Know good road test tips to
help you pass on the first try.

Driving skills exam

The road test for a drivers license, unlike the written test must be scheduled ahead of time either by phone or sometimes online.

 drive practice Tips:

Be familiar with the area you will be driving for the exam.

Several of my students choose to go to an office 30 minutes or more out of their way to take their drive exam because they have been told the route was easier there.

That is fine, but even if the route and examiners are easier at a distant office, remember that familiarity is half the battle of doing well when tested on your driving skills.

Being less familiar or unfamiliar with where you are tested will naturally increase your anxiety a bit and even if you don't seem more anxious, there could be a difficult, unexpected turn or intersection they take you through that could cause you to lose several points you wouldn't have lost if you knew the area.

If you choose a licensing office where you normally do not drive, get someone to take you out to that area as much as possible to practice driving so you will know what to expect on the roads where you will take the exam.

Know what specific skills you will be tested on and if possible, how the examiner will score those skills.

You can find this out several ways.

If you are taking a drivers education course with a professional drive instructor, your instructor will know what the drive examiners will be looking for and should let you know that information.

In some states, like Oregon,the back of the drivers license application has the score sheet the examiner will use,with the points that can be taken off for each error, as well as grounds for immediate failure.

check online. some states put put  tips for their road test on their website.

The Drivers manual may tell you what will be on your road test.

Ask someone at your local drivers licensing office. they will tell you where to find road test tips for the driving skills test.

Friends or siblings who have already taken their drive test and passed it are good resources for road test tips on what to expect on the exam.

Have plenty of drive practice to the point you can perform the basic drive skills confidently and easily as it would be second nature to you.

If you go to your drive test with very little practice and still get nervous on turns and lane changes without being tested, you will be much more likely to commit driving errors while you are tested because you will naturally be more nervous being tested and with someone you don't know.

Even if you don't do mistakes that take off points themselves, if an examiner sees a lack of confidence, they could choose to not pass you just for lack of confidence while driving.

Practice as much as possible the SPECIFIC skills the examiner will test you on.

Other than turning, lane changing and basic car control which you will normally be practicing while driving, the examiner will be required to have you perform other specific driving maneuvers. In some states you must parallel park on your test, or back around a corner, in Oregon you must pull to the curb and back in a straight line.

Find out those maneuvers they will have you perform and find someone who can help you master them with practice.
This is a road test tip that might require a professional drive instructor even if it's only for one or two lessons.

When I was learning to drive, my dad attempted to teach me parallel parking, but he wasn't a professional instructor, so he really didn't know how to show me the way to use reference points. I got most of the points taken off my drive test when parallel parking.

It wasn't until I became an instructor that I learned how to master parallel parking. I told my employer in my interview I wouldn't be able to teach parallel parking. Her response was "That will be easy, I'll show you the reference points". She did and now I can both teach and do parallel parking!

So the point is, get someone who knows how to teach you these skills or look on this website for how to do these maneuvers.
(Backing around a corner is using the same reference points as backing into a parking stall.)

If you have a drive instructor who has told you you are not ready to pass the test, trust them and get more practice before testing.

In my seven years of teaching people to drive, there has been only one student who I advised to get more practice before taking the test because I didn't think she would pass, and she surprised me and passed.

Others who I have tested that scored well below the passing mark with me, some have chosen to take the test anyway and sure enough they come within a few points of what I showed them they would and fail the test.

You might be that one out of 200 (or so) that may pass, chances are you won't be.

Have someone, preferably a professional instructor, or a parent, relative or friend give you a drive test and score you as an examiner would.

I do this this with all my students who are getting ready to take their drive test.
As stated above, my score turns out quite close to what score they actually get. (low or high score)

Road test tips for choosing when and where to test:

Check out the parking lot at the office you plan on taking the exam.

If the parking lot at the licensing office is small, tight and crowded with narrow stalls, think twice about using that office as a test site.

