Advanced Driving

What Is Advanced Driving?

Advanced driving is the art and practice of driving with heightened awareness, precision, and control. It goes far beyond basic driving tuition, combining psychology, planning, and vehicle mastery to make you a safer, smoother, and more confident driver.

At Driving Masters, we teach drivers to think differently. Our goal is to help you develop your sixth sense on the road — anticipating risk before it appears, reading the environment with clarity, and turning every journey into a demonstration of calm expertise.

What Makes an Advanced Driver?

An advanced driver combines technical skill with mental discipline. Training focuses not just on what you do behind the wheel, but how you think and plan every movement.

Below are the core principles that form the foundation of Advanced Driving.

Defensive Driving

Defensive driving is about anticipation rather than reaction.

By recognising and predicting the behaviour of others, advanced drivers avoid potential hazards long before they become threats.

This proactive mindset dramatically reduces risk and improves safety for all road users.

Visual Scanning

Beyond the basic “mirror, signal, manoeuvre,” advanced drivers adopt a 360-degree scanning technique.

They constantly assess what’s happening ahead in a continuous exercise of observation and processing, to the sides, and behind building a real-time picture of the road environment.

Effective visual scanning becomes instinctive and transforms every journey into a smoother, safer experience.

Planning Ahead

Planning is at the core of advanced driving.

Our coaches teach drivers to plan and plot — reading the road, anticipating developments, and adapting their driving strategy well in advance.

This structured thinking is formalised in the Driving Plan, designed to maximise safety, efficiency, and control.

Mindset and Emotional Control

Every journey begins with your mindset.

Advanced driving requires emotional balance — staying calm in traffic, managing frustration, and handling aggression from others with professionalism and restraint.

This discipline creates the conditions for consistent, high-quality driving performance.

Focus and Attention Management

Modern vehicles are full of distractions — from sat-navs and music to mobile notifications.

Advanced drivers develop the skill of directed attention, maintaining focus on what truly matters: the road scene, their vehicle’s behaviour, and surrounding hazards.

Decision-Making

Great driving is a sequence of informed decisions.

Advanced drivers process multiple sources of information — road layout, weather, traffic flow — and make safe, rapid choices based on trained patterns of thinking.

These split-second judgements are learned through structured coaching and repetition.

Making Progress Safely

“Making progress” isn’t about driving fast; it’s about driving efficiently.

Advanced drivers maintain appropriate speeds for the conditions, balancing safety with smoothness.

The goal is to make steady, confident progress that conserves energy, reduces stress, and respects other road users.

Creating Space and Time

Positioning is one of the most powerful tools an advanced driver has.

By managing space — the distance between vehicles and lateral road position — you create extra time to react to the unexpected.

Every deliberate movement improves visibility and control.

Vehicle Control and Dynamics

Understanding how your car behaves is crucial.

With most modern vehicles weighing over two tonnes, drivers must grasp how steering, braking, and acceleration interact — and how these dynamics change with speed, grip levels, and vehicle type.

This knowledge underpins true vehicle mastery.

Advanced Handling Techniques

Concepts like understeer and oversteer aren’t just for racing drivers.

They’re real-world phenomena that every driver may encounter. Advanced drivers learn both to avoid and to correct them instinctively — turning potential emergencies into controlled recoveries.

Why Advanced Driving Matters

Advanced driving isn’t just about safety — it’s about enjoyment, confidence, and precision.

It helps drivers of all abilities unlock new levels of control, awareness, and satisfaction behind the wheel.

Whether you drive a supercar, a family EV, or a weekend classic, mastering these principles changes the way you experience the road forever.

Learn With Driving Masters

At Driving Masters, our accredited coaches combine real-world experience with structured training to help you become the best driver you can be.

Explore our Advanced Driving Courses and start your journey towards mastery.