Going to learn to drive. Any tips?

Inspired by this thread. Since I’ve decided to actually post my real age, I can ask this now. Anyway, I’m fifteen and assorted months, which means driving lessons starting Winter Break (or summer). Any advice?

Remember which letters on the shifter do what: R is for “run,” and D is for “dead stop.” Trust me on this.

OK, seriously, here’s a real tip: One of the things I found difficult was trying to figure out whether I had the vehicle properly centered within the lane. Sitting on the left side, you can’t really see how far the right side of the car is from the lane line. My instructor helpfully pointed out that the lanes are designed to be wide enough for exactly one car, so concentrate on maintaining the correct distance from the left lane line and the right side will be fine by definition.

Have at least a few lessons with a proper driving instructor. Don’t rely solely on your family members to teach you.

Learn with a manual, rather than an automatic.

Learn to drive manual if at all possible. It’s one of those things that no one regrets - no one says “damn, I wish I learned automatic instead,” but a lot of people wish they had learned standard transmission. It’s a rocky first week, but its not bad after that.
If taking the driving test in New York, be prepared to fail. New York is one of the only states that actually takes the test very seriously. I failed the first time because I slowed to a stop when kids were playing in the street instead of honking, and then I didn’t look over my left shoulder enough when doing a 3-point U-turn (I was fine on the right shoulder).

Ask the instructor to explain the functions and operation of the little lever/wand that protrudes from the left side of the steering column. And then use it, by pushing it downward prior to every time you plan to turn left and push it upward prior to every time you plan to turn right. If you will be driving in Massachusetts, you may be the only driver actually obeying that law, unless things have changed since the last time I lived and visited there many years ago.

You may have to actually open the window and stick you left are out the window to signal turns during the driving instruction and test if they require that in your state.

More seriously, practice stopping and starting and U-turning in a quiet hilly cemetery like I did. If you do, while you are there, reflect on the fact that a very large percentage of traffic accidents involve young drivers.

When you get your license, make a vow never to drive it while under the influence of an intoxicant or while on a handheld cellphone. Never carry more than 3 passengers, especially if they are your peers. Resist peer pressure jto jackrabbit, compete (race) and obey all speed laws.

In the USofA we’ve killed about 42,000 people per year since 1995 on the highways (see cite)

http://www.bts.gov/publications/transportation_statistics_annual_report/2007/html/chapter_02/table_b_01.html

The accident rate for young drivers is very high compared to other age groups, often due to inexperience and lack of judgement (see cite for some American countries at)

http://www.paho.org/english/dd/ais/be_v25n1-acctransito.htm
More pertinent stats of motor vehicle deaths by age gropu for the USofA are at

http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/810568.PDF

Enjoy the privilege but be careful. It’s a jungle out there.

As far as centering the car- when you’re in the driver’s seat, you’ll notice that the road usually has a path in it that’s a bit darker than the rest of the road. Your body should be in the middle of that darker path.

Never back up any more than you absolutely have to.

Always look to the left and to the right and back to the left before going or turning. Bicycles and pedestrians don’t always follow the rules, either.

Don’t follow people too closely and don’t speed. Those two things right there are almost guaranteed to save your brakes, your gas, and your car.

Don’t talk on the phone while driving, at least not for a very, very long time, like when you’re 40, if you must. Never text.

In some states now, any use of a cell phone while the vehicle is in gear may cause the teenage driver to lose their license. Also, some states prohibit a car full of teenagers; there must be an adult in the car as well.

The fact of the matter is you will soon be driving a 4,000 pound dangerous weapon. Sorry for the scare tactic but 115 teenagers leave home driving every week in America, and never return alive. Despite what you and everyone your age may believe, you are not immortal.

Learn to drive a stick. Park on a hill. You should be able to start from parking on a hill and move forward with absolutely no backsliding.

Good. Practice this response to friends “Sorry, I don’t answer phone calls while driving.” Say it aloud to yourself a bunch of times before you get your license, that way it’ll sound like you mean it when you have to say it for real. Another good one to practice is “We’re not going anywhere until you put your seatbelt on.”

You need to know that getting into the car with you behind the wheel will lower your friends’ IQs. They don’t mean to distract you, but they will. Especially if you’re the first to get your license: they don’t even realize what is distracting. I had friends who were bright and usually responsible get into a fight over something in the back seat, and they ended up hitting me over the head with something that blocked my view for a few seconds. And a few seconds is all it takes to get into an accident, so we were lucky nothing happened.

I think the most valuable advice I was ever given by an adult driver is that you need to be aware of other drivers. You can be a very skilled driver and still get into an accident if you fail to be aware of what the other drivers around you are doing. Keep an eye out on the man ahead of you that’s blathering on the phone, the woman weaving back and forth because she’s had one too many, and let there be some distance between you. That way, if they slam on their brakes, and you won’t believe how often they will, you won’t rear-end them. Tailgating idiots just makes you an idiot too. Oh, and in stop-and-go traffic where you can’t lose them, it’s better to have the idiots in front of you where you can keep an eye on them than pass them and have them right behind you doing god only knows what.

I *was * going to say don’t talk on the phone while driving at all, but I figured a lot of people would come in to say it’s no big deal and they do it all the time. So I thought I’d add “until you’re 40” because by then it’ll probably be illegal everywhere.

Keep the shiny side up, and the rubber side down.

Color inside the lines this time. Trust me on this one.

Don’t let a family member teach you how to drive.

Don’t assume you know what you are doing just because you’ve seen it done a million times.

