Reliable Private Driving Instructor?

[BARNETT]

Is your instructor driving a Red Mazda 2 @ ssdc?

Hi everyone, I passed my Class 3A under Mr Ivan Tan. I don't sugarcoat my words, & I'm only here to offer you my honest feedback. In this way, you can make an informed decision before you proceed to engage him.

Basics:
Rate per hour: $38
Circuit: $33
TP Package: $406
Contact Number: 9667 6769

Pros:
1. Good Vehicle- He just changed his car from Toyota Vios to Mazda 2. I took my 1st TP test with the Vios & my 2nd attempt was with the Mazda. I sure can feel the difference.

2. Time- Generally he is punctual and he will end his lessons at the stipulated 1.5hours. In addition to that, he isn't calculative if you exceeded 5mins.

3. Responds to Feedback- Initially, when I first engaged him, he will often go for his toilet breaks, buy food & won't give any parking tips. However, after I feedback to him of his lackluster attitude, he stopped doing it and was more forthcoming in giving his tips!


Cons:
1. Likewise, he also doesn't sugarcoat his words! If your driving is horrible, he will tell you straight in your face! Sometimes, he will also berate me for doing things that he himself instructed! For eg. he will tell me to give way to the side traffic as a form of courtesy but when I allowed the car to go 1st, he will yell "Eh, why you do that? You have the right of way what! Like that sure fail la..." He can be very direct and tactless but from my experience with him, that is just the way he communicates...

2. High fees- What's there to elaborate? Just look at the fees and it is clear that he charges alot higher than the regular pdis. Wished he would lower it down...


So in conclusion, Mr Ivan Tan can be a more effective pdi if he chooses to do it. If you are the type who has a low threshold to scoldings, then I won't suggest you engage him. However, if you can tolerate it & you are also the type who will say it like you mean it (confrontational)? Then he is definitely the pdi for you. Why? Because you will receive honest feedback and can make the necessary improvements to it. So when he told me during my TP warm up, "You can pass la..." I knew he really meant it because if you are lousy, he will surely tell you! & true enough, I passed!

First lesson: August
TP Passed : November

 

[stonecold996]

Hi all, I'm looking for a class 3a instructor in bbdc area. Please pm if you have any recommendation on a good pdi. Thank you

 

[RedKit]

Is your instructor driving a Red Mazda 2 @ ssdc?

Hi Barnett,

Nope, he is driving a dark grey Mazda 2 @ CDC Ubi.

 

[Guoliang_elite]

anyone got any instructors teaching manual to recommend for ssdc?

 

[frdyusf]

Hello, I’m looking for a Class 3 Private Instructor for either BBDC or SSDC, can anyone recommend me and pass me their contacts please? Thank you

 

[megosun]

Aiyieyie. I been feeling so salty that i just had to post my thoughts here.

Recently just took tp and thankfully i passed in one try.

Instructor was Mr Lim XX. He is based in CDC, does not do pick ups. Lessons are usually starts at CDC coffee shop or eunos mrt.

Charges:
$36/hr? This was my rate but overheard him talking on the phone saying that now his rate is $38/hr

Tp package $350? Cause i was recommended maybe i got a cheaper fee as well.

Registration fee $80. Believe this is standard thru out for him.

In total i spent exactly $1715 for this license and i passed on the first try. This amount include pdl of $25, passing btt and ftt on 1 try each, $50 license, $33 for booking of tp test and $15 for opening account at cdc.

