Learning To Drive?

[Vyndree]

Well, I blundered about the web for about an hour and couldn't find answers to some questions, so here is as good a place to ask as any.
If you are familiar with WA state laws, that's particularly useful...

• I don't drive.
• I'm 23.
• I've never taken Driver's ed.
• I have never been behind the wheel of a car in my life.
• I have been told that the brake in the car is "the bigger one" of the pedals. This concludes my knowledge of cars.

I never really wanted to learn to drive, but I figure it might be useful, particularly since we're planning on moving soon and it'd be nice to get TWO cars full of stuff moved rather than just one at a time.

In any case, it would be NICE to get both a car and a license within the next couple months. If it's not possible, it's not like I'm in a hurry, but if I can learn to drive before we start moving, that would be awesome.


Ok, so here are the list of questions:

1. Can I buy a car without a license? Could it actually be titled to me? (Suvega will not let me TOUCH his car, particularly not for learning, so I am stuck buying my own to learn in)
2. Can you get insurance for a car without a license?
3. Can you reasonably learn to drive in 1-2 months?

[Norrin]

Funny that this would be my first post on this forum and not a hi or someother appropriate message.

Anyway, to answer your questions.

1. No you there is no requirment of a license for the purchase of a vehicle in the state of Washington.

Quoted from http://www.dol.wa.gov/vehicleregistr...sfertitle.html

Information you’ll need:

• The date of the sale or transfer.
• Your name and address.
• The name and address of the person the vehicle was sold or transferred to.
• The vehicle identification number (VIN).
• The vehicle license plate number.

2. Not 100% possitive but you should be able to get insurance on a vehicle without a license. You still to insure a vehicle even if you dont plan of driving it.

3. 1 month should be plenty of time to learn how to drive an automatic and feel somewhat comfortable with it. Learning the laws and the basics of the actual car is fairly easy, its the getting comfortable part that takes sometime.



I to am in Wa if you need any help.

[Coltimar]

1) No. Because of answer 2. You can get insurance without a license and you can't buy a car without insurance.
2) No. See above.
3) Certainly. You have a few options. The first thing to do is get your learners permit. It's a written test. BE SURE TO STUDY! From everything I have seen of you on these forums you seems quite intelligent, but it isn't a common sense type of quests. Especially in WV (KY, IN and OH too), there are some odd laws that you will thinks are bizarre but they will appear on the test.

The best way to learn to drive is to be tutored. Family and friends would be a good option typically, since they are usually free ^^, but if that isn't working you can take classes. The trouble with this method obviously is cost. Once you have a learners permit you can, usually (depending on the company), get insured. The trouble is that it is generally quite expensive to go that route. Being that you are a non-traditional driver (i.e. you aren't just tacked on your parents insurance), and you don't have a vehicle that you could get added onto (I don't think you can get added onto Survega's policy) you might have to go the driving school route :/

All of this is based on personal experience with insurance companies and insuring vehicles in Kentucky, Alaska and South Dakota so it might be older information or may be slightly different in WV.

[Coltimar]

There are a couple states that I have found that don't require a license to buy a car, but you wind up with the same net result as if they did because you have to have a license (or permit) to insure, and in most cases register, the vehicle. It all comes down to money. If you own a car without a license someone isn't getting paid.

[Zal]

If you have to take drivers ED it's about as hands-on as sex ED...
And for the learners permit that Coltimar mentioned, the test isn't hard at all. I live in OH one of the states mentioned and I passed without even looking at the study book thingy, but there are some really weird "why isn't that a law" type questions.

[elsegundo]

first get your permit. this will allow you to "learn" to drive with an instructor. cheap instructors charge about $20/hr. and you will need at least 6 hours in instructor-assisted training to actually be decent in driving.

if you dont have a car by the time you take you driving test, use the instructor's car. make sure you schedule your 6th hour driving training right before your driving test so everything will be fresh in your head. if you use an instructor's car, a good one will usually have appointments lined up under fake names so you can just pick whichever time you want. there is usually a fee for using the instructors car on your test.

if you buy a car off the lot, yes, they usually will require insurance.

if you buy a car from a private seller (lil joe heading off to marines and doesnt need his car anymore) you can drive without anything. just dont get caught. make sure you know how to drive by then!!!

if you cant spend money on driving training, then im sorry but you'll have to take suvega's car while he's asleep or something. lol jk.

[NevadaGuy]

In response:

1. Call your nearest motor vehicle office and ask them.

2. Call several insurance companies and ask them.

3. Look into the requirements for getting a learner's permit, it should be on line at your local motor vehicle department. Some states require a learners permit and a set number of hours behind the wheel with a qualified driver. Can you you learn that fast? Well, you can multibox so hopefully that takes care of being able to do more than one thing at a time and I don't mean talk on the cel, do your makeup and drive To feel comfortable and safe you would need to do a lot of driving. Make sure you buy an automatic. Get a friend to take you to a BIG parking lot and just drive circles to start, both directions. Look into a professional driving instruction, tho I think a friend with the correct mindset can teach you. I taught my 2 sons, but it was over the course of maybe 6 months and maybe 50 hours behind the wheel.

Good luck and stay safe.

[Klamor]

i dono what the rules are in WA, but in MA, you can take the driver's test for your license without a permit if you are over 18... which in your case is true

[-silencer-]

Ok, so here are the list of questions:

1. Can I buy a car without a license? Could it actually be titled to me? (Suvega will not let me TOUCH his car, particularly not for learning, so I am stuck buying my own to learn in)
2. Can you get insurance for a car without a license?
3. Can you reasonably learn to drive in 1-2 months?

Yes, driving is particularly useful, even if you're a city-liver.

1. You'll have to check WA-specific laws, but I know people who have bought a car without a license (one was 15 without even a permit, the other had a license suspended for a year). However, getting a loan may be an issue as you're required to have full collision insurance and some insurers want proof of the driver's history/record. If you have cash (or credit card), you can purchase a car as easy as walking into a grocery store. Then you'll just need to get insurance and take the title to the registration office for a tag. You need proof of insurance before getting the car registered. Don't buy a car with manual transmission - get an automatic since they're MUCH easier to drive. Every car I've owned has been a manual, and every car I've rented has been an automatic.

2. I'm pretty sure some companies are out there, but I know mine doesn't insure without a valid license.

3. Yes, but it'll take practice, respect, and confidence.
Practice by starting in an empty parking lot, preferably deserted with no concrete parking bumps. That's how high school driver's ed works. Practice stopping, starting acceleration, cornering, using your mirrors, etc. Use the parking space lines as if they were lanes on the road - stay between the lines. Once you're confident with that, move on to lower-speed and low-traffic roads. Pay attention to keeping the car in the middle of the lane, and be aware of how long it'll take you to stop if something jumps in front of you (like a kid!). Only when you're ready, after a couple weeks of low-speed driving, move on to the highways. Stay confident and don't suddenly change lanes. Always check your mirrors and your "blind spot" (the area just to the back left and back right of the car) by peeking out a window before changing lanes. Don't get too close to the person in front of you - you want to be able to stop in case they hit their brakes hard. If you hit them, it's your fault, regardless of how quickly they stopped. If someone gets on your ass, don't speed up - they'll eventually move around you. You can learn to drive in a week if you do it for a few hours every night. It's not hard, especially with an automatic. Brake slows you down. Accelerator speeds you up. Steering wheel turns you left and right. That's it.

[Tasty]

Its all about the confidence