Going to learn to drive. Any tips?

In My Humble Opinion
21

Assume everybody else is a freaking moron. Try to think like a motorcyclist or bicyclist - assume anybody is going to pop out of everywhere and that they do not see you. Bicycles come off the sidewalk completely oblivious. Dogs follow balls and children follow the dogs. People turn left right in front of you and look really shocked when you almost hit them. People run red lights and stop signs and goddamned train crossings. People slam on the brakes in the middle of the interstate. When you’re driving, think to yourself, “If he all of a sudden stopped, would I stop or swerve?” “Can I stop in time if that guy doesn’t start to slow down for this light?”

Do not be afraid to pull over and wait it out, whatever “it” is - fog, heavy rain, crazy traffic. If you’re too tired to keep going, stop and take a nap and then run some laps around the car. If you think you might be too tired to keep going, you definitely are.

If you see one deer cross the road and there are still some deer where he came from, stop. They’re probably going to follow.

Do not try to beat the train.

Check your mirror before you open the door - you will be very surprised if your door is suddenly adorned with a cyclist. (You’re probably used to getting out on the other side of the car.) You will never forget the sound of somebody’s collar bone snapping, so you’re better off not hearing it. (Didn’t happen to me, but since it happened to somebody I know I’ve always, always checked.)

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Band name

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Uhhhuhuhuhhh…I never would’ve thought of that. Alright, I’ll remember.

24

Essentially, a good driver is a predictable driver. Do what people expect you to do. Don’t suddenly freak out and go into left field. For example, when there’s an ambulance, don’t panic and try to get over to the left if that isn’t safe or if it wouldn’t help or whatever - just stay where you are, so the ambulance doesn’t have to worry about you doing something crazy and unpredictable.

25

You will be a bad driver at first. Everyone is a bad driver at first.

If your teacher doesn’t work with your learning style (some people want to be gently coaxed, others want someone stricter), try to find a teacher who does.

There are no stupid driving questions, only stupid accidents.

Don’t be one of those drivers who does manual stuff (cell phone, makeup, eyebrow waxing) while driving. If you are driving and you are not in gridlock, your task is to drive. Do that other stuff when you aren’t in a 2-ton vehicle surrounded by other 2-ton vehicles.

Most drivers forget the little things they have to memorize in driver’s ed, and it shows; the only people who obey that whole following-distance thing are the dorks (and I was one) still in driver’s ed mode.

Here’s the thing: While those recommendations can sometimes be disregarded, regarding them will hurt you much less often than disregarding them will. Sudden stops are bad for your car and bad for your gas mileage, so if you follow a safer distance, you won’t have to brake as hard (possibly at all, in some cases).

When a bigger vehicle wants to do something near you, get out of the way. Those vehicles are harder to get going and thus harder to get stopping.

Be nice to trucks.

When you crash, and you will crash, take a few breaths. Don’t get out all frantic. Relax, make sure your shoes are tied, and get your insurance information calmly. And (every car insurance company will tell you this) don’t admit fault. Don’t say anything like “Wow, I just totally plowed into you, huh?” That’s fault. Exchange information, check your vehicle for damage (especially near tires and to your signaling devices and mirrors) and go from there.

People driving behind you will be annoyed that you aren’t going 10 over. As long as you’re driving a few miles within the speed limit (assuming no visibility or operability issues), you’re fine. Most people end up driving about 5 miles over the limit, so anyone who isn’t doing that is instantly a “bad driver.”

Until you get the handle for driving, be cautious to a reasonable fault, but not nervously so; worst-case scenario, it takes you a little longer to get places and you don’t crash.

Expect driving to become less and less fun until it is a chore. I have been driving for seven years, and I have driven only a handful of times since January. I don’t miss it at all.

Younger friends will want rides. Older friends will want rides (see: driving stops being fun). People will want you to do things for them. Don’t be an idiot. If anyone tries to get you to do something “cool,” by which I mean illegal and/or dumb, deposit them where you picked them up and continue about your business. They may tease you for that for a while, but if you get caught doing something stupid, you get caught. They’re just in the car.

