Motoring Discussion > Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) Miscellaneous
Thread Author: John H Replies: 13
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 15:32 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - John H
Driving For Longer Than Anyone On The Planet

jalopnik.com/5943756

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New Fri 28 Dec 12 16:26 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Armel Coussine
She's a fabulous old thing and so is her car.

There are several older drivers than me here at C4P I think. I didn't learn to drive until I was in my twenties and passed my test late in life, driving semi-illegally for a while before that. But I was an enthusiast who always liked cars and understood them well long before age and sometimes bitter experience taught me how to look after them and minimise the probability of crashing them. It has been a continuous process and I learn something new every day.

But there are people here my age and older, some owning or having owned nice vintage and pvt machines. There were some on the HJ site too. Serious motorists compared to me.
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 17:39 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Cliff Pope
www.theargus.co.uk/news/quirkies/9898011.Meet_Harry__Britain_s_oldest_driver_at_105/


Of course assessing the number of driving years is a bit open to debate and definition.
Plenty of farmers' children are fully competent "drivers" in all but a road-legal sense, and I know a local family whose daughter often drove on the road aged 12 when moving cattle and sheep.

Of course 90 years ago probably very few farmers had cars or tractors. The most common mode of access to semi-legal driving that long ago would perhaps have been small boys in an affluent house befriending their father's chauffeur.
So my search tip would be among the very elderly aristocracy, perhaps in Ireland.
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 17:59 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Duncan
>> I didn't learn to drive until I was in my twenties and passed my test late in life,
>> driving semi-illegally for a while before that.

Why only semi-illegally?

Sounds like illegally to me!
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 18:24 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Manatee
>> Sounds like illegally to me!

He had a driving licence. It just wasn't his ;-)
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 18:52 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Armel Coussine
It was mine. Obtained by a friend in Dublin for a quid, backed by a couple of porkies and a forgery.

Technically one could drive here on an Irish licence for a month before having to get a proper licence. I had a provisional one as well sometimes for driving scooters and cars. I don't remember ever having to show the Irish one, but I certainly carried it for a good couple of years. Well wicked I was.
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Fri 28 Dec 12 at 18:54
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 21:28 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Dutchie
My mate Jan, his father had a old volks wagen bus.He used to let me drive on the beach in Oostvoorne a small seaside village.I must have been about ten /eleven had some fun.
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 21:58 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Dave_
I have two uncles who continued to drive (albeit only locally) into their 100s. My dad learned on his father's farm, took a paid-for lesson on the morning of his 17th birthday and took and passed his test in the afternoon.

I applied for my practical test at the first available opportunity after hitting 17, faced a 12 week wait and passed first time. I've driven at least one example of almost everything there is to drive since and I fully intend to keep going until I can't do it any more. Then I shall drink myself to death.

Question: Do I bring my (under-age) offspring up to standard on private land now, or keep them well away from a steering wheel until the day they turn 17?
Last edited by: Dave_TDCi on Fri 28 Dec 12 at 21:59
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 22:10 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Dutchie
Drinking to death yeah go down with a good malt whiskey.I remember a lad on Tugs and he could handle one at the age of sixteen a natural.Depends on your kids Dave and you regarding driving.
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New Fri 28 Dec 12 23:38 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - bathtub tom
>>Question: Do I bring my (under-age) offspring up to standard on private land now, or keep them well away from a steering wheel until the day they turn 17?

I'd advise them to start as early as possible, if they're interested, then they'll carry on and badger you for more. If they're not, then give them some experience before they're 17 and let them choose themselves.

SWMBO didn't learn until her 30s and regretted it. She made sure our sprogs were given every opportunity to learn as soon as possible. Their 17th birthday presents were driving lessons.

There's many opportunities for youngsters to get behind the wheel long before their 17th birthday. Motor-sport rules permit them to compete much earlier. I've seen youngsters at trials and autotests (often doing better then many of us experienced competitors).
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New Sat 29 Dec 12 07:57 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Fenlander
>>>>>Question: Do I bring my (under-age) offspring up to standard on private land now, or keep them well away from a steering wheel until the day they turn 17?


It's a huge advantage for kids to learn basic car control before they hit the roads. I was lucky enough to be able to drive on farmland from an early age.
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New Sat 29 Dec 12 09:32 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - DP
My dad taught me the 'operating the car' bit of driving, including reverse and parallel parking when I was 15, in the family Sierra in a local car park on a succession of Sundays. It was a huge advantage. I took my first driving lesson on my 17th birthday and was able to immediately concentrate on the road stuff without thinking about the basics. Passed test 1st time after 8 hours tuition.

Both my kids have already steered the car on my lap in empty car parks to get a feel for it. I will teach them both to drive when they are old enough to do so, and also look at enrolling them in a young driver scheme in their early teens. I don't think you can have too much experience before being let loose on the roads.
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New Sat 29 Dec 12 12:22 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - madf
Teaching children to drive young? Try gokarting. Fun, lots of spills, speed and gain road sense very quickly..

No insurance problems with your own car if kids crash it on private land.
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New Sun 30 Dec 12 18:57 
 Oldest Driver - older than Armel Cousssine :) - Alastairw
Its a lot harder to find an empty car park these days, thanks to Sunday trading.
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