Tips for the Japanese Motorcycle License Test
Commenter Tim writes:
I obtained my license in a different prefecture in Japan a few years ago, it expired whilst I was overseas and now I need to sit the damn riding exam on that Mickey Mouse riding course again at Samezu (I’m in Tokyo now). Do you know of any tips for this silly oogata riding exam at Samezu? Do know of any sites with exam tips, etc that can help in regards to knowing the pedantic rules of what you need to do in order to pass? (Looking left and right before every turn, left foot down before right when stopping, position of bike in lanes when doing a right turn, etc.) English / Japanese OK. Hope to see you on the roads…
Fist off, there’s a really good selection of tips for the ōgata test at Gen Kanai’s place. (After rereading it I see that Tim commented there already, so I’ll just keep the link as a pointer for others.)
It’s been well over a decade since either of us took the test, and the laws and some of the content of the test have changed in that time, so any technical advice may be outdated. Still, I think most of the general advice we got when taking the test is still relevant.
- Exaggerate your head movements to the point of absurdity. Your body language should be screaming “I AM NOW DOING THE PROPER SAFETY CHECK!!1!eleven!!”
- Before turns, activate your turn signal ridiculously early. 3 seconds is a very long time.
- A stop is not officially a stop unless you put your leg down.
- On the balance beam, unless you are 100% confident you can stay on for the full 15 seconds (or whatever the requirement is now) go as fast as is necessary to keep your balance. Going too fast is only a few points off, but falling off the beam is automatic failure.
- Don’t dress like a biker, bōsōzoku, or squid. You want to look harmless. I have been told that statistically people wearing white helmets pass the test more often than people wearing black helmets. Don’t wear a scratched or beat-up helmet.
- Get there early and walk the course a few times before the test as image training.
- Unless the policies have changed, be aware that they may fail you on principle the first time (or even the first few times) even if you do everything perfectly.
- It is traditional to do a burnout and wheelie past the tester’s booth as a sign of respect. Many gaijin fail the test due to ignorance of this essential cultural difference. As with bowing, it is important to maintain the proper angle (75°) when doing this.
Good luck!
Helpful hint
Big Ben offers some tips on how to pass the riding test for a large-size motorcycle license here in Japan. They’re all good, but this one is particul…
Trackback by Riding Sun — January 18, 2006 @ 8:46 pm
It’s also useful to know that you will automatically fail the test if you don’t mount the bike properly. You will not be told at the time, but you will automatically fail if you don’t look both ways before mounting the bike, hold the brake when you tip the bike upright, put the side stand up before getting on, turn the bike on on before you get on, adjust the mirrors (even if you still see properly with them), or take your hand off the front brake without stepping on the rear one.
The same goes for dismounting when you’re dismounting, just in reverse. It also helps to give your ride a nice little safety inspection before getting on (just so the proctor knows you’re the incarnation of motorcycle safety).
Hope that helps
Comment by Ashley — October 31, 2007 @ 3:53 pm
Hi there! I am trying to get a Chuugata AT license.
Today I had a test and failed it for the second time. I don’t know why I failed it! The first time was because I went the wrong way and stopped on the stopping line. Since my last failure, I have been studying really hard for to pass. When I was doing the test, I felt confident and moved my head absurdly just for them!
Maybe it was my black leather jacket that failed me or the way I mounted onto the bike! Any advice would be appreciated!
Thank you!
James
Comment by James — November 10, 2010 @ 7:28 pm
James,
Usually they tell you what you did wrong, and it’s hard to guess if they didn’t.
I wish I could help, but sometimes they fail people for no reason. You just have to keep trying. Good Luck!
Comment by Big Ben — November 10, 2010 @ 7:34 pm
If you get everything they need in the basket, you will definitely pass!
Find out what they need first!
The best way is to take a short finding out course for about two hours from any good driving school. That might cost you very little compared to you paying for the test 10 times!
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Comment by Mackenzie Zenteno — January 15, 2012 @ 11:38 am