It’s one of the most popular questions: What do I need to do to pass my driving test? But the answer isn’t as simple as the question. The simple fact is there’s no secret recipe to passing your practical test. Multiple skills are tested and you’ll need to display competence in all of these.
SO WHAT THINGS ARE ASSESSED?
• Vehicle Preparation – How you start the car, locate controls and observe instruments.
• Gear Changes (Manual Vehicles Only.) Choosing the right gear for the right speed and the smoothness of gear changes. Using the clutch to slow down and start after stopped.
• Steering technique and correct steering timing around bends and corners.
• Observation – checking blind spots over both shoulders, rear vision mirror and directly in front of the vehicle.
• Following Distance – Does the driver maintain a safe distance between other vehicles on the road?
• U Turn – Can the driver perform a safe and legal U turn manoeuvre?
• Changing Lanes and Merging – Is the driver comfortable changing lanes including checking blind spots and judging gaps in traffic to confidently merge?
• Giving Way at Intersections/Roundabouts – Does the driver follow the correct rules of indicating and giving right of way to other vehicles at intersections and roundabouts.
• Reversing – Can the driver reverse safely in a straight line?
• Reverse Parallel Park – Can the driver perform the correct manoeuvre of stopping alongside a car parked on the kerb, and reverse behind the car to be parallel to the kerb without leaving too much space between kerb and front tyre?
• Hill Start – Can the driver start safely on a hill without rolling backyards with correct use of handbrake if needed?
• Overtaking – Can the driver properly overtake safely? Or wait until it is safe to do so?
• Perceiving Hazards – Does the driver respond to potential hazards by slowing down, indicating to move around the obstacle and taking other hazard reduction measures?
Note: Not all things will always be assessed in all tests, depending on the testing area and the traffic conditions on the road that day. Some things however such as reverse parking and following road rules correctly will always be tested.
MOST COMMON REASONS PEOPLE FAIL:
Breaking the rules of the road constitutes an instant fail. These might be seemingly minor infractions such as not coming to a total stop at a stop sign, or going over the speed limit by a kilometre or two, but are grounds for an automatic fail. If a driving assessor needs to intervene at any time it also means an instant fail.
HOW CAN I PASS FIRST TIME?
We’re not saying you’re parents aren’t good instructors we’re just saying as professional driving instructors, we are better!
We know EXACTLY what assessors will be looking for, and in a test where every point counts, our driving instructors here at A Grade DRIVING SCHOOL can replicate the Q-SAFE driving test to give you a real feel of what the test will feel like under exam conditions.
If there’s even been a time book driving lessons, it’s before you sit the practical driving test in Brisbane. Give Michael on 1300 885 585 and get that A Grade on your Queensland driving test.
Click Here to Book Your Test
with A Grade Driving School