So i just need somewhere to rant that as i feel although i went taking the private route the total damage to my pocket is comparable to learning at school.
Firstly, the tp package price is ridiculous. When he first told me that the tp package was $350 my instant reaction was to ask him why so expensive? As my friends who took other instructors before all said their tp package was only $200-$250. Although after reading thru this forum i feel a little less salty as $350 seems like the average now.....
Secondly, let me do some calculations for you guys. Just some background first, a normal lesson that includes circuit cost $88 with him. $54+$34(circuit fee) that include 30mins on the road and 1hr circuit(90mins total). A lesson in school even during peak hours is $77.04/100min. Booking tp test from school include warm up is roughly $232. Thus imagine failing on the first try. You would probably have to take another remindial lesson plus tp package again which in my case would be $350+88=$438 while school will probably be only $232+77=$309 difference is roughly $130. Thats alot of money. Fail twice and u alr lugi by choose private instuctor.
Thirdly, i want to rant about this instructor. on the day of the test this guy made me meet him 1hr before the test stipulated time for the warm up and all. Test was 430pm while meet up time was 330pm. He made me pay the $350 immediately upon meet up. I was like ok. But the thing is he made me drive on the outside road from 330pm to around 350pm which he then ask me to drive into cdc. At first i thought he would bring me to warm up in the circuit. But to my surprise he actually asked me to stop when insise cdc, took over the car and told me "i am going to drive to the testing area carpark now" he then took me there and gave me some last minute tips like to be careful with the biting point of the car as the carpark was on a slope and the car may rollback. He also told me to pretend adjust my seats and mirrors once the tester got in and how he was gonna leave the key in the car. He then immediately took me to the test area where i had to wait in a room for the tester to come. This was around 4pm. In retrospect, he probably had another lesson with another student at 430pm and thus had to rush me. I felt this was abit unfair as i paid good money for his service plus as mentioned earlier failing even once will make u lugi alr.
Thankfully i passed on the first try, 18points( probably the tester gave me alot of chances) thus i decided not to confront him since i passed and i was a recommendation from a good friend but i just had to rant out hahahahaha.

General conclusions about my learnings from him is that he is quite fierce and tend to shout and get frustrated when you make mistakes. (Shows his passion for teaching i guess). Tends to correct you whenever he spots you doing something wrong eg downshifting too late etc.
However countary to what i said above. (maybe i expect too much) he still requires a substantial amount of push or what i am trying to say is there are still many things that i had to personally ask to learn from him.
One very good example is moving off from a stationery position. I always move off too slow thus i asked him for tips on this. He keeps explaining the same answer to me which is hold biting point 2sec let go and press accelerator. However, once when he was driving me to eunos mrt during my lessons( for reasons i cant rmb) i caught him using another technique which was way better where he press relatively hard on the accelerator and whilst holding the biting point. I then tried it myself but the car kept jerking the moment i realease the biting point. Finally i asked him how he did it during the next lesson then he taught me the way..... i mean u knew i was struggling with the move off and yet he never teach me a better way till i asked many times?? Hmmmm could improve

But overall, in terms of teaching u the more textbook stuff like parking, stopline etc and all to pass your tp. He is very good.

Will share number if people are interested.

 

[wenjie1988]

Just posting a review of Mr Frankie Yue here.

Fees breakdown:
Registration:$70
1hr $36 non peak, $38 peak
Circuit, $32
TP test fee including warmup: $380

CDC Area
Auto
Toyota Axio

Sorry if I sound like I'm rambling, but what I'm writing here is my honest opinion of him.

For me, Mr Frankie was an alright instructor, patient, would nag sometimes. Doesn't chat much, which may be a good thing, more about that later.

Teaching wise, he would cover the basics like turning the steering wheel, turning points, then would progress on to going on the roads. He would go on with the basics of parking, parallel and vertical, then give a mix of both road driving and practice parking in a 1.5hr span as you progress further. For circuit, he would ask you to book at least 6 lessons in circuit. He doesn't speak much, which was fine with me, as it allowed me to focus more on the road. He does give pointers on what to look out for, like bus in bus lane must prepare to keep your distance and signal right to avoid getting penalized. He gets naggy at times too, "why you so blur leh" would be the common comment given by him if I fail to keep track of my surroundings. I took these constructive criticism in my stride and listened to what he had to say, even if he would berate me a little for my parking mistakes. If you're willing to take your driving lessons seriously, he make your money worth as his tips were very handy and essential. During circuit lessons he would at times make me do harder maneuvers compared to the simple turn left or right, and advise me on which points I should take note, and making me practise going into obstacles like the s-course from the left lane. Luckily he did, as my tester(Hamdan) made me do these harder maneuvers.
He listens to the radio during lessons and eats fruits and snacks sometimes. Doesn't bother me if his teaching's good. Everyone needs to eat anyway, especially when they're in a car all day. Oh, he gets a little cranky at the end of the day, but won't a normal person be if they were cooped up in the car all day long? At the end of every lesson I would write what I've learnt and memorize it. He knows his car very well, and will tell you how much to turn the steering wheel and when to turn at kerb, 3 inches from door handle etc..
Honestly, his teaching is solid, although I admit I had a little difficulty in determining the 1 door length for the parallel parking. So I used the little crystal on the middle of his dash board to align myself to the left kerb, which was more or less 1 door away. Lol.

