Driver's license in Japan...

[Tsuwabuki]

My international permit expires in may.

I am so not looking forward to this. My coworkers must have tested a dozen times before getting passed.

Did I mention that in Texas no driving test is required, so I have never taken anything but a written test period?

Yeah. Uhm. I am so going to fail. :|

[SadaAoko]

Tsuwabuki

My sensei said that they are pretty hard to get in Japan. He failed once because he didnt signal ealry enough for a turn

Just do your best. Dont feel bad if you dont pass cuz you can always do it again.

Best of Luck tho

[Sinestra]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

That`s what I consider lenient. Forgetting to signal or crossing the line when you stop is a major mistake.
If I`d forgotten to signal, or crossed the line when stopping they would have ended the test then and there and failed me. 3 of those is pretty much unthinkable.

When I say "minor mistake" I mean something along the lines of not looking far enough to the side before turning, or forgetting to check the lights before you get in the car. (Required, by the way.) Or screwing up the order of the basic engine check.

Wow thats pretty intense i guess that people just need to practice more or go to a Japanese driving school. Either way you have to conform to those countries standards of driving if you cant do that than there is no way you are going to be allowed to drive nor should you. I cant tell you how many times a day i either get cut off or almost hit by foreign drivers a lot of them diplomats lol. Maybe you are right the MVA is to lenient here. btw try driving on the autobaun that will open your eyes.

What the process for getting you license in Japan? Like age and when can you take the test?

[jasonbvr]

Originally Posted by Tsuwabuki

My international permit expires in may.

I am so not looking forward to this. My coworkers must have tested a dozen times before getting passed.

Did I mention that in Texas no driving test is required, so I have never taken anything but a written test period?

Yeah. Uhm. I am so going to fail. :|

Did you get it from AAA? Scratch up that '09, make a '10, then spill a bit of oil on it to make it look used and abused.

No really, I don't advocate breaking laws. There is some website like jetset.com or something that has a link to what the average driving test is comprised of. Also go to your local driving school. You don't actually have to sign up to take a course. Most driving schools offer practice tests where the guy will go through it a few times and tell you what you are doing wrong. However if you read that tutorial and take the test 3 or 4 times to pass, it will probably cost you about the same as a practice test and passing the first go round.

[guestservice]

wow I'm in almost the same situation as the OP
I have been in Japan for 3 years now and finally decided to get my license, but I was told I needed proof of having the license more than 90 days before coming to Japan (because I renewed right before I came) so I had to order my driving records from my state

...so is anyone from Va. that had this situation, because I have been waiting over two weeks for my damn papers, and I'm beginning to wonder if it's actually coming or not...

I hate the driving centers in Japan!

[kyo_9]

For all of these times, I haven't heard for foreigners to pass the driving test in first try.. they all have met with failure several times before actually receive the license.. 失敗学

[KikiBunny23]

Originally Posted by Sinestra

Certain states are harsher than others. I live in Maryland and holy crap are they strict. None of this 50% or 60% crap it pretty much 85-90% 3 mistakes like forgetting to single will fail you. If you cross the white line at a stop sign you fail. Its not as easy to get a license here as it use to be they watch for everything now. Not to mention once you get your license its not a full one you have provisional you cant drive at midnight, you cant have more than 1 person in your age group in the car for the first 3 months and no using your cell phone at all.

Wow, that's a LOT stricter than Alabama...my sis took it last year (in october 2007...so not really last yr but yr before) and got it first try....they usually make everyone parallel park and such but they didn't make her do that, they didn't take her to any crowded roads or anything. (Which is surprisin cus all my friends had to go close to highways)
But then again...she took hers in cullman and they are pretty leniant there...you can get by goin 70 in a 45 zone with cops passin you

[Payne222]

It's not hard to get a license in Illinois at all.
I took a Driver's Ed class through my high school
last year. Because the teacher gave me an A in
the class and our behind the wheel drives when
October came around and I could go get my license
all I had to do was bring my birth certificate and
Social Security number to the DMV and they gave
me my license. No written or driving test! (^_^)

[SSJup81]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

From all the foreigners I`ve talked to who didn`t manage to pass (pretty much everyone?) it has a whole lot more to do with the attitude of "Well, I was driving for years in my home country, so the laws here aren`t something I need to worry about." than anything else.

I'd be a bit nervous if I had to get a license in Japan, mainly because the driving would probably be different from what I'm used of. The roads would be different and all that, but with practice, sure I can do okay.

The test is strict. They don`t let you pass without a close to perfect score, which can be a real shock to someone who got their license in the US where you only have to score like 50% to be passed. (I forget the exact percentage, but it was close to that when I was looking into getting my temps back in high school. Maybe 60%?) When I took my test here, the written test only allowed for 2 mistakes, and the actual driving test for one minor mistake. A huge difference.

I think that this differs from state to state, because with a 50%, we wouldn't have a license. I didn't take Driver's Ed in school; was too young at the time, and couldn't take it in 11th or 12th because of scheduling conflicts. In other words, the times that Driver's Ed was given, I was taking mandatory classes (math; English; Science).

Anyway, when going to the DMV to take the written portion, back then, you couldn't score any lower than 80%. As for the driving portion, I honestly don't know how many mistakes you're allowed. I didn't make any mistakes, as none were pointed out to me and was told that I drove well, and I also had a lot of driving hours racked up from the driving school I went to for the experience portion as well. For me, the driving portion is a whole lot easier than the written. I've always been bad with tests, especially ones that have numbers to remember.

I don`t really know much about the path the two of you took / are taking - I got my first license in Japan. I went to a driving school, passed there, then passed everything on first try.

Driving portion, passed on my first try, but, before you're even allowed the driving portion, you have to pass the written. I failed the written my first time. I'm horrible with numbers, and most all of the questions dealt with them.

Anyway, can't it be transferred if one has a license in his or her home country, or couldn't one just apply for an international license to avoid the hassle, but still get driving practice in Japan?

[SSJup81]

Originally Posted by KikiBunny23

Wow, that's a LOT stricter than Alabama...my sis took it last year (in october 2007...so not really last yr but yr before) and got it first try....they usually make everyone parallel park and such but they didn't make her do that, they didn't take her to any crowded roads or anything. (Which is surprisin cus all my friends had to go close to highways)
But then again...she took hers in cullman and they are pretty leniant there...you can get by goin 70 in a 45 zone with cops passin you

I can't parallel park worth anything. Luckily, that's one of the things I didn't have to worry about on my test. At the driving school, this was pretty much the only thing I couldn't do well and backing into a parking space. I prefer driving in anyway. Since I live in the county, and not the city, parallel parking isn't necessary to know, which is probably why it's not a requirement for the driving test. We have parking lots for pretty much everywhere; no need to learn it if there's not place to use it. I'm not sure if it's still this way, as I took my test almost 10 years ago.

My father felt that my driving portion was easy. He's from New York too, so, apparently, it's much more strict up there compared to here in Virginia.