When I took my test 20+ years ago examiners were not held in high esteem. I've just seen my dad who is a driving instructor and always has a tale to tell!
1 - Examiners now also 'examine' the car before going out. The new test centre my dad uses has a newly laid car park. Instructor with 4 day old Yaris parks up for someone to take an extended test (£90 BTW). Examiner walks round car and notices "bulge" in tyre and refuses to take test. "Bulge" was caused by car being parked on a piece of limestone from the car park sub base which must have 'escaped' during construction. Examiner won't allow instructor to roll car forward to show the problem. Test cancelled and examiners judgement is final with no appeal! Another £90 required.
2 - New Corsa has a speedo which can't be seen by the passenger. Some instructors have fitted a second speedo, but as this is not part of original car and has not been calibrated some examiners are refusing to take tests in new Corsas.
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A colleague of a few years ago had a base model Vauxhall Corsa. An examiner took one of his pupils out on test and issued a fail certificate at the end. During the debrief she explained to instructor and pupil that the reason for failure was that the pupil had made incorrect use of gears, in that they had been doing 70mph on a dual carriageway and the pupil had not selected fifth gear. The instructor sarcastically pointed out that the car was fitted with a four speed box.
It resulted in a complaint to the DSA, a free retest for the pupil and the examiner having to return to the training centre at Cardington for a refresher.
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The remarks about the Corsa speedo not being visible to a passenger (examiner) would be true for the original Yaris also, has anyone heard of examiners refusing to go out in these cars?
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I have never heard of examiners refusing to take a Yaris out. A second speedo was a standard fitment on these cars when supplied to driving instructors, mostly free of charge from the dealer. They are getting much fussier on cars that are presented for driving tests, I understand that MINI cabriolets are among a number of soft tops that are no longer acceptable because of restricted visibility.
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Sure I also read recently that they will not go out in a car with a space saver spare, in fact it was in this week's Auto Express.
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2007 Seat Altea XL 2.0 TDI (140) Stylance
2005 Skoda Fabia vrS
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Sure I also read recently that they will not go out in a car with a space saver spare in fact it was in this week's Auto Express. --
They won't go out if it's *fitted* to the car - they're only supposed to be used in an 'emergency', and you're supposed to drive directly (or ASAP) to a tyre place.
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Historical interest.
My brother took his test in his Ford sit-up-and-beg (E93A?) in 196?. A few days before his test, he said the brakes weren't very good. A mate and me took off all the rods, for in those days they were rod operated, and straightened them in a vice, by eye. We replaced all the clevis pins, and greased them. We took off the drums, checked and cleaned everything.
The instructor remarked (through his nearly broken nose- no seatbelts in those days) 'the brakes on these aren't usually that good'.
He passed!
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When I took my test back in the 1970's the examiner walked around the car and looked at the tyres and I think at the lights as well - long time ago so the memory is fading.
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I must have been lucky then.......
took my bike test in Dec 1989 with one of the first 'headphones in the helmet' set -ups...(just missed out on the previous system, whereby the examiner had to run through the local park to catch you in a different road...how quaint)
'L' plate flew off the back on a dual carriageway, examiner stopped me and said he was terminating the test as i was now illegal.....across the road was a petrol station, so i ran over, jumped the queue and paid for a new set of 'L' plates.....but then had the problem of fixing it on...so had to use one of my boot laces.......he kept looking at his watch and telling me we were running out of time, but we carried on..and I passed......don't know how... must have taken my mind off the stress of the test.
Afterwards the chap was quite human and stated that was a first and he couldn't believe how unflustered i was!.........good job i'm good at hiding it then.
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I think driving examiners do a great job for pathetically low pay. Imagine being at the mercy of inexperienced drivers unable to even say anything for much less than 20K a year.
My only criticism is that they should apply the rules MORE harshly and admit less drivers onto the roads. Also the test should be much harder with an extended written section. It would weed out the educationally subnormal who would be much better off the road anyway.
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Too true, Oldhand. And be equipped to tell whether the applicant is really who they say they are.
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Reading the posts above I would imagine that a lot of this (including the bulged tyre bit) is part of H&S regime implemented by the Organisation.
