Just done assesment drive this morning with Wallace in Wembley and found it all quite hard they said i need 5 days training plus test on the 6th day had a lot of trouble getting used to the brakes and gears and not knowing the area did not help had know idea where i was or where i was going to all in all quite stressful have not signed up yet anyway feeling a bit down about it all thought about going up to ■■■■■■■ to do it as thats where im from originally and i know the roads like the back of my hand maybe that would help
Er, in fear of pointing out the obvious, the likelihood of you only driving on roads in ■■■■■■■ that you know “like the back of your hand” is, in all fairness, highly unlikely. Maybe you should forget about it if that is your main concern?
Knowing the roads isn’t really relevent, after all you’d have still had the same problems with the gearbox and brakes. I wouldn’t feel too disappointed though as you’ve only had one drive and these things obviously take time to get used to.
mrpj:
Knowing the roads isn’t really relevent, after all you’d have still had the same problems with the gearbox and brakes. I wouldn’t feel too disappointed though as you’ve only had one drive and these things obviously take time to get used to.
I would agree Andy, and I wouldn’t get too down about it, after all, the assessment drive is for the instructor to determine the right approach for you, length of tuition etc etc, but its a totally new experience for you, I don’t think you can judge yourself too harshly, or expect that you can accurately assess your own capabilty after only 1 relatively short assessment drive. After all, what were you like the 1st time you drove a car?
Steve
If you used the gears correctly first time you would be a god amonst men this is what you will be paying the tuition for , and as for knowing your way around will you know where to go when you are sent on a run on your first job not likely.I am on day 4 of training on monday and I am still making ■■■■ ups on the gears it will come in time believe me thats what I tell my self and when I do make a mess of the gears I am a bit hard on myself and call myself all manner of names and all the instructor says is just forget it and carry on its normal and not to dwell on it and mess the rest of the drive up.So my advice would be to have a think about what you want to do but believe me after you have been behind that wheel for a few hours it starts to get quite fun 
especially narrow lanes and 44 tonnes coming the oposite way 
thanks guys i guess i am a bit hard on myself always like to be a expert at everything i do but them brakes are a bugger nearly put the instructor through the windscreen at one point
thanks everyone again
I am still making ■■■■ ups on the gears /quote]
I’ve been driving the same vehicle every day since January and done about 40,000kms in it and still make mistakes from time to time. Nobody drives perfectly, there is always room for improvement.
Andy,
good one!! What sort of truck was it?
I did my assessment in a Merc Atego (1843■■) box truck with J Coates in Coventry. It was the biggest thing I’d ever driven, and I found the brakes, gears, and steering to take a lot of getting used to. It was fairly stressful, and I was glad to get out of the truck at the end.
Also the length of the thing. I kept misjudging corners etc…oh and I pulled out on someone on a roundabout, not appreciating how slow these things accelerate, and how much of the body is actually behind you!!!
I ended up doing a 7 day course, but I passed first time!!#
So good luck with your course! 