closing tag is in template navbar
timefactors watches



TZ-UK Fundraiser
Results 1 to 18 of 18

Thread: Intensive Driving Course

  1. #1
    Craftsman
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Preston, England
    Posts
    604

    Intensive Driving Course

    Evening everyone,

    My 20 year old son is struggling to get driving lessons down in Cornwall where he is at college due to the post lockdown backlog, so he has asked me to book one of those 1 week intensive courses for just after Christmas when he is at home with us in Preston.

    Has anyone any experiences, national or in the NW and any recommendations or ones to avoid?

    Many thanks

    Tim

  2. #2
    Master
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Manchester
    Posts
    7,721
    Hi Tim.
    I've no first hand experience but I know a couple of driving instructors who reckon these courses are pretty useless (although... they have to say that) ;)

    If its the full course (test included) then bear in mind his test may be anywhere in a 20 mile catchment area - wherever they have a gap, basically. It just means the test will almost certainly be on unfamiliar roads which is why the pass rate is so poor, and why they usually promise you a retest in the price.

    I appreciate finding a good instructor is tough, but I'm still all for the old fashioned way over these intensive courses.

  3. #3
    Grand Master Rod's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Co. Durham
    Posts
    10,239
    My own feeling is that you can't cram a whole life of driving skills in a week.
    A lot also depends on the learners aptitude too. I wouldn't recommend it.
    Life's choices though.

  4. #4
    Wouldn't it depend on your driving abilities / confidence / experience before you went on the course. Can you really pass in that short a time frame if you don't know how to operate a car and never driven at all - sounds like a tall order. But if say you had maybe ridden a motorbike a bit, could operate a car and driven a few times then yes I'd say it was possible.

  5. #5
    Master
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    United Kingdom
    Posts
    1,133
    Quote Originally Posted by Rod View Post
    My own feeling is that you can't cram a whole life of driving skills in a week.
    A lot also depends on the learners aptitude too. I wouldn't recommend it.
    Life's choices though.
    In fairness, it's not about learning to drive, it's about passing the test. He'll learn about how to drive after that.
    Having done a few driving courses myself, I would say that the limiting factor is how long the student can concentrate. Once his focous goes, it's probably time to stop and maybe a full day would have limited use. Of course youngsters have more energy and resilience so he may be able to cope with it. The hard bit will be finding a good instructor.

  6. #6
    Grand Master AlphaOmega's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    Trinovantum
    Posts
    11,313
    You can teach the essentials yourself.

    Your son needs to be so familiar with the basics that he can free his mind up to concentrate on additional tasks.

    The intensive course will be useful, but it's not a substitute for hours in the driving seat.

  7. #7
    Craftsman
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Preston, England
    Posts
    604

    Comments

    Thanks for all the comments so far, I agree its not ideal but he is in his third year of college and could do with learning to drive before potentially entering the job market next summer - getting it out of the way so to speak and then as someone commented actually learning to drive through experience. He has tried for over 6 months to try and get lessons in Newquay where he lives but to no avail so whilst this is not the preferred option it might be the only one in the short to medium term.

    He has good concentration and picks things he is interested up very quickly FWIW.

    Any other views and recommendations welcome and if anyone is a driving instructor in or around Newquay, or knows of one please let me know!!!

    Have a great day Tim

  8. #8
    Craftsman
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    Melbourne, Australia
    Posts
    431
    I booked my son on one these courses in Melbourne. Most of the driving on the first day was sitting in a car with others driving. I rang up and got my money back.

  9. #9
    Master
    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Location
    Ayrshire
    Posts
    2,898
    I did an intensive 4 hrs a day for 5 days years ago . Test on the final day .

    Challenging and I felt mentally exhausted after each lesson but it all went in and got me a pass , aced it pretty much . I think it depends on the individual . I rather focus and concentrate on one specific task at a time. Multi-tasking is a myth. If I had to learn over months with days between lessons I’d get nowhere I reckon.

    I generally do this to learn any new task . Its also how I learnt to sail ( did about 2months worth of tuition in 5 days , up at 6am , exams … moor up late afternoon after a hard day nursing my wounds with rum and wiping my blood off the deck). 3 months of theory studying beforehand though.

    My business partner is trying to persuade me to get a private pilot’s license so I can fly from Prestwick to Wales ; grass airstrip right next to one of my side businesses . Not sure about that one.

  10. #10
    Master
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Dorset
    Posts
    3,024
    It’s something I keep considering, as I’ve never got around to driving, I’ve had batches of lessons over the years but never got as far as a test for a plethora of reasons.

    It seems that some of the intensive courses are better than others and some schools specialise in them, there used to be one in Blackpool but I haven’t seen them advertising for a while now.

    One thing to consider with the various instructors I’ve had over the years some are excellent and others are poor at best, so I would look for a personal recommendation.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  11. #11
    Master
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Posts
    2,962
    Blog Entries
    1
    Quote Originally Posted by Rod View Post
    My own feeling is that you can't cram a whole life of driving skills in a week.
    A lot also depends on the learners aptitude too. I wouldn't recommend it.
    Life's choices though.
    This...

  12. #12
    You can learn to ride a motorbike in a week and learn to fly a plane on an intense course. Can’t see why driving a car is any different. As has been said, you start learning to drive once you’ve passed your test!

  13. #13
    Master W124's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Standish, M6 Jn 27.
    Posts
    1,915
    My two eldest sons both took an intensive 4 day course.

    Both passed first time and have proven to be safe, courteous drivers.

    Consider the value gained from 20 single hour lessons - the student spends the first 10 minutes trying to recall the previous sessions, and driving to the roads which form a typical route for the test

    3x 6 hour days, plus a final polish prior to test on day 4 makes more sense to me.

    It is an intense experience, but definitely builds confidence and maximises the learning time behind the wheel.
    Last edited by W124; 25th September 2021 at 02:20.

  14. #14
    Craftsman
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Preston, England
    Posts
    604

    Update

    Many thanks for all the responses, for people that have done it are there any companies to recommend or avoid? Thx Tim

  15. #15
    Craftsman
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Essex
    Posts
    669
    If you do the course, can you get a test?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  16. #16
    My son booked one of these courses during the pandemic last year and ended up getting his money back. They were uselsss, didn’t seem to have enough instructors with the time and no better access to anyone else for tests. He got a driving instructor who was committed to getting him through and an app that was constantly searching for cancellations. He passed in June on his second attempt (only a month after he failed the first time) so not too bad in the end.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  17. #17
    Master W124's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    Standish, M6 Jn 27.
    Posts
    1,915
    Quote Originally Posted by RobDad View Post
    and an app that was constantly searching for cancellations.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    That's interesting - do you have details of the app, please ?

    #3 son has passed his online tests and is keen to get a driving test booked asap.

  18. #18
    It’s called driving test cancellations now


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

Do Not Sell My Personal Information