Sam Driving Schools

Sam was my instructor. I took the test at Santa Teresa DMV and only got 2 wrong. Pretty good.
But for the lessons I felt that I was just driving around and picking up and dropping off her other students. While she did have me practice the course at the DMV, I kinda felt like i was wasting my time.
Just FYI, Sam also owns a beauty salon. My last lesson was over and instead of taking me home she made me go to her salon and wait while she gave a lady a shampoo and haircut. Weird and unprofessional.
Hire her if you want. She’s not bad. Just a little unprofessional for my taste.

I took two 2-​hour classes with Sam and had to drop the third one because I did not feel like I was learning anything and what little courage I had in myself was fading away. Sam gave confusing directions and was far too emotional for a driving instructor. She would gasp and shriek when you made a wrong move. If that’s not enough, she was also on the phone 97% of the class. Her gestures describing what to do were quite clear, I’ll give her that, but I don’t think her hands is where I’m supposed to be looking while I drive. In addition to all this, she has a habit of being about 30 minutes late for class which is very unprofessional.
This school is a waste of money, don’t take classes here. It’s better to pay a little more and have a decent instructor than pay low rates here and then have to pay more to a different school at will actually teach how to drive. Don’t make my mistake, look into a different school.

I passed my driving test at Santa Theresa with only a few points deducted after a few lessons with Sam Driving Schools. I did a lot of research and contacted several schools beforehand, and Sam’s is pretty much the cheapest school in the area, and they are very responsive when you call them or text them (unlike other schools that I tried contacting). The teachers are professional, decent, and hardworking people, and know the driving test areas well so they can prepare you very well. Their cars are also in good condition, and they helped me to book my test so the whole process was very stress-​free. Would recommend this school!

I took three lessons with Sam 2hrs each, and honestly if I could give more stars I would… Sam picked me up from my home and she would drop me off after our lessons, she gave me clear instructions, prior to meeting her I didn’t have any confidence in driving and after only 3 lessons I was able to pass my test. She is very patient, and most of all her rates are very reasonable. I would recommend her to anyone.

I just took a single 2hr class with Sam about a week before my test. She took me to the DMV route that I was suppose to give test on. She really helped me understand some basic rules which I didn’t know before and gave me tips to pass my test. It was overall good session which definitely helped me boost my driving confidence. And I did pass my test with zero mistakes. She does take her calls during the lesson but I didn’t find them distracting. Would definitely recommend.

I took 3 classes (2hr each) with Sam. My overall experience has been that I did not get (in fact lost) the confidence I initially had about driving. I had basic knowledge earlier but had never practised much. Like a few others also mentioned, Sam takes calls, eats in the car and takes a 10min break during the class.
All that would have been tolerable if she made a genuine effort to really teach me. She would just spend 2 hours giving navigation instructions. She would scream (color me panic) at some mistakes instead of showing me the right way to do it.
She did NOT teach how to take turns the right way, how to make 3 point turn, and how to do parallel parking!
She took me on the freeway only when I asked for it.
I have practised on my own afterwards and feel confident now. I suggest you go to other professional driving schools.

I could give this school more stars if it was possible!!!
First reason to love this is the price, Her rates are pretty reasonable, so if you are like me who required multiple classes, Then this is the best school for it.
Before I met with Sam I was not a confident driver at all. She was able to help me overcome my fear for the road. I must admit that I had to take several classes and I had her schedule multiple Drive tests for me before I actually passed. She is very dedicated and is available on short notice hence I was able to get my license on time
.
The day of the test, she will pick you up from home or wherever you ask her to pick you up from. She then will practice around the DMV. She will give you clear instructions of what to do and not to during the test and she will try to help you remember stuff by drawing diagrams on a sheet of paper.
Overall, I would recommend this school to every one!

