Tech Report: BMW Driving School Makes Heroes out of Everyday Drivers

After registration and a continental breakfast, the day began in the classroom, where we were introduced to our two

Our two instructors, Jean-Francois Veilluex and Michael Roblin, were both were very friendly, patient, and came from professional racing backgrounds. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press)

instructors for the day, Jean-Francois Veilluex and Michael Roblin. Both were very friendly, patient, and came from professional racing backgrounds. The hour-long classroom session went by quickly, and was packed with informative and sometimes surprising information. One thing I was surprised to learn was the fact that over 90 percent of cars don't have a blind spot, just incorrectly adjusted mirrors.

After class was over everybody paired up and headed outside to the driving track. Waiting there to greet us was a row of specially modified 330i BMW sedans. The cars had been equipped with a switch that could turn off the ABS and BMW's Dynamic Stability

The specially modified 330i BMW sedans at our disposal were equipped with a special switch to disable the ABS and Dynamic Stability Control (DSG) system. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press)

Control (DSG) system, the importance of which would quickly make itself very apparent.

The first exercise of the day was a slalom course, where the primary goal was to familiarize ourselves with the cars and the new hand positioning we learned earlier in class. Remember those driving lessons you took way back when, where you were told the correct hand placement was 10 and 2'oclock? Such information may have been correct in olden times when the average sedan's steering wheel was the size of a hula-hoop, but it turns out that in modern cars the proper hand placement for maximum control is actually 9 and 3'oclock, a fact that we were constantly reminded of throughout the day.