The person was given about 5 minutes by the driving examiner to change the tyre, but the pupil's mum who took the pupil for the driving test had a bad back and thus was unable to do it, and the pupil did not have a clue, so the driving test was cancelled!
When I took the driving test in 1991, things where very easy, you only had to take a practical driving test, with an oral test at the end to check your knowledge of the highway code
, no theory, hazzard perception test or 'show and tell'!The goverment has obviously found out that a lot of newly qualified drivers in those days did not have enough knowledge to cope in the real world hence these new requirements including 'show and tell'.
The DSA does not require a pupil to know how to change a tyre or fill a tank with petrol, hence a lot of approved driving instructors (me included), do not cover these topics unless a pupil specifically requests to be taught these things.
So here is my question do you think that you as a learner should be taught these things or have you got too much on your plate already? I know that in this country breakdown services are available so once you have passed your driving test, you don't really need the knowledge, as you can call someone to do it for you, but what happens if you are driving on an isolated road, it could take 30 - 60 minutes for help to arrive, and in that time you could be vulnerable. A tyre change would take 10 minutes!
You don't need an instructor to teach you how to change a tyre, or fill a car tank with petrol, a friend or family member could do that!
Some food for thought, and action required! Let me know what you as a learner feel, or even newly qualified drivers having passed the driving test if you feel you are now ready for the real world.
I certainly don't think it should be a compulsory part of the test, the ability to change a wheel, but perhaps the theory behind it could be mentioned by the instructor? I mean, how many people (parents included) will want to set aside half a lesson to taking off then putting back on a wheel? Wouldn't it have eaten into the (test) time too much if the person had changed the wheel? I agree the person should have failed because the car wasn't to test standard, but i always thought another car would be available.
ReplyDeleteAnywho another idea would be about how to open the filler cap for the petrol. My dads car has a little switch by the door, im not sure about my instructors, but showing knowledge about how to fill a car up, what fuel and how to tell how full the tank is could all be useful. I may ask about this stuff later.
Anonymous said...
ReplyDelete[quote]I certainly don't think it should be a compulsory part of the test, the ability to change a wheel, but perhaps the theory behind it could be mentioned by the instructor? I mean, how many people (parents included) will want to set aside half a lesson to taking off then putting back on a wheel?[/quote]
It is not a part of your test to change a tyre. It was because the tyre was not in a safe condition to carry out the test, so the examiner had given the test candidate the chance of replacing the worn tyre.
And unfortunately there never really is a spare car to use. Especially if you are an owner driver, ie: using your own car for the test. It might be possible to use a spare car if you belong to a large driving school etc. The test centres only conduct tests, they DO NOT supply a car.
I get all my pupils to put fuel in on at least one lesson. Not filling the tank right up, just a fivers worth to let them find out how to stop at and use a petrol pump. (It usually ends up as £6,£7 or £8 while they get to grips with stopping the pump at exactly a 'round' pound. Bit like clutch control).
ReplyDeleteAll of them find it a useful experience. Stopping the car on the right side for the filler, (remembering that you need to get out of the car, so not tooooo close)!
Selecting the correct fuel for the vehicle (yes, they are different fuels as well as being different coloured pumps).
And seeing just how quickly £5 goes into a fuel tank!
I always teach them and let them try checking tyre pressures and tread depths, explaining how to use the wear indicators shown on all tyres. So many people underestimate the fact that your only point of contact with the road is a small area of rubber on each corner.
I think it should be gone through with pupils who have no private practice. The only car some people have acces to is the one they use with their instructor.
ReplyDeleteThere was a thread on a forum I read where somebody asked how to fill up with petrol