hi so i am living in a notoriously strict driving test prefecture :/ and i am having a bit of trouble with the test. the test proctors i’ve had have had contradicting feedback (i go with someone who translates it for me after so i can’t ask questions while they’re speaking japanese very like mild n4). does anyone have any good tips or websites that they had found and used prior to? i’ve been using a website that is like a japan based website but i was wondering if anyone had any special things they learned and used
i don’t currently have time to make it to a driving school unfortunately. but are there any of you that passed in a strict prefecture without a driving school?
thank you in advance i am very sad 🙁
6 comments
Note: this was 15~ years ago in Saitama.
I passed on my first try which, according to my company, was unheard of. I read a bunch of guides to passing the test and followed them to the letter:
* Theatrically check your mirrors and blind spot when merging onto the road.
* Hang very far left – basically 25~ centimeters from the curb. Because apparently that’s how people drive instead of in the middle of the lane.
* Watch out for the four-way intersection. I don’t know how I passed but I had to suddenly brake there because I almost blew through the stupid thing.
* Get lucky with your instructor and hope the person before you is really bad (mine was a Japanese woman who had lived in the US who was absolutely horrendous).
Like, I made it *very* clear that I was looking over my shoulder and the instructor still warned me about checking properly. Then when I reached a separate intersection I had to basically break the law because the Brazilian woman in the other car (who had stopped before me and had the right of way) was giving me this deer-eyed stare as if her passing or failing the test was contingent on me going first. Since she was sobbing her eyes out after the test I imagine it wasn’t.
Literally two people from my group of 20~ passed: an Iranian guy with whom I checked the course out beforehand and me. I promptly caused a major accident three days later. I am a terrible driver.
As mentioned exaggerate your movements, stay calm (as they may throw a curveball your way), and treat it as a game and not real driving. In my case it was two tries, and the instructor also worked at the driving school a few doors down… Pay to play.
I was told that the speed limit is about 60kph unless posted otherwise – but to also drive as defensively as possible.
Im still getting comfortable driving on the right side of the car, so besides physical orientation, my struggle is not turning at red lights (just left, not across traffic).
Otherwise I’m no help. I’m an American in the “countryside” near Tachikawa.
Don’t take a whole class, but talk to a driving school to find an instructor who can run you through the course for an hour or two. They can teach you the non-intuitive things on the test course (like when to signal on the S-curve & what exactly they look for on the crank section, or that the cone is supposed to be a dumpster on the side of the road or whatnot), and give you some tips on the specific course. Well worth it.
I did the test with a wheel loader, so it’s probably a bit different. But I found a bunch of youtube tutorials on how to pass the more difficult parts of the test.
You’re probably already doing this, but just in case you’re not, learn the 2 (?) different routes available by heart. There’s probably a monitor with the map in the waiting area.
Especially if your Japanese is still a bit shaky it’s probably nice not to have to decipher where they want you to drive. Good luck!
I pass first try at the most difficult drive school in Osaka (last year), they make u drive in highway and downtown . All other people sitting with me failed just because the car was too close the white line, wrong speed limit in urban area with no signalization, wrong order checking to change lines with the 3 seconds rule…very simple stuff.
I did the musasi.jp non stop every day multiple times and followed it step by step. 😂