Yorkshire's JCT600 challenges James Bond to a driving test this Christmas

From failing to signal to not looking over your shoulder or hitting the curb, millions of Brits have failed their driving test on a handful of ‘minor’ or ‘major’ mishaps.

But do the rules of the road apply to everyone? As Skyfall will most likely hit our screens this Christmas season, amusing expertise from JCT600 has highlighted just how many times James Bond had a misdemeanour on the road.

In the total eight minutes Bond is seen behind the wheel in the 2012 blockbuster Skyfall, the luxury car experts claim if this was the first moments of the UK 40-minute driving test, he would fail.

JCT600 teamed up with independent approved driving instructor (ADI) Zeki Al-Khishali from Z Drive to analyse the merit of 007’s handling of the film’s luxury vehicles.

In the UK there are three types of “faults” on driving tests. They are called driver, serious, or dangerous. Driver faults are often nicknamed as “minors”, and serious or dangerous are often nicknamed “majors”. A major fault means the test will result in a failure.

When sitting your test, drivers can have a certain number of minors, but too many minors in one category can become a serious. A serious is where there is a high risk of danger, or a legal requirement has been breached. A dangerous fault is where there was actual danger to person or property.

Analysing 007’s driving on screen in Skyfall, it would appear Bond, played by Daniel Craig, is not even the equivalent of quarter of the way through his UK driving test before he fails in a major way.

Here is the score sheet:

PASS: James Bond’s first appearance behind the wheel saw the agent pretend to be a chauffeur, and his driving truly lived up to the role. Smooth acceleration, good use of signals, decent following distance. If he’d maintained this technique, it would have been a clear pass and a clean sheet. (Run time: 43min)

TWO MINORS: In his eagerness to take “M” to safety after the shootout ambush at a court hearing, James Bond pulls away in his Jaguar without using a signal. Now this could usually be fine if there was no one around, but on this occasion, he was surrounded by others. It didn’t pose any risk, and so on this occasion it would likely just be a minor fault. Bond quickly then does a right turn at a T-junction without signalling, which again would be another minor for the same reason. (Run time: 1:42:47)

MAJOR: Following the court escape Bond displays a shocking display of steering, he hits the kerb at speed, fully mounting it, and driving on it for a short duration. This would be an instant failure, likely under “dangerous” due to the high risk it could pose to others. (Run time: 1:42:50)

MINOR AND MAJOR: 007 forgets which side of the road to go on in the UK when he takes a right turn from a major road into a minor. Once again without signalling but also cutting the corner excessively. The lack of signal would calculate a minor fault, but the degree of the corner cut, and the speed at which he did it, would be a serious fault. (Run time: 1:42:54)

TWO MINORS TO MAJOR: Bond switches from his Jaguar to a beautiful Aston Martin DB5. He seems to take a bit more care with this luxury car but again makes two immediate turns without signals. This final minor incurred results in a serious fault due to repeated error. (Run time:1:44:32)

Driving instructor and Former Trustee of Manchester RoSPA’s Advanced Drivers and Riders, Zeki Al-Khishali said: “Bond would have failed the 40-minute test with three majors: One dangerous for mounting the kerb, one serious for signal use and one serious for corner cutting, and around five minors for repeated lack of signal use.

“It seems that 007 has an issue with his steering and needs to go for some refresher lessons. I wouldn’t be surprised if an examiner would have ended the test early and decided to take a walk back to the test centre. Hopefully the real secret service has a decent driver training unit.”

Zeki added: “The moment Bond had Dame Judi Dench in the back of his car, it all went to hell in a hand cart. Maybe that’s just how Bond treats company cars? In any event, I’m glad I wasn’t his instructor.”

JCT600 also noted Bond wasn’t the only one to come a cropper. Moneypenny also would have been an ultimate failure in her driving test too. Eva Moneypenny steered into a turn too early – barely two minutes and 48 seconds into the film – ripping off her right door mirror. Just seven seconds later she loses the left mirror.

Olivia Wigglesworth, group brand marketing manager for JCT600, said: “007 has become an integral part of Christmas, from the shaken not stirred martinis to the luxury cars. It has been a lot of fun re-watching Skyfall and checking out Bond’s road skills in some of Britain’s most opulent cars. He may have failed his ‘driving test’ on this occasion but he does it in style.” Founded in 1946, JCT600 has grown to become one of Yorkshire’s largest family-owned businesses, representing 18 of the world’s leading car brands, and two of its own brands; JCT600 Approved and JCT600 Accident Repair Centre. With over 50 dealerships within Yorkshire and the North East to Derbyshire and Lincolnshire, and employing a team of over 2200, JCT600 is dedicated to putting customers first by offering excellent service for those looking to buy or service a new car or van.