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California Driving Test

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AzN_F15h

Neo Member
for the ppl that took their drivers test in california, did u have to drive on the freeway? cuz i heard that sometimes they do make u go on freeways but sometimes they dont.
 

bjork

Member
Not me.

I flubbed a 3-point turn (I never signaled once), drove over two curbs, did 55 in a residential, and rolled through a stopsign...

Then we came back to the DMV.

And I passed, somehow, 72/100
 

Aruarian Reflection

Chauffeur de la gdlk
bjork said:
Not me.

I flubbed a 3-point turn (I never signaled once), drove over two curbs, did 55 in a residential, and rolled through a stopsign...

Then we came back to the DMV.

And I passed, somehow, 72/100

Great. We don't have enough people like you on the streets.

I didn't have to drive on the freeway either or parallel park.
 

Iceman

Member
It was a while ago.. but no highway driving, nor pararllel parking.

I stopped too close to the stop lines at the traffic lights and didn't signal to pull out of a curb once. The guy harangued me for that but still let me pass.
 

fart

Savant
i'm pretty sure no dmv in california will make you parallel park or drive on the freeway. WHICH EXPLAINS A LOT ABOUT DRIVING IN CALIFORNIA.
 
The driver test was easy. When I took my test the lady just screamed at me cuz I semi-hit the brakes a lil late and since it was raining she gave me a fault on that one. Other than that it was easy. Going in reverse straight was the only thing I would say may be hard if you can't keep straight.

Also just and interesting fact I read in FHM magazine. Due to the California 3-strike law. A man got life in prison for cheating on his written test and getting caught 3 times.
 

SickBoy

Member
The California driving test sounds brutally easy... scary even...

I've driven in California a few times, but all in all I didn't think the drivers were insanely bad... just hated all the bloody congestion.
 

Dilbert

Member
According to the letter of the rules, they can take you ANYWHERE on your driving test, including the freeway. However, given that most DMV offices I've been to are nowhere near a freeway, and there is an incentive for the examiners to test as many people per day, the chances of you going through an overly strenuous test are pretty slim.

With that being said, the best thing you can do is to scout out the area by the DMV and practice driving those streets before the test. The hardest thing to do -- even after years of driving -- is to navigate an unfamilar area AND drive safely. (If you don't believe me, drive around near the rental car facility at any major airport...and wear a crash helmet.)
 

Cooper

Member
iceDragon7 said:
Also just and interesting fact I read in FHM magazine. Due to the California 3-strike law. A man got life in prison for cheating on his written test and getting caught 3 times.

That's not how Three Strikes works. I assume you're talking about this article? The first two crimes were burglary and robbery.

I did have to get on the freeway for my exam. You might as well learn how early, because it's tough to avoid.
 

3phemeral

Member
Never went on the freeway, I've heard very few stories where you had to drive on the freeway. Just your typical standard "where are your lights, your hazards, etc" coupled with driving through traffic, paying attention to speed, and marking all the hand signals and observational requirements before performing any change in position. :p
 

BlackMage

Banned
fart said:
i'm pretty sure no dmv in california will make you parallel park or drive on the freeway. WHICH EXPLAINS A LOT ABOUT DRIVING IN CALIFORNIA.

no matter how bad you think people in california drive, las vegas is 10x worse.
 

Tsubaki

Member
fart said:
i'm pretty sure no dmv in california will make you parallel park or drive on the freeway. WHICH EXPLAINS A LOT ABOUT DRIVING IN CALIFORNIA.

It's hardly true all across the board. San Francisco has one of the harder driving tests, especially since the only way you can park in SF is via parallel parking.

I took mine in Daly City, right next to SF, and we only did in-city driving. No freeway. (Freeway is easier than city driving anyway...) But I had to parallel park on a hill.

I don't know where in Cali all these other peeps are taking their driving tests.
 

Iceman

Member
Wisconsin drivers = bad.

Slow. No signaling. Meandering in their lanes (probably due to all the potholes).

Compared to Wisconsin, Southern California drivers are excellent.
 

empanada

Member
Nope, I didn't have to go on the freeways nor do parallel parking.

