John's Driving School

Negative experience: I would leave 0 stars if I could. My older son went here and had a great experience. The company was sold to new management this past October and I have never had such bad customer service and an experience. My younger son signed up for a behind the wheel lesson. He was to meet the driving instructor at Irondale high school. The driving instructor was 10 minutes late. When he arrived, he asked my son for his learner's permit. My son forgot it and called me to bring it up to him. I live 5 mins away and was preparing to leave and bring it to them. I wasted no time at all. Before I could even leave the house, the instructor said "nope, you don't have your permit, we're cancelling the lesson for today and you will be charged the full amount". It's important to note that they mention a 10-15 min grace period in case someone may be late, as life happens, and someone may be running a little behind. With that being said, I don't see the problem for waiting 5 mins while the permit would have been delivered. This is common sense. Your instructor was late and then couldn't wait 5 mins for us to bring the permit up there? That's ridiculous. On top of that, when talking to John's driving school, they were extremely rude and not helpful at all. I believe his words were "welp, oh well, we're not going to do anything about it". Seems like a pretty dumb decision for a small community driving school to treat their community like garbage. Goes around, comes around. Avoid this place like the plague. There are plenty of other options that won't treat you like crap and rob you for every possible dollar they can such as Teens Driving school in Arden Hills and Silver Lake driving school in New Brighton.

Negative experience: I had an extremely disappointing and uncomfortable experience at John’s Driving School. The instructor made inappropriate and racist remarks during my lessons, which made me feel unwelcome and disrespected. A driving school should be a supportive environment, but this was anything but. If you’re looking for a place that treats all students with fairness and respect, I highly recommend going elsewhere.

Negative experience: Horrible customer service!!! Rude and uncooperative after canceling my son's lesson and not giving me my money back. Instructor was late and then refused to wait 5 minutes for my husband to bring my sons permit. Which is required for the lesson but like busy human beings do, he forgot it and they canceled the whole 2 hours instead of waiting five minutes for the permit to get there. I tried to call and work something out with them and the rude individual on the phone stated there's a 15 minute grace period to get the permit and when I said we would've made the grace period if the instructor wasn't late, he changed the story to saying the lesson just gets canceled. He would not acknowledge that his staff member was late. Nowhere in the email does it state that the lesson just gets canceled with no permit. Would not recommend this business to anyone because as we know, life happens and a business should be willing to work with their customers. Instead he hung up on me.

Fantastic experience: I was struggling with parking spaces until I took initiative and contacted David Jr from John’s driving school. It was the best decision because learning from him I became a safe and sensible driver while mastering my parking spaces!

Fantastic experience: If you're looking for a reliable and professional driving school, I highly recommend John Driving School. My instructor, David Jr., was exceptional. His teaching methods are clear, patient, and effective, making the learning process smooth and enjoyable. Under his guidance, I gained confidence and skill behind the wheel. Choose John Driving School, and ask for David Jr. to ensure a top-notch driving education experience.

Fantastic experience: We had a really positive experience for our daughter’s behind the wheel lessons with instructor, David Jr.! She felt confident in defensive driving and learned so much from her 3 sessions with him. She was excited to pass her driving skills exam on her first try! We highly recommend John’s Driving school and behind the wheel with David Jr!

Fantastic experience: Very good teachers and they help you get road ready with no stress at all. I was able to pass easily due to all the lessons and tips I learned in the classroom and with David.

Fantastic experience: My instructor was David, he is a really cool guy and he really knows his stuff. I passed my drivers test with flying colors, I definitely recommend johns driving school 12/10!!!

Fantastic experience: This has been a great experience for us and our kids. Classroom instruction was informative and prepared them very well for the written test. David Jr. was an excellent behind the wheel instructor. He was always very prompt, easy to schedule with, and our kids were well prepared for the driving test. He gave detailed feedback on what to work on. We have one more kid, and will definitely use John's driving school again. I highly recommend them!

Fantastic experience: Thanks to the driving instructor and the Johns Driving school our daughter was able to ace her driving test. This team was very good at communication and punctuality I would refer this driving to to many others.

Positive experience: Working with David Jr. in my behind the wheels’ really taught me a lot of valuable lessons

Fantastic experience: Great amazing Coach, amazing teacher, great school to send your student.

Fantastic experience: David Jr. was an amazing driving instructor, thanks to him i passed my drivers test first try. great school, great teachers!

