How to lose your driving license...

**jape** · 01-21-2011, 08:50 PM

A friend of mine was killed by a drunk driver when I was a kid, before breathalysers and so on. In those days it was considered a badge of honour to be able to drive after ten pints. I am really glad this law is severely enforced and I never drive anywhere near the limit. Mind you, I am also glad they never had dope tests back then - it never even sunk into our tiny brains that driving along the road hallucinating was dangerous. It was all too funny!

It really sucks when the next morning can see you over the limit like that, must have been a real bender to leave that much in the system.

**Lao Jia Hou** · 01-22-2011, 01:40 AM

Us old guys remember those days of the insane "machismo - I can handle drinking & driving", and the hallucinogenic "summers of love" in VW vans, thick clouds of smoke billowing out of every opening.

And since it is confession-time, my last episode was 1983 when I ran my brand new convertible (top down) off the road, hit a road sign, and the sign snapped off at its base and flew inside the car between the seats. Passed out, woke several hours later, removed the sign, and continued on. Haven't once driven after drinking since.

One other time in the mid 1970s, I was riding a motorcycle from North America to South America. I got "disoriented" in some hippie hangout in Belize, went outside, and actually took off on someone else's motorcycle (leaving keys in bikes was commonplace back then), thinking it was mine (it was black). About an hour later, I kinda came down enough to realize "hey, my bike is riding funny ... wait a minute, this ain't my bike!". Amazingly, when I returned, my bike was still waiting there, as the genuine owner of my new ride was passed out inside the hippie shack. Dumb & dumber.

No more machismo for this aged cowboy. With age comes a strange combination of senility and wisdom.

**tombaxers** · 01-22-2011, 09:38 AM

Originally Posted by felix

so with the help of the company driver we found a 'yellow cow' that can take care of all this for you. It costs 3000 kuai and for that someone is paid to attend the 7 days of school for me and sit the test, i don't even have to be present. I passed with flying colours, a proud 96%!

Sorry to hear about your story Felix, sounds like a bitch!

I am going to go and actually get my licence (I have now been riding Southern China on and off for 3 years and never had a licence). I have a full UK bike licence, so I am not sure if I can convert this to a Chinese licence, but if I cannot I really cannot be arsed to do a full driving test so I was wondering if you can send me the details of your yellow cow hookup in case I need it.

Lets catch up for a beer.

Cheers

**euphonius** · 01-22-2011, 09:47 AM

Dear Tom,

Good news: If you have a valid foreign motorcycle license, you'll need only to pass the written exam to get a Chinese license. No need for the dreaded road test, though several members of this forum have shown it can be passed. I think it would be hard to hire a yellow cow to take your written exam as a first-time licensee. This is different to what Felix had to do, and they are pretty strict about this in Shanghai.

Just man up and take the test; it's available in English, and is not particularly difficult, though in many instances you have to suspend logic and just use the answer you learned from the study guides, however nonsensical it may seem. (Yes, I used logic in my first attempted and scored an 89 -- one point shy of passing.)

Have a search through MCM and you'll get all the details you need. You could do worse than starting HERE.

cheers

**slabo** · 01-22-2011, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by euphonius

(Yes, I used logic in my first attempted and scored an 89 -- one point shy of passing.)

You can also take the exam in languages other than English, but I heard other translations were very bad. Better just take the exam in English.

Download file here :: http://www.shjtaq.com/db_update/dzjc/more/English.rar

This website lets you practice the exam online.
http://www.gstxc.cn/kaoshi/cn/beginexam.asp
Maybe this need to be copied to another thread?

**jape** · 01-22-2011, 05:45 PM

Originally Posted by slabo

Maybe this need to be copied to another thread?

feel free to locate one and do so .....

**felix** · 01-23-2011, 06:07 AM

Hi Tom,

Unfortunately my contact is in suzhou so unless your chinese visa was issued in suzhou he cannot help you. Your driving license has to be issued in the same place as your visa.

These yellow cows aren't hard to find though, if shanghai is the same as suzhou you'll just find them (read: they'll come and find you) hanging around outside the traffic police bureau where all that stuff is done. I was very skeptical at first handing 3000 kuai to a dodgy stranger, but then saw that he was on friendly talking terms with all the guards and officers there. He came through on his end and i'm happy enough.

Euphonious, maybe in shanghai it is more difficult to get around the law, i don't know. I just know this guy that helped me can also help with new licenses. You just gotta pay up...

**mythbuster** · 01-23-2011, 07:08 AM

Anyone tried this in Henan ..
I will be heading there later in the year and would like to get a Bike Lic ..wife's cousin owns a bike shop in the home town and I would like to try and get down to visit China V..
Any help appreciated...

**Fred** · 01-23-2011, 07:53 AM

Hey all, as I wrote in my presentation thread, I just passed the theoretical exam 2 weeks ago in Shanghai, not hard at all if you take the time to study 2-3 times the questions & answers. Took the test in English, scored a 100, but it's very strictly enforced in Shanghai, the exam room is full of cameras, you cannot enter if you're not the right guy, nobody cannot even come next to you to help you set the computer in English, had to struggle all by myself for 10mn before passing the test...

I'm starting the training on the bike (don't have the licence back home) tomorrow morning at the Wubao road center, will report how it's done later on this forum.

Cheers,

Fred

**GRF_Hans** · 02-04-2011, 03:13 PM

Felix, sorry to hear about that! Another bullet to add to your list: at every checkpoint into Shanghai that I have ever ridden through, there is ALWAYS a path through a small village that bypasses it. Every time I have taken a ride outside of Shanghai, be it to Taicang, Jiangsu or the 5 day tour of Zhejiang, we have left and comeback through one of these. I ride with a group of Chinese riders, many of whom ride bikes that have the fake license plates so doing this is a necessity. If you can familiarize yourself with these, it's no fuss!