I think he has false teeth? He can't pronounce some words properly so I struggled to understand him sometimes.

For booking of lessons, just message him in advance to book lessons, as his schedule is often packed.

TP test wise, he will prepare a warm up session of 1.5hrs in circuit. I got 18 points on my first try(Penalized for dry turning, not enough checking of blindspots..-_-), and I'm pretty glad I took him as my PDI, finished my practical part of getting my licence in about 4 months.

For anyone who is searching for a reliable PDI, here's his number: 96319527

Haha. Mr frankie like to said why you very blur. Seem like his favourite quote. Anyway his my instructor too. And i pass my TP on the 2nd try.

 

[Idme231]

Aiyieyie. I been feeling so salty that i just had to post my thoughts here.

Recently just took tp and thankfully i passed in one try.

Instructor was Mr Lim XX. He is based in CDC, does not do pick ups. Lessons are usually starts at CDC coffee shop or eunos mrt.

Charges:
$36/hr? This was my rate but overheard him talking on the phone saying that now his rate is $38/hr

Tp package $350? Cause i was recommended maybe i got a cheaper fee as well.

Registration fee $80. Believe this is standard thru out for him.

In total i spent exactly $1715 for this license and i passed on the first try. This amount include pdl of $25, passing btt and ftt on 1 try each, $50 license, $33 for booking of tp test and $15 for opening account at cdc.

So i just need somewhere to rant that as i feel although i went taking the private route the total damage to my pocket is comparable to learning at school.
Firstly, the tp package price is ridiculous. When he first told me that the tp package was $350 my instant reaction was to ask him why so expensive? As my friends who took other instructors before all said their tp package was only $200-$250. Although after reading thru this forum i feel a little less salty as $350 seems like the average now.....
Secondly, let me do some calculations for you guys. Just some background first, a normal lesson that includes circuit cost $88 with him. $54+$34(circuit fee) that include 30mins on the road and 1hr circuit(90mins total). A lesson in school even during peak hours is $77.04/100min. Booking tp test from school include warm up is roughly $232. Thus imagine failing on the first try. You would probably have to take another remindial lesson plus tp package again which in my case would be $350+88=$438 while school will probably be only $232+77=$309 difference is roughly $130. Thats alot of money. Fail twice and u alr lugi by choose private instuctor.
Thirdly, i want to rant about this instructor. on the day of the test this guy made me meet him 1hr before the test stipulated time for the warm up and all. Test was 430pm while meet up time was 330pm. He made me pay the $350 immediately upon meet up. I was like ok. But the thing is he made me drive on the outside road from 330pm to around 350pm which he then ask me to drive into cdc. At first i thought he would bring me to warm up in the circuit. But to my surprise he actually asked me to stop when insise cdc, took over the car and told me "i am going to drive to the testing area carpark now" he then took me there and gave me some last minute tips like to be careful with the biting point of the car as the carpark was on a slope and the car may rollback. He also told me to pretend adjust my seats and mirrors once the tester got in and how he was gonna leave the key in the car. He then immediately took me to the test area where i had to wait in a room for the tester to come. This was around 4pm. In retrospect, he probably had another lesson with another student at 430pm and thus had to rush me. I felt this was abit unfair as i paid good money for his service plus as mentioned earlier failing even once will make u lugi alr.
Thankfully i passed on the first try, 18points( probably the tester gave me alot of chances) thus i decided not to confront him since i passed and i was a recommendation from a good friend but i just had to rant out hahahahaha.

