❌ Dry Steering: Why It’s More Than Just a Test Loophole

A blog for ADIs and PDIs who teach for life, not just for test day

As driving instructors, we often hear the phrase,

Dry steering — turning the wheel while the car is stationary — falls neatly into that category. It’s not penalised on the driving test, and for manoeuvres like bay parking or turns in the road, it might even help a pupil achieve a better angle.

But here’s the question:

Are we helping them learn to drive — or just learn to pass?

This blog explores why dry steering should be used with caution, even though it’s not technically incorrect. Because when we teach learners to skip fundamental skills, we’re often planting the seed of future problems — both in terms of vehicle wear and driving confidence. 

🔄 1. Dry Steering Bypasses Coordination Skills

At the heart of good driver training is building coordination: the ability to move the car and steer at the same time. This is a foundational skill that separates confident, adaptable drivers from hesitant, robotic ones.

Dry steering breaks this link.

Instead of learning to manage speed and steering together, the pupil stops, turns the wheel, then moves — forming a disconnected habit loop.

The result? Learners who:

• Struggle with tight angles unless they have time to stop and think
• Develop clunky, mechanical manoeuvres
• Lose the feel for how much steering input to apply in motion

As instructors, we know that in real-world driving, the ability to adapt your steering while the vehicle is moving is critical — and dry steering doesn’t teach that.

🧭 2. It Undermines Reverse Manoeuvre Understanding

One of the most common struggles for learners is knowing which way to turn the wheel when reversing.

When they move forward, most learners quickly develop an instinct for steering direction. But reversing often throws them — especially in bay parks and tight spaces.

Here’s what we see:

• They begin looking at the steering wheel to work out direction
• They try to ‘calculate’ the turn visually rather than feeling it
• They fall for the “false straight” — where the steering wheel looks centred but isn’t, due to previous rotations

Dry steering makes this worse.

When the car is stationary, the learner has no feedback from vehicle movement to help them understand which way it’s turning. It’s purely abstract. And for many learners, abstraction = confusion.

On the other hand, moving while steering helps learners build a physical intuition about how steering inputs affect car direction — forwards and in reverse.

That’s a skill that stays with them far beyond the test.

⚙️ 3. Most Learners Drive Older Cars After They Pass

Here’s something we often overlook in our nearly-new tuition cars: after they pass.

These cars might have:

• Weak or worn-out power steering
• Poor wheel alignment
• Balding tyres
• Worn suspension components

In those vehicles, dry steering places greater stress on already fragile systems. It can cause:

• Premature tyre wear (especially at the edges)
• Steering rack and tie rod damage
• Extra heat in electric power steering motors
• Noisy or clunky steering performance

What seems harmless in your dual-control Fiesta could be the tipping point for mechanical failure in their 15-year-old Vauxhall Corsa.

So when we say,

🎯 4. We Should Teach for Life, Not Just for the Mark Sheet

It’s tempting to use dry steering as a shortcut. It works. It avoids hassle. It helps them “get it in the bay.”

But as professionals, we have a bigger responsibility.

We don’t just prepare people to pass a test — we prepare them to drive safely, confidently, and mechanically sympathetically for the rest of their lives.

Dry steering may not be penalised on the test. But it’s:

• Bad for habit formation
• Bad for mechanical sympathy
• Bad for learning how a car behaves

That’s enough reason to phase it out of our teaching, or at the very least, reserve it for only those situations where no other option exists.

✅ What You Can Say to Pupils

Here’s a clear way to frame it 

This isn’t about making learners’ lives harder. It’s about giving them skills that will make everything easier later.

Final Thought

Teaching someone to drive is like teaching them a language. You can train them to repeat phrases — or you can teach them to speak fluently.

Dry steering may get the phrase right. But it’s not fluent driving.

Let’s keep our focus on the bigger picture — building drivers who don’t just pass the test, but master the road.

Driving test tips - Parking on pavements - you could be breaking the law

No way past

Pavements are for people

Parking a vehicle on the pavement, either wholly or partially happens all around the UK every day and has become a habit for millions of drivers. This often thoughtless and unnecessary act can cause all sorts of problems for pedestrians, especially those with pushchairs, wheelchair users, mobility scooter users and of course blind pedestrians. 

During your driving lessons you are taught to choose a safe, convenient and legal place - along with all the other rules around parking, this doesn't generally include using the pavement.

What does the Highway Code say?

Rule 244 of the Highway Code states: “You MUST NOT park partially or wholly on the pavement in London, and should not do so elsewhere unless signs permit it.” 

Despite a number of efforts to implement a blanket ban on pavement parking over many decades, none has ever been implemented so we currently have no national ban on pavement parking. The reason for this is probably down to the enormous cost of additional resources the police and local authorities would need to tackle the problem. However, following a report into the problem in 2019 and further consultation in 2020, there may well be a ban in store within the near future.

Apparently it is difficult to bring a prosecution for simply parking on the pavement and so the police often turn a blind-eye. This said, there are circumstances in which the police will take action, especially if a vehicle is parked 

• on zig-zag lines at a pedestrian crossing
• within 10 metres or opposite a junction
• over a dropped kerb or obstructing a driveway
• blocking a road or pavement which causes pedestrians to enter the road
• preventing an emergency vehicle from accessing an area

The offence of unnecessary obstruction of the highway, which includes the road as well as the pavement, already exists and can be prosecuted under criminal law.

You may well be tempted to pull up on the pavement because "everyone does it". 

If you were to park on a pavement during the driving test, unless signs permit this, a serious fault will be recorded and you will fail your test. 

This is because although there is no blanket ban and there's a very slim chance of being prosecuted, you are breaking a law in the act of driving on the pavement and an examiner does not have the discretion to turn a blind-eye to this. 

The law in question is in the Highways Act 1835 Section 72 

Highway Code Rule 145 states "You MUST NOT drive on or over a pavement, footpath or bridleway except to gain lawful access to property, or in the case of an emergency"

Since January 1999 a fixed penalty notice (FPN) can be issued for this offence. This can include penalty points and a fine for the offender. 

For a new driver, under "The New Drivers Act" these points could prove disastrous and eventually lead to losing their licence, should they tot up six points within the first two years of holding a full licence. 

Can you imagine how you'd feel losing your hard earned licence for this easily avoidable reason?

The key to making any driving decision and avoiding danger or prosecution is answering yes to these three questions

Is it necessary?

Is it legal?

Is it safe?

Apply this to your driving and you are unlikely to get into trouble.

Check out this video illustrating the danger caused pavement parking .

https://youtu.be/6jOT41gnXlo

For expert driving tuition or more driving tips, visit my website www.udidit.co.uk

For more Highway Code rules follow this link. 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/waiting-and-parking-238-to-252

Insider Tips to Save Money When Learning to Drive

I make a living out of teaching people to drive, so I shouldn't really be telling you this, but there are a number of ways you can save money when learning to drive.

1. Don't just think you are only learning when sat at the side of your instructor. If you study the Highway Code and other books frequently in the periods between lessons and get to know and understand the rules, you can spend less time talking and more of your lesson time experiencing the wide range of situations you'll need to deal with on your test. Result - fewer lessons

2. Practice with friends or family. As long as you're insured and the person supervising you is at least 21 years old and have had their full driving licence for 3 years or more then this is perfectly legal. Make sure you speak with your instructor first to ensure you are ready for private practice without the help of dual controls. Result - fewer lessons

3. Ask your instructor if you and a friend can learn together. You get to sit in the back watching and listening to your friend's lesson and therefore learning from any explanations the instructor gives or any mistakes your friend makes and vice versa. And you get twice as long for your money. Result - fewer lessons

4. If you can help it don't take 1 hour per week at the early learning stages. If you can afford it, try to fit at least a couple of 90 minute lessons in each week. This helps you retain more information over a shorter period of time. You can always reduce this when practising with friends or family. Result - fewer lessons

5. Watch YouTube videos. There are loads of good ones showing you what to do and there are even official videos showing you what to expect on the test. This visual way of learning helps you retain more information. Result - fewer lessons

