Tips For Driving Test

AthAnRi

I have my driving test in one month and was wondering if any one knows any good pointers to aid with it?

What are a common questions that are asked for the Theory part?
What quirky things to look out for?

Is there any good websites that will give you tips like these?

Spunog UIE

Well know all your road signs anyway for the theory!
Stopping distances, right of way.

I got asked what the broken lines leading up to a zebra crossing mean which I remember doing in my theory test but for the life of me couldn't remember and still don't know now. (Must check)

As for the driving test, you should try get a copy of the sheet they mark you on. It’s broken down into different groups like mirror work and observation. Make sure they see you checking them, especially for turning right left appropriate wing mirrors, checking right a few times with your reverse around the corner as you make the turn and make your way down. Then the usual, don't hit the kerbs on your turnabout again show lots of looking around checking mirrors etc, but do it quickly too, don't beckon other drivers, ever.

Progress, drive up through your gears and down, don't drive 20mph when its safe to do 30 in 30 zone etc.

Make sure you car is fine, i.e. brake lights work indicators work, these will all be checked before you start, and if they don't work, that’s it, bye bye fee.

You'll be asked what all the controls do in your car, so if it’s not yours make sure ya know again this be a stupid place to get a mark.

They will ask you hand signals to other road users and to guards etc' Stupid places to get a mark knocked off.

Get a lesson the day before or on the morning of the exam get yourself in the right mindset. Lots and lots of observation, make sure they see you checking.

I was surprised at how little is paid to the position of your hands on the wheel as when I was learning to drive at first this was drilled into me, but while waiting for the test (long time) it kind of changed to a more casual grip left hand towards the bottom of the steering wheel. Going on warm up lesson I asked about it and said I'd be fine as long as both were actually on the wheel.

Getting a lesson is a must from an instructor that’s used to the test and what there looking for, they will pick out quickly what your own weaknesses may be.

[edit]Actually just checked drivingtest.ie and has a good check list, never bothered before cept for the waiting times etc' [/edit]

Best of Luck!

Tommy Vercetti

Observation, observation, observation, be confident and don't do anything stupid and you'll be fine.

herbie747

http://www.ism.ie/advice.html

Atomic Pineapple

Gideon pretty much said it all, just relax and dont be trying to remember everything ya been thought, relax and it will come to you naturally, nerves were my biggest problem in my first 2 tests (fear of failing) by time i done my 3rd one i couldnt give a **** whether i failed and i passed!

seamus

There's also a list of questions the tester will ask you along with the road signs, before you set out on the road. They will probably ask you 4 or 5 from the following...
(Some of these you may not know off the top of your head, and aren't covered in the now out of date Rules of the Road)
Questions:

1. When can you overtake on the left?
2. At a junction with roads of equal importance, to whom should you give way?
3. At a STOP sign-which has no white line, where would you stop?
4. What position would you take up for a right turn in a one way street?
5. How would you know a zebra crossing at night?
6. What does the island in the centre of a pedestrian crossing mean?
7. Name the restrictions in relation to the use of the horn?
8. When driving at night when should you dip your headlights?
9. What should you do if dazzled by lights of an oncoming vehicle?
10. What is a clearway?
11. What does a broken yellow line mean?
12. What does a single line yellow mean?
13. What does a double yellow line mean?
14. What is the legal parking distance from the kerb? 15. How close to a junction can you park?
16. Where should you not park?
17. Where should you not overtake?
18. What is the safe distance to drive from the car in front?
19. If you saw a red triangle on the road, what would it mean?
20. At a junction when traffic lights are not working to whom would you give way?
21. What does a green traffic light mean?
22. What does an amber traffic light mean?
23. Name three people in authority for whom you must stop?
24. Describe the road markings for No Entry?
25. When can you cross a continuous white line?
26. (a)What is the national speed limit?(b)What is the motorway speed limit? (c)What is the new tyre depth?
27. What rules apply to a box junction?
28. If there are two parallel white lines in the centre of the road one continous, one broken, which one would you obey?
29. What do two parallel broken white lines in the centre of the road mean?
30. What does a broken white line in the centre of the road mean?
31. What do white horizontal lines in the centre of the road mean?
32. Why is a STOP sign octagonal and a YIELD sign triangular (inverted)?