And SoCal drivers are pretty good overall except for the occasional dicks who "race" on freeways.
 

fart

Savant
that's true. in sf-proper you'll probably have to parallel park. i can't think of anywhere else you would have to though (you don't have to in the east bay).

all those people who claim drivers in such and such a state are worse than ca... how much time have you spent in LA? and jesus, driving in sf is a nightmare.
 

golem

Member
i took the pasadena dmv test... they made me get on the freeway on ramp.. and then get off at the next exit, no problem. if you live in california you better-the-hell-know how to drive on the fwy (then again, it seems that most drivers dont anyways)
 

XMonkey

lacks enthusiasm.
I didn't drive on the freeway, or have to parallel park. I got lucky and had a really chill instructor who was an ex-humvee driving instructor for the army but had to take time off due to an injury.
 
Wow

In Ontario you have to pass a written test, wait 8-12 months, depending if you do a drivers ed course, do a basic road test (turns, 3 pt turn, parallel park (sometimes), backing in to a parking spot etc...), then the last test you can take after a year but you must take it within 5 years of getting your original license, this test is the same as the first road test but you have to drive on the freeway, then you are a fully licensed driver :)

G1 = can drive with an adult present in the passenger seat who has at least 4 years of driving experience, cant drive on the 400 series highways and can't drive after 2am, and can have no alcohol

G2 = Can drive anytime, anywhere but can't have any alcohol in system

G = Can have legally allowed amounts of alcohol in system
 

tenchir

Member
bjork said:
Not me.

I flubbed a 3-point turn (I never signaled once), drove over two curbs, did 55 in a residential, and rolled through a stopsign...

Then we came back to the DMV.

And I passed, somehow, 72/100

I only screwed up at the end when I didn't properly watched out for outgoing cars when I drove back to the DMV.

98/100

As for drivers in California, it just seems there are a lot of bad drivers here, but you have to keep in mind the population density of California compared to other states.
 

AzN_F15h

Neo Member
thx for the replies, who has actually taken their driving test in the montbello dmv? where exactly did they make u go during the test?
 

tenchir

Member
AzN_F15h said:
thx for the replies, who has actually taken their driving test in the montbello dmv? where exactly did they make u go during the test?

Do you have a driving instructor? My driving instructor basically made me drive around the area of the DMV that I was going to take my test at on the last few instructions. He basically let me drive through the streets that the tester will most likely make me take(amazingly about 80% of the test are already streets I have driven on).
 

ManaByte

Member
You don't even have to be a legal resident of the United States to get a Driver's License in California. Anyone remember that episode of Married... With Children where Bud was working at the DMV and they gave the blind guy a license? That's the California DMV.
 

Cooper

Member
ManaByte said:
You don't even have to be a legal resident of the United States to get a Driver's License in California.

If you're referring to that bill that Davis signed at the last minute in hopes of avoiding a recall, that was repealed fairly early in Schwarzenegger's term. Illegal immigrants currently cannot get a license in California.
 

ManaByte

Member
Cooper said:
If you're referring to that bill that Davis signed at the last minute in hopes of avoiding a recall, that was repealed fairly early in Schwarzenegger's term. Illegal immigrants currently cannot get a license in California.

Tell that to the Illegals who already have licenses.
 
ManaByte in response to Cooper said:
Tell that to the Illegals who already have licenses.

ManaByte before said:
You don't even have to be a legal resident of the United States to get a Driver's License in California.

There's a difference between already having a license and getting (suggesting a future event) a license.
 

cloudwalking

300chf ain't shit to me
man, in minnesota, i had to do a whole fucking obstacle course.

90 degree backing with flags. if you hit a flag you fail.
parallel parking with flags. if you hit a flag you fail.
driving around a maze of cones. if you hit a cone you fail.

i made it through all of that, god only knows how. what got me is that i almost hit another car on the main road, scared the living shit out of my instructor. needless to say i failed.

the second time i tried it, i blew through a stop sign not a block away from the beginning and failed.

i wish i could take a test as easy as the one bjork took... :(
 

golem

Member
AzN_F15h said:
thx for the replies, who has actually taken their driving test in the montbello dmv? where exactly did they make u go during the test?
i heard montebello was easy from my friends, but i wanted to flex my skillz in pasadena.. that was a while ago though

really failing is no big deal.. i failed once cuz my instructor's car was alot smaller than the car i ended up taking the test in (murdered some cones). next time was a breeze.
 
