History Earning your license,how was your drivers test?

I got my license the day I turned 16. I was there before the DMV even opened. I aced the written test, then the state trooper took me on the driving part of the test. We were in the family's 67 Bonneville convertible. He had me to parallel park it in downtown Winchester Va. He said, he was surprised that I could do it. He also said, that he would have passed me, even if I couldn't have got it into that space. I still Own the Pontiac. { This is my Mom and I.} I'm 16 in the photo. But it's not the day that I got my license. Ron...

 

My wife was 15 when we married. So I signed for her to get her learners permit. taught her to drive a 63 chevy shortbed with a V8 stick and a 66 ford F600. She studied the book and easily passed the written test. When she turned 16 she went to take the driving part. They gave the test at the old courthouse. The regular Guy who done the testing wasn't there that day. It was a young rookie just joined the force. He got in with Debbie scooted over on the seat next to her and had her drive past the police station. He honked the horn and waved as they Drove past.

 

Took mine in Mom's 1972 Kingswood wagon. I think I was about two months shy of my 18th birthday (late due to my older brother wrecking that same wagon. Twice. The first time before he had his license.) As I recall, I got an 86 on the written, passed the visual and passed the driving test. That night, we were going out somewhere, older brother (yeah, that one) let me drive "his" car. Foggy as all get-out, I'm scared and he's doing his usual yelling and fault-finding. Got to the end of the road we were on (roughly 8 mile stretch) and I let him take over, mostly to get him to shut up.

 

I had borrowed my girlfriend's mother's '70 Maverick. She drove me to the test site. It was a roasting hot day in early July and the Maverick (with an automatic) must have stalled out at least 10 times on me. I was sweating bullets by the end and felt I did okay considering. Of course at the time they didn't tell you whether you passed or failed. My license came the next week in the mail.. passed 1st shot.

 

I remember when my son took his test. Everything went well until the end. The DMV building has a STOP line painted at one corner, then you turn left and go to the rear of the building for parking. Dick of an inspector took points off my son because he "didn't signal" when making the turn after the stop. Choices: turn left to parking, go straight, across grass to DOT garage or turn right into an occupied parking space.

 

Since I had just finished drivers Ed I didn't have to take the written test. I got marked off 5 points on driving test because I went over 5 mph on the parking lot. Yup.... I didn't see the speed limit sign!

Sent from my Moto G Play using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

How sad, I don't even remember the drivers ed or the test. Pretty much bullshit since all the teachers knew I'd been driving to school since jay high.

 

March 1982, I took my drivers test in a 1976 Jeep Wagoneer. I had been allowed to drive in the summers since I was 13 up in Maine and I was used to the Jeep. So, when we were back home in CT. I went for my license and took the instructor out. He asked me what kind of vehicle and I told him and he seemed real pleased, whatevs. We did the usual check of the vehicle and drove around just fine so he told me to go back to the DMV. When we got there, I guess he thought he'd be tricky and asked me to back the Wagoneer into a parking spot he pointed out. So, I judged it, pulled past the spot, hit the turn signal put the wheel over to the left and backed it perfectly quicker than it took me to write this. He just looked at me and said, "Damn, you can drive." I was so happy, all I could do was stammer out a thank you.

 

Only written test I every got 100% on!

 

Easy Peasy for me, took the test on my 16th birthday in my sister's 58 Ford, had a lot of time/miles in that car. It was after I had a licence that I had so much trouble keeping it, Street racing and driving like an Ass got me into a fair amount of trouble back in the day.

 

It was easy is all I recall. I borrowed our youth group leaders '54 Buick Super 2drht. At that point in my young life, 1959, I had close to 7 or 8 years worth of country driving experience.

What was fun though was our drivers training program. Our high school had a couple '56 Ford Victoria 4 door sedans, V8, duals, with 3 speeds on the column. There were two girls and me and another guy in the car first time out. I was the only one who supposedly had experience at all and with a stick to boot so I drove first. So I was directed to pull out of the lot and proceed down the block in front of the school. About half way down the street the instructor says to parallel park it ...in the only spot that I had just seen a VW bug pull out of. I nailed it in one and he said, "turn it off and get in the back." I spent two driving days a week for about three weeks back there while he waded through teaching the other 3 how to drive a stick. He was a rather profane football coach...it was a hoot.

 

Two things happened in April of '64. I turned 16 and my dad bought a brand new black falcon ranchero with a 260 V/8 and a 4 speed. I took my driver's test in that car and aced it 1st time. Man, that thing would lay rubber!

 

I don't remember the car I took the driving test in but just before the exam ended we were on a street just before the return to the license bureau the examiner told me to pull over and park the car like I was parking it for the night including engine off.
I pulled and up to the curb nice and parallel put it in park and turned off the engine.
The examiner asked if there was something I missed. No I replied. He then proceeded to tell me I failed to turn my wheels out and let it rock back into the curb as I was on a down hill.
I was shocked. In truth the road was not level but.......down hill would be an exaggeration.
I take it he didn't like to give 100% so this was his way.