When you get in the car, make sure you’re set. First, this prevents you from having to go back and get something else. Second, it means you can see what you should be expected to see.

Check your oil, tire pressure and undercarriage regularly.

The best way to not run out of gas is to not get below half a tank.

26

My slight twist on this is to become comfortable with the road, various weather conditions, other drivers, curves, hills, timing of seeing a green light from a distance turn yellow to red, making left turns in traffic, etc. on an automatic.

Then, once you’re comfortable with all that driving entails, learn how to drive a manual.

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When you approach an intersection where you do not have the right of way, look to your left first!!

Too many drivers I encounter look to the right first. In doing so they end up in the intersection a bit before stopping. By the time they get around to looking left the car coming from their left has to avoid them in the intersection.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

When you approach an intersection where you do not have the right of way, look to your left first because in America your chances of getting hit will come from your left. Then look right, then left and if the coast is clear, go.

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Learn on an automatic first. Don’t be macho & insist on learning a stick first.

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Please, please, please use your directional signals, and always check your blind spot before changing lanes.
Also, be aware that 80% of all traffic accidents occur at intersections.

30

Yes, but then learn stick. It’s much easier if you’re comfortable just plain driving first, so do learn on an automatic… but learn stick! My dad actually didn’t want to teach me - he said it was like learning to churn butter. I finally got him to give me one lesson several years ago (and you haven’t learned stick until you’ve learned it on a 65 Mustang without power steering) but I haven’t practiced since then. I know if I just went out and drove my boyfriend’s car when he’s sleeping or something I’d just pick it up and not have a problem with it, but there’s been a lot of times when it’s been very inconvenient that I “can’t” drive his car.

And of course the younger you are the more chance there is that one day you’ll need to know how to drive stick so that the owner of the stick shift car doesn’t drive drunk. That’s why my dad finally gave in and taught me - I got stuck in a situation where I had to call a cab because I didn’t feel comfortable driving somebody’s car for them.

31

Provided you have a penis, it won’t fall off if you stay in the right hand lane on the highway.

Speed literally kills. All those stats they throw at you in driver’s ed about stopping distances, reaction times and such? Those aren’t just to be memorized and thrown away. They can save your life. Trust me on this.

Use your signal.

Your car’s tailpipe is big enough. Just leave it alone already.

Follow the lines in a parking lot like you would in the road. Best accident I ever saw was two idiots who just rammed into each other driving higgledy piggledy through a parking lot.

32

Be patient. You won’t be a great driver the first time you get in the driver’s seat. Nobody is. It’ll take a while to learn everything. You may need to learn some skills in a different way than other people learned them- the important thing is to learn the skill, not how you do it. This can be an issue especially if you’re learning from your parents.

When you get in a car, adjust the seat and mirrors to your liking before you put the car in gear. It’s very unsafe to adjust the seat in particular while the car is in gear, since that could result in your jamming your foot on the accelerator or brake without meaning to.

Look over your shoulders to check your blind spots- just checking the mirrors isn’t good enough.

Some people think headlights are there only to make it easier to see the road in the dark. That’s wrong. Headlights are also useful for making your car more visible to other drivers in bad conditions. Turn on your headlights any time visibility is poor, such as when it’s raining. That’s the law in some states, and a good idea in all of them.

Always look, even if you’re sure you do have the right of way. Other drivers don’t always know who has the right of way. If you get in a crash when you do have the right of way, your insurance company will say it wasn’t your fault, but you’ll still wish it hadn’t happened.

Nor will it fall off if you let someone merge in front of you.

Driving while you’re tired doesn’t get any safer with more experience driving. Dad Neville has over 50 years of driving experience, and this summer he was pushing himself to drive when he was tired and fell asleep at the wheel. He woke up when he hit the center guard rail. He totaled his relatively new car, and he’s damn lucky that neither he nor Mom Neville (who was also asleep in the front seat) were hurt.

Drunk driving laws are stricter for people under 21 than they are for the rest of us in a lot of states. Don’t drive if you’ve been drinking any alcohol in the past several hours. A DUI on your record is something you really don’t want.