Do most Aspies end up driving in the end?

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I'm quite anxious what lies in the future for me about the skill of driving. I'm 20 and I tried it twice in a manual transmission (here in the UK people recommended this to you in case you could drive someone else's car and there aren't many automatics) and it was just too much anxiety to deal with.
I understand why cars can appeal for people (especially men) and if I were to do it again I would try in a Automatic. But even if I had the money to pay for lessons and buy and maintain a car there is so much factors about the skill that probably make it a absolute nightmare for someone with Aspergers, if the skill itself isn't stressful enough for NT people.

Every time I go in someone else's vehicle I always feel anxious and on edge whether in parents car or a taxi. I always think about the worst that can happen. I just hate vehicles in general. In my failed attempt at lessons I had serious problems with OCD and multitasking. I got overwhelmed in the packed traffic conditions. When I'm in people's cars I don't understand how they can roll the windows down hearing all the loud noise outside, carry a conversation and listen to music all at the same, whilst doing all the multitasking involved. Looks superhuman. When I'm walking and I see the endless amount of loud vehicles on the road I just feel like motorists are above me though. The horrible thought is that they can kill or injure people. When i was driving I just felt that aloof and stuck in my head I didn't feel in control and instructor had to take the wheel often. What if I somehow passed and there is no dual controls or someone to stop you causing a accident? I dont ever want to be in that position but my Aspergers could mean I might not be as focused.

Another thing that makes me stop learning is the anxiety of road rage. I've witnessed it being in parents car, on buses or taxi and I just don't think I could cope with that experience of people cursing or flipping you off, and I try to avoid situations where this would happen in life. Because in events where I get angry it takes a very long time for me to cool down and I worry what if I could do something reckless.

And back to multitasking. I am very logical and focus best on one thing only. How on earth do people focus on doing correct speed limit, car controls, looking out for multiple dangers and pedestrians all at once? I read somewhere people with Aspergers could concentrate on one danger but miss another and I could totally see myself doing that.

Its all these factors that don't make me want to drive. It all comes down to the responsibility you have behind the wheel, especially in busy city areas. I don't know if this part of being a adult is the thing I will ever grasp. I know people say its practice but maybe its a lot more than that for others. I hope to make enough money just to pay for taxis going places I need to go and work from a online home business so I don't have to get a car to get for a job.

Do most Aspies pass in the end though or is this still something I should consider? I personally don't think its worth all that anxiety and uncertainty but feel free to convince me otherwise.

Being able to drive makes you much more independent than if you don't have your license.

I do agree: manual transmission is much more difficult than automatic transmission.

UK roads, especially in cities, tend to be much narrower than similar roads in the US.

I still feel it would be worth your while to learn how to drive a car. Don't rush it, though.

I would probably take lessons in earnest when I feel the need/inclination/desire more than what you feel at present.

It was scary for the first few years of driving, and I got into several collisions in that time, but eventually I became more comfortable with it. I still can't drive with another person in the car; if they talk to me I can only focus on them and I can't pay attention to driving.

I learned in my mid-20s because it opened up a lot of opportunities for travel and hobby activities.

See, I live where the good stuff is, for the most part, is about an hour or two away by car.

I learn when I was 18. Now I drive an Abarth Fiat 500 with a 1200 watt sub in the back so I can flush out other noises. Driving manual isnt that hard once you learn it. You just need enough practice so that it becomes a passive process. The key to multitasking is to be able to differentiate active processes from passive ones.

I find driving fun!! !! !

But don't like it when the instructor keeps talking to me whilst I'm trying to concentrate lol

I don't know about "most aspies", but if you find driving that challenging or anxiety-inducing then you probably should not drive. I dislike the attitude our society seems to have that driving is something every adult should be able to do, even a right of passage of sorts. It's not. It's actually quite difficult to do well and there are plenty of people driving who really shouldn't be. So, far from looking down on you for deciding not to drive, I would applaud you for being self-aware and humble enough to recognise if it's not for you (if that's what you decide).

Having said that, I personally really like driving and although it took me 4 attempts to get my licence, I never had an at-fault accident afterwards. I have not driven for some years now and I kind of wonder if I'd still be good at it now or not, because paying attention to a lot of things at once seems to have gotten harder for me over time.

If you do decide to go for, definitely do the test in an automatic. That's hard enough. No need to make things even harder for yourself.

I didn't get my license until later, but that was largely due to financial reasons - could not afford lessons, and could not find a vehicle to practice in.
I passed my theory 100% and my first practical was fine. However, the next stage requires an aspect of communication which I find very difficult. I process most things very well, but can not get what is in my head to come out verbally and that is what the test consists of.
As for driving - I actually prefer a stick to automatic. You have far more control and it is lots of fun changing up gear from 0-100km/h.
I live in NZ which has lots of country roads (gravel or with lots of turns, blind intersections and cliffs on the edge) with 100km speed limits but where the safety aspect means you need to go alot slower - unfortunately not all do.

I'm 25 and never got my driver's license. Probably never will, nor do I have any motivation to try at this point in time.

I'm 20 and while I have a driver's license, I won't be getting a car anytime in the near future because I'm not a good enough driver yet, but also because of my NLD, I have absolutely no sense of direction. I keep telling my mom that a GPS would work just fine, but she refuses to believe that and thinks I need to learn my way around on my own, which isn't going to happen.

