Mad Area Driving School

Fantastic experience: Mad Adea driving school are communicative and easy to book lessons with. I had no issues with any of the content as Jim made it easy to understand how to undergo all the manoeuvres for my road test. Passed first time.

Fantastic experience: Very helpful teacher, passed my test in first try.

Positive experience: It's been a struggle to contact them. No responses to emails and they haven't answered the phone after several days of calling. We did have one kid get through their program eventually.

Fantastic experience: They are the best. I pass the road test in first time.

Negative experience: Terrible communication, no follow through and no accountability. The behind the wheel instructors were fine but almost every interaction with the owner was flawed and painful.

Negative experience: The instructor was very rude. He was scolding me continuously. That was my first day of driving. I didn’t have experience before. I don’t recommend this to anyone. The worst.

Fantastic experience: They were extremely helpful. Really fast. They are working hard to catch up on behind the wheel experience for other companies that are behind. Great instructors. Very helpful.

Fantastic experience: The instructor is very informative and friendly, highly recommend!!

Fantastic experience: Great experience with Mad Area Driving School. Highly recommend.

Negative experience: Instructor doesn’t teach the drivers how to drive. he yells and expects the driver to know everything already. Bad company don’t recommend.

Fantastic experience: I would 100% recommend Jim. He is an excellent teacher and a friendly person. He took care of all the the things where I needed practice and made sure that I feel confident before giving the road test. I had a really positive experience with him.

Negative experience: I found this business difficult to work with. Setting up driving times was difficult, can only be set up by calling- owner/scheduler, who is not available except for short and limited hours. Owner does not seem organized, there was always confusion as to setting up behind the wheel times/dates, which number of lesson. Interaction over the phone with owner not a positive experience as well. Most of my questions regarding process of setting up behind the wheel sessions as well as next steps once completed were treated with disparaging responses, inferring that lack of following instructions or reading information on the website would have addressed my question.

Fantastic experience: Working with Jim and his team at Mad Area Driving School was a great experience! We struggled with another provider with little success and Mad Area Driving came to the rescue. He was very accommodating. Highly recommend!

Negative experience: My experience was not pleasant. Communications are not efficient and take a long time to respond. They have good cars, but the instructor (Lucas) was very rude and did not have a good teaching style. I felt very uncomfortable during the class and decided to cancel the classes I had booked.

Fantastic experience: Jim was an excellent teacher! I highly recommend him, in fact I will schedule him with my daughters in the future!!

Negative experience: Instructor changes every time. One cut the already paid BTW class significantly short. Owner is condescending and rude. They assume the privilege to get to BTW class late. Communication is inconsistent and unprofessional. What a disappointment. Refusing to give the refund for the 3 classes now not willing to schedule BTW.

Fantastic experience: Great driving school! We were on a long wait list at another driving school. Glad we switched to Mad Area Driving School. They got my son's Behind the Wheel completed in a timely matter. Thank you so much!

Fantastic experience: Good teachers. I took the behind the wheel lessons. I have never driven in traffic before. They taught me how to drive in traffic overall, and gave me specific instructions on what I did wrong and how to improve. In the lesson before the road test, the teacher explained to me what to expect in the test and what could result in points off. Now I passed the road test on my first try,

Fantastic experience: I took one day before road test and I passed Thanks Jim!

Fantastic experience: Great driving school! I've never driven before and in just a few lessons Jim and Jesse were able to provide me with all the fundamentals to become a good driver (and pass the road test with a perfect score). The school has also a good focus on the driving exam, so if you have some driving experience, but are still hesitant in taking the road test, taking a few lesson would build up the confidence!

Negative experience: Mad Area Driving School is very poor at communicating (Jim). Ive asked questions and received little to no answers or with very rude unprofessional responses. I would NEVER recommend this driving school to ANYONE, if I could get my money back and go elsewhere I would as my daughter is truly very uncomfortable with her short interactions with this company so far. This company has horrible customer service skills.

Fantastic experience: i have been prepared and learned new thing to get me ready for the behind the wheel test. it was a good experience for me and the service was great i strongly recommended being instructed by these guys my instructors named was jose and i recommended him instruction you.

Fantastic experience: Jim is a great instructor. I passed my test after several lessons with him and another instructor who is also very helpful too. Jim knows what exactly will be on the test. I really appreciate his help!!

Fantastic experience: The instructor is really great and teaches with lot of patience. I really enjoyed the courses. The price is also reasonable. I passed the test with quite an ease.

