Mum's the word.

After the temporary (I hope) blip with those two tests on the previous Tuesday, normal service was resumed the following day (and not even a hint of sandstorms).

Kerry was taking her test - her first attempt - and Inverness was enjoying beautiful blue sky and very pleasant temperatures. Although you can never be absolutely certain, I am always confident that my pupils should pass, I wouldn't be letting them take their test otherwise. With Kerry I just knew. The hour lesson before was so comfortable, perfect weather, windows open and a relaxing drive - I even had the radio on quietly, something I do very rarely in lessons.
Kerry obviously kept the standard up during her test, passing with just a couple of driver errors. Very proud of you Kerry.
Kerry had held firm against pressure from her friends who had been badgering her to reveal the date of her test. I would always recommend this course of action, it takes some of the pressure off. However, as soon as she passed, she couldn't wait to tell her friends and family by phone and Facebook.

Tuesday brought another test. When one of my pupil passes I usually add to their congratulation messages on Facebook and I often mention it on this blog. They passed easily but, afterwards, they asked me if I could not mention it on Facebook.
"Of course." I replied, and I assume they don't want me to mention their name here either. I didn't ask why, but I would never ignore such a request.
I was curious though. Had they been offered a job as Getaway driver for a gang of Bank robbers? Or maybe they were worried that all their friends were going to pester them for lifts? Possibly they just wanted to keep it secret for a few days before surprising someone. Over the years I have had several customers who have taken their lessons in secret, so that they could surprise their husband/girlfriend/parents etc when they passed.
A couple of years ago another driving instructor, Daniel, who also has a blog, asked how my customers/ pupils felt about being named. I have to confess, I had mentioned pupils by name many times, even when it was not always congratulatory, and had perhaps not given it as much thought as I should have. After Daniel's query I reconsidered mentioning people unless it is complimentary or I know they are happy about it (or even request it).

No such thing as Facebook, or even texting, when I passed my driving test. And, although I don't remember going around telling loads of people, I was keen to tell my family and friends.
The very next day I had more tests, this time in Ullapool. Congratulations to Oonagh White and Sandy Urquhart - two excellent passes, with just five driver errors between them. Within the hour they had posted on Facebook, saying how pleased and excited they were to have passed
I have never forgotten my reaction to passing my test, and I see that same reaction (sometimes even more excited) on almost every pupil when they pass their test. If I was 17 and having to go through it all again I am sure I would be straight onto Facebook after passing (or maybe after a cheeky solo drive first), but I'll always respect anyone's request for privacy.

Opinions expressed here are not necessarily to everyone's liking.

Why do I write this blog? I'm not really sure. I enjoy it (usually), it gets me thinking about various things, it is an informal way of passing on information and advice (particularly on driving matters), and it is a harmless way for me to let off a little steam occasionally. But it is a personal thing. It is not the definitive word on driving or anything else. It is just my personal slant on odd things that grab my attention. It is not to be taken too seriously.
Consequently, I found it laughable  when a couple of other driving instructors threw their toys out the pram, a couple of years ago, because I bemoaned the over-reliance on reference points. I then found it ridiculous when one of them took it so personally that they paid solicitors to threaten me with legal action unless I removed that particular post, even though it was a general rant rather than a specific (or personal) one.
A similar thing happened this week. Whilst at a test centre, waiting for my pupil, another instructor knocked on my car window.
"Why did you slag off my car in your blog?" he asked (he has a Peugeot 207).
I was quite taken aback by this and denied any such action. A few weeks ago, in a post on this blog about swapping my Clio for the Fiesta, I had briefly discussed various cars I have given instruction in. I only had the Peugeot for a few weeks while my Clio was being repaired after being hit by a bus. I actually liked it, and said so at the time. But, as I wrote in the blog post, and as I repeated to this instructor, my pupils and I were happy to get the Clio back. This is not necessarily a reflection on the Peugeot, we were obviously accustomed to the Clio. In fact one pupil, who had been happy with me for months, had her test approaching and preferred the Clio so much that she swapped to another instructor, who had a Clio. This was her PERSONAL choice. No doubt there are plenty of people who prefer 207s to Clios, and plenty of people who prefer the 207 to the Ford Fiesta. They are perfectly entitled to their own opinion and I wouldn't even think of disagreeing with them.
He asked me to remove the remarks about the 207. My initial thoughts were something along the lines of WTF? But I aim to please and, as he has no doubt ascertained, the 'offending' comments have been removed.
Perhaps that's not enough? Perhaps I should redress the balance with more positive comments about the 207 (not that they were negative in the first place):
It is quite a nice looking car. I like the way the wheels are symmetrically positioned on either side. The fuel cap is conveniently positioned on the side of the car to allow easy filling. The steering wheel is an attractive round shape. The seats support from both below and behind. There is a convenient little slot to the right of the steering wheel to hang your car keys. And it comes in some lovely colours.
Strangely, I am far more positive about Peugeots than I am about Manchester Utd, the Conservative party or the pondscum who tailgate my pupils, but I have never had anyone asking me to remove my comments about those.
I guess he felt that prospective customers might read my blog and be so influenced that they would be swayed away from him. (Scratches head), Silly me, I thought potential pupils would be more interested in the quality of instruction, rather than the car, but what do I know?