Remember you are piloting a two ton lethal weapon and give it the respect it deserves.

Relax, breathe, and stay off the phone. You’ll do fine.

You’re sharing the road with a bunch of dicks. You don’t need to also be a dick. Remaining calm and composed while others around you are frothing at the mouth is actually a lot of fun.

You’re probably sick of hearing about how you’re driving a very heavy, very deadly piece of equipment. But hey, it’s true.

One of the worst things you can legally do is drive in a heightened emotional state. Angry, sad, nervous, giddy, panicked. Sometimes you can’t help it. Some guy in a big truck ran you off the road and right now you’re shaking with rage and panic. Pull off the road, take a few minutes, scream, whatever. Having said that, probably the worst thing you can legally do is drive when you’re just way too tired. You’re going to do it eventually and you’ll hate yourself for it. Try, try, try as hard as you can to find other options. Just as you shouldn’t feel ashamed to call someone when you’re intoxicated, the same should go for calling somebody because you’re exhausted.

I would advise taking lessons during your winter break rather than waiting until summer as it will give you experience driving in icy conditions before you’re expected to go it alone.

Learn how to do basic emergency things like changing the tires and jumping the battery. Even if your parents’ insurance covers roadside assistance, sometimes it’s just faster to do it yourself.

There’s probably more stuff I want to say, but I’ll leave it at this for now. You sound like a good kid, just relax and always pay attention and you’ll be fine.

Always look both ways when driving across a one way street.

When your car starts to hydroplane (i.e. it hits a puddle of water and glides) and at some point it will… do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to the brake or accelerator or clutch. THIS IS ULTRA IMPORTANT. You can use the steering wheel to keep the car straight, but that’s it. People die from forgetting this.

And always look both ways when driving across a one way street (it bears repeating- you wouldn’t believe how many people drive the wrong way on one way streets).

And always wear a [del]condom[/del]seat belt.

I’ll echo all the earlier comments and add this: say to yourself, “I am not in a hurry to get killed.” Just because the person behind you is in a hurry and tooting his horn doesn’t mean that you should drive faster than you feel comfortable driving - or faster than the speed limit.

Pull over to let emergency vehicles pass - some day they may be on their way to save you - but pull over in a safe place, not at the apex of a blind corner.

Your objective in learning to drive is learning to drive, not learning to pass the driving test.

Re: elfkin477’s seatbelt, right. I was hipped by someone that examiners will sometimes not belt themselves until you ask them to do so. Points off if you start the vehicle rolling while they’re unbelted.

There’s a lot of good advice in here. My two cents of what hasn’t yet been covered is to watch your ass in parking lots. It’s the very best place to have an accident. For one thing, the density of cars is greater than just about anywhere else you’ll drive. And people aren’t always very good at backing up, pedestrians may be nearby, and there can be a lot of distractions. E.g. in a mall parking lot people are opening their packages, adjusting the AC or heat, trying to get kid in the back seat to sit down, eating Cheetos—all while driving, it seems. It’s not a good time to multitask, so be careful.

And another thing about this situation: years ago, I was leaving the Wally parking lot and a guy hit me, on the perpendicular. I almost got past him but he clipped my rear bumper—a T-bone would have been bad because he had this heavy Ford Aerostar. There’s no doubt he was driving too fast. You’d think a doctor would know better.

Anyway mind your speed in parking lots, even going forward, but I point it out for a different reason. I learned that the police don’t make accident reports in parking lots because they’re private property. Luckily he manned up and his insurance took care of it but as I understand it, in some cases like that people are really screwed. I suspect it could have been my word against his, I would have paid for my own damages etc. IANAL—maybe it could have gone to small claims court, I don’t know, but who wants the bureaucratic red tape etc.?

I also learned that if you ever do have an accident, you want to hold back a little bit when approaching the driver of the other car. I hit a guy, hard: totally his fault, the insurance later affirmed—he made a right turn from the left-hand lane, assumed nobody was in the lane, but I was. You’d think someone who drove a truck for a living would know better, but maybe he wasn’t in that mode while driving the family pickup.

BOOM! I got out, he got out, and he had murder in his eye. After a few seconds and several expletives, he calmed down and it was cool. But an accident can trigger some “fight or flight” type of reaction. Keep your distance for a few moments. If I had run over immediately, he probably would have clocked me.

If you do make a teenaged mistake, and someone gets badly hurt, you will remember it forever. Even when you’re 52, married with kids and a mortgage, living 3 states away, you will still think about it… every single day.

Don’t make that mistake.

Good driving is mostly a matter of good habits. Work on developing some such as:

Look far ahead, as far as you can see - makes you aware of upcoming trouble.

Look behind you regularly - some trouble comes from that way, too.

Don’t think of yourself as in competition with other drivers - cooperation works better for all.

On a multi-lane road, keep as far to the right as traffic and your speed allows - don’t hang in the left or middle lane.

So, so true. Do what the instructor tells you, and force yourself to do it the same way when they’re not in the car with you. They’re telling you things for a reason, even if they don’t always tell you what the reason is, so stick with the professional advice even if you see many people do it differently.

Along those lines, assume everyone else on the road is an idiot and watch what they do. AIt’s better to cede the right of way than to get into an accident trying to defend it.

I know you probably won’t, but I think all new drivers need HUNDREDS of hours of practice before being turned loose on the streets by themselves. Maybe a thousand.

Also, don’t listen to your passengers (your age), they will not be responsible for whatever happens, YOU will.

And keep the music down.