SSDC Review

Just thought I could give a review on SSDC (Singapore Safety Driving Centre).

I used to google for 'Woodlands Driving School' for SSDC thinking that it is the layman way of calling it. Even when I took a cab to the school, I said it that way and the cab drivers understood it perfectly.

It was not until I called up the school to enquire about something that I realised that 'Woodlands Driving School' was actually a small private driving school, located at the overhead bridge opposite Admiralty MRT Station! I had walked past it every day for at least a month without realising it!

Length of time I took for:

Basic Theory Test

I signed up as a student since November 2011 and the test was in January 2012. During this time, I went for two compulsory theory lessons and sat for 6 consecutive practices prior to the test.

The practice questions were just about what came out in the test, so it was easy to have a perfect score within 5 or 6 minutes during the test.

Final Theory Test

The test was booked immediately after my BTT and I waited for 3 months, till April 2012, before I could take it. I should have started my practical lessons in January but I wanted to make sure I could pass the Final Theory Test first, for the technophobic that I am and the fact that William and my elder sister told me I could never make it for the FTT. I didn't want to waste money on practicals if I could not pass the FTT.

Same thing. I went for two compulsory theory lessons and 4 practices. And passed with perfect score within 5 to 6 minutes again.

Practical Lessons

The manual car practical lessons have to be booked at least 3 weeks in advance. Auto car lessons are thereabout, if not 1 or 2 weeks more.

On and off, you could check the website to see if anyone has given up his date nearer to the date that you want. If there is, you have to give up your original date and book it immediately, lest it gets snapped up again. I think Manual car practical lessons have fewer give-ups compared to Auto car, not that I have a lot of experiences with Auto car practicals though. But I do believe there are a bit more people learning Auto cars, so by the law of large number, there are more give-ups of the dates compared to Manual.

The driving instructors are mostly competent and patient. They have a sticker on their passenger dashboard that reads

to remind themselves not to lose temper or get impatient with the students.


The training cars have rear view mirror and a foot brake at the passenger seat for the instructors to help look out for mistakes and brake in time should the students be at risk of causing an accident.  

The instructors are very willing to explain whenever you are in doubt. They are willing to practise what you are weak in, over and over again. Of course, the skeptical ones will say 'it's so that they can make you spend more time and money in booking the lessons', but my objective was to learn it right, and pass the test.  

They give practical tips on how to clear the courses:  

Crank course: turn at the kerb once it passes the underside of the side mirror or if you are small-sized like me, when it passes the end of the car handle.  

S course: keep the windscreen pillar at the centre of the road to ensure that your car is always in the centre  

Directional change: make sure the car is in the centre of the road and allow the side mirror to go over the front kerb by just a little bit before you do the course. When turning into the lot, do a full-lock to the right to get the car in. Reverse till the side mirror covers the kerb.   When getting out, turn left immediately when the right side mirror passes the kerb.  

Vertical parking: keep to the right side of the lane (without stepping on the white line) till the white line meets the GPS reader. Advance to the point where you can see the leftmost inner kerb lying on top on the car sticker at the left rear window. Do a full-lock to the left and reverse slowly and pay attention to the left rear wheel.  

If the left rear wheel is too near (about to hit) to the kerb, steer one round, or two rounds to the right to clear the kerb. If the left rear wheel is too far from the kerb, stop the car, advance forward as you turn to the right to close the gap, and straighten the car before you reverse it by full-locking to the left again.  

I took a long time to learn vertical parking because I could not grasp what 'too near to the kerb' meant. And I had to memorise the corrective actions: If too near, turn one round to the right while reversing; If too far, go forward and straighten the car first. It is a formula to me.  

Parallel parking: keep to the centre of the lane - the white line would be under the pillar of the windscreen. Advance to the point where you can see the front inner kerb from the left rear window. Then turn one round to reverse into the lot. When the kerb is cleared, reverse to the point where your right rear wheel touches the yellow line of the lot (which indicates the side of the lot). When it reaches the yellow line, turn one round to the right immediately. After that, keep reversing until the mud flap goes above the kerb at the back. Now the car is in the lot, except that it is slanted. To get it straightened, turn full-lock to the left and advance slowly. Then turn two rounds back to straighten the wheels. After that, reverse the car till the kerb at the back meets the centre of the mud flap and you are in the centre of the lot.  

I never had a problem with parallel parking because it is a set of formula and I was able to move the car super slow.

Some people had problems with coordination with turning the steering wheel and stepping on the accelerator. They tend to turn slowly and step lightly, or turn quickly and step hard on the accelerator. So the instructor would advise them to turn the wheels when the car is stationary. The instructor's rationale: it is better to lose 2 points by turning the wheels when stationary than lose 10 points by hitting the kerb or risk immediate failure by mounting the kerb.  

I have met about 3 in my entire experience at the centre that I deem as not-so-competent. The first one did not know how to explain why it was vital to check mirrors, the other two only chit-chatted with me throughout the driving lesson.

The good ones observe your mistakes and correct them immediately. A senior instructor told me,"Don't just follow what the instructors tell you. You must know what you are doing. If not by the time you go home, your brain is empty."

I went for the driving lessons every day on weekdays ie. Monday to Friday starting from 10 April and I completed all my subjects at the end of May.

Driving Test

Each wait for a driving test was about 3 months. That means that you need to spend some money on revision lessons closer to the driving test date so that you don't get rusty on driving.

I had booked both my tests on Wednesdays, not because I liked Wednesday. It just so happened that the dates fell on Wednesdays. I booked the revision lessons on consecutive weekdays just before the test date, including one just before the test so that I was more seasoned at driving. The centre includes one 'warm-up session' right before the test for you to familiarise yourself with the test car ie. to familiarise yourself with the biting point, to adjust the seat and mirrors to your preference before the test. The 'warm-up' instructor would take you on the circuit and a test route once, after which he would lead you back to the waiting room to wait for the tester.

Price to pay

In all, I spent about $2000 on the 30 lessons (mostly off-peak charges), spent close to $800 for the 8 revision lessons and the first test, and another $700 on the 6 revision lessons and the second test. About $3500 in all.

For a technophobic who needs clear instructions, step-by-step lessons and practical tips to learn driving, I think the centre worked for me. Rather than going to private instructors which requires a lot of online reading-up and taking the risk of meeting irresponsible ones, I think I made the right choice in going to a centre.

'Poor men pay twice'. I'd rather go the conventional route and pay more than have doubts if I was learning the correct stuff from private instructors. Besides, as students of the centre, we get to use the circuit every lesson. That to me is very important, because when you clear the circuit with zero demerit points, it boosts your confidence and you have a very high chance in passing the driving test since you would have 18 points allowance for the road-driving.