Fantastic experience: Both of my kids went through the driving program through John’s Driving School. I was impressed by the instructor and the knowledge that was shared and it really prepared them to pass their permit test. Both kids also had David JR for the behind the wheel portion of the instruction. He seemed to really care about teaching them to be safe, defensive drivers. He would always respond the same day when scheduling behind the wheel sessions and always gave multiple days and times for us to choose from. He also seemed invested in their success in passing the road test and asked them to let them know how the road exam went and if they passed. I would recommend John’s Driving School to anyone that asks.

Fantastic experience: My daughter had a good classroom experience and behind the wheel was okay too. Communication was weak but she survived and passed her test. Good pricing for what was offered.

Fantastic experience: Both of my kids had a fantastic experience with driving instructor David Jr. from John’s Driving School. He is personable and relates well to teens keeping them engaged for the 2 hour lessons. He taught both of my kids safe, defensive driving skills. I would highly recommend.

Fantastic experience: David the behind the wheel coach is super helpful and nice

Fantastic experience: Great experience! David Jr was our daughters behind the wheel instructor. He did a great job preparing her for her test and offered some great tips. She passed on her first try.

Positive experience: Title: Fine / Good School, and Communication Could be Better I have 2 sons who have taken Behind the Wheel (BTW) classes here - both from the same instructor. All of the scheduling & such went through my wife. I wrote a review on Feb 5, 2023, titled, “Did not give receipts when requested”. On Feb 11, he called me about the review and we talked it through, which is why I am replacing that review with this one. I write more on the receipts later in this review. According to my older son: + The instructor said steering technique would be crucial and that the examiner would fail a student for using the wrong method. However, at the test, the examiner, when asked, said which method he used was not important. + My son also said, “The instructor was rather overbearing. For example, he talked a lot about how much experience he had as an instructor, and in the context, I interpreted that as him trying to make me listen to him more. In actuality, I did want to listen to him and learn from him, but I just was not sold on one of the techniques he was teaching and wanted more rationale on why that technique was good.” + This son passed the driving exam on the first try. According to my younger son: + He did everything fine (My younger son is rather unforthcoming) + He passed the driving exam on his second try. According to my wife: + He was pretty good to work with regarding scheduling the Behind the Wheel sessions. His responsiveness could have been better, and so could ours. + For our last BTW session, we needed to schedule on short notice (within a week or two) and he was able to fit us in so we would not have to reschedule our 2nd son’s driving test. About the receipts: While preparing our taxes, we messaged the driving instructor requesting receipts for the BTW classes from last year. His reply was that our cashed check and bank statements are our receipt. Because of the confidence that comes through in his personality (which is probably what my older son picked up as “overbearing”), we read it as, “This is final” and did not ask for anything more. Instead, I wrote the review I mentioned before. I think his response (to use our cashed check and bank statement) lacked professionalism. If a person gives you money and asks for a receipt, you should give them a receipt. On Feb 11, he called, we talked, and he said that if we had replied asking for more, he would have sent us something - that he preferred doing that over my writing a bad review about it. He has since sent us receipts. He also said something like, next time someone asks for receipts, he should probably amend his reply of “our cashed check and bank statements are our receipt” with “would you like more than that?” I think that’s a good learning for him, and I’m glad to hear he is taking that away from this experience. Lastly, they were the cheapest option, which was a big factor in our selection for both sons.

Fantastic experience: Excellent driving school! David JR. Is an excellent teacher! I recommend this driving school.

Fantastic experience: My son used John's Driving School and had an excellent experience! The drivers Ed classes were very good. He had to take them online because of Covid, so I heard what was being taught and I was very impressed! He also had an excellent instructor for his behind the wheel lessons- David Jr. prepared my son very well for the drivers test and he was able to pass at the Arden Hills dmv on his first try! Better yet, I think the lessons really helped him take driving very serious. I would highly recommend John's Driving School!

Fantastic experience: David jr. is a very patient and reasonable person and is the best instructor you could have.

Fantastic experience: I think johns driving school does a good job at teaching in a short amount of time. David Jr. from johns driving school (one of the instructors) did a great job. He helped me be prepared which led me to pass my road test in the first try!

Fantastic experience: David jr helped me pass my road test on the first try ! David has always had patience with me , he never got frustrated when I couldn’t catch on to something . I’m a very shy person so I was nervous about doing my behind the wheel but he always made me feel comfortable and complimented my driving when I did well . He answered any questions I had or my mom had as well . Very respectful and determine to help me pass and thanks to him I passed on my first try ! Thank you David ! Ps: Also wore a mask and sanatized the car before we started driving which also I appreciated with Covid and other things going around !

Fantastic experience: Thanks to Johns driving school and David Jr my behind the wheel coach. He was great and helped me pass my test.

Fantastic experience: Taught me how to drive and park really well, and learned many skills. Passed on first try after 3 behind the wheels with David Jr.