Sam is very nice and open. We found a lot to talk about since we both share the same cultural background. I felt very comfortable with her, and she rarely delivered criticism in a harsh manner. However, I do not think you can prepare for the behind-​the-​wheel test by taking just a few lessons with her alone. You definitely should drive a lot on your own to prepare.
A few things to consider:
1. She made me drive to her house on the first lesson so she could take care of personal business. I had to wait in the car and in her driveway for about 10 min. She did not include this time in my 2 hours with her though.
2. She will put her hand on the steering wheel if she doesn’t think you are turning correctly. There is nothing wrong with this. I just wasn’t used to someone doing this.
3. She does pick up personal and work calls on her cell phone while you are driving. If this might be a distraction to you, keep that in mind. I didn’t really care.
4. She made me pick up her next appointment after my first lesson was done because she would have been late if she dropped me off first. I thought this was unconventional.
5. She only charges $ 80 per lesson. This is probably one of the most reasonable prices you will get for behind the wheel training.
6. She will take you to your drive test and allow you to use her car for the test as well. You will have to pay her for it too.
Overall Sam is a decent instructor, but certainly not the best. I only drove with her twice as well as on the day of my exam. I did pass though, but I think it was because I had plenty of practice outside of Sam’s services.

Background info:
I had some driving experience from other driving schools, but when I moved to the area I looked to find a new instructor. I took 4 classes with Sam and (attempted to) use her car for my driving test.
Pros:
— Sam is the cheapest driving class available in the area ($ 80 for 2 hours)
–Her flexibile availability worked great for my busy working schedule.
Cons:
–If you are looking for a friendly face/​someone to engage in small friendly conversation before a lesson, look elsewhere.
–Also if you are looking for positive reinforcement while driving, look elsewhere. This was a con for me, but to each their own!
–UNPROFESSIONAL: Called me at 11pm to reschedule class time. Would frequently change the time of scheduled class last minute to best suit her schedule.
–Would use driving class as an opportunity to run errands (I visited her home while she went inside on more than one occasion, would drop things off for family, etc.)
–Would talk on the phone during the lesson
LASTLY: We go to the Los Gatos DMV for my driving test and I am in the car ready to take my test. The driving instructor examines the car– turns out Sam’s «driving instructor» car did NOT meet DMV standards (was missing a mirror), and I was unable to take my lesson after waiting for 6 weeks for the appointment day to come. The driving instructor had told Sam apparently THREE TIMES before, and Sam failed to fix it. On top of that, Sam failed to provide the proper driving school certification to the DMV instructor, who in turn reported her and her driving school.
OVERALL: Very stressful experience, very very unprofessional.

I come from India and having to get to learn the driving here after driving in India is very tough.
The very first class itself i told her that i am very new to driving in US and will have to start from the very basics. She started with the very general rules and regulations that i should know and helped me understand them. And then she started with making me getting used to the wheel and so we started in a residential area. Slowly i learned from her on how to be good behind the wheel without the tension. She tells her honest opinions on our driving and thus helps correct our mistakes. I have now a CA licence and i am so thankful to Sam helping me out.
I will highly recommend her to anyone new or anyone learning to drive.

My son wasn’t doing too well in his driving education until we met Sam. We decided to give him some intensive sessions to prepare him for his driving test.
After the first lesson, Sam told us that his permit was due to expire in less that than one week so if he didn’t get his license by then, he would have to get a new permit (take the written again) or try to extend it which may or may not be possible (conflicting information).
She scheduled 2 more lessons for him on very short notice and scheduled the driving test appointment for us. She gave him another quick lesson right before the test and waited with me at the DMV until he came back with a huge smile on his face — he passed.
I am very impressed with her dedication and commitment, not to mention what a great teacher she turned out to be.
Very highly recommended.

I needed my drivers license fast, I used Sam Driving School to learn how drive quickly and proficiently. She helped me learn the rules of the road, how to keep calm while driving and having the confidence to be a safe and aware driver. Not only did Sam help me pass my behind the wheel test but she also picked me up and drove to my test appointment. She taught me in a manner that was calm, clear and was very patient, something that I needed and other driving instructors could not. She is very nice and knows what she is doing to teach you to be comfortable on the road. I will be going back to her for freeway driving lessons.

Sam is a very good instructor. She tells thousand times if you do any mistek. She never get angry. She is a very cool lady. Her instruction fee is also less. Before I ask her for training on behind-​the-​wheel, i just drove 4times. She taught me today for 1hr. And repeating the mistake i did, so i will be care full while giving behind-​the-​wheel test at SanJose Alma DMV. My friend told this is the toughtest DMV in san jose. But I cleared in one shot. You need to listen to your instructor and be wht you are while driving a car. PLEASE OBEY THE DRIVING RULES and YOUR INSTRUCTOR. I’m happy i cleared the test and many thanks to Sam.