Glad I found this thread. I've been driving over 20 years, have never been on a motorway and driving anywhere other than places I'm familiar with, fills me with dread. I might be in the minority but I'm OK with parking, bay and parallel, I don't panic at all with that. My cars have always been basic, so no sensors, cameras or sat nav etc. It's my comfort zone. I'm also more confident alone but hate slip roads and will go completely the other way even if it takes half our longer if it means pulling out of a junction across two roads. I have loads of anxiety around driving.
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Every car is different, you’ll quickly learn the sweet spot and it won’t happen anymore. If you have time, I’d take the car during a quiet hour today and just practice for a few minutes to listen and feel for the right moment a couple of times.Hope it's fine to jump onto this thread
Passed my test around 10 years ago, got myself a car which personally couldn't really handle, was a 2.0 turbo convertible which was a car I liked but really couldn't drive, only drove a handful of times before getting rid of it due to just being too anxious to be out in it
Have just gotten myself a new car now, got it's keys on Friday there, an I feel like such a long gap has really done me no good especially because it was the anxiety that put me off on the first place, had to drive it home from the garage in the city on Friday night an got myself in a hell of a state with stalling it continuesly at the roundabout, it's really just thrown me, took it out today a short drive an again stalled a few times
Really stuck on how to just get over it, the whole reason I got the car is because I now need it for work since my place is moving, but I just cannot get over this stalling it an each time I do it just knocks me back again, I know my problem is not enough power but it's like my brain just refuses to connect that, I know with the car being new as well it's going have little teething problems but am really just stuck with how the hell to get over this
If anyone else has been like this please tell me it gets better
I used to have a panic of the car stalling as I had managed to stall one basically in the middle of a crossing when I had just gotten my license and it was one of the many small things Stühle gave me a fear of driving. Since I don’t own a car and use hire cars at the moment, I’ve gotten quite good at this because it’s often a different model. I’m still not a good driver, but I promise you’ll quickly get the hang of your car.
Thanks, I know, people keep saying I'll get used to it, it's just so hard to get into my head right now that it will eventually click an I'll be fine, I'll go out tonight an try an drive around a bit, I know I'll need to force myself otherwise I'll end up falling back into not wanting to take it out like I done the last time
I had ended up coming out at the roundabout an stopped due to panic from another car an then just kept stalling it, didn't help I was half out at the time
which made it worse because I was like I CANNOT sit here
I've decided to get my own car, me and my husband changed to home working in lock down so sold my car but now the kids various activities are making things hard (and I'm tired of being stuck at home at the weekend whilst hub does his sports 
).
I have seen the perfect car but it's an hours drive away, in a big city and the thought of driving a strange car back on a route I've never travelled before is worrying me. I have thought about test driving the same model locally and just dispatching hub and a mate to get the car. Is this dumb??. (I'm very much just an A to B driver).
).I have seen the perfect car but it's an hours drive away, in a big city and the thought of driving a strange car back on a route I've never travelled before is worrying me. I have thought about test driving the same model locally and just dispatching hub and a mate to get the car. Is this dumb??. (I'm very much just an A to B driver).
I've decided to get my own car, me and my husband changed to home working in lock down so sold my car but now the kids various activities are making things hard (and I'm tired of being stuck at home at the weekend whilst hub does his sports
I have seen the perfect car but it's an hours drive away, in a big city and the thought of driving a strange car back on a route I've never travelled before is worrying me. I have thought about test driving the same model locally and just dispatching hub and a mate to get the car. Is this dumb??. (I'm very much just an A to B driver).
I don't think this is dumb at all, but if you "only" drive the same one locally there is a chance that you overlook something; in the case of you buying a used car privately. If it's just a better price from an official seller it's less of a problem I'd assume, but I'd be worried that I buy a car "unseen" and there's something not quite right.
Would it be an option to drive it once locally to check whether it fits you and if you like it, go with your husband and a friend to the other city to have a look, maybe drive it again and have e.g. your husband take you home in the new car? I'd also be worried about new car + stressful city driving!
Thanks for replying. It is a private seller, low mileage, one owner. I just want a small (cheap!) run around (after driving a hulking volvo for 4 years). It never occurred to me we could go as a three!. I could ask a friend to take us in their car, have a little drive round the streets and have hub drive the new car back. Thank you
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Someone had a bump at the junction in our estate. Their sat nav sent them that way. The sat nav always seems to go a less straight forward way. It's unnerved me a bit .
I find my Sat Nav tricky, too!
Sometimes the Speed Limit is incorrect on screen compared with the road signage
I also dislike how late it tells me which lane I should be in so I'm left fumbling last minute.
There are different apps - I should try others but it feels risky to try something new on a drive i'm unfamiliar with, after all, that's the reason it's on in the first place!
Any recs?
I find different navigation systems are good for different things.
Google Maps I've found the best for driving in the city. The built-in BMW one is amazing for long distances when driving on the Autobahn, especially when real-time traffic is active, but it's not good for the city. Always makes you take some weird routes.
Google Maps I've found the best for driving in the city. The built-in BMW one is amazing for long distances when driving on the Autobahn, especially when real-time traffic is active, but it's not good for the city. Always makes you take some weird routes.
How did the sat nav cause the bump? Did it send them down a one way street?
- - -
I use Google Maps because my car is too old to have an inbuilt sat nav!
I think Google Maps has changed, but not for the better. It doesn’t change the arrival time even if you get stuck in traffic or it reroutes you to avoid an accident or something. I also think it’s less descriptive in its instruction and can tell you to turn too late.