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Reminds me WP,
I passed my test in '81 ("running through the park version") because of the way things worked ended up using the bike for the rest of the day. The rear plate came off easily enough but the front plate had welded itself on and needed more work, I'd stopped at the chippy for lunch on the way back to the Office only to find the long arm of the law waiting for me in the shape of a traffic Officer, I was given a good old speech about having one plate only and being dead lucky as to how I wasn't going to be booked. I a pit of feigned pique I ripped off the front plate and screwed it up chucking it in the nearest bin....the Officer's face was a study in speechless horror as I had seemingly openly defied Her Majesty's authority. I finished my chips on nearby bench and as I prepared to ride off he whipped out the book he was about to throw at me, I smugly whipped out my Pass Certificate, only to get another verbal slapping for breaching (I think rule 27) of the Highway code for leaving a plate on a vehicle when not being used by a Learner. We both went our separate ways happily...
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Sorry, this is going slightly off-topic and into the realms of reminiscence - I took my bike test on July 16th 1969 - significant because it's the day when the Apollo 11 mission was launched for the first moon landing. My bike was an Ambassador Popular powered by a Villiers 9E 2-stroke - 3-speed, 199cc.
It was the old style of test and, as it was a baking hot day at the Narborough Rd test centre in Leicester, the examiner was wearing a white shirt with his sleeves rolled up. He was an average-size sort of bloke and blended in well with all the other white-shirted blokes on the Narborough Rd - consequently, I lost him for 10 minutes or so.
When we were reunited, we went through the jumping out/emergency stop routine without running him over etc and I passed - first-time.
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I passed my test this year in an ABS fitted car in which the ABS was not effective.
Examiner didn't notice :)
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I failed my first test "due to not looking in the mirror" only snag was, the examiner failed to observe I moved my eyeballs, but not my head.
I took the next test and `rubbernecked` my way through :)
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I was advised by my instructor to adjust the rearview very slightly out, so I had to move my head to use it, so I was seen to be using it.
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I was advised by my instructor to adjust the rearview very slightly out so I had to move my head to use it so I was seen to be using it.
Indeed, my friend was told this piece of folklore, and promptly failed for failing to adjust his mirror correctly.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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I passed my bike test in 1967 with no back L plate.
I had dashed home from work just before the test because I forgot my driving licence and it must have unscrewed itself.
I pointed it out to the examiner when I spotted it as we crossed the car park from the test centre.
He said something like: 'I'm not a policeman - if you get stopped you are responsible'.
A year later I passed my car test with the same examiner, after he told me off for missing a suitable gap in the traffic while turning right!
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AND he told me to stop and adjust the rear view mirror because "I can see you are using it, Mr Hannon''. It isn't always folklore.
I took my test in a driving school front-wheel-drive Triumph 1300. I bet that was rare.
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I bet no-one else took their test in a K-reg Simca 1100 Special hatchback. I did, it was mine and passed first time.
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I passed in a Morris Marina 1300cc and bike was a Honda CB100N !
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Also took my test in a Triumph 1300...a Toledo I think...may be confusing it with a Dolomite which a ex girlfriend had (she called it Daisy).
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Also heading down reminiscence alley, when I took my test some um, lots of years ago, I couldn't read the required number plate without edging a little closer and just after leaving the test centre the examiner grabbed the steering wheel to correct my course.
After these two debacles I lapsed into resigned autopilot mode for the rest of the test. To this day, I still can't believe my pass certificate as I thought physical intervention by the examiner meant a definite fail, however I am pleased to say I repaid his confidence in me by having only a couple of minor shunts in my driving career
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One mans junk is another mans treasure
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" I was advised by my instructor "
I had no instructor, self taught. Thats why I coast up to a halt in neutral
... and sometimes at other times.. never needed a new clutch though....... :)
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I used to car share with a driving examiner and he was not a good advertisement. He stuck rigidly to the regulations and would never apply common sense in any situation. He was forever on the receiving end of unorthodox finger signals and verbal abuse but still proudly displayed his advanced driving badge.
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OK children!
I took my bike test in the winter of '65, on a '57 Panther 10/3 (Villiers 8E). Reg 420 BJO, It's still out there according to DVLC.
There was snow and slush on the ground, and the examiner was surprised to see me, as previous pupils, and some examiners, hadn't turned up.
I was doing loops around the block, getting colder and colder, although I kept seeing him out of the corner of my eye. Come the emergency stop, I could only move two frozen fingers to the front brake lever. He commented ' good idea to use reduced front braking in these dangerous conditions'. I passed!
I'd previously done an RAC/ACU training course. They did a mock test, allegedly much tougher to pass than the regular test. Part way through my mine, the examiner, who was following on another bike, passed me and pulled me over. I thought something disastrous had gone wrong. It was hot and we'd passed an ice-cream van, he wanted one!
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