California driving test

[rlogan 2,036]

At least I can drive... And thanks for rating my english - really nice of you and very relevant. I was dead serious though...

Be as "deadly serious" as you like. Your opinion remains just as irrelevant. All the more entertaining watching you get your panties in a wad.

[Nina~ 431]

Stop with the bickering.

[socalgal 0]

Hi

I am from the UK, and came to California 3 months ago. I needed to get a California drivers licence to have car insurance, and so spent 4 hours in the DMV. I had to take the written test, and on the second go managed to luckily pass.

I was then issued with the temporary drivers licence which you can use until you pass your behind the wheel driving test.

I took the first test and failed, on something which in my view was not a "dangerous manoeuvre", and was rather upset, but came back for another go.

Today I retook the test and I really screwed it up. I went to turn left on a flashing yellow arrow and it turned red just at that moment. The examiner told me to stop, and I failed as he felt (justifiably) that he had to intervene. I can't believe that I did it, I was just a nervous wreck, and can drive around just fine normally!

I now have a new date for my 3rd go at the driving test which is in early December at Fullerton DMV (the site of the previous 2 failings).

I am so worried about not passing, but can't seem to find any information about what happens to someone on a temporary licence if they fail the third time. Can anyone help?

Thanks

Robodave -

First: welcome to Southern California, land of urban sprawl! Second: I feel your pain. I failed the behind the wheel driving test THREE times. And I grew up in California!!!

According to the California DMV website here and here, to apply for a Class C Driver's License, one of the items includes:

Pay a nonrefundable application fee. The fee is good for 12 months and allows you to take the appropriate law test(s) three times. If you fail the law test and/or driving test three times your application will be void, and a new application and fee are required. This fee pays for both the instruction permit and driver license, if you qualify for both documents within the 12-month period. If the application expires, you must resubmit documents, repay the application fee, and retake the required tests.

Since I was under 21 when I failed my behind the wheel driving test the 3rd time, I had to retake the permit test and WAIT A FULL YEAR before I could retake the written exam and the behind-the-wheel exam. In retrospect, the 1 year delay was good for me and others since it allowed me to gain more maturity behind the wheel. I understand that with you being in SoCal from the UK, having a car to get from place to place is a necessity and the extra wait time is not an option. I don't know if this one year wait even applies to adults over 21 so it may be worthwhile to call the DMV, though wait times for speaking with a live operator will be loooong.

My suggestion would be: take a deep breath and try to relax behind the wheel. You may be freaking yourself out more than need be! It's a cliche but you do have to sort of put on a "show" for the examiner so go slow but steady.

Best of luck to you.

[ladyrant 0]

Best advice I can give is to try a new DMV center but get used to the area. The one I went to was the Laguna Hills/Aliso Viejo location. A week leading up to the test, I went every day at different times, driving around, getting used to all the speeds of the area, wandering between major roads and residential roads and what not. If you're comfortable with the area, that's one less thing to stress you out. Good luck!

Edited November 14, 2012 by Da Ly