Great Week For Our Driving Instructors in Thatcham

Peter Skelton Driving School have a had a successful week with 2 pupils from Thatcham passing their driving tests. One driving test was a manual test who passed on their second attempt and the other was automatic test who passed on their first attempt.

Automatic driving lessons are certainly becoming more popular than they used to be. When I first became an instructor 17 years ago I never had to ask people when they enquired what type of lessons they were looking for as it was nearly all manual. Nowadays it’s around 50:50.

The reasons for the change are many. However the main reasons are:
• Automatic cars are so much better than they used to be and hence make for a much better drive
• There are more and more hybrid and electric cars being produced which are all automatics.
• Traditional petrol and diesel cars are on the way out with a the last cars being produced in 2030.

There is definitely a shift in driving schools, like ourselves, who offer both lesson types. That shift will continue until only automatic lessons will exist.

Even though the ban on new petrol and diesel cars comes into effect in 2030, there will still be tradition “internal combustion engine” (ICE) cars being sold in the second hand market and people will still want to take lessons in manuals as they may want to drive an older or even a classic car.

So it will be a while yet before we see only auto cars in and around Newbury and Thatcham. However the shift is coming. Hopefully making the air we breathe fresher.