California Driving Test 1st try and passed
Everybody is nervous to take exams, specially when someone is there to check your performance. You probably had months of experience and still get nervous just like singers and dancers that would face the judges. Well I want to share how my experience went.
I passed my written exam almost a year ago (July 7). After I passed my written exam I enrolled in a driving school for 3 days, 2 hours each day. I went with my instructor for 2 days and was not able to get my third appointment because I was planning to practice alot with my husband then have my driving school instructor evaluate me 1 week before my exam but that did not happen because they were fully booked whole week before my exam and they cannot accommodate me a year after (lol). Yes, A year after, my life got busy with alot of stuff like immigration and college. It was complicated, so my driving practices was held back until I realized my student permit will expire in 2 months. By this time, I have settled most things. I started to practice driving again with my husband, who was so patient and nitpicky, watched alot of driving exam on youtube and what helped me the most was this video ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NNGfT0UE_0 ) I watched this more than 10 times.
Actual Driving exam day
Requirements: Appointment Paper
Student Permit
Car Registration
Insurance
See instructions at Dmv website for 18 yr old and below
Appointment: June 1, 2015 (10:00am)
I woke up early at 6 am got ready and drive to get breakfast at 7am, this is also my morning driving practice. I always have coffee in the morning but I chose not to drink it today because I am already awake and nervous (don’t need to get more nervous). I was back at the house by 8:30 am I watched the video again while I was in the car trying to imitate the pre-driving check list and review any type of questions that might come up. At around 9:15 am I drove to DMV with my husband and arrived there at 9:30 am.
Upon entering the DMV office there will be a designated window for driving test, just go to that window. I was early and there was no line so the lady asked me to come back at 9:50 and so I did and she gave me my paper for my exam and asked to drive to the side of the building with a licensed driver(my husband) and wait for my turn. I went to the area as instructed, there were 2 cars ahead of me and I get to watch the pre-driving check (I suggest you observe carefully) both cars were approached by instructors and left at almost thesame time. I moved forward and waited about 12-15 minutes and they were back with happy faces(they looked like they passed). I was approached by one of the instructors He introduced himself and I said Hi, introduced my self and shook his hand. He asked me to sign my driving checklist. Then, my exam began
Pre-driving checklist
-turn your car on without starting your engine
-turn your left signal on
-turn your right signal on
-show me your hand signals
-honk your horn 2x
*DMV instructor asks if he could enter the car (yes)
-turn your headlights on
-where is you wiper control
-defroster
-emergency lights
-parking break
He then asked me if I am nervous. Is that even a question? but he was nice so I said I am nervous. He said you shouldn’t be, we are not here to pass or fail you, we will not trick you to any unsafe circumstance, we are here to see if you can drive and, he said, I will ask you to go left or right you may proceed if you think it is safe.
I turned the car engine on, He asked me to turn left out of the parking lot then left into the road. I was at the left side of a two way road and he asked me to turn right at the intersection. It was a short drive so I quickly have to change lane, I turn the right signal on then looked at the mirrors then over the shoulder it was clear so I was able to change lane. Stopped before the line on a stop sign then went into a 25 mph road. He asked me to pull over to the curve at about 10-12 inches then made me back up following the curve (I practiced this alot) He said I did good. Then He said we will go back to driving so I turned my left blinker on looked at the mirror and over my shoulder and saw that there was a black car coming and I can go after him. He then began to ask me questions like what would I do to celebrate if I pass(My nerves began to calm down) I answered his questions and still follow his instructions while driving through a residential area then we went to a wider road made me change lane maybe 4-5 times more then on a designated right turn with a yield sign the light turned green while I was approaching, I stopped before the yield sign then go. On my final left turn to go back to DMV the light turned yellow as I was approaching I tried to stop but the car was over the line so I told him Im sorry but I am not able to stop and he said it is okay I made the right call. Went back to DMV parking and parked on the designated parking. He began scoring my paper and talking to me saying that I made a few mistakes
1. I stopped over the line.
2. There was a time where I was driving below the speed limit
3. stopped on the yield sign(should just slow down)
4. I did not look over my shoulder when going back to traffic after pulling into the curve (should’ve checked again after the black car)
5. (I cannot remember the fifth one I don’t see it in my paperwork)
Over all I got 5 mistake and he said I passed.I was about to cry when he said I got 5 mistakes because I thought you could only get 3 maximum mistake. He then explained 15 mistakes is the maximum. So I PASSED. I am very happy today I forgot I did not have coffee in the morning so I slept 4 hours in the afternoon :-)
Tips:
1. It is ok to be nervous, but be confident with what you learned and apply them.
2. Watch videos about driving exams. It helped me prepare for most of the exam.
3. Use thesame car you practiced in and make sure you know where everything is.