General conclusions about my learnings from him is that he is quite fierce and tend to shout and get frustrated when you make mistakes. (Shows his passion for teaching i guess). Tends to correct you whenever he spots you doing something wrong eg downshifting too late etc.
However countary to what i said above. (maybe i expect too much) he still requires a substantial amount of push or what i am trying to say is there are still many things that i had to personally ask to learn from him.
One very good example is moving off from a stationery position. I always move off too slow thus i asked him for tips on this. He keeps explaining the same answer to me which is hold biting point 2sec let go and press accelerator. However, once when he was driving me to eunos mrt during my lessons( for reasons i cant rmb) i caught him using another technique which was way better where he press relatively hard on the accelerator and whilst holding the biting point. I then tried it myself but the car kept jerking the moment i realease the biting point. Finally i asked him how he did it during the next lesson then he taught me the way..... i mean u knew i was struggling with the move off and yet he never teach me a better way till i asked many times?? Hmmmm could improve

But overall, in terms of teaching u the more textbook stuff like parking, stopline etc and all to pass your tp. He is very good.

Will share number if people are interested.

CDC Private learner here too.
Also from PDI in ubi coffeeshop.
Class 3 Toyota Axio vehicle, Graduated 2 weeks ago this month. also 18 points, CDC is common for 18 points.

First of all, my TP Package is $300 with warm up, so i have no issues with that but thankfully i passed with first try. I guess ur PDI and my PDI are common there, give me tips on the slope at car park because can kena score strike curb.

Go to school, and you see you are wasting ur time there, i spent lke 1.8k in private after switching from school. My PDI always ensure i have enough lessons, 2 months before my TP he is prepared to ask me to pick my test date.

Secondly, abut the clutch, for me, i always move off with my clutch only but it will rock sometimes due to friction, so it normally stalls, he is quite good on the first day itself teaching me how to use biting point that the school doesnt teach me, and left me thinking how to do for a few months.

If anyone or else, do wish to engage my PDI, please be cautious if you are the person who dw to take critism, if you keep lagging and do poorly in ur fundamentals after repeated times , he will be nagging and at times scold and alittle shout at u and ask u to go home and practice (especially ur steering wheel).

Lastly, for those who PM me about my PDI, here's a food for thought and you can ask me about my PDI via PM if u wan more info, i am only giving out numbers if u are serious with him.

 

[Idme231]

How to choose a suitable private instructor:
1. Logically, it makes sense to choose a PDI with high passing rates. But take note that there are some PDIs who purposely send students for more lessons than required. This not only allows them to maintain higher passing rates, but also allow them to earn more money from you
2. There are enough quality PDIs to go around such that you would not have to travel far and wide to get a good one. There are some who offer pick up services if convenient.
2. Some PDIs are strict/fierce yet fair, some are extremely patient, some are very naggy and the list goes on. This is a very important factor as even if a PDI is competent, if you cannot adjust to his teaching style, learning would not be effective for you

No.1 i believe some PDI do that, But at times, my PDI do give me lessons to ensure i prefect the driving before my test, on the other side, i may feel that he is taking alot of money from me.

But after all, i have passed, so these thoughts are gone now.

 

[Apewapew]

Any good Private Driving Instructor in West?

Hi all.. need some help.. been google around the whole day for PDI in west. Still couldnt find one. Good ones all fully booked.

Any good PDI to gai siao (intro) boh? Must have those pick up service so can pick me from home and alight me at my house.

TIA!

 

[Idme231]

Hi all.. need some help.. been google around the whole day for PDI in west. Still couldnt find one. Good ones all fully booked.

Any good PDI to gai siao (intro) boh? Must have those pick up service so can pick me from home and alight me at my house.

TIA!

Not all PDI provide such service. You need to take longer time to do homework lo.

 

[Apewapew]

Not all PDI provide such service. You need to take longer time to do homework lo.

ya lor... do till i sibei pek chek

 

[wadzxxx]

hello everyone, anyone know any nice driving instructors doing class 3 that can do pick up at Hougang? thank you very much guys!

 

[Idme231]

ya lor... do till i sibei pek chek

to save time, did u check the private instructor website?

 

[Guan-Ping]

Hey all! If you are currently looking for an automatic car driving instructor that teaches at CDC, you can give my driving instructor Mr Ivan Tan a call. His contact number is +6596676769. His car is currently a Mazda 2 which in my opinion is really easy to operate. I assure you that he will help you with your driving and pass within no time.

 

[Tenyul]

Do Not Ever Take Lessons with Ivan Tan![/SIZE]

I fell victim to the "positive review" here, right in this post. And I feel obliged to let everyone, who comes here to find a good instructor, to know that IVAN TAN is someone you want to avoid should you wish to pass!

1. He does not teach, you will not learn any concrete driving skill from him.

If you are new to driving, avoid him like a plague. He assumes that you have experience and already know how to drive. When you make a mistake, he doesn't explain first but goes straight to scold you with comments like: your driving not good, you liddat cannot pass. When you ask questions to clarify what is the right way, he will shoot you back with comments like: you don't want to listen, then you go do your way.

The most ridiculous encounter was when he told me to use the reserved parallel parking place in the circuit, and someone called to tell him to get out of there and make way for testers' cars. He turned around to scold me for entering there. I didn't really bother to comment on his remarks but felt really stupid about myself for taking lessons with him.

2. He is very calculative and not worth your money

He is charging $406 (in total) for taking the practical test which the market price is around $350. He did not mention to me the price until 1 week before the test date, by when is quite late to change or cancel.

His rate is competitive but he does not provide full service. He doesn't pick up students from the nearest MRT also. Even when he did offer once to pick me up at Tai Seng, he was late for 30 mins. He said I still have to pay him because he was stuck in traffic. Understandable from a logical perspective, but still quite an unpleasant experience. I am sure there are more kind-hearted instructors out there who charge fairly and give you a pleasant learning experience.

3. He doesn't have a teaching plan to get you fully prepared for test

This is probably the first red flag. I told him the timeline for my test and I asked him about what are the technics I have to learn and when do we go in the circuit and how many lessons roughly to get there. His exact answer: "Just drive la. Worry so much for what?" I have booked my practical test next week, and I know I will not be able to pass (I only entered circuit 3 times). I regret taking him as PDI, so people don't fall for it.

And Ivan, if you are here posting with fake reviews with fake accounts, please stop. What goes around comes around.

For all your new learners, stay away from Ivan Tan

P.S. If you also had a very bad experience with Ivan and want to file a formal complaint against him, please PM me. Nobody is going to advocate justice for you unless you take action to fight for it. That is what I believe.

Hi there, I had a super bad experience with Ivan today.

I cant pm yet so i'll quote you. So last Saturday, 25 Nov, after lesson i booked another lesson for this week, 02 Dec, which i completely forgot about. However i asked him twice over the week whether i had lessons on 02 Dec and 03 Dec and his reply, word for word, was "No booking". And today, being a Saturday, i decided t o sleep in as there's nothing going on for me in the morning. He called me 3 times, 7:53am, 8:18am and 9:09am, and 2 messages, one at 5:21am and 10:03am. The lesson was at 10am. And when i woke up he said that i ignored his reminders and demanded i pay for the missed lesson. When i showed him the evidence that i did ask him whether 02 Dec got lesson or not, he said he has so many students with the same name how he know is me, I find this very unprofessional and irresponsible. I still have the convo in my phone if anyone is interested to see.

 

[kikigi]

Private may seem cheaper on paper but if you factor in the passing rates and shitty practices by some it's actually cheaper to go school in general.

I don't have a PDI to recommend since the only one I encountered was pure garbage but if going BBDC I recommend 2244 Tong. He can be a bit intimidating at first since he doesn't do much small talk and is quite stern if you keep repeating mistakes but he's a good instructor with helpful tips, not just for the test but also real roads.

 

[Apewapew]

to save time, did u check the private instructor website?

i did.. alot of them fully booked le.. sianz ttm

 

[Idme231]

i did.. alot of them fully booked le.. sianz ttm

Then ... do you wan to try my instructor? Auto right?
Maybe i have his bro’s number. But i doubt got pick up service.

 

[meksoap]

Dear Bros/Sis

Any recommendation for PDI @ Punggol area?
Thanks In Advance.