Ultimate driving tips to make your time on the road infinitely easier

When you’ve just passed your test, heading out on the road by yourself can be an unnerving experience. Without an instructor or parent by your side, the importance of making the right decision at the right time can seem all the weightier. Luckily though, there are many pieces of good advice floating around that can make life a lot easier for new drivers. Here’s a rundown…

Drive a vehicle appropriate for you

Many new drivers will be using a car owned by their parents for the first few years, but some will be lucky enough to have their own. Buying a minibus is a great idea – if not too old and battered it should have plenty of years ahead of it, especially if you take care of it. Far less expensive to drive off the forecourt than a new vehicle, minibus insurance and tax costs should also be lower. One thing it’s crucial to bear in mind is the car’s power – as a new driver, you don’t want to have anything too fast that will set nerves jangling with insurers, or parents.

Many used car dealers will have a wide selection of vehicles appropriate for those who have just passed their tests – see here for example – and these are ideal to see you safely and cost-effectively through your first years of driving before you’re ready to move up a level.

Practise makes perfect

When you’re learning to drive, you acquire a vast store of knowledge and skills in a relatively short time. Constant practise should continue once you have your license though – just simple stuff like reverse parking, hill starts, checking your mirrors before performing a manoeuvre, or emergency stops. That way they should become a natural part of your driving routine – well, not the emergency stops hopefully – but the abilities are stored away for whenever you need them.

Drive to conditions

You will presumably be well-acquainted with your own neighbourhood, or part of the area you live, on account of having taken your lessons there. In the months following your test, try and drive these familiar roads under difficult conditions whenever they occur, such as at night, or during heavy rain, snow or fog. Taking it nice and slowly, this should build up your ability to cope if you are ever caught in bad weather on terrain with which you are less familiar.

Keep your distance

The safe amount of distance you ought to keep between your car and the vehicle in front varies depending on how fast you’re travelling, but while you’re still in transition from new driver to experienced driver, it makes sense to add on a little more. In addition to keeping your distance and regularly monitoring your speed, it helps to learn how to read the road ahead. Try and anticipate what traffic conditions are likely to be ahead – for instance, are two lorries close together in the slow lane on the motorway? The one at the rear may be about to pull out and overtake. Or are you entering a built-up area? Speed limits are likely to fluctuate soon.

Look after your car

Few of us are blessed with a natural ability to understand cars, but we can all take care of the basics. Keeping your oil and wiper fluid regularly topped up; checking your tyre pressure; keeping the windscreen clean and free of splattered bugs, and learning how to change a flat tyre. In the long-term these can make life on the road so much easier – saving you money on repair bills, on fuel, and making you safer.

Start with a plan

If you’re planning on making a long journey, then do some preparation before you leave. First and most importantly, check your car is in good working order. Second, check the weather conditions, and be ready for them. If heavy snow is forecast for example, then it’s not impossible you could encounter long delays. Keeping a bottle of water, some snacks, a blanket and a charged mobile phone in the car could pay off. And if long traffic tailbacks are expected, planning ahead can help you find alternative routes.

Lose the gadgets

We all know by now the danger of using the phone while driving, but our cars are still stuffed full of gadgets, from mobiles to DVD players, CD changers and GPS systems. Try to keep what’s in use to a minimum to reduce the potential for distraction from the road. If you need to make a call, send an email or text, change a CD, key in a new route to your sat-nav – pull over and do it. Don’t run the risk of getting a fine, points on your license, or worse.

Insurance

The costs of insuring a car can be prohibitive, and are forcing many young drivers off the road. Do everything you can to minimise them – drive an appropriate vehicle, drive safely, and always shop around when it’s time to renew it.