I am in process of getting my licence in category B. Can someone clarify if there is difference in the licence issued when you take automatic/Manual Transmission car for the driving test.
Cheers,
Hi,
Yes indeed. If you pass your test in an automatic car then your licence will state you are only allowed to drive such a car. however if you pass your test in a manual car then you are qualified to drive both.
Did you actually take the driving test here?? Wouldn't having an EU driving license mean that you can simply swap it?
I did the driving exam here, in an automatic car and my driving license makes no mention of manual or auto transmission only. My own car in Switzerland has a manual transmission that I only learned to drive after my test.
I have also heard the same that if you appear in automatic you get the DL only for automatic. But i guess that will be the case for people who clear theory and then take test. But for getting your DL converted(from a non EU DL ) to a Swiss one it dosent matter auto or manual ...you get the one which allows you to drive both.
By the way I cleared the test about a month ago in a manual.
I would be watching this thread if someone could clarify this as I am also helping a few of my collegues in getting the DL converted.
hi there
i also did my driving test here for automatic car only. i am allowed to drive automatic car only, if i want to drive a manual i will have to appear for the test again with a manual car. i did my test 3 years ago but do check it with strassenverkehrsamt.
hope this helps.
Hi Marie
When did you do your test? If it was only in the last couple of years i'd get this checked out.
I'm doing my lessons here at the moment and my instructor reiterated what I said in my post above. Maybe you got lucky before some kind of rule change?
My mate swapped his Auto GB licence for a full Swiss one.
I think conversion is different and when you conver your DL you get a full one no matter what you take for the test. But if you are starting from the scratch ..theory....practical....then auto or manual in the test is a big differentiator.
I did only the driving test in 2003, no theory test. My driving instructor also said i would get a license that only allows me to drive an automatic car, but my license has no such restrictions and is exactly the same as the one issued to my husband who had an EU license and just swapped his over.
I asked at the SVA before taking the test if I would be restricted to automatic cars only and they confirmed that I wouldn't be. We have a manual car at home, so it was kind of important. Perhaps they did change the rules after I did the test. I know that they changed the rules for Australians in that they no longer need to take the test. Very annoying after I paid for driving lessons and the test.
Hi All,
Thanks for quick replies. Even two my colleagues had started from scratch last year for DL. One with Auto and another with Manual, I hardly see any differences in their licences. I doubt there should be something different because the guy who is familiar with Auto can face some problems with Manual while changing the gears.
Cheers.
Hi Mhawk
There definitely will be a difference for your two colleagues and for you depending on taking the test in an automatic or manual car. Otherwise why would anyone bother taking the test in a manual when they could do it in a far easier automatic car.........then take time with a friend once they have their licence to learn manual gears.
Driving a manual car is much more difficult having to contend with the manual gears changes.
You should really make sure of this with your instructor before going any further.
Finally I checked with my instructor again and he agreed that passing the test in an automatic means you can only drive an automatic. This might just be a recent ruling as some people on this thread have taken their tests several years ago but it is the current rule today.
Cheers
Brian
How does it work in the USA where 9 out of 10* cars are autos? Can you really pass in an automatic and then go straight out and buy a manual Porsche?
* USA New car sales
Year Automatic % Manual % Total
1985 10,021,482 77.6% 2,887,171 22.4% 12,908,653
1990 10,141,794 78.7% 2,752,150 21.3% 12,893,944
1995 12,816,559 83.1% 2,602,211 16.9% 15,418,770
2000 15,995,874 90.0% 1,785,377 10.0% 17,781,251
2001 14,898,961 90.6% 1,540,618 9.4% 16,439,579
2003 16,752,979 92.6% 1,335,531 7.3% 18,088,510
*Includes manual/automatic hybrids
Source: Ward's Communications
was wondering about the same thing and according to my American friends, yes you can
I had a non -eu license and after one year appeared directly for CH Driving license(B) on Automated. I got a license which does NOT mention anything mentioning specific of that sort.
In short I can drive both manual or Automatic Car .
Hope this helps!
Cheers!
My wife will be appearing for a test to have her Indian DL converted, and the SV Amt guy said on the phone, that if she does the test on auto, then it will say so on the DL. How it turns out in practice is still an open question..
Yep...suprisingly you can in the states.
[quote=Castro;577397]How does it work in the USA where 9 out of 10* cars are autos? Can you really pass in an automatic and then go straight out and buy a manual Porsche?
I passed the driving test recently and they also explained to me that if you pass your exam on an automatic car, you have to take another test if you want to drive a manual.
This information should be coded, so your driving licence will not say 'this person can drive only cars with automatic transmission' but will have a code on the back that will mean exactly this. This link explains it all: http://www.astra2.admin.ch/media/pdf...-15_2262_f.pdf
Things may be different if you are passing test to exchange a foreign licence for a Swiss one.
ah so what you did was a test-drive and not a full driving examination. You had a driving licence already but it was deemed "rubbish"?
Sorry to butt in again, but this is the relevant provision of the Swiss law regarding the manual/automatic issue:
http://www.admin.ch/ch/f/rs/741_51/a88a.html#fn2
I also found this letter which explains the matter in more detail: http://www.vs.ch/Press/DS_3/CF-2007-...r/conduite.pdf
It is in French, but the relevant paragraphs state (roughly) the following:
'While learning to drive, new drivers face difficulties in synchronising movements when changing gears, adapting gear to a particular situation and appropriately releasing the clutch at the moment of departure.
A driver who had learned to drive and passed the driving test only in a car with automatic transmission can not have mastered all the above skills. They would pose grave danger if they were allowed to drive manual cars without having passed an appropriate test beforehand. This is why we would like to maintain the current rules which dictate a restriction to be inscribed in driving licences of persons who passed driving test in cars with automatic transmission'.
Back for an update... the driving license was obtained on an automatic car, but there was no mention of the license being restricted. The driving school instructor had also confirmed that even though the test is made on an automatic, the license will be a "full license".
The license was a conversion of an Indian driving license into a Swiss one, and the canton was Baselland.