Fantastic experience: Very smooth and professional would definitely recommend. I’m a college student so being picked up and dropped off was very helpful for me. Learning to drive was actually fun and calm for me bc my instructor gave me good directions and tips that helped. Overall experience was wonderful. Thank you Mr. Jim! Thank you Mad Area driving school.

Fantastic experience: Jim is a great teacher highly recommend

Fantastic experience: Jim is a great instructor. He's very professional and helpful, and he definitely knows very well about what will be tested. I passed my road test with ease after several lessons with him. I really appreciate his help!

Fantastic experience: The best driving school in madison and helped me pass my test on the first try with only one class! Very helpful and professional. Teaches you everything you need to know for the road test and makes sure you're prepared!

Fantastic experience: Mad Area Driving School helped me pass my driving test!!! I just passed two days ago and I cannot say enough good things about Jim, Jesse, and the school. The lessons were great and I felt very prepared the day of my test at the DMV. I wouldn't have passed without them!!!! Highly recommended for new drivers (like myself) and people who don't own a car of their own.

Negative experience: Instructor changes every time. One cut the already paid BTW class significantly short. Owner is condescending and rude. They assume the privilege to get to BTW class late. Communication is inconsistent and unprofessional. What a disappointment.

Fantastic experience: I 100% recommend Mad Area for anyone who is learning to drive. This business is small(er) and may seem "outdated" in regards to paying for the service or contacting them. However, their cars are new and their instructors top notch. I had called other driving schools in the area, and Mad Area stood out to me as one I could rely on. I liked that the owner is directly involved and I wasn't handed off to different people to try to schedule appointments. I passed my test on the first try thanks to their assistance. The instructors definitely care about your success!

Negative experience: Worst communication ever they never call u back

Fantastic experience: My girlfriend and I took the driving lessons together at this school and we both passed the road test in one attempt. Jim is very patient and experienced. He taught us a lot of useful driving tips for not only the test but also future driving on real roads with a lot of traffic. The fee is also very reasonable: this is one of the most worthwhile investment we had!

Fantastic experience: I've been driving for decades but an hour tune up with Jim was a Great Idea (Thanks Maddy). I'd fallen into some sloppy driving habits but a bit of coaching from this 1st rate instructor has me much more confident behind the wheel.

Fantastic experience: passed my road with one driving lesson on the day of the road test.

Negative experience: Mad Area Driving School has an outdated website and is very poor at communicating. I asked questions multiple times and received little to no answers. It feels as if we threw our money away because we never received any response about the driving portion of the class. My son was able to take the online class, but Mad Area Driving School never responded to questions about what to do next for the driving portion of the class. Now he will have to start over with another driving school because his permit has expired. Very disappointed by the entire process with this company.

Fantastic experience: I and my husband took driving lessons with Jim and we both passed our exams in first attempt (Today). Jim is a brilliant coach and has lots of patience. We practiced driving in few neighbourhoods and freeways, we feel we are well prepared to drive now. Jim made sure we practised everything asked in the test! He is very professional, punctual and has a great personality, enjoyed learning from him. Highly recommend “mad area driving” to new drivers and international folks.

Fantastic experience: Javier is awesome! I was a total amateur and got my license in the first attempt. Thank you!

Fantastic experience: Javier has been so helpful in teaching me how to drive. Initially, I was afraid to drive, but after my first lesson, I felt comfortable. I would definitely recommend Mad Area Driving and Javier to anyone who needs to learn how to drive.

Fantastic experience: Jim and the Mad-Area Driving staff have been very professional, were able to get both my daughters ready for the drivers test. I have one who loves driving and one who doesn’t but she still passed the behind the wheel test a few years ago! They were pleasant and addressed any questions or issues we had. I would choose them again!

Fantastic experience: Best driving school, highly recommended !!! In addition to being excellent instructors, Jim and Javier are extremely nice and helpful people. They are very watchful, help you perfect your driving skills by teaching the right way and pointing out all the mistakes including the minor ones. I got my license yesterday and full credit goes to these guys for excellent driving lessons !

Fantastic experience: Javier is the best driver instructor ever. very detailed oriented and focused on teaching what's right and wrong when it comes to driving. Awesome and funny guy. Highly recommend :)

Fantastic experience: Great driving instructors, they give clear directions and instructions. Very friendly and helpful! Totally recommend especially for teenage drivers:)

Fantastic experience: Great school, taught me a lot about driving that I didn’t know before. Javier was a great instructor, and I would recommend him to most as he taught me a lot.

