Get safe driving tips from an expert
Sep 27, 2009 By Toyota Australia.
Champion rally driver Neal Bates believes your children need the best driving lessons you can give them - which could mean getting some professional advice.
Who should teach your child to drive.
The world's most popular small car, the Toyota Corolla offers a range of safety features to assist any driver. They include Active Braking with intelligence (AB-i) incorporating Anti-skid Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA); Traction Control and Vehicle Stability Control. Yet these are not a substitute for the one thing every new driver needs: the right driving skills. That's the opinion of someone who knows more about driving Corollas than most: Neal Bates has won four Australian Rally Championships driving Corollas.
Lessons for the teacher:
"As parents, we can pass on our bad driving habits to our children even before we give them their first driving lesson", according to Neal. "While sitting in the back seat, your children may form opinions about how they should drive, because of what they see you do." So when it comes time to teach your children how to drive, you might first need to look at your own technique. As Neal Bates says, "every student needs a good teacher".
One of the most common mistakes when teaching someone to drive is to hurry. Nothing about driving, especially the learning process, should be rushed. And practice, practice, practice until the new driver does everything as instinctively as an older, more experienced one. "It doesn't matter what you do in life, if you want to do it well, you have to train", says Neal Bates. "That's why it is important when teaching your kids to drive that they practice several times a week in all weather conditions."
According to Neal, driving is a life skill and we should be looking at improving our own driving as well as children's. "I have a 14 year old and a 12 year old, who will be learning to drive before long. So, already I am thinking about how my driving influences their driving attitude" says Neal.
Two tips if your kids are learning to drive
1. Get professional help. Safe driving is a life skill that may save your child's life one day, so get the best possible driving instruction you can afford.
2. Become a better driver. Take a good look at your own skills before passing on bad habits to your children. Teaching your kids should help you become a better driver too.
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