The Car Driving Test And License In Sakon Nakhon

[Jezz]

This might be of interest to anyone planning to get a car driving license from Sakon Nakhon L.T.O.

I arrived at 8 am, having handed in the required documents the day before. Because my one year license expired much more than a year ago, as expected, I was told I needed to start all over again with the full test.

At 9 am I did the familiar colour blindness, reaction speed (braking) and, somewhat different to other offices I’ve been in, was required to line up two white pegs in a box by pulling on ropes rather like horse reins. Then I was given a copy of the Highway Code – just the road signs – in English, told to read it and come back at 2 pm for a computerised exam and an actual driving test on the test circuit.

Somewhat later than 2 pm I went with others into the examination room with about 15 ‘computers’; giant things like arcade video gaming machines. The staff set mine up in English. The test involved answering 30 questions by choosing the correct answer from 4 options by pressing a button. To pass you need to get at least 23 correct. Out of the 30 questions only a few were about road signs. The rest were made up of tiny pictures of cars in various road positions or parking positions; the idea being to tell if car ‘A’ ‘B’ ‘C’ or ‘D’ is doing it correctly. Then there followed a string of questions like ‘Which of the following vehicles are prohibited from using public roads?” A) If the horn exceeds 75 decibels in loudness. A military armoured tank. C) A racing car with permission from the authorities. D) A vehicle without a windscreen.

Miraculously I passed that bit of the test as well! The final leg started at 4 pm. On the test track I had to park close to the kerb, drive through a row of cones and reverse back through them, drive up to a ‘parking space’, reverse in and drive out. No problem!

At 4.15 pm I got a full 5 year license.

[BadtzBee]

I did my five year license last May, and only had to do the colour blind test and the lining up the pegs thing. For my original one year license I was not given any test at all, I just had to produce my overseas drivers license!

Road safety wise, it's reassuring to see they have "upped the ante", so to speak, although that's easy for me to say, seeing as I got the easy street option.

[Jezz]

According to a number of reports around forums it seems to be the norm these days for a farang to do the full test unless upgrading from a one year license within a year of expiry. No doubt different provinces have different rules. Under the ‘new rules’, I should have only been issued with another one year license, so to get the 5 years was a bonus.

Edited April 14, 2012 by Jezz

[pianoman]

My Thai GF's Son went in to renew his DL as it was 35 days past the "Expiration Date"... He ended up having to take the entire List as stated above, plus he was sent to watch a 90 minute Video / Seminar prior to taking his computerized test... GF just wanted to let me know / warn me as my current 5 year DL expires in a few months.... This was in Kalasin...

Pianoman

[Jezz]

As I'm farang, instead of the video/seminar which is in Thai, they gave me a coloured booklet in English, but only about road signs, to read on my own.

[diggledunc]

I went for first one year licence some months ago now. They accepted my Uk licence and IDP but asked me to do the theory test. this was in Sakon Nakhon province. don't know if all these tests are the same but the one I took had been obviously translated from thai to english by a somebody for whom English was not the first language. I felt some of the translation was incorrect at least very bad English.

One question i failed was where can you not overtake. answer on a bridge. Can this be correct as many bridges do not have the continuos line down the lanes to show you can not cross. Was thinking of Chiang Mai bridges which are two lanes each way. Two track roads here do not always have the continuous line down the middle to show keep in lane.

Think maybe something went wrong in translation.

[Jezz]

The English translation is certainly open to query, I found that out too. Apart from that, I noticed one question asking what you must do at a red triangle ‘Give Way’ sign, (not to be confused with the sort of hexagon shaped ‘Halt’ sign.) The correct answer was NOT to give way (including stopping if necessary) Rather it was MUST halt! (Same answer as for ‘Halt’ sign)

[Jezz]

There is also something odd about the practice of giving farangs a booklet about road signs and road markings and nothing more, instead of sitting through the video/seminar. Okay, it’s a useful booklet and well-translated but doesn’t cover anything about most of the questions asked in the exam, which aren’t about road signs.

[Gonsalviz]

Mine was similar except that I got both licenses and I never did a complete car driving test and didn't even have a motosy, although I did bring my helmet.

[diggledunc]

There is also something odd about the practice of giving farangs a booklet about road signs and road markings and nothing more, instead of sitting through the video/seminar. Okay, it’s a useful booklet and well-translated but doesn’t cover anything about most of the questions asked in the exam, which aren’t about road signs.

You got a booklet on road signs. Luxureeeee. mine didn't appear.

[diggledunc]

Mine was similar except that I got both licenses and I never did a complete car driving test and didn't even have a motosy, although I did bring my helmet.

Same here but the driving test was a joke. They only supplied geared motorbikes I ride automatic. There was a suggestion from my friend they didn't need to test. Palms crossed. But you ride of a UK driving licence I forgot re the pedal motorcycle apparently UK licences are taken as full qualification for 110cc bikes here