Fantastic experience: I would highly recommend this driving school, It's always a blessing to have find the right teacher. Javier and Jim are both very dedicated in their profession, have tremendous knowledge, and knows exactly how to convey the information. I wish if I knew them earlier, I would not have wasted my time anywhere else.

Fantastic experience: I will be very honest to anyone who wants a training in driving skills. Mad Area Driving is very responsive, efficient, and informative. I just got my driver license today and I only had total of three lessons, each 1.5 hours long. Basically, instructors will let you know and practice everything you need for road test and you won’t be surprised at all in the actual test. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

Fantastic experience: I never drove a car before and was terrible in my first 2-3 classes. But after 10 lessons with Jim I passed my road-test in first attempt. He is a very experienced and attentive teacher giving importance to every minute details. I would recommend Mad Area Driving School to everyone.

Fantastic experience: I had a wonderful experience with a number of instructors at Mad Area. With each ride I felt comfortable and supported and got my license in no time!

Negative experience: Highly, highly, highly do not recommend going with this company. Jim is very difficult to communicate it. He tried to over charge me when his website clearly states a lower price than what he told me. I feel like he wastes my time and is truly only in it because he wants my money. He has told me wrong directions and meeting places before and then blames it on me when it was clearly his error. Would not recommend going here 4lakes driving is much better!

Fantastic experience: Jim is a patient instructor, and made small details of being a better driver clearer to me. I would recommend Mad Area Driving School for anyone in the area!

Fantastic experience: Both Javier and Jim are pretty good instructors! They are very patient and taught me lots of details! I am a person very easily get nervouse, but they were so nice and experienced so that I felt very comfortable driving with them! I passed the test the first time I took it! Thanks a lot to both of them!

Fantastic experience: Would recommend! Javier is a very great instructor who wants the best for his students!

Positive experience: It was overall pretty good, I enjoyed the class. The online class was very informative. The driving instructors were very insightful. My only complaint is that it was hard to contact them to schedule behind the wheels.

Fantastic experience: Javier and Jim were great instructors would recommend this driving school to anyone interested in learning how to drive

Fantastic experience: Reallt knowledgeable and helpful.

Fantastic experience: Awesome experience!!! Would recommend! Javier is a very great instructor who wants the best for his students!

Fantastic experience: My experience with my instructor Carlos was very helpful and makes me feel a lot more confident with my driving skills I highly suggest this to anyone who wants to learn about driving safely

Fantastic experience: Jim helped me solidify my driving skills very efficiently and was super helpful and patient! Strongly recommend if you want to save money and still receive quality instruction.

Fantastic experience: Jim is an excellent instructor and a kind person. He provides the right advice and tips needed for driving, and instills confidence. He is priced reasonably for his service. I cleared the driving test in the first attempt, which speaks high of his teaching. I would highly recommend MAD area driving.

Negative experience: Parking in a FIRELANE is ILLEGAL. Teaching our children park irresponsibly. How would you teach them to drive? When calling,I spoke to a gentleman who was great at FIRST. THEN turned his tone NEGATIVELY. He explained they gave been in business for 30 years and they know very law. I am guessing that the firelane is different from place to place?? I think NOT!!!! I would fire the instructor and the male who answered the phone. UNCOVER BOSS!!!

Positive experience: I took 8 classes from Jim. I learned from level zero. I passed the road test on 2nd attempt. Jim is an experienced driver. He taught me very well. It's really helpful to take lessons from Jim. Thanks Jim.

Fantastic experience: Jim was very helpful. He taught me many details for driving and passing the road test. After 4 classes with him, I passed. Definitely recommend him.

Fantastic experience: I'm a visiting scholar, not good at communication in English. In that case, I was so worried about the road test.Thank god to Jim, he is so patient, so nice. He explains things easer and clear. He is definitely an amazing teacher. I really like this man. After 3 classes, I pass the road test at first try, with high score! That's amazing! if you wanna know how to drive, if you wanna pass the road test, call Jim.

Fantastic experience: Jim is the best!

Negative experience: Saw this driver on the highway and he was texting and driving while eating. he merged onto the highway in a gray Honda accord, almost causing two accidents, then continued to swerve in his lane. this is an instructor or representative for a driving school in a company vehicle.