Simple pleasures and sandstorms

Ulysse Speedo app

SpeedView app

It's the little things that please me. I finally have a car with DAB radio. This morning, after Beth's lesson, I started fiddling with it to ensure that I could get BBC 6 Music and I was rewarded with the station playing 'Run run run' by The Velvet Underground. As I said, it's little things like that which make me happy.
Slowly, but surely, I am tinkering with my car to get it set up exactly how I want it. No, I'm not talking about suspension or anything technical like that, I'm talking about linking my phone to the entertainment system via bluetooth and having it secured in a convenient position. Now I can switch from BBC 6 Music to my MP3 library to answering phone calls by voice command to listening to audiobooks stored on my phone. Another little thing that pleases me is how Google Maps displays a photo of the building as I near my destination - very useful when going to my first lesson with a new pupil. All clever stuff.
One thing about the Fiesta is that it is impossible to see the left side of the speedo from the passenger side. It reminds me of when my dad had a Cortina MkIII, which had dashboard dials so deeply recessed that they must have been almost in the engine. I can usually sense how fast my pupil is driving, but it is nice to know exactly. After all, too slow is almost as much a problem as too fast. You can spend money on independent HUD (Head up display) units, which project the car's speed on the windscreen, and most SatNavs will tell you the speed, but in small digits. So I speculatively searched for 'speedo' (nothing to do with swimming trunks) in the Android app store and found a couple of really good GPS speedo apps.
The first one I tried was Ulysse speedometer. This looks great and has lots of options.
The second one I tried was Speedview. It looks quite boring in comparison, but is easy to read and, although I can't quite put my finger on the reason why, I prefer it to Ulysse. The displays on both are clear and easy to read, but both have HUD options.
Sadly, it's not all fun and games. Last year was a bumper year as far as driving test results were concerned: I had a 75% pass rate in Ullapool and a 77% pass rate in Inverness; not quite as good in Elgin, but very happy on the whole (I almost forgot, 100% in Alness - but that was just one test). I would have been on big bonuses if I had still been with BSM (do BSM still have pass rate bonuses?). Anyway, this year's pass rate took a knock yesterday. Two tests, two fails...
The first one was just careless: He was on a 60mph road with a T-junction ahead and the examiner faulted him for his approach speed. "But the examiner didn't say which way we were going," he protested to me afterwards.
"All the more reason for bringing your speed down in plenty of time?" I suggested.
The second test was bizarre. While parts of England suffer drought conditions and hosepipe bans, it is an understatement to say that we have not had the same conditions up here. In fact, while we have been thankfully spared the snow that recent winters have brought, it has been rather wet. So much so, that Loch Glascarnoch has been so full that the dam at Aultguish has sometimes overflowed. However, yesterday, my pupil and I would have killed for a few more spots of rain....
A combination of dry weather and strong winds meant that the topsoil was becoming quite dusty. During her test, on the same 60mph road that my earlier pupil had failed on, the wind whipped the sand and dust into clouds that swirled across the fields and roads. Unfortunately she just got a but ahead of herself and, instead of braking first, she wasted valuable time considering whether or not to put the fog lights on and the examiner judged that she had been going too fast for the conditions.
Later, when I got home, Jane asked about my day and I told her about my pupil's tests.
"Did you not teach her about driving in sandstorms?" she asked.
Silly me, it must have slipped my mind.

This year's love

So I turned my back on my Clio and walked away, not looking back.

And I walked straight to my new car; a brand-new, very shiny white 12 reg Ford Fiesta.
I could not be accused of two-timing, I had finished with my Clio before I started with the Fiesta, but I must confess that I did have my eyes on the Fiesta as soon as I realised that things were coming to an end with the Clio.

