MTO A license test.

[pgs1965]

I have gone to a very good truck driving school where I have learned a lot about operating trucks safely. 3 Times I have taken my road test at the Kenora rd Hamilton, Ontario MTO and 3 times I have failed for minor reasons such as rubbing a curb on a right turn with a 53' trailer, or turning your signal off before fully completing your lane change. I have come to the conclusion that the girl I have been dealing with is not going to pass me, so I am going to take my road test with a pickup truck, and a landscaping trailer at a different loacation.
I have a few questions about this:
!) Will I still need a completed daily pretrip.
2) Will I still need, A fully stocked first aid kit, 3 safety triangles, and a fully charged fire extinguisher in the truck.
3) Do I need to chock the trailer wheels, before performing the uncouple recouple.
Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You

[the doctor]

u need everything that you normally would need period. hope your pickup has air brakes as well, since checking them is part of your circle check. what did you do to piss off the woman who is testing you?

[joettanne]

Pretty scary to think that if you want to drive a tractor trailer in Ontario that you can get your Class A license with a pick-up truck and goose-neck trailer.

But if you must.

The Ministry will have a record of previous test failures where ever you go.

Yes you will still need a completed pre-trip inspection book filled out if the vehicle you are using is classified as a commercial vehicle.

Yes you need your safety equipment.

Yes you need to chock the wheels for disconnect and hook-up.

No your unit does not need air brakes. You can obtain your Z-endorsement separately through a 12 hour course at a college.

You can still be failed for the same reasons as you were with the tractor trailer: eg; running the wheels on a curb in a right hand turn; and improper use of signal lights.

They will still expect a complete circle check or pre-trip inspection. Obviously, it will not be exactly the same as on a tractor trailer.
Depending on the type of pick-up, will dictate what you check, but basically the same.

[joettanne]

Oh, good luck! 8)

[pgs1965]

Ya the whole pickup truck thing is pretty scary, and it does not even have to be a goose neck trailer. Just any combination of truck/trailer with a combined gross vehicle weight of 10,000 lbs or more. Even scarier than that is that they test the same if your driving a 30' long uhaul, and trailer combo with no air brakes, auto transmission, and auto cancelling turn signals, as if you are driving a 75' long 18 spd kenworth with air brakes. The other scary thing is the way they expect you to do your circle check. You have less than 30 mins to do your cold check , hot check, all lights, complete circle, under trailer, in cab, and air tests. In the real world if you rushed your pretrip like that you could be driving one scary unsafe truck, and never know it until you killed somebody.
Anyways thanks again for the help.

[joettanne]

Yes, and you can also get a Class A license with a RV pulled with a pick-up truck (automatic transmission), as long as like you said, the towed vehicle weighs over 10,000 lbs. :shock:
So, take a pick-up pulling an RV, get the A, get the Z, now you are legal to head down the road with any combination or weight of vehicle on any road in the country!!! :shock: (course, it would be hard to get hired, but NOT impossible). :shock:

There have been rumours for years of changing the licensing. But like everything else the government does here, it will just be a lot of talk and years before anything will be done. The government keeps talking of a driver shortage, so if you think about it; do you think they (gov.) will make it harder and a longer time to get a Class A licence?

As you should know by now, you are allowed 15 minutes for your circle check on the road test. If you go over the 15 min, you fail, if you go in less time, providing you do it right, that will give you extra time somewhere else, eg: back-up.
Road test is one hour, with extra 1/2 hour for air brake practical, if you do the Z at the ministry.

Hey, let me know how you do? When are you going to get re-tested?
I think you have to wait at least 10 days before a re-test.

Annie

[pgs1965]

Hi I did my Z endorsement a while ago. The truck driving school I went to was one of the few that is still allowed to do air brake endorsements. I am going to retest in about 2 weeks, I am just trying to decide which mto office will be good luck for me. Ever since they privatized the mto offices, and started paying the examiners $9 per hour. It's tough to get one who's happy. But I'll let you know
Thanks.

[bikerboy]

Hey
I also got my class A licence with a Ford F-350 and a tandem axle pintle hitch trailer licenced for more than 4600 kg.

You also need to make sure the truck and trailer both have the valid yellow safety inspection stickers!

You do need all your safety equipment and wheel chocks and a pretrip!
Log book might also be required!

If you already have the Z part, it should be easy to pass the A test, then your all set!

I got my DZ originally with a dump truck, then just went back later for the class A.

I tried to get a AZ all at once, but the dumb examaminer girl wouldn't let me!! I had a tandem dump truck with air brakes, and this same pintle hitch trailer with hydraulic surge brakes. She wouldn't let me use that trailer for a class AZ test, since she said i need air brakes on the trailer!
Which is BS, it says no where in the handbook, that air brakes is required on both truck and trailer!! Since this combination requires a AZ licence to drive it, why couldn't i use it for the test????

So i just unhooked trailer that day and got a DZ, then went back with f350 and the same trailer and got class A later!

So because of this idiot examiner i had to waste an extra day, plus an extra 75 dollars to get my AZ!!

I went to a different office for the A test. I didn;t want this same idiot girl again!