Fantastic experience: Great driving school! I took and passed my driving test on the first try after taking a couple lessons with Mad Area Driving School. At first, I was worried I would be at work and would only be able to take lessons on Saturday, but Jim was flexible with helping me schedule according to my availability. I was able to take lessons during my lunch break and was picked up and dropped off back at work for a small fee. Overall really convenient! It also always felt like the driving lessons were tailored to what I needed in preparation for the road test. Unlike another driving school I took classes with before, Jim works to help learners succeed rather than trying to get more lessons (and money) out of people than necessary. By the time my road test came around, I felt well-prepared for what to expect based on Jim's feedback. Would highly recommend! :)

Fantastic experience: Jim is really great trainer. I would recommend him. Thank you Jim.

Fantastic experience: Jim is a very nice coach! I took three classes with Jim, and I just passed my road test on Monday. He taught me all the skills I needed for road test, including how to turn and park. Also, he assisted me in the DMV that really released me nerve. I truly recommended on the road with Jim.

Fantastic experience: my driving instructor was carlos and it was the best ! very great teaching and very much worth the money paid for. Great school

Fantastic experience: Very good experience. Had no driving experience, got me my license after 5 sessions (might have been 4, but we went to the DMV only to find they cancelled tests that day due to inclement road conditions). Would definitely recommend.

Fantastic experience: Great instructions and is much cheaper than other schools in the area.

Fantastic experience: Jim was very patient and gave good feedback. I was able to pass the road test on my first try.

Fantastic experience: I had a good experience with Jim, he is a good instructor and guides well on even the little things that need to be taken care on road. I was able to clear my road test in first attempt.

Negative experience: very unhappy. force reviews and not a good time here

Fantastic experience: Jim did a great job

Fantastic experience: Jim is an excellent instructor. He gave me valuable advice and tips on how to pass the test. I would definitely recommend MadAreaDriving and Jim.

Fantastic experience: Jim was an excellent teacher and gave great advice on how to pass the test. His demeanor makes driving much less stressful and that is exactly what I needed. I would definitely recommend Mad Area Driving School to a friend. I passed first time and was given every confidence to do so.

Positive experience: Considering that I had driving experience abroad, I got just what I needed here. Jim was responsive and showed me the tips and tricks, that were just enough to pass the license exam. Also, he seemed to be well known in the DMV office. So when my examiner saw that I had trained with Jim, I felt like it gave out a positive message about my technical know-hows.

Fantastic experience: Strongly recommend. I wish I could give them more than 5 star.I joined this driving school because some of my other friends went there and had a great experience. I was nervous and my instructor was fabulous and calmed my nerves down.Jim, the instructor is extremely professional and good while behind-the-wheel lessons, and explains how to perform the different maneuvers and what mistakes were made without making you feel bad and nervous. He will take you to almost every type of road heavy traffic ,low traffic, sharp turns, curvy turns etc etc. I now have my license and am very happy I chose Mad Area for my driver training.The instructor comes to your place and will park his car, and give you a call to let you know he is there. I also registered with Jim for the actual DMV test. JIM picked me up an hour before, for some practice and last minute tips and it all worked out well and Jim even stayed behind patiently for my paperwork at the DMV after my road test to drop me back home. Overall I felt pretty good that I signed up for them - it really boosted my confidence. I'd recommend this school. I would highly recommend this school to anyone who wants to learn the driving, everything else might be just a waste of money (I have tried 1 other school as well).

Fantastic experience: I cleared my road test with help of Jim. He was very patient while teaching, honest with his advice and suggestions.He took personal attention with the DMV process .I recommend learning driving under instructor Jim from MAD AREA DRIVING SCHOOL.

Fantastic experience: I strongly recommend the Mad Area Driving school. Jim, the instructor is extremely patient, experienced and good while behind-the-wheel lessons, and explains how to perform the different maneuvers and what mistakes were made without making you feel bad and nervous. The lessons are priced reasonably and Jim was pretty honest about how many lessons I would need depending on previous driving experience. You are picked up and dropped off before and after the lesson at a place of your convenience in Madison and Jim even stayed behind patiently for my paperwork at the DMV after my road test to drop me back home. I went to another driving school in the past and paid a fortune for driving lessons only to fail the road test. I used to get extremely nervous while driving but after taking 4-5 lessons with Jim I passed my road test. Initially, a couple of my lessons were canceled last minute, which is okay by me as all driving schools get pretty busy during spring-summer but Jim is pretty accessible by phone, and after that all my lessons were held as scheduled. Overall a great experience as compared to other driving schools.