Bib - I've had that problem recently and got quite upset about it, but it turned out in my case, it wasn't Google Maps, it was my data plan
I've never hada great plan and without me realizing it (I work from home mostly and therefore am nearly always on Wi-fi) I got "downgraded" to LTE way faster than I used to. The LTE connection wasn't good and when using Maps it caused some sort of delay, causing it to notify me a bit late. It was completely stupid - I've now got another data plan where I'm always on 5G and it hasn't happened since. About the descriptive instructions, that reminded me: TomTom sat navs - the horror. Or at least it used to be. Super super chatty, it goes on for ages and by the time it has told you where to go, you've driven past.
It didn't, her lack of observation did. However, it sent her through unfamiliar, residential roads, and she would have been better sticking to the main roads. I think she was relying on it too much, rather than commen sense.
I have Google maps too, but I don't use it when I'm driving. I've checked routes I've been on before and it always sends me a different way to the one I'm familiar with,and it seems incapable of using a straightforward route.
Very proud of myself for driving to a completely new area with lots of country roads. About 30 miles each way. It's definitely getting easier, there were a couple of hairy moments but I kept calm and did it.
It's definitely getting easier! I drove 150 miles today (round trip) to a completely new area & was calm & not really anxious at all 
helped that it was A roads for the majority of the journey mind 
helped that it was A roads for the majority of the journey mind 
How are you getting on with the new car?Hope it's fine to jump onto this thread
Passed my test around 10 years ago, got myself a car which personally couldn't really handle, was a 2.0 turbo convertible which was a car I liked but really couldn't drive, only drove a handful of times before getting rid of it due to just being too anxious to be out in it
Have just gotten myself a new car now, got it's keys on Friday there, an I feel like such a long gap has really done me no good especially because it was the anxiety that put me off on the first place, had to drive it home from the garage in the city on Friday night an got myself in a hell of a state with stalling it continuesly at the roundabout, it's really just thrown me, took it out today a short drive an again stalled a few times
Really stuck on how to just get over it, the whole reason I got the car is because I now need it for work since my place is moving, but I just cannot get over this stalling it an each time I do it just knocks me back again, I know my problem is not enough power but it's like my brain just refuses to connect that, I know with the car being new as well it's going have little teething problems but am really just stuck with how the hell to get over this
If anyone else has been like this please tell me it gets better
im in the same boat, gone from a sporty little hatchback to what feels like a tank! I’m slowly getting there with it but still anxious at driving it at peak times!
Honestly it just feels like I have two steps forward then a step back or a step forward an two back at times, I feel like I'll have a good drive an then start to feel better then I'll have such a tit drive afterwards where it feels like am back to square one
The engine is so quiet an there's times where I'll stall it an it will still be running, then other times it will shut the engine off, had to stop on a hill an tried to calm myself down by telling myself it's fine I'll get it to the biting point then get going, so brought it to biting, took my foot off the brake an went to go, only to find it rolling down the hill, done that twice before I realised the engine was off because it had hard stalled
Then we were sat outside my work an I must have stalled it like 5 times, but I felt like I was bringing it to the biting point an putting my foot down enough to move it but clearly I wasn't
It just feels like am getting nowhere forward with it, just keeps putting me off wanting to take it further out alone
Sorry to hear you are still struggling. I feel very much the same, I have 1 good drive then about 5 bad ones, I keep going for drives on an evening when it’s quite and find that’s really helping building my confidence up.
I get what you mean regarding engine sounds, my old car was loud and I’d always go but the engine noise, new one is brand new so can barely hear it running and it’s horrible!!
Oh hill starts are what gives me the most anxiety. In the old car, I’m dreading coming across one in the new car, it says it has hill start assist but I don’t think it’ll be much help, old car I used to use the handbrake for hill starts but this one has an electric handbrake so not sure how that will work.
Mines is the same, it has hill assist, however the hill assist only works if you use the break an not the handbrake as I've found out, so I've been trying not to use the handbrake, but yeah, they give me so much anxiety
Schools are back on Wednesday here thankfully so am going try an get out more during the day where it will be quieter, doesn't help out town is a circus with road closures an diversions so it's made the roads I know triple the amount of cars, so hoping the schools going back will calm them down, I've only really been going out at night when it is quiet but I need out during the day as well
Hopefully we will get there someday
I am glad I found this thread! 42 - driving since I was 17.
Always super confident, have always driven big cars and competently and confidently towed a horse trailer.
I do not know what has happened but the past few weeks I just do not feel right at the wheel.
I live and work in a very rural area, single track lanes too and from.
Previously I have always been fine reversing for quite a length to let people pass, but now I go to pieces, panic, stuff it up and want to cry!|I am hesitant over road rules if you like and get jittery at the thought of going furhter than the 3 miles to/from work.
Previoulsy I would trek anywhere, UK, abroad, nothing phased me
Assuming you are female, it will be perimenopauseI am glad I found this thread! 42 - driving since I was 17.
Always super confident, have always driven big cars and competently and confidently towed a horse trailer.
I do not know what has happened but the past few weeks I just do not feel right at the wheel.
I live and work in a very rural area, single track lanes too and from.
Previously I have always been fine reversing for quite a length to let people pass, but now I go to pieces, panic, stuff it up and want to cry!|I am hesitant over road rules if you like and get jittery at the thought of going furhter than the 3 miles to/from work.
Previoulsy I would trek anywhere, UK, abroad, nothing phased me