About Advanced Driving |
The Benefits | The "System of Car Control" |
Costs
| Motorway/Skid Control | FAQs
Full membership of the IAM is based around passing the advanced driving test and
our observed drive programme is designed to help you achieve this. But what
exactly happens during the test ? Is it like an ordinary driving test, who are
the examiners and what are they looking for ?
The Test
The advanced driving test is not a repetition of your
original DOT test - for a start it will hopefully be a lot more enjoyable! The test
itself takes approximately 1.5 hours - about 1 hour of driving with a half hour
debrief and your examiner will be a police (or
ex-police) class 1 driver - i.e. a highly trained & professional driver. Typically you'll
arrange the date & time with him or her directly at a location convenient to you
both and from there you'll be taken on a route that covers all sorts of road
conditions and regulations - very similar to the roads you'll have been round on
your SLAM observed drives.
Although of course it's a test, the atmosphere is normally much more relaxed than
you might expect and the examiner
will make you feel at ease as you continue your drive. He will no
doubt make notes throughout but don't worry, these may simply be observations or
minor things he'll point out at the end. Good points are noted too so don't
automatically assume you're making mistakes just because notes are being
taken!
The Test is designed to give you a thorough workout of driving ability, allowing you to alter your
driving style according to the conditions and environment of the road and
allowing you to show your driving skills. The types
of road vary from quiet country roads, to motorways and busy town centres.
Remember, the examiner will be looking for a
good & safe standard of driving throughout the entire test, including ...
-
Good observation
-
Maintaining good progress within the prevailing conditions
-
Remaining legal
-
Allowing for the actions of others at all times
As part of your drive, you may also be ...
- Asked to perform one or more manoeuvres, designed to show your car control
skills
- Asked one or more questions relating to the highway code or road signs
- Invited to give a running commentary as part
of your drive. This is optional component but often recommended where possible.
Don't worry all of these points are demonstrated, discussed and worked on as
part of your SLAM observed drives. If you have any questions on any of these,
just ask your observer - they've all done it themselves and will be happy to help.
The Debrief
At the end of the drive you'll arrive back at your starting point. The examiner
will then go through his or her notes with you, outlining where you did well and
possibly areas you might look to improve on. These are then used to complete
the test report, which is shown below. It is the answers given on this report that determine
whether you pass your IAM test ...
As you can see, the document is divided into a number of key areas, similar to
your observed drive reports. The examiner will be assess your competency level
(graded 1 - 5) in each of the categories listed throughout the entire drive.
Based on your scores here, you will be recommended for membership of the IAM.
The Result
At SLAM, our observed drives are designed to ensure you have attained the
expected levels of skill before we suggest you should apply for your
test. Before the test you will also have the option of driving with one of our
senior observers, just to make sure you're "test ready". By
running our programme in this way, we are
proud of the high success rate achieved.
If you're not quite ready for this just yet, or you're new to advanced motoring,
we can help! Alternatively, why not
book a free assessment drive and see what's
involved for yourself!