Answers

1. When the driver in front of you is turning right, when you intend to turn left, when the vehicles in the lane on your right are moving slowly.
2. Traffic on the right and traffic already turning.
3. At the STOP sign.
4. The extreme right hand lane.
5. By the yellow flashing beacons.
6. Each side of the island is a separate crossing.
7. It must not be used between the hours of 11.30pm and 7.00am in a built up area, except in an emergency.
8. (a)When meeting oncoming traffic.(b)When following close behind another vehicle. (c)On continuously lit roads.(d)At the beginning and end of lighting up hours. (e)Or in fog or snow.
9. Slow down and stop if necessary.
10. Stopping and parking prohibited (except by buses or taxis) for a period indicated on the sign.
11. A broken yellow line marks the edge of the road (also known as a hard shoulder).
12. No parking at certain times.(Generally during working hours).
13. No parking at any time.
14. Half a metre.
15. 5 metres.
16. Near a bend, the brow of a hill, a humpback bridge, at a continuous white line, where
your vehicle would obstruct a sign, at an entrance, at a bus stop, oppsite another vehicle on a narrow road, or at a taxi rank.
17. At a bend, a junction, a brow of a hill, humpback bridge, at a continuous white line, or anywhere your view of oncoming traffic is restricted.
18. Allow 1 metre for each m.p.h. and double if the surface is wet or observe the "two second rule".
19. That there is an obstruction or a breakdown ahead.
20. Traffic on the right and traffic already turning.
21. Go, provided junction is clear.
22. Stop, unless you are too close to stop safely behind the white lines.
23. A Garda, a school warden or a person in charge of animals.
24. A continuous white line with a broken white line behind it.
25. To avoid an obstruction, for access, or if there is a broken white line on your side of the continuous line.
26. (a) 60 m.p.h for cars, 50 m.p.h for trucks (b) 70 m.p.h (c) 1.6mm.
27. You must not enter unless your way ahead is clear with the exception of turning right.When you can enter and wait in the box if you are not obstructing other traffic.
28. You obey the line on your side of the road.
29. There will be one or two continuous white lines ahead.
30. You may overtake if safe to do so.
31. You treat them like a traffic island, you don't enter.
32. To recognise them in snow conditions.

(This didn't take as long as you'd think. God bless OCR )

red_ice

tbh the key imo is to just take your time. Aim for 33 mph, and remember to exadurate your looking about so the bloke testing you knows your using your mirrors.

If you take a wrong turn like i did, make sure you make up for it with a really good 3 point turn (for the second time) and your bound to pass :P

i got 1 green, on the new testing system. I think thats good, considering i didnt do a tap of work for it

GL and relax in the test

shoegirl

Get familiar with the new system - it divides faults into three categories - basically a high grade fault merits immediate failure whereas the minor faults have no impact on outcome.

Concentrate on eliminating high grade faults (obvious stuff like lack of observation), while keeping medium grade faults to a minimum. You are allowed no more than 9 medium faults, but 5 or less is considered a good pass.

Make sure your vehicle is in good nick, and make sure you get to the test centre with plenty of time to spare. Good luck!

silver surfer

Hi,

As previously outlined on this thread - the 3 main things are :

1) observation
2) observation &
3) observation

i.e. keep looking at your rear and side mirrors to the extent that you feel that you are exagerrating it, but don't make this obvious to the tester.

I had a pre-test 2 hours before my test and the Instructor said to me to think that I was looking for his lost cat up every side road and at each junction (i.e. I was really looking and sometimes straining my neck) - I continued this in the test and am convinced it passed me as the tester said afterwards I fell down on a couple of minor items but my obsvn. was excellent.

I also mounted a kerb on my reverse around the corner, but in speaking with the guy after the test he said it was not a problem because I corrected it, so if you make a f**k-up, dont stop the car or drive off, try to rectify your mistake if it's not going to make things worse.

And another thing ... he also said not to pull up the handbrake without pushing in the button as apparently this is the pet hate of all drv testers !

All de best.

AthAnRi

Thanks lads and Ladies,

Does anyone know how I could get my hands on the sheet they mark you on??

seamus

http://members.boards.ie/seamus/testsheetfront.jpg
http://members.boards.ie/seamus/testsheetback.jpg
(Big files at 56K, be patient)

Her indoors insisted I help her pass the test, so I photoshopped a sheet. Tis very useful.

(Mightn't be uploaded for a couple of mins)

LFCFan

best thing you can do is take a pre-test lesson the night before on the possible route you will take for the test. I did this and the instructor put me straight on loads of little bad habits etc that could have failed me and I passed the next day. Worth every penny that lesson was.

Sundy

yeah pre-test is the way to go! I got 4 lessons and the instructor covered all the routes and even predicted which tester i would have! So by the time my test came i almost knew where to go without the instructor telling me

aodh_rua

I went down the pretest route too. Test's tomorrow - hopefully they'll pay off.

aodh_rua

To answer myself - the lessons didn't pay off. The test went badly, starting with the tester sitting on my glasses for five minutes (literally) while I tried to find them in the car, the carpark and the rest of South Dublin.

So my advice is watch your specs - with a start like mine, nerves go through the roof and the tester is pissed before you even leave the test centre!

dwayneburke

Aodh....i dont mean to sound cruel and ****ty but i had my test today and thank the lord i passed...seriously thought i had failed (some P*ick almost crashed into me but i slammed on the brake in time) but the tester said i did exactly what he would have done...

It was the most nervous experience i have had in a long time...but bad luck on the glasses situ!! Very bad luck...

Anyway all the best next time ( not wishing to sound like a smug D*ck---which im not)

Anyways this thread helped al lot esp the question and answers!! Tks Seamus

Dwayne

aodh_rua

Originally posted by dwayneburke
Aodh....i dont mean to sound cruel and ****ty but i had my test today and thank the lord i passed...seriously thought i had failed (some P*ick almost crashed into me but i slammed on the brake in time) but the tester said i did exactly what he would have done...

It was the most nervous experience i have had in a long time...but bad luck on the glasses situ!! Very bad luck...

Anyway all the best next time ( not wishing to sound like a smug D*ck---which im not)

Anyways this thread helped al lot esp the question and answers!! Tks Seamus

Dwayne

Well done Dwayne - I'm just frustrated at being put off by something so small and now having to sit around waiting for another test date.

demosuzki

i passed about 2 weeks ago (finglas)

the questions on the list quoted previously are spot on.

my advice is the 'progress'
don;'t assume waiting or going slow is safer.
they want you not to obstruct.
be on the nail on 30mph as soon as you can.
and don't linger too long on a right turn.
if a slot opens go for it.

i actually crashed on the way home from passing my motorbike test last year !. broek my wrist and collar bone :-(

seamus

Originally posted by demosuzki
i actually crashed on the way home from passing my motorbike test last year !. broek my wrist and collar bone :-(

I think one of the lads was telling me about that....wrote off a brand new bike?

demosuzki

Originally posted by seamus
I think one of the lads was telling me about that....wrote off a brand new bike?

na.
it wasn't new
broke lights and bent forks.
they got it on the road again in 2 days.
ism were very good about it.
but funny great how a good story needs polishing. :-)

took me 8 weeks in cast.
still hurts in the cold.

AthAnRi

congrats dwayneburke,

Hard luck aodh_rua, hope it goes better for you next time. Maybe you should invest in a pair of contacts.

i have mine on thursday week. Had a bit of practice but like everything in my life I've left it late to prepare for it.