6. Make sure you're ready for your test. There's the test fee to consider and the cost of a double lesson on the day. Don't go if you're not ready as this results in you paying for another test and more lesson time. Ask your instructor to conduct a number of mock tests and to keep you regularly informed on your progress. DVSA provide free Progress Records. Result - fewer test attempts

7. During your lesson, listen carefully to what your instructor is telling you. Ask questions if you don't understand and make notes whenever possible. Reviewing these notes after your lesson will help you retain information longer. Result - fewer lessons

8. Avoid being suckered into cheap deals. As the saying goes, you only get what you pay for and you could end up spending more in the long term. Result - fewer tears before bedtime and fewer lessons

9. Tell your instructor if you don't feel you are progressing well enough and come up with a plan to help progress more. If this doesn't work you should consider changing your instructor. Styles clash sometimes and you may find a different style suits you better. Result happier lessons and fewer of them.

10. Make it important that you do well and learn to drive safely and responsibly. Being a good student and having the right attitude to learning means that you will achieve your goal sooner. Result - fewer lessons and fewer tests.

There you have it straight from the horses mouth. If you study well and find the right instructor for you, there's no reason for you to scrimp on quality, even if you are on a tight budget.

For more expert tips visit www.udidit.co.uk 

Driving test tips - Who has right of way? - You could have been doing it wrong.

There's no such thing as a driver's right of way

"It's my right-of-way you idiot" or words to that effect are often voiced by a driver who believes that the driver of the on-coming vehicle should have given way - but is the angry driver correct to claim it's his right-of-way?

Let's look at what the Highway Code says; 
"The rules in The Highway Code do not give you the right of way in any circumstance, but they advise you when you should give way to others. Always give way if it can help to avoid an incident."

That's pretty clear advice right? Then why is it that many drivers believe they have the right to force another driver to swerve or stop in any circumstance just because the obstruction is not on their side of the road?

I believe that this is largely down to what they have been told by an influential person during their learning to drive process. This person passes on their own received wisdom or misguided theories which in turn goes unchallenged, resulting in a whole lot of aggressive, obnoxious drivers. 

It obviously makes good sense to give way to any oncoming vehicle, regardless of which side of the road they happen to be on when faced with the prospect of either crashing into a parked vehicle or causing an head-on crash with the oncoming vehicle. It's a no-brainer!

If you compare the way two drivers deal with one another on a two-way single-tracked road with how they deal with one another on a wide two-way road with obstructions, the mindset is often totally different. Cooperation is easier to come by on the single-tracked road but equally required in both situations and yet you often meet an oncoming driver who simply drives straight at you regardless of the fact that you are most of the way through a long channel of parked vehicles, with no place to wait safely. I've experienced this myself, where a taxi driver insisted that it was her right-of-way and that I should reverse 12 car lengths when she'd had plenty of space and time to stop before entering the channel. She would have had to reverse 1 car length. The stereo-type became a reality.

Priority is based on safety. 
Who goes first isn't based simply on which side of the road the obstruction is on, it's based the safest option in every changing situation. Whether it be in a meeting situation or a junction, including traffic light controlled junctions (Green doesn't mean GO! it means go, if it's safe to go!).

The road is a shared space and especially with today's busy driving conditions, we need to work together to make safety work.

With an obstruction on our side of the road we generally have three options when  encountering an oncoming vehicle: 

1) Keep going because we can safely pass the obstruction and get back onto our side well before the oncoming vehicle gets there. 
2) Slow down and arrive at the obstruction after the oncoming vehicle has passed. 
3) Stop and wait until the oncoming vehicle has passed.

The key to surviving is - Don't expect the oncoming driver to do the right thing. 

Even when you see this sign, if someone is already occupying the space you should give way if that's the safest option!

Choosing the correct option relies on you being aware of the situation well in advance, anticipating the approach of oncoming vehicles and planning your actions in good time in order to avoid any sudden changes of speed or direction.

There's no such thing as "my right-of-way" so be prepared to give-way.

For expert driving tuition or driving tips visit my website www.udidit.co.uk