6 Things Driving Lessons Won’t Teach You

*Remunerated Post*

You’ve passed your test, you’ve bought your first car and you’re ready to be let loose on the roads… or are you? Drivers often complain that their driving lessons only teach them how to pass their test instead of how to actually drive. But unless you want to be doing driving lessons for years to encounter every possible event on the road – then there are some things only experience can teach you…

Not all beeps are equal

You’re taught to only use your horn to make another driver aware of your existence, but you’ll quickly find once you’re on the road solo that people use horns – often liberally – for a wealth of reasons… not all of them correctly. You will be beeped at some point, it’s an inevitability of being on the road. It might be a long drawn out honk from an impatient driver behind you at a junction, a friendly short beep from a mate who’s seen you driving or an actual warning blast of a hazard you haven’t seen. You’ll learn which ones to pay attention to and which ones to let slide.

How to deal with backseat drivers

Backseat drivers are a fact of life. Whether it’s your other half, parent, friend or colleague – you’ll have to deal with them at some point. Arguing with a backseat driver will just rile you up and won’t actually stop the unhelpful comments coming. Studies have found backseat drivers may actually increase the chances of an accident happening… something you might want to remind them of seeing as their comments are likely born from anxiety over a possible accident.

The importance of looking after your car Your first car is likely to be a bit of a banger (like Bertha) and a bit of TLC will go a long way in keeping it going until your insurance premiums fall in price. Make sure you regularly clean your car inside and out and not only get an MOT to keep in on the road but also get your car properly serviced to minimise future problems.

Every journey is different

Hopefully you will have been lucky enough to experience at least a few different weather conditions while you were learning to drive, but you certainly won’t have covered all of them. Torrential downpours, ice, snow and strong winds are common in winter months. You’ll also have to drive at night for the first time as well as tackle new cities, winding country roads… or even the dreaded spaghetti junction. Breathe. It’ll get easier the more experience you have – remember to take it at your own space, leave plenty of stopping distance and remain calm.

Cars are different too

You’ll likely have only driven one type of car before you pass – whether it was automatic or manual, petrol or diesel. Even moving into your own car from the car you learned in can be a challenge to get

used to new biting points, brakes and dashboard technology. You’ll feel like this about every car you drive for a while. Don’t worry, it doesn’t mean you suddenly forgot how to drive – you’ll feel more confident driving new cars with experience.

Winter Woes

Even if you learnt to drive in the winter, it’s highly unlikely you’ve had to content with the issues winter mornings will cause for your car – mainly ice and mist. Having to de-ice and de-mist your car every pitch black morning of winter is all part of the joys of commuting life. Don’t try and cut corners by using boiled water from a kettle, you will crack your windscreen. Do use de-icer or cover your car if possible. De-misting is possibly even more frustrating because it takes an age and often seems to work entirely randomly. If you’re willing to go the extra mile to make your mornings easier, smearing a little clear shaving foam on the inside of your windscreen actually seems to do the trick to stop mist appearing… for a while at least.