This may seem like an insignificant road test tip, however, parking at the end of your test can deduct points, possibly causing you to fail where you otherwise would have passed.

Also, if the examiner is waiting outside for you to park and you have a hard time parking for narrow stalls, although he would not have taken off any points for your exam then, it doesn't look good, putting thoughts in his mind about your driving skills, as well as making you more nervous.

If the licensing office is open on Saturdays, avoid setting your exam on a Saturday.

Any Drivers licensing office is going to be MUCH more crowded inside and outside of the office on a Saturday.

This means more stress on you and a higher chance of errors starting or ending the test in the parking lot because of more drivers coming in and out of the parking lot and stalls around you.

Road test tips for preparing your vehicle just prior to the exam.

Know all the controls of your vehicle well.

This would include the windshield wipers in case it rains.

Also know how to turn on the AC and the defogger of your vehicle.

I have had more than one student ON their drive test, drive into a pocket of moisture where the windows suddenly fogged up. They didn't know to turn the controls all the way to the right to get the windows to clear up. This happened on days when it was relatively dry. Neither failed the test, but lost points because of of it.

Make sure safety equipment is working on your vehicle a few days before your appointment at the DMV

This would include your head lights, turn signal lights and brake lights as well as the horn.

The examiner will make sure they all work before you test. If any of these are not working you will have to reschedule your test.

Checking these out a few days before, and maybe even the night before gives you time to get them fixed before your scheduled exam.

Road test tips for preparing yourself prior to the exam.

Get a good nights sleep the night before your test especially if it is is early in the morning.

This road test tip is good for driving any time.
Driving while you are very tired even without testing can cause more driving errors. More so if you are taking a drive test.
You should be well rested before your exam.

Have a good meal before your road test.

I have had more than one student who admitted they were distracted on their lesson because they hadn't eaten in a long time.

The last thing a driver being tested needs is any added distractions. Make sure it's a healthy meal too. Your body functions better on nutritious food than on junk food.

If you are feeling sick, exhausted or emotionally distracted just before your test, cancel it and take it another time.

It will be a waste of your time and money if you are charged a fee to take the driving exam, if you fail because you were not up to it emotionally or physically.

If it is raining so hard you can barley see out your wind shield or if there is heavy fog cancel your test.

The licensing office will cancel road tests for snow and ice, but not necessarily for fog or heavy rain.
That is up to you. I had a student fail her exam on a day it was raining buckets of down pour. I have no doubt she failed in large part because of the weather.

Road test tips for when taking the driving test

Don't do or say anything that may even slightly offend the examiner prior to or during your exam.

I had a student who had an examiner that was a very large person. She had trouble getting her seat belt on. My student finally asked if she wanted help with the seat belt.

This had offended her to the point that she took points off for errors she said he made that he didn't.

The examiner can find reasons to fail you even if there is no reason to. And you won't be able to argue your way out of it. So be as polite to them as possible.

Don't ask questions about the rules of the road or things you should know while driving when on the test.

I had a student ask the examiner if a signal light was red because he couldn't see it for sun glare. That question took off enough points to fail him.

That would be a legitimate question to ask your passenger while driving, but not the one testing your driving skills.

Don't be over confident of your drive skills.

This road test tip is useful even when not being tested.
If you are over confident in your driving skills you will tend to get careless and make errors you otherwise wouldn't.

Don't be under confident of your drive skills.

Under confidence means you are more nervous, not thinking as clearly causing you to make more errors in driving.

Also a drive examiner could choose not to pass you if he perceives a lack of confidence, taking this as lack of drive experience.

Don't bring attention to small mistakes you make during the test.

Your examiner might not even notice an error you know you made, but if you say "I shouldn't have done that" or something that brings attention to the error, the tester will feel compelled to take off points because you pointed out your own mistake.

Don't worry about what the tester is writing on the score sheet.

Your tester might just be writing comments without taking off points.
Worrying about what is being written is a distraction that could cause more errors. Concentrate on driving, not what the examiner is marking on the score sheet.