To teach my 3 sons to drive myself?

[girlwhowearsglasses]

One is 19 next week, the other two are 17 in July. DH never passed his test and is actually a good driver if only he could pass his theory and get a driving test.

i am beyond fed up of taxi-ing now as you can imagine. We are rural and no buses although the station to London is a 6 min drive (1.5 h walk though).

is there any way of doing this that doesn’t involve at least three sets of driving lessons! They do have jobs but also study and they just wouldn’t afford all the lessons themselves.

I bought the cheapest level of car for insurance last year and it’s insured for the 18 year old, and I’ll insure it for the other two too.

anyone taught their kids themselves? Or got some lessons to start and then gone forwards themselves? I’m quite patient and we do get on well….

My oldest is learning with my husband, but I have insisted we book in a few lessons before he takes his test, so we are confident we haven’t missed anything. He’s already passed his theory.

I took my DKs out for practice.. but I did the advanced driving test with a police examiner, and the way I now drive and DH is completely different. He still goes through all the gears to slow down at traffic lights..I was taught you can stop in any gear.. 2 DKs passed first time,1 second time..

The only time that my wonderful Dad and I argued was when he tried to teach me to drive and he was the most patient man imaginable. I wouldn't recommend it

I taught my son when he was 17 because his driving instructor kept messing him around. He had 6 hrs of proper lessons then me and him did several long drives where he drove for an hour, we stopped off in a pub then we drove for another hour etc. All fine with him but everyone is different

How is DH a good driver if he still hasn’t passed his test? It sounds like he doesn’t want to bother.

Surely the last time your dh was even behind the driving wheel was 16 years ago on the day he failed his test?

Why not? In other countries it is standard for parents to teach their children to drive and it used to be more common in the UK. If you have nerves of steel and an easygoing nature, as well as an ability to teach well, give it a go.

FWIW I should add that my dad learned to drive from his dad. Although my father was an excellent driver (truly among the best drivers I have ever known), he refused outright to teach my siblings and me. He said the stress of learning from his father was too intense and he had no interest in repeating that in the next generation!

Teaching your own kids to drive is quite common here. My brother taught his kids and the benefit was that they got a lot of extra lessons compared to a driving school. My parents did not teach us. Cause dad does not have the patience and mom is a nervous driver 😅

He’s 23 now, and that was the most vicious row we’ve ever had.

I booked him lessons first thing the next morning, with dh going, “I told you so” very smugly.

I will never attempt to teach any of the other children to drive. I now know why my dad refused to teach me.

I taught both my DC to drive at 17. Why can’t your DH pass his test? I have never known anyone ever to fail their theory test !

I taught DS. He had 4 or 5 lessons with an instructor but I took him out daily. He passed first time within 2 months of turning 17 after getting a cancellation.

In Ireland you HAVE to have so many lessons with an instructor before you are allowed out with your parent. I think that this is the case in Germany too.

My dad is teaching dd2 in her own car. But he was a driving instructor until he retired a few years ago. I take her out too. She’s quite a good little driver now.

I’m quite proud of the fact that I started both mine off from the start.
terrifying initially, but it was ok.
they had lessons from maybe a month onwards.

Yes! Do it yourself. Driving is mostly about experience.

It will depend on your nerves!! My dad always took me out so I didn't need many lessons. I literally drove everywhere. I had some lessons before sitting the test but this was 1997 and easy to get lessons and test dates!!

You might find you can do it with one child but not the other - my brother preferred an instructor!

We also lived very rurally so needed to drive.

It's safer to have a few lessons in a duel control car with a qualified instructor first. There is a method to passing the test that would challenge experienced drivers who have got into thier own habits. The instructors will also know the test routes and all the tricky things the examiners are looking to catch candidates out on.

I never took any of my four out. They only had lessons with a driving instructor mainly because they have dual control if anything went wrong.

My friends son passed without any lessons from a driving instructor BUT he is autistic & was very keen to drive ASAP so he did his research & his parents spent many hours with him in the family car & he passed 1st time! My son had around 15 lessons which is apparently quite low BUT he was driving my car with me at least once a day. I can't tell you how many hours we did but my petrol bill was sky high! Good luck!

They need to have lessons initially and then you take them out to practice & get experience. Then a few refresher lessons before the test.

Don't do the initial teaching - you will argue more than you think is possible & pass on all your bad habits & out of date practices.

We taught our 2 boys to drive ( both DH and me) and it was fine - there were some hairy moments but we started in a huge car park until they got the basics then did small quiet roads and then eventually bigger roads - but it took a lot of patience and there were definitely times when we all shouted at each other - apparently it’s not good to grab for the hand brake if you are feeling nervous! But keep at it and you will get there - the second was easier than the first - by the time you teach 3 you will be an expert!

That unfortunately is not equipping anyone for driving on real roads outwith island living.

we took dd out in the car a few times, always ended in snot and tears. I wouldn’t advise it unless you and your sons have the patience of a saint.

dd and ds are 22 months apart so was an expensive time however hey had part time jobs and we helped out with the odd lesson here and there after the initial 10 we bought as a gift for their 17th birthday.

Haha, my father used to take me to the local B&Q car park to practice. We spent most of it arguing!

2 kids taught and 1 to go.
I reckon you definitely need some proper lessons to learn how to pass the test, but definitely teach the basics yourself.
Empty car parks early morning / late evening to start with.
Definitely get them all driving - such a useful life skill. Worth the investment.

I did a mixture with my DC so started them off with a few sessions of basics eg clutch control and basic manoeuvres - then they had approx 10-12 lessons including road placement, basic traffic skills then I took them out for an hours practice each day until test
Both passed first time in under 6 months - although it was a few years ago and easier to book a test etc

In Australia, generally parents teach kids to drive. My son is learning at the moment. He has had a few lessons too, in a manual (mine is an auto) just to learn manual and get some of the trickier things like reverse parking.

out kids have to do 100 hours of logged driving to even go for the test. There is no way anyone could afford to pay for that so it has to be the parents.

its definitely been challenging teaching him however. But he’s improving slowly.