggrin:

During lessons though I struggled with hill starts A LOT, coming down gears and passing cars in tight spaces. But now that I've got used to my Mighty Corsa, I only use the handbrake for hill starts if there is a car right behind me on my bumper :angry:, I operate gears without a second thought and I can easily pass other cars at 30mph (but not buses/trucks because their drivers are evil).

I don't know what it's like outside London, but here in the SE where I live and drive mostly, it's 10% your driving skill and 90% predicting the idiotic behaviours of other road users and avoiding collisions.

One tip my dad gave me when I was struggling with gears was to change them in two moves so, rather than going from first to second, I pull First and stop it in the middle for literally a split second, then pull it down to Second. This helps immensely with Fifth, as it's such an awkward movement to make!

I am yet to go on the motorway though, but I have mastered dual carriageways and my black box score is at the highest level, plus I only get honked at if I follow the road rules which other people in a certain area seem to ignore (lane markings on roundabouts, 20mph zones etc.)

So yes, currently I'm still struggling with parking (majorly!) and joining into high speed traffic like on a dual carriageway/motorway. But it will come, I'm sure :tongue:


Don't worry I've had my licence for 6 months and still haven't been on the motorway yet either :colondollar:


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Original post by ohhello92x
Don't worry I've had my licence for 6 months and still haven't been on the motorway yet either :colondollar:


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Yeah, it's a combination of my mom getting a heart attack every time I get behind the wheel (but she's like that with my very experienced dad as well, so it's not really my skill she's worried about lol) and also the fact that I watched too many of those Dashcam videos where people nearly crash into each other as they try to join the motorway :no: but I'm sure I'll go soon, I just need to find the time to get my dad in the passenger's seat and off we go!
Original post by nymphielymphie
Yeah, it's a combination of my mom getting a heart attack every time I get behind the wheel (but she's like that with my very experienced dad as well, so it's not really my skill she's worried about lol) and also the fact that I watched too many of those Dashcam videos where people nearly crash into each other as they try to join the motorway :no: but I'm sure I'll go soon, I just need to find the time to get my dad in the passenger's seat and off we go!


Aw bless lol, my mum done that when she was first in the car with me when I was driving :lol: though I'm not sure what she'd be like now though :colondollar: ah fair enough. Yeah my dad said he'd come out with me onto the motorway once I've got used to driving my car, but haven't managed to badger my dad to come on the motorway with me yet as he's been working constantly and I've been at work/uni :colondollar:! But I'd love to go on the motorway to get some practice on it :colondollar:


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Original post by ohhello92x
Aw bless lol, my mum done that when she was first in the car with me when I was driving :lol: though I'm not sure what she'd be like now though :colondollar: ah fair enough. Yeah my dad said he'd come out with me onto the motorway once I've got used to driving my car, but haven't managed to badger my dad to come on the motorway with me yet as he's been working constantly and I've been at work/uni :colondollar:! But I'd love to go on the motorway to get some practice on it :colondollar:


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I hope you get to do it soon! I think with me it will be the same as with the dual carriageway, I will just try to drive to somewhere and I will be forced to go on the motorway so I will lol :biggrin: but all my friends tell me it's not as scary as it seems so I guess it won't be anything bad ^^
Apparently according to the instructors at the test, steering.

It was just one instance :biggrin: .......... each test.
1)big roundabout 2)big roundabout 🙈i wish they just dissapear and only have mini roundabout as i am fine with the mini one 😁.my problem is to find the right lane to take before roundabout my instructor always said to look at the road sign to see which lane i need to take.i am on my 11th lesson now.
Original post by nymphielymphie
I hope you get to do it soon! I think with me it will be the same as with the dual carriageway, I will just try to drive to somewhere and I will be forced to go on the motorway so I will lol :biggrin: but all my friends tell me it's not as scary as it seems so I guess it won't be anything bad ^^


Thanks, same to you too :smile:! Yeah guess it's just remembering what each lane is is probably daunting at first until you get the feel of it lol :biggrin: yeah being a passenger when on the motorway it looks so easy lol :colondollar:


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Had my mock test with a different instructor yesterday and oh my. I got so nervous and failed! I got 2 serious and 8 minor faults.

First serious was for failing my manoeuvre (parallel park - it was in the tiniest side road and I hit the curb). My second serious was for stopping in a keep clear zone. I didnt even realise until I started driving into it. Ugh. Test is on Wednesday. Debating on moving it!
Original post by shanj0nes
Had my mock test with a different instructor yesterday and oh my. I got so nervous and failed! I got 2 serious and 8 minor faults.

First serious was for failing my manoeuvre (parallel park - it was in the tiniest side road and I hit the curb). My second serious was for stopping in a keep clear zone. I didnt even realise until I started driving into it. Ugh. Test is on Wednesday. Debating on moving it!


Aw bless :redface:

Do what you feel is best with moving the test, if I remember correctly, you have a certain date to move your test before you can't anymore, so if you do decide to change the day, do it ASAP :smile:


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Original post by ohhello92x
Aw bless :redface:

Do what you feel is best with moving the test, if I remember correctly, you have a certain date to move your test before you can't anymore, so if you do decide to change the day, do it ASAP :smile:


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Would you recommend a mock test?
Original post by cherryred90s
Would you recommend a mock test?


From personal experience I'd recommend it :redface:


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Original post by ohhello92x
Aw bless :redface:

Do what you feel is best with moving the test, if I remember correctly, you have a certain date to move your test before you can't anymore, so if you do decide to change the day, do it ASAP :smile:


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I've moved it before and I still get nervous and make stupid mistakes! :frown:
Original post by shanj0nes
I've moved it before and I still get nervous and make stupid mistakes! :frown:


Aw bless :hugs:


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Original post by shanj0nes
I've moved it before and I still get nervous and make stupid mistakes! :frown:


This is from personal experience, so I don't know how helpful it will be to you, but I found it's really beneficial to have an hour's drive with your instructor right before the test.

Up until the day of the test, in all of my lessons, I was driving up to standard, mirrors, indicators, good speed and awareness, you name it, I was doing it. My test was at 10:15am I think, and my instructor picked me up at 9am.

I was going over mini-roundabouts instead of around them. I was making a whole load of stupid, and sometimes even serious/dangerous mistakes. By the end of it, I was shaking and crying so much, that my instructor told me to pull up and go have a cigarette to calm myself down (lol).

Then I went into the test centre and I passed with 4 minors.

Get all of the nervousness-caused mistakes out of your system right before the test, go and f*** it up as much as you need to before. If you need, do two hours with your instructor before the test. And then when you get to the test centre, it will be a breeze :smile:

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