Number of driving lessons you took

I've seen several posts about this several years back, but I just wanted a fresh perspective on my situation.

I am 24 and I've now taken 40 hours of driving lessons (approximately two lessons, each two hours, every week, but I was ill in the middle so took a week or two off). I've also practised with family, albeit not very often due to living circumstances.

I believe I am doing well, just a few minor problems. However, at this point my instructor has not shown me how to bay park, parallel park, or reverse in any capacity, and despite the fact I am absolutely fine with car control, reacting to traffic lights, and safely using a roundabout, the other day I accidentally released the clutch a little too fast in reaction to another car coming out of nowhere very quickly, and then my instructor made several comments along the lines of "if you do that in your test, you'll fail instantly! You have had too many lessons to make a mistake like that!"

In contrast, my partner had the same instructor and even though he recalls making similar mistakes, he was never essentially told-off for a mistake, and was just asked to try again etc. I appreciate I could be taking the words to heart a little too much, but my test is 4 months away, and my instructor is also coming to lessons and constantly saying he doesn't remember what we did 3 days ago....I am starting to feel like he might not be the best instructor (not helped by a few inappropriate comments he has made about sexuality/gender/race). Has anyone else experienced an instructor like this? And is it normal to take so many lessons and still have a lot to cover, and make mistakes?

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 1

StriderHort

Sounds like a cack instructor tbh, one of the ones who has fallen into the job through dismissal or redundancy elsewhere.

The idea that you haven't even attempted parallel & bay parking or basic reversing in 40 hours is... mental, what HAVE you been filling the hours with? (My instructor had me doing these within 5 hours, and I wasn't a particularly quick learner)

Reply 2

SylvanianLover

Original post by StriderHort

This is the thing, supposedly he's one of the top instructors in the area, he actually also trains some driving test examiners, and he has over 25 years experience in teaching.

I spent the first 10-14 hours going round the same area, practising clutch control etc and left and right turns, and parking on the left. Then spent the next 16-20ish doing crossroads, including traffic lights, and getting used to a slightly busier area (I'm in Birmingham and the traffic is almost as hectic as London, so I wasn't sure if this impacted the time length of my progress at all?). I'm now doing roundabouts, and being taken down back alley roads that have one-way systems, and 40mph roads between roundabouts.

I feel like he spends twice as long teaching me something than what I need, and then snaps at me, shaking my confidence a little.