[pgs1965]

Thanks for the info. It would be nice if the mto hired driving examiners who have actually drove a truck, rather than people who have only watched the training videos, and the extra $75 seem to be a big incentive for them not to pass you. I have talked to people who were taking a right turn on a test, and nailed the turn perfect, rear trailer tires 8" away from the curb, and because the car waiting to turn left got nervous and backed up they failed for interfering with a motor vehicle.

[bikerboy]

You should have no troubles with turns, with the pickup and trailer!

I also asked about double clutching, the examiner said i can do whatever i want, as long as i can shift smoothly!

So just ask before the test if you have to double clutch or not.

Sometime i use the clutch, sometime i don't
I never double clutch though, just single clutch.

[eastern ontario]

You should have no troubles with turns, with the pickup and trailer!

I also asked about double clutching, the examiner said i can do whatever i want, as long as i can shift smoothly!

So just ask before the test if you have to double clutch or not.

Sometime i use the clutch, sometime i don't
I never double clutch though, just single clutch.

Where did you take your road test?

[pgs1965]

The Kenora rd mto in Hamilton, ON. They have two girls that do the testing. One is very nice and fair, the other one is miserable, and fails almost everybody. I always get the latter. You are allowed 6 minor mistakes on the test twice I have gotten 7, and the second time it was really cold, and she said I waited until I was under the trailer to inflate my airbags when I was recoupling to the trailer. I always turn my 4 way flashers on and as I begin to pull ahead inflate my airbags when uncoupling, but hey if it ends the test and gets her back inside to drink her coffee faster. Whatever. On the test it's their word against yours, and guess who always wins.

[bikerboy]

You should have no troubles with turns, with the pickup and trailer!

I also asked about double clutching, the examiner said i can do whatever i want, as long as i can shift smoothly!

So just ask before the test if you have to double clutch or not.

Sometime i use the clutch, sometime i don't
I never double clutch though, just single clutch.

Where did you take your road test?

I took my DZ test in walkerton ON

And took my A test in clinton ON

[twinturbo]

hey bikerboy i have a roadtest on may4 in clintion how are they up there windsor was full so our school sending some of us up their.. thanks

[bikerboy]

Clinton isn't too bad. Its just a small town, only one stop light in town!
I had a girl named barb i think? maybe, shes not too bad as long as you know your stuff and drive safe.

There is a real tight right turn they might make you do though. Just don't run over the curb.

They will also likely take you out to the county shed yard, and you will do some backing for your test.

The test centre is right across from the Slots , near the beer store in clinton, if your not sure where it is.

[twinturbo]

thanks that helps kinda of sucks doing a road test in a area your not familiar with. thanks for reply..

[Mars]

WOW!!!!
I am ashamed that I live in the same province as you, and instead of you learning how to drive a truck properly, you would rather cut corners and use a pick up.

I failed my first time due to being 7 min. over on my pre-trip, and air brake practical. On my second test I aced it, with the only infraction being I forget to mention my headlights are in proper operational working order.

[joettanne]

WOW!!!!
I am ashamed that I live in the same province as you, and instead of you learning how to drive a truck properly, you would rather cut corners and use a pick up.

I failed my first time due to being 7 min. over on my pre-trip, and air brake practical. On my second test I aced it, with the only infraction being I forget to mention my headlights are in proper operational working order.

Welcome to MTO's road testing system! All perfectly legal! Why not! Why spend $5,000 to $6,000 when you can get the same licence for about $400 ? Then you can learn as you go.

For the money you spent, you should have passed your road test the first time out!?

The schools will only give you the miminum training for an 'entry level' into trucking. Then you still have to learn as you go.

[Mars]

Why spend $5,000 to $6,000 when you can get the same licence for about $400 ? Then you can learn as you go.

Sorry but learning as you go is not a reality. Good luck trying to go for a road test with any company, and start running over curbs ect, you will never get a job. I have seen people go to one of these "get your AZ in two weeks places" and now they do not have the skills to make them a good employee let alone a good driver, and therefore cannot get a job. An example would be a person that is a licensed mechanic, just because they hold a license does not meant they are a good mechanic.

For the money you spent, you should have passed your road test the first time out!?

Basically I did. I was screwed over by MTO, and my teacher was pissed, being seven minutes overtime is BS, considering I had to deal with a frozen landing gear.

The schools will only give you the miminum training for an 'entry level' into trucking. Then you still have to learn as you go.

This is true for the "two week" schools. Better schools provide better training. Granted you still need to go with a T.E for your finishing, but it is not a learn how to drive the truck session, school taught me that, the finishing portion gives you real world experience in dealing with route planning, border crossing procedures, ect.

[joettanne]

Basically I did. I was screwed over by MTO, and my teacher was pissed, being seven minutes overtime is BS, considering I had to deal with a frozen landing gear.

Your teacher should have told you that you are only allowed 15 minutes on the road test for a pre-trip. And why did you not check the landing gear BEFORE the road test? Did you not do a pre-trip inspection before taking the truck for a road test???????

And you will find out that you are always learning driving a truck. A school, no matter how good you think they might be, will never teach you everything you have to know. Like I said, "learn as you go."