 

Nothing eventful in the driving test for me. Sat the written test on my 15th birthday and aced it. Couldn't fit me in for the physical driving test for another two weeks. Man, that was the loooooongest two weeks of my life!

Bear

 

Me & you both,I could wall paper my room with all the tickets I got. HRP

 

I missed the muscle car deal, when I finally made enough $$$ to buy one the insurance cost per month was more than my house payment, So.... Never had a muscle car, never got a break on insurance till I was 25, then I bought a new truck for towing Midget racer.

 

Got my learners permit at 14 in 1959.Aced the written.Got my regular at 16 in 61.Took test in my Fathers 53 Studebaker with 3sp OD transmission.Examiner said that he did`nt even want to do the road test as he knew that I had been driving since I was 12.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

 

I remember mine. It was a big deal.
I was raised by a single mother with 3 boys...I was the oldest.
I took drivers ed. in HS. That's as far as it went. Spent one fraction of what seemed like eternity with my mother in a 67 Buick Electra 225. It went like "ahhh!, slow down...watch that light pole (20 ft away)...hit the brakes!!
We were in a vacant grocery store parking lot. As you can tell, she wasn't patient or a self esteem builder. So she told me, "I'm not cut out for you to learn how to drive" AND "you are going to get your license at 18, I'm not going to be responsible for you being on my insurance!"
So it went like that for a year and a half.
Now, I was 17 1/2 yrs old.
I couldn't wait, totally disregarded my mother's wishes. So, with the little money I had, I opened up the yellow pages and found a reasonably priced hole in the wall driver's school. I called the guy and he said that I could have my license within an hour. Stupid 17 yr old said "oh right!"
The rummy pulled up to my house and off we went. Did the usual pointers on good driving. After one hour, he said "Yep you're ready for the driver's test" and went to the DMV. One hour of driving showed well in my confidence on the road test. Actually, I did really good. So, I was blitzing, thinking I got this! The tester asked me to parallel park. Ok, I got this, perfect. He told me to pull out. Great, we're heading back and get my license. We got back and he said you did great, BUT when you pulled out from parallel parking you didn't look over your shoulder....therefore, you didn't pass. Fuck!
I'll live that til infinity.
The second time out my head was I
on a swivel, looking everywhere. Passed easily.
Kind of disconcerning, not passing for the first time knowing my aunt hit 2 parked cars and still passed. I think that was in the 50s.

 

I did fine on the written test.
In CT you go with a motor vehicle inspector for the on the road portion of the test.
The inspector met me at the door and asked which car we were taking the test in.
I said the gold '68 GTO across the parking lot, he began to shake his head and muttered something under his breath as we walked towards the car.
We got in, I put on my seatbelt, fired her up, blipped the throttle a couple of times, and he asked if this is the car I would be primarily driving. With a big grin I said yup, he began to shake his head again and muttering to himself!
The rest of the test was uneventful, I will never forget that day as long as I still have a memory!
KK

 

I was suppose to take my road test in my brothers girlfriends 69 Camaro convertible. Easy to see around and judge distance.Damn thing had a dead battery that day so I had to take my moms 76 Chevy Van. What a difference!! I still passed the test but it sure was a nervous and stressful day!

And the school could still show the old drivers ed movies with skulls sticking out of windshields.Got your attention to not be a dope.

 

I aced the written test but was nervous about the driving test for some reason. As the tester and I walked out to mom's '72 Buick dad pulled up in his truck and hit the horn. When I told the tester it was my dad he asked if I was going to eventually get my CDL to drive truck, I replied as soon as I could that I had been driving dump truck for a couple years. I drove the tester around the block and he booked my CDL test for the following week.

 

I learned to drive in my dad's '74 Chevy conversion van with a 350, a heavy duty clutch, and a 3 on the tree. I remember the sounds of cabinet doors banging around as I lurched that thing around the parking lot.

I took Traffic Ed from a teacher we called Mr. Ear Beard. My first day in the school car he said "turn right here", so I did. I guess my instructor expected my to lift, maybe even tap the brake, before I turned.... We were split into 2 groups, one group would drive while the other group was left in the care of some seniors to study. The seniors took all of our lunch money off of us in nickel anti poker games. We managed to tear the top off of an overhead projector cart after a bad crash racing it in the hallway.
At 15 1/2 I took my test and easily passed even though I got docked for the rubber fish on a string my mom had hanging from her mirror.
My first day loose with my car, I scuffed a beater pickup in a parking lot and then got badly stuck up a logging road with a buddy. We pulled over to take a leak and sunk in a ditch that was drifted in with snow. We were stuck several hours and when I got home my stepdad looked like he was going to choke me. I thought he was mad, but he was more worried.


Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I was living in Altus, Oklahoma in 1972 when I turned sixteen. On the day the drivers tests were given you had to take the written test, and if you passed you went outside to where the driver's Ed cars were parked. Standing by each car was a genuine Oklahoma State Trooper, just waiting for their next victim. I couldn't spit I was so nervous. I don't recall my trooper's name but I can still see his face. He was strictly business, and I think if he would have yelled "boo" at me I would have crapped my pants. But, I passed. After several of us heroes who had passed had returned to the classroom we were taken by an older trooper to a conference room where we were given a breakdown on several fatal accidents, including some nice color pics of some very dead people. It was sobering to say the least, and 45 years later I can still recall most of the details.

 

Not ME but my cousin..She was all of 4 ft 6" maybe? She shows up in her Dad`s big Ford 1-ton Highboy 4X4 truck..no powersteering.. 4spd stick..with a camper on it ...Her sitting on a phonebook .. The instructor opens the door ..sees her driving..and about fainted..."What is this ? a joke ? No way.. you little lady ain`t gonna pass this test in this big old truck" Well guess what ? She did .Even when he made her parallel park it.. last i heard she`s driving semi ..still gotta sit on an extra thick cushion to see tho....

 

I had been driving since I was about ten.I had my learners permit at 14.I STILL had to take the test twice! I showed up the first time to take the test in my 55 Ford with a 292 ,3 on the floor and burned out glasspacks.The examiner looked at that and told me to come back when I had a "decent,safe car".I came back the next day with Dads 60 ford station wagon 223,3 on the tree and took the test in that.

 

Mine was uneventful but my wife was a sorta different story. She grew up in upstate SC, started driving when she was 14 but didn't get a license. Finished high school and moved to HRP's hometown to go to college. Still no license. Moved to Charlotte a couple years later for 3 more years of school. Still no license. Graduated from nursing school with no license. Moved to Asheville for an RN job in a hospital. Still no license. Bought a house. Still no license. Got promoted to supervisor after about a year at her job and still didn't have a license. Bought and paid for a new car, registered and insured in her dad's name since she sure as hell couldn't get insurance with no license.

About the time she turned 26 she decided she really ought to get a license. Been driving for 12 years and never stopped for any reason and never went thru a license check on the road. So she goes and takes the test. Not hard to pass when you've already been driving for nearly half your life. Now she's legal.

And 2 days later, she gets in a crash. Other driver's fault and no one hurt, so no big deal. The trooper mentioned the fact that her license was just issued 2 days previous and she told him she'd moved here from SC and just got her license. Didn't bother to explain she'd moved here 4 years ago. And of course she'd borrowed the car she was driving from her dad since it still had SC plates and the registration was in his name.

Of course, if either of our kids had even thought about driving with no license she woulda grounded them until they were at least 40 years old.

 

In Wisconsin, they used to require people to take a drivers test at age 75. My grandfather took his first drivers test at age 75. He got his license originally by sending in 25 cents.

I didn't have any problems with the tests. Got everything right on the written and nothing noted on the road test.

 

In my Dad's '62 Valiant stationwagon, driven to the driver's license testing place by my neighbor and best friend, Wes. I was doing well, and was asked to parallel park. Nailed it! Test inspector said it was the best he'd seen all day, then asked me to back up and pull away. As I did, he kept saying,"Watch the car behind you, watch the car behind you." I looked through the back window, out the side mirror and didn't see any car, then promptly smacked the little dowel that was anchored into the tin can of concrete representing a "car" behind me. Hitting a "car" during the driver's test absolutely has to be a flunk. Well, I passed by one point. On the way home, with me driving, Wes and I are talking excitedly and he suddenly says, "Stop sign. STOP SIGN!"
I blew right through the intersection. I came to a stop a few hundred feet away, realizing what I'd just done. Then I drove home slowly, carefully, quietly. With my new license. Barely.

 

Took the test the morning of my 16th birthday in Arlington, VA in my Dad's '69 Camaro. It wasn't a hod rod, 307 2bbl automatic. But I did get a ticket driving to the DMV. An older friend was riding shotgun so I could drive. We went through a roadblock and got pulled to the side. I didn't know why. The county required a sticker in addition to the state tag and my Dad never bothered to pay for one. He'd done it for years but I was the one that got busted. Passed the test but had to go to court. The ticket got tossed. The judge was a soccer coach in the same league. He just wanted to make sure we'd spent the $5 for the county sticker.

 

I failed my first written test and had to come back and take it over. passed it the second time so I could do the driving part. I was in my sisters blue 67 Impala fastback, a pretty long car. I did all right until he picked a spot for me to parallel park that was about the same length as the car. I tried. I bumped the car behind and then bumped the car ahead. FAIL. he told me to go back to the start. The next time I took it the only spot to park was behind a car in an alley opening. No problem and I finally passed the Damn test.