Dude, this is what you do: go to a particularly "ghetto" city to get tested. Once you've found one, make sure you are tested on an extremely busy day, that way the testers are in a rush and don't notice or don't care that you've made mistakes. :D

And the answer to your question: no, I didn't have to drive on the freeway.
 

AzN_F15h

Neo Member
CrystalGemini said:
Dude, this is what you do: go to a particularly "ghetto" city to get tested. Once you've found one, make sure you are tested on an extremely busy day, that way the testers are in a rush and don't notice or don't care that you've made mistakes. :D


good fuckin point!
 

Link

The Autumn Wind
bjork said:
I flubbed a 3-point turn (I never signaled once)
Ok, this was the sole thing I got docked for on my test, and I still don't know. How do you signal for a 3-point turn?
 

nitewulf

Member
i had to attempt the test 7 times. no, wait. let me explain.

1 - failed (the dude was very condescending for some reason).
2 - failed (i was driving too slow).
3 - car not allowed (rear window had low visibility, it's a convertible and the piece of plastic at the back got damaged).

so i fixed the top and got another date.

4 - car not allowed (expired safety check, didn't notice that...ugh. it takes only about 15 minutes to get it done, i went to a nearby garage and did it, but they didnt allow me to take the test that day).
5 - friend was supposed to drive me to the location and, uh, he didnt!
6 - car not allowed (so i fixed the top...but again, it's not glass but a piece of plastic, it was raining and visibility was low).
7 - i rented a car. yes. finally i decided to actually use my brain. rented a car from one of those schools just for the exam and decided to try my luck at jamaica, queens instead of brooklyn. the instructor drove me around the location just before the exam. there were some tricky stop signs and turns there. but i passed it w/o any problems. i had to parallel park and make a 3-point turn. but by this time i basically knew how to drive well, it was just a matter of being able to take the exam.

so i took the exam 3 times, the rest of the times i wasnt even given a chance to perform.

anyone attempting in nyc, never, ever take it in redhook, brooklyn.

Ok, this was the sole thing I got docked for on my test, and I still don't know. How do you signal for a 3-point turn?

this is what i did:
signal left, watch out for incoming cars, make a left, stop. put the shifter on reverse, signal right. reverse using your judgement so you have enough clearence at the front. stop. shift to drive, turn left and drive on.
make sure to look everywhere like a spaz so that the instructor thinks you're very attentive.
 
nitewulf said:
1 - failed (the dude was very condescending for some reason).
2 - failed (i was driving too slow).
3 - car not allowed (rear window had low visibility, it's a convertible and the piece of plastic at the back got damaged).

so i fixed the top and got another date.

4 - car not allowed (expired safety check, didn't notice that...ugh. it takes only about 15 minutes to get it done, i went to a nearby garage and did it, but they didnt allow me to take the test that day).
5 - friend was supposed to drive me to the location and, uh, he didnt!
6 - car not allowed (so i fixed the top...but again, it's not glass but a piece of plastic, it was raining and visibility was low).
7 - i rented a car. yes. finally i decided to actually use my brain. rented a car from one of those schools just for the exam and decided to try my luck at jamaica, queens instead of brooklyn. the instructor drove me around the location just before the exam. there were some tricky stop signs and turns there. but i passed it w/o any problems. i had to parallel park and make a 3-point turn. but by this time i basically knew how to drive well, it was just a matter of being able to take the exam.
Wow...That sucks...
 

Cooper

Member
ManaByte said:
Tell that to the Illegals who already have licenses.

If I recall correctly, it was repealed before it actually went into effect. There are no illegal aliens in California with valid liscenes.
 
having just come back from California I can honestly say I didn't think you guys had to take tests to get a license; I just figured the DMV handed them out with every Big Gulp purchase at 7-11 or something.

I was doing 75, the speed limit was 70, and I was still getting passed like I was parked. fucking insane.
 
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