First CDL School Experience: Feedback Requested Please

OK TR Forum,

What do you think: Should I find another school? Was the behavior of this one below unprofessional?

Thanks,
View attachment 36915
LeadFoot

Here we go... "Dear Ferrari Staff:

The dignity of being able to earn a comfortable living cannot be stressed enough in this difficult economy. Therefore, the endeavor of education is a noble one. However, the driving student should not be placed in unnecessary peril in the process.


First, during a brief exchange with my instructor, I offered to put on my seat-belt as a passenger in the Mack Truck and was told not to because I was going to be switching seats soon. I replied, I was just trying to avoid giving you a ticket, to the instructor as he was driving. His response was that I would be the one getting the ticket. I am not a lawyer, although I have friends who are, and normally the person driving is given the ticket during a traffic violation, etc., not the passenger.


Second, I noticed that the Mack Truck's dashboard fuel gauge was reading below empty. I mentioned this to my instructor and was told that I was the first student to notice that in many years. He then informed me the gauge was broken. Driving with a broken gas gauge is not only illegal and dangerous--especially in a vehicle that only gets an average of 6 miles per gallon--but, puts me, the student and driver, at risk of getting a ticket by the police if pulled over for any reason and the officer notices the broken gauge.


Third, when I first met my instructor he must have been having a bad day because he did not make eye contact and did not notice me or shake my hand when I introduced myself. This is poor customer service, especially from NYC's largest driving school.


Lastly, if I choose to do business with you again, I refuse to drive a vehicle that may get me a ticket, such as one with a broken dashboard fuel gauge. Secondly, I never want to use that same instructor again.


Sincerely..."

 

Thanks Bryan. I doubt I will be going back to that rip-off school anytime soon. Luckily, I bought the lesson per diem. No package involved. Thank goodness.

 

Thanks cuzzin it. You guessed it: "Keep your hands on the wheel. You are taking too long to shift..." Bull! I have been driving since I was 16 and I am 51 now. I know how to shift and steer, thank you. I was shifting like lightning. The real problem was the faulty clutch on this bomb of a Mack I got stuck with. The brakes probably needed new pads too. What a joke.

 

Thanks IceCreator.

However, when was the last time you got a ticket for having a broken gas gauge or one of your passengers was not wearing a belt? Aren't tractor-trailer tickets a bit more costly than car tickets? You call 200.00+ plus petty? Where I am, tickets for those violations for cars cost well over a hundred dollars each. You call that pricing petty?