The time has finally come. You have taken driving lessons, passed your theory exam and your instructor has registered you for a practical exam. You will soon have this exam, but you may have no idea what a practical exam looks like. This is important because then you know what to expect. Sit down and read information about your exam to be well prepared for the exam and to show the examiner what you can do!
All over the internet you can find tips and summaries on how to get yourself through your car theory exam. This is not the case for your practical exam. You can of course find different things but no extensive tips. Since the car practice exam is something you can really dread, here are several tips that may help you.
What does a practical exam look like?
It is important that you know roughly what to expect. This gives peace of mind. The examiner will also explain what to do and what will happen. You go to the waiting area with your instructor. You wait there until you are called. Then you go with your instructor to the table number that is on your invitation. The examiner introduces himself and you can introduce yourself. The examiner will ask you various questions and will check your identity card. The examiner will often ask if you like him talking to you now and then. If you don’t want this, you can say so. Note that you can concentrate better if you don’t have to think about what to say to the examiner when he asks you something. When everything has been checked and discussed, you walk to the car with the examiner. You can also know for yourself whether the instructor is riding in the back. This is so smart. If you fail, he knows exactly what extra you need to practice on.
The practical exam consists of the following components:
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Eye test
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Theory assignment
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Ride a bit
Eye test
First you get a ‘viewing assignment’. You have to read a number plate from about 25 meters. This is so that it can be checked whether your eyes are good and whether you can see things far in front of you.
Theory assignment
Then you will receive an assignment that you have learned for your theory exam. This may require you to say something about the car’s tires. The examiner may also ask if you can point out certain things under the hood. When the weather is bad, you will usually be asked about the inside of the car. These can be the buttons, such as the air conditioning. The examiner may also ask whether you can operate your low beam or windscreen wipers, for example. You have to show this by using the lever.
Ride a bit
Most students pass the eye test and the theory assignment well. The short drive is something that almost everyone dreads. This is logical, you do not know which situations you will encounter and how you will react to them.
The examiner will indicate where you need to go. If he doesn’t say anything, just go straight ahead.
The ride consists of various parts.
Driving on navigation or to a specific point
The examiner asks you if you want to set the navigation at a certain point, for example the station. Make sure you have already practiced this with your instructor. You drive on the navigation to the station. For example, if the navigation tells you to turn left, but you forget or you are so focused on driving, don’t turn left without mirroring and indicating direction. Just keep driving and listen for the next navigation hint.
The examiner may also ask if you want to drive to a particular point by following the signs. Pay attention to the signs, but also keep a close eye on the traffic. It is better not to arrive at your end point but drive safely, or arrive at your end point and not drive safely.
Reverse command
The examiner orders you to turn around on this street. You can choose from the various reversal options.
Review the situation and decide which option is safest and best in the street. Take the first possible place to turn the car. If you pass all the good places, you are out of the street. Here you can be judged as insecure driving and not find a suitable place in time.
Parking order
The examiner asks you to park the car in a space. This can be parallel parking, but also just parking in a box. Take your time and drive slowly to find a suitable seat. By driving slowly you can also better see if it is safe. Also take a good look around the car to make sure there are no children or cyclists playing that you can bump into. You also make sure there are no cars, because when parking you let all other traffic go first. Do not look too closely, because the examiner will see whether you are looking or not.
Highway
The highway is something that many students dread because you have to deal with high speed here. Also, the insertion can be something that you are a little scared of because you are afraid that you will not be able to intervene, especially during rush hour. Be yourself and show that you dare. Take your moment if you think you can insert and then just do it. Once you are on the highway, maintain your speed. A common mistake is that you are so concentrated on the other traffic that your speed drops. Try to avoid this! The examiner will also indicate when you have to cancel. If you really can’t get through the traffic to exit because it is too busy, for example, just continue. Do not try to push the car between other traffic. This is dangerous, so just keep driving. Take the first exit lane and show that you recognize dangerous situations where you cannot exit.
Driving itself
The examiner will give directions where you should turn left or right. Pay close attention to the situations you encounter. Give neat right of way where necessary and pay close attention when turning. Don’t forget your shoulder, the blind spot is very important!
You may also need to do the incline test while driving. This is counted as a special maneuver. That means that you don’t have to park and turn around, but you do have to do one of those two.
Back at the CBR
If you have shown what you can do, there is of course the moment when you will hear whether you have passed or if you unfortunately have to try again. Try not to be too nervous about this. You have done your best and you cannot change it anymore. If you fail, the examiner will tell you this and he will also tell you why he thinks you are not ready to ride alone.
If you pass, the examiner will congratulate you and explain how to apply for your driver’s license.
Tips for the practical exam
Don’t tell everyone when to drive off
Of course you are proud that your instructor thinks you are ready to take the exam, but don’t tell everyone when to take the exam. The day or morning before your exam, you may receive many messages and phone calls from people wishing you success. This is all very sweet and well-intentioned, but this only gets on your nerves more. This can influence your driving behavior because you also want to show all those people that you really can!
Your driving lessons
Make sure you have taken sufficient driving lessons. If you think you haven’t practiced enough yet, don’t let your instructor schedule yourself for the exam yet! Only when you are sure that you have mastered driving, you can find a date where you will be scheduled. If you think you can’t drive well yet, you’re insecure behind the wheel and you’re more likely to make mistakes.
The day before the exam
Make sure you are well rested. The night before your exam, do something relaxing and go to sleep on time. Don’t go to sleep too early because you will wake up early the next day and only make yourself more nervous. Be careful with sleep aids if you’re worried that your nerves can’t sleep. Usually sleep aids only work for a few hours and then you are wide awake. Because of this you are not yet equipped for your exam!
The morning of the exam
Eat a banana before driving. Bananas contain substances that affect your ability to concentrate. This allows you to concentrate better during the exam. Have a cup of coffee so that you are well awake. Be careful with coffee on an empty stomach because it can have a laxative effect. If you smoke more often, smoke a cigarette against the nerves. Don’t take your first cigarette for your exam because this can also have a laxative effect and you don’t want that on your exam.
Don’t get too nervous
This is of course easy to say but much more difficult. Try to relax in the car anyway. All you have to do is go for a spin with someone to see if you have areas for improvement or if you are competent to drive yourself. An examiner is also just a person and he also makes mistakes when driving a car. Nobody can drive perfectly. That is why you are allowed to make mistakes. But be careful not to make big mistakes such as not giving way to traffic from the right.
Driving procedure B
You can download Driving Procedure B from the CBR website. It states exactly what the examiner pays attention to and what he expects from you. This may contain things that you never pay attention to or that you may not know at all.
Questions to your instructor
If you have any questions about something, ask your instructor. Your instructor is there for a reason and you pay him a lot of money so you can expect him to answer your questions.
The examiner
Don’t worry too much about what the examiner should think about you if you don’t talk to him / her much. The examiner understands very well that you prefer to concentrate on the situations and the road. This is also much more important than talking to the examiner.
Give yourself time
Give yourself time to think about a situation. If you approach an intersection that is unclear, dare to brake and downshift so that you can see if you need to give way. Safety is paramount during the exam. That is why it is important to check whether you can continue driving safely.
Stay yourself
The last tips is: stay yourself. Don’t do things that you think are better than what you learned and you could make big mistakes. Do what you learned from your instructor and don’t make things up yourself.
Good luck with the exam! If it doesn’t work, just go for it again! The saying is for a reason: Persevere’‘