Fantastic experience: My review is going to be long because I am happy that I passed my road test on my first attempt and without being nervous. Before going to Mad area driving school, I went to another school for one class and I was not confident at all and they literally force you to take many classes to make money and its way expensive too. I am glad I joined Mad area driving school and Jim was my instructor and he was extremely good. I gained my confidence on the very first day of the class. He said I will be ready with 2 more sessions, like he said I was ready. He taught clearly and tested me very well during the sessions so that I am ready completely. Thank you Jim!

Fantastic experience: I had never driven before but once I started with Jim, his lessons were thorough and very informative. He always made it on time and made me practice till I perfected all the skills. Thanks to him, I was able to pass the test on my first try after just a couple lessons. I would definitely recommend him to everyone and anyone that wants to learn how to drive.

Fantastic experience: I loved it. He is an awesome teacher. I passed my road test in first attempt. The instructor teaches each and every minute details which are noticed by the DMV guys while on actual road test. I liked the way the school instructor took me to DMV office and made me practice mock tests. I would recommend the school for everyone.

Fantastic experience: Perfect! Very nice, complete, the price is good too! The instructor is very experienced and teaches very well. Recommended to everybody who wanna learn driving. And the nice thing: I have passed the road-test exam at the first trial by help of this school. Strongly recommended for anyone who wanna be a successful driver.

Fantastic experience: Well, Jim and Chad really helped a lot on the learning curve. I never had an experience of driving before, so in a way starting the right way really helped. My exam went like a piece of cake. The examiner had very less to say after the road test. The instructors are pretty good at spotting flaws in the way you drive & they do help a lot. All in all the experience was really amazing.

Negative experience: Instructor is not paying a attention while you drive.Do his own work,reading and updating his diary,talking on phone. Instructor come late and finish early. Take you to pick up other student during your driving lesson. Don't accept credit card or debit card for payment. Learner don't go with this instructor and waste your money. Find some good school.

Negative experience: Mad Area Driving School completely failed to provide me with any service whatsoever. First, I tried to contact them by email, but all they would reply is that I needed to call them. If they won't help customers by email, why do they publish an email address on their website? So I took the extra time out of my day to call them, and we scheduled an appointment for an instructor to pick me up for a driving lesson. When the time came around for the lesson, I was standing at my living room window looking out over the street, waiting. Twenty minutes later, when there was still no sign of them, I called for an ETA, thinking maybe they were running late. No one answered their office phone, so I had to leave a message. They never showed up, nor called for directions, nor made any attempt to contact me. I didn't hear anything back at all until the end of the following day, after normal business hours. By this point I had given up on them and already scheduled lessons through another company, so I didn't want to waste my time talking to them. But they called three times in less than an hour, so I finally answered just so they would stop interrupting my evening. The representative on the phone identified himself as Jim from Madison Area Driving School (who I believe is the owner), then simply said, "You called?" He didn't seem to have a clue who I was or what he was supposed to be calling me about, even though I had left a pretty clear message. I tried to tell him I was going with another company and no longer needed his assistance, but he pushed so I gave him the time and address of my appointment and explained that they had stood me up. He immediately insisted that they were there, I assured him that they hadn't been, and he again insisted that they were. I said that I was there, so I KNEW they hadn't been, and that I didn't want to waste my time discussing it further; his only response was to hang up on me. Now, even though I was frustrated, the owner could have salvaged the situation by simply apologizing for the mistake and trying to figure out how it happened -- in other words, by showing even a modicum of basic customer service skill. Instead, he all but called me a liar. Despite that, I still want to extend the benefit of the doubt and assume that the owner was just going with what the paperwork said, not intentionally lying to me. But if the instructor had, say, made an honest mistake and went to the wrong address, why didn't they call me right then? They had my phone number. If he had just called, I could have given him directions and this whole issue would have been fixed before it even started. I also want to make it clear that, though I was getting pretty frustrated with the phone rep (justifiably, I think), I remained reasonably polite throughout the conversation; I was not shouting, swearing or insulting him in any way, even though he was all but calling me a liar. Hanging up on me was completely uncalled for. I can't comment on their instruction technique, but their office staff seems to be completely incompetent, and their customer service couldn't get much worse. The only way they could possibly fail more than they already have is if they try to bill me for the lesson they skipped out on (they haven't so far, but I'm watching my mailbox). If you need driving lessons, I've had a mostly positive experience with my new instructor at Four Lakes Driving School. But avoid Mad Area Driving School like the plague.