The weather was a wee bit too wild and chilly to spend too much time admiring her from outside, so I got straight into the cockpit. The first thing I noticed was that I felt much more that I was sitting 'in' the seat, rather than 'on' them. In fact, there is a general feeling of the car being wrapped around you, which, if I'm being harsh, makes the Clio feel slightly 'agricultural' in comparison.
As I drove out of the car-park, the first thing I noticed was the steering; the Clio's steering was slightly 'slow', but the Fiesta's is razor-sharp, not quite as sharp as the Fiat's, but a turning circle more than a metre smaller than the Clio - that should be good for manoeuvres.
The gears are very nice. I used to think the Clio's gear selection was good, but the Fiesta's feel even more slick. And there is no effort to select 5th - the spring on the Clio was slightly too firm, resulting in anxiety for some learner drivers the first few times they tried to select 5th gear. Even better, thankfully, is that there are no problems at all in selecting reverse. So no more panics in the middle of a turn in the road because they can't get it into reverse.
The integrated entertainment and communications system all looks a bit complex, and I haven't got round to exploring that properly yet, but I have worked out how to make and receive calls on my mobile using voice command, which should save me having to pull over every time someone calls me.

A good few years ago, someone was considerate enough to crash into my parked car (a story I shall have to tell you sometime) and I put the insurance payout towards treating myself to a Mazda RX7 (which reminds me of other stories that perhaps I won't tell you). Anyway, this car was FAST. The following weekend, I drove up to see my friend, Molly, at Culzean, and I took some obscure B roads to enjoy the journey. My favourite was the B6277 from Barnard Castle, through Middleton-in-Teesdale, to Alston. Weaving my new car around that twisting road it felt like something from a car television advert. Loved it. Well, I had that same feeling again with my new Fiesta as I took the B9007 from Carrbridge, over the Dava moor, to Forres; a glorious, winding road, with no other vehicles. The car was a real pleasure to drive, feeling completely assured on every bend.

I still notice and admire Renault Clios coming towards me, but do I regret changing to the Fiesta? Not a chance.

Old Faithful

I see that many people have found this blog after searching for information about the Renault Clio. I have now had my Clio for 20 months, so what do I think of it?
I have to be honest, it wasn’t my first choice. Having had several Vauxhall Corsas when I was with BSM I knew that I didn’t want another Corsa. My last BSM car was a Fiat 500, which I personally loved, but it wasn’t too popular with my customers.
Leaving BSM meant that I could choose whatever car I wanted. I read loads of reviews, had some test drives, and plumped for the new Ford Fiesta. But a misunderstanding over the end of my BSM contract meant that I had to cancel the Fiesta I had ordered. Then I ……… oh, it’s a long, boring story, but I ended up choosing my Renault Clio.
Fantastic. I loved it, but more importantly, my customers loved it. It wasn’t as much fun to drive as the Fiat 500, but it is a very easy car to learn to drive in. The clutch is very forgiving, the engine is very flexible, it has good all-round visibility, the brakes are excellent (almost too good) and it has a pleasing, uncluttered driving environment.
But what don’t I like about it? Tough question, my answer is “not a lot”. The seats aren’t the best - you feel a little like you’re sitting on them, rather than ‘in’ them. I don’t feel comfortable with having a ‘tyre inflator’ instead of a spare wheel. The steering isn’t quite as sharp as I would like it to be. Renault extended the wheelbase on the current model and (especially after the Fiat 500, which was as responsive as a Go-Kart) the steering felt a little unresponsive. The only other thing I can fault is reverse gear; there is no button, trigger, push , pull, or other mechanism to prevent accidental selection - it simply won’t let you go from a forward gear straight into reverse. This is fine most of the time, but every now and then it gets stuck and you have to go through the faff of putting it back in neutral, clutch up, clutch down, then it will go into reverse. These extra couple of seconds can add extra pressure in the middle of a parallel park or turn in the road.
But these are very small niggles. The Clio is an excellent tuition car. When a bus rear-ended me last year, the insurance company provided me with a Peugeot 207. Although I liked how it looked, my pupils... (passage removed because it caused offence) ...and we were all pleased when, a few weeks later, we got the Clio back.
But, as Echo & The Bunnymen once sang, nothing lasts forever. My relationship with my Clio seemed to lack the spark it once had.
After 20 months, 76,000 miles and over 100 pupils, we had been through a lot together.  But where I once used to lovingly polish her body, these days I am more likely to call her names when my pupil struggles to get it in reverse gear. Perhaps it was time to move on. She was to be binned, dumped, given the elbow, ditched, tossed aside, drop-kicked and given the big heave-ho.
And so, last Tuesday, I took her for one last spin. I drove down to Glasgow. She was as lively as ever; steady and assured on the winding roads, but responsive when I wanted her to overtake. Each time I saw another Clio heading towards me I would look at the styling, look at the smile on the driver's face and wonder whether I was doing the right thing. Perhaps the Clio and I were made for each other.
We reached Glasgow, where I was to say goodbye to her. It felt less like a relationship break-up, but more like taking a favourite dog to the vets and leaving her there.

If you have come to this site after searching for information on the Renault Clio, then I can only praise it. It's not perfect, and I believe they are bringing out a new model later in the year, but every time I see someone driving one, I think "What an intelligent person."