BSM Simulator (BSM)

Member Name: bailey_kipper_uk

Product:	BSM
Date:	29/01/02 (2278 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Can't hurt yourself, Cheaper than a real lesson

Disadvantages: Not real, could pick up bad habits

I recently decided to start driving lessons, having passed my theory test in the autumn of last year with 34/35. I am originally from Southend and currently live in Southampton, most people I know have either forgotten who their instructor was or learnt outside of Southampton. So i decided the best thing to do was to go with a company that I knew was respectable and established and has a high pass rate.

This op is about the BSM Simulator that we have here in Southampton. I thought about going straight out onto the road but after speaking to the people in the shop I decided to go on the simulator.

The simulator is just like a real car in that it has a steering wheel, gearstick, handbrake, mirrors/side screens, pedals. Basically the area around the driver. Once I was signed onto the simulator I began.

Part 1
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I had booked in for a 2 hour lesson and the first part was a basic introduction on how to use the simulator.

Part 2
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In this part you learn how to do basic checks and move off. It begins by showing you what you will do. Then it talks you through it, from turning on the engine to moving off and forward.
You can practice this and each exercise as many times as you want with less and less help as you improve. Until you require no help at all.
It takes a while to get the hang of it but when you do it is really brilliant.


Part 3
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Stopping. In this exercise you begin whilst already moving. The idea is for you to stop the car. After this exercise you practice combining the last 2 parts of moving off and stopping.
By this point I was getting into it and managed this stage well.

Part 4
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This part involved changing gear. Again it was gone through before you have to attempt it and once you get the hang of it then you can move on to the next section. Again at the end you have a chance to combine moving off, chan
ging gear and then stopping.

Part 5
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This part taught basic steering, going from one lock to the other. You can then practice going round poles in a figure of eight motion. After doing this you then practice honing your skills by completing a slalom course. Once you have mastered the slalom you can again combine your new skills to make one short drive. I was still doing well and soon mastered the steering, using my 'mirrors' to see how near i was to the post as to not hit them. If you do hit one then you can start again. This makes it better than real life as you do not have to worry about hitting things you can just learn what is going on in the car and not about what is going on around you

Part 6
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The final part I got through in the 2 hours was Clutch Control. The idea of this section was to move up behind a car using only the clutch and accelerator, then stopping, and finally moving away to the right or left and then back to the middle of the road again.
I found this very hard and found it impossible to stop without hitting the car in front, the only was i was able to stop was by using the brake. This is where an instructor would have been handy. Instead I had to get the assistant to assist me which he did very well and i was on my way again. It took me a while to get the hang of it but eventually I had completed the excercise and was going to combine all the elements I had learnt. Moving, Changing gear, navigating a slalom, moving round cars, and stopping. I just managed to do this but hit the car a couple of times.

So in 2 hours I had learnt a lot, in my next 3 hours I will learn Hill Starts and other hard manouveres like reversing and parking.

Overall I felt the simulator was worth the money £11 an hour as the whole hour you were learning and the simulator judged you on whether you were good enough to move on. It was definitely a worthwhile experience for me
and I would recommend it to others. The best thing is that you do not have to worry about other drivers, crashing or being embarrased in front of your instructor or other drivers.

Summary: