What happens during the driving test
You’ll drive for around 35 minutes (or 65 minutes if you’re taking an extended driving test because you’ve been banned from driving).
The test is the same for both manual and automatic cars.
There are 4 parts to the driving test.
Eyesight check
You’ll have to read a number plate before you start driving. You’ll fail your driving test if you fail the eyesight check, and the test will end.
‘Show me, tell me’ questions
You’ll be asked 2 vehicle safety questions, known as the ‘show me, tell me’ questions.
The examiner will ask you one:
- ‘tell me’ question (where you explain how you’d carry out a safety task) at the start of your test, before you start driving
- ‘show me’ question (where you show how you’d carry out a safety task) while you’re driving
You’ll get one driving fault (sometimes called a ‘minor’) if you get one or both questions wrong.
General driving ability (including independent driving)
You’ll drive in various road and traffic conditions, but not on motorways.
You’ll drive independently for 20 to 35 minutes. You’ll need to follow either:
- directions from a sat nav
- traffic signs
- a combination of both
The examiner will tell you which you have to follow.
They’ll set the sat nav up for you. You cannot use your own sat nav.
If you’re not following a sat nav or traffic signs
The examiner will give you turn-by-turn directions to follow at any time when you’re not following directions from a sat nav or traffic signs.
Reversing your car
The examiner will ask you to do one of these 3 exercises:
- parallel park at the side of the road
- park in a parking bay – either by driving in and reversing out, or reversing in and driving out (the examiner will tell you which you have to do)
- pull up on the right-hand side of the road, reverse for around 2 car lengths, and rejoin the traffic
Read more detailed guidance about what happens.
Watch a video
This video shows what happens during the driving test.
Read a transcript of this video.
If you make a mistake
You can carry on if you make a mistake. It might not affect your test if it’s not serious.
Your driving examiner will only stop your test if they think your driving is a danger to other road users.
While you’re driving
Your driving examiner will make notes throughout your test, including marking that you’ve done certain parts of the test.
So if you see the examiner making notes, do not assume it’s because you’ve made a mistake. Stay focused on driving to the best of your ability.
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Not feeling completely prepared?
Only take your driving test if you’re feeling completely prepared.
You can move your driving test back if you’re not feeling quite ready yet.
It’s free to change your appointment time, as long as you do it at least 10 full working days (Mondays to Saturdays) before your test.