Most aspies are capable of learning to drive I think. I am not.

I'd have all the following issues:

-Difficulty recognizing cues from other drivers

-Difficulty multitasking

-Visual-spatial issues (I think I also have NVLD)

-Emotional issues (anxiety, anger)

-Distraction

-Would probably panic while learning if I felt pressured by my instructor (most people see this as an encouragement

-I sometimes stim using my hands

-I have slow reaction time (not autism-related just something about me)

To be honest, I think I'd be an extremely bad driver and shouldn't be on the road. My cat would be a better driver than me. I mean, I've crashed GO-KARTS before. I will stick to bumper cars thank you very much.

Also, how would it make me more independent? There is no way my parents would ever let drive their cars and I can't afford a car. And I don't think they'd let me get my driver's license. Independence isn't really that important to me.

I also found driving very anxiety inducing in the beginning but now I can do it just fine. My sense of direction is conperable to that of a drunk blind mouse in a maze, but I just use a GPS every time I go somewhere new. It's mostly just muscle memory for me at this point, so it's pretty easy. I can also drive a stick shift, although I haven't had as much practice with them.

Did your family had a car and some decent drivers? Or do you have any bad incidents with driving?

I got pretty much used to driving a car since I were a child. We got our first car when I was 9 and before that I spent 7 years of my early life riding a bus twice a day because I was attending nursery/preschool in another city. I was never witness of any car accident although I heard of some and mom got into one once.

Therefore I feel pretty comfortable with cars, especially when I am the passenger. When I was 10 I knew all roadsigns before they taught us because I spent a lot of my childhood trying to figure out what roadsigns mean, I was interested in them. I got 50/50 points in road signs test at school - without studying.
And when I was in any car I could always tell who has priority and what could happen.

However it is another thing when I am the one behind the wheel. I don't have to think about the priority and roadsigns and I somehow drive with the road but changing gears and speed limit is something else. I look at the speed screen a lot and I often have to tell myself "A turn is ahead, light is green, leg off gas, blinker on, you are close enough slow down, still green, it won't turn red till you turn, clutch in ready, prepare to change to 2nd or 3rd gear depending on engine sound... It's the 3rd. Alright. Blinker got off by itself? Good.", or "(...), leg off gas, orange, you are too far, no time, let it run, blinker, slowly stop, clutch, 1, wait, wait, wait, red-orange, slowly start... green. Go. Blinker got off by itself? Good.". But its still quite easy - I see what is going to happen next few secs and I can prepare.
It even works with crossroads without lights - because I know something might pop up and I have my leg ready to switch to brake if it happens. I am actually better in this than my mom - she often fails to see what is going to happen. But she has fast reaction time.

<sudden brake to avoid collision with some road pirate>
Mom: Where did the cretin even come out from!? If it wasn't my reaction time he could hit us!
Me: I saw him for a while and I knew he is going to do just that. He wasn't slowing down at all, it could either be fast braking for him or us. Nothing else.
Mom: If you saw him you should have tell me.
Me: I was thinking you see him too. You both still had enough time to do the sudden brake and I though you might be planning to do it instead of slowing down beforehand. Both methods were alright.

Buy some situations are problematic. As when a bus broke on road before a hill. I had no choice but to pass it. Visibility - none. I had to risk. I had to start from gear 1. And I figured I don't have time to switch to 2 while on such dangerous spot. It was painful for my ears, hearing the car engine begging me for 2! And I was embarrassed, figuring the other drivers might laugh at my poor driving skills, hearing the car cry like that and seeing the black smoke coming out, lol. I really wanted to own an automatic gear car back then. So I could just focus on speeding up. Not wasting time with "clutch, gear change, gas". But is probably all about technique. I can start the car using half clutch method dad taught me and I think it could also work with gear changing without loosing speed. But I still remember how teacher told me to "always change gears with clutch" so I am not sure if "half clutch" method is acceptable. I gotta ask dad.

And finding a place to park the car is the worst of all. I am not good with it. I need to practice more. But I am afraid...
I don't drive mostly because of that - I am afraid I wont be able to find wide enough parking space and hit another car.

Overall though I believe I will be pretty good driver once I get used to it. I can feel the road and the car after all and I know all the rules. I just need motivation to practice. So far I only drove for 2 weeks - when my parents were on vacation and I had to either drive 25 mins or spend over a hour using public transportation with a transfer midway to get to work (usually my mom just drove me 10 mins to a bus stop from where I only had to stay in bus for 20 mins). I was motivated so I took dads car and drove as if it were nothing. The only dangerous situation was when I gave a ride to coworker and she talked to me as I was closing to crossroad. I seen the crossroad and had a plan what to do but then she said something and I lost my focus, forgetting the plan. It ended with her yelling "Watch out!" and sudden brake of me - I almost forced priority. Fortunately it seems like I also have fast reaction time so nothing bad happened. But it was an important lesson - I can't talk when I drive.

I'm absolutely horrible at driving, but I still got my license somehow. O.o

Being able to drive opens up a whole world of freedom. But it can be trying at times. The situation hardest for me is when I had my kids in the back seat and they decided to fight or otherwise make noise.

I am watching the driverless car technology evolve. I think it opens a lot of possibilities for people with a wide range of disabilities. But I think it's a few years away from being available to most people.