Automatic driving lessons in Moorends

Automatic or manual: the quick comparison

• Automatic: no clutch, so more of your attention goes on observation and planning.
• Automatic: often fewer hours to reach test standard.
• Automatic: the licence only covers automatic cars.
• Manual: a licence that covers both types of car.
• Manual: more to learn at junctions and roundabouts, especially early on.

For the full picture, read our guide to the manual or automatic licence, or see the main automatic driving lessons page.

Who automatic lessons suit in Moorends

For parents, an automatic can make lessons easier to fit around the day. Diana, one of our female instructors, teaches automatic only. She is good at fitting lessons around busy family timetables. If you work shifts and have limited free time, an automatic may get you to test standard in fewer lessons.

An automatic can also help nervous learners, because removing the clutch takes away stalling, one of the most common worries. If that sounds like you, our page on nervous driver lessons in Moorends may help.

Taking an automatic onto the motorway

Once you are comfortable in town, an automatic makes motorway lessons simpler. From Selby Road you join the M18 at junction 6, and with no gears to think about you can focus on matching your speed on the slip road and checking your blind spot before moving across. Learner drivers have been allowed on motorways with an approved driving instructor in a dual controlled car since June 2018.

Doncaster North services at junction 5 make a natural turning point for a first motorway lesson from Moorends. Our motorway lessons and Pass Plus page explains more.

Creep at the junctions onto Marshland Road

Select drive and lift your foot off the brake, and an automatic rolls forward gently on its own. That is called creep, and it is the key skill in an automatic. On the side streets off Marshland Road you learn to use creep to edge forward at a junction until you can see properly, then press the accelerator to pull out once it is clear.

Along Marshland Road itself, the buses heading for the Winning Post terminus stop often. Creep lets you follow at a safe distance in slow traffic using only the brake, and you learn to hold the car still on the footbrake at each stop.

Braking and reversing exercises

Smooth braking matters in an automatic, because your right foot does all of the slowing down. We work on gradual, early braking along King Edward Road as you head into Thorne, and on the approach to the roundabout at junction 6 of the M18. Use the parking brake whenever you are stopped for more than a moment, and select park before you switch off.

For the reversing exercises on the test, creep gives you fine control at low speed. We practise parallel parking on residential streets and bay parking in a quiet car park, along with pulling up on the right and reversing about two car lengths.

Booking automatic lessons

We pick you up from home anywhere in Moorends. Work or school pick-ups are fine too. Diana and Alecsandru both teach in automatic cars, and you can ask for a female instructor or male instructor. If you live nearer the town, see automatic driving lessons in Thorne, and our Moorends driving lessons page lists all our local options.

Automatic driving lessons in Moorends: your questions

How many automatic lessons will I need?

It is impossible to give a number in advance. It depends on your confidence, how often you have lessons and whether you can practise between them. Without a clutch to master, many learners progress faster in an automatic, and your instructor will keep you updated.

Can I take my test in an automatic and drive a manual later?

Not on that licence. Passing in an automatic gives you an automatic-only licence. To drive a manual car you would need to pass another test in a manual. If that matters to you, consider manual driving lessons in Moorends instead.

Is the automatic driving test easier?

The test is the same length and format in either car, with the same marking. Many learners find it less stressful in an automatic because there is less to manage, which leaves more attention for observation and planning.

Can I fit lessons around the school run?

We will do our best. Tell us the times that work for you when you book, and we will try to match you with an instructor who can fit around them. Diana is especially good at working around family timetables.