Fantastic experience: This place is the best! Thanks franny and David for teaching me so much about driving. 10/10

Fantastic experience: Between David Jr. from John’s Driving School and Franny from the classroom portion, my daughter learned the skills necessary to be a safe defensive driver!

Fantastic experience: John’s driving school is a good place to take the steps in getting your permit, David Jr was an excellent instructor who gives constructive advice on what to improve and really helps sharpen your driving skills. Definitely recommend

Fantastic experience: Both of my daughter's went through John's Driving School and passed their permit exam and behind the wheel exam on the first try. David Jr did a great job with their behind the wheel instruction. He's patient and thorough coach!

Fantastic experience: Franny and David (teachers) were very helpful and had a fun time in the classroom and in behind the wheel was also great i learned so much from it and it helped me pass the road test and permit test both first try 10/10 would recommend

Fantastic experience: The classes were great! And I didn’t get the best experience/ timing for my behind the wheels but that isn’t to blame, you know with the whole pandemic. I really think this is a great place to send people needing to get it done. They will make sure everything that’s needed to be done is done with great effort! Highly recommend it to anyone figuring out where they want to send their kids! And thank you to Franny and David! You guys are awesome!

Fantastic experience: Johns Driving School was amazing, from the classes to the behind the wheel. Franny has taught me so well and we had fun in the class. There were many laughs and lots of learning. She was very considerate when kids couldn’t make it to certain lesson days, that I was able to make those up. With my behind the wheel, David Jr. was really good. I didn’t think I’d be comfortable driving with a stranger, but he wasn’t a stranger after the first 10 minutes. He was very welcoming, funny, experienced, and just overall a great teacher and instructor. I want to thank both Franny and David for the exceptional teachings that they gave to get me to the point where I am now, I have my license! And I passed with flying colors, I got 100%! If you want your kid to be somewhere great, go to Johns Driving School, I loved it, and I’m sure your kid will too!

Negative experience: My son has been unable to complete the drivers ed course for months despite my attempts at phone and email communication to the company. There's no instruction from the company and no response to my communications.

Fantastic experience: David and Franny are wonderful they are honest about pretty much everything and they are going to tell you when you mess up I had a good time and learned a lot from David and Franny I also passed my permit and license exam first try so I would recommend because they do teach the right things and get you where you need to be in order to pass your permit and road exam.

Positive experience: I would highly recommend John's Driving School! All three of our children have found success learning at this facility. The pace and flexibility was perfect for the busy life of a teenager. The instructors were helpful and taught the skills necessary for each of our children to be safe, defensive drivers. Our youngest especially enjoyed behind the wheel experiences with instructor David Jr.. He gave our son specific feedback to improve his driving and helped him feel comfortable on the road. I appreciated the communication that instructor David Jr. provided to us as parents as well. We knew our son's scheduled times and gave us feedback on the experience, so we could help our son practice prior to his driving test. All 3 of our boys passed the driver's test the first time. Thank you John's Driving School!

Fantastic experience: HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!! This is an excellent Driving School who has instructors who very much care about their students and their families. Focusing on lifelong skills in traffic safety, they collaborate defensive driving tactics along with traffic laws and knowledge and strive for a responsible and respectful attitude in traffic safety for future drivers.

Positive experience: 2nd new driver starting now.

Negative experience: The instructor was rude, yelled at me (the parent) for attempting to fill paperwork he said needed to be filled out and insulted us both. Then he spent the time yelling at the kids and describing how everyone who drives dies, gets burned alive and— oh the best part, just drive over the cats! Seriously?!?! So DISRESPECTFUL!! I wish there were another option!

Negative experience: Worst

Negative experience: I had a very poor experience with my instructor. They were not professional; during our 2 hour driving session she took a bathroom break for over 30 minutes at her friend's house. She yelled at me and was unable to communicate effectively. She expected me to already know everything and was not paying attention to the road as I was driving. I did not feel safe driving with her. I would recommend Buckle up Driving School instead.

Negative experience: This place is a sham.My daughter had taken an online course which provided us with a certificate but not a blue card, we went to JDS to ask about getting a blue card.The woman sold us a blue card for 100.00.My daughter then applied for her permit, and passed her test, but in the meantime we received a call from JDS saying her permit had been revoked and she would have to retake the course in order to receive her permit.Fast forward to a couple months ahead and guess what? Her permit arrived in the mail. I called the state to ask about this and had her permit been revoked, to which they replied they had no record of this, and we would have received a letter if this had been the case. JDS was trying to get us to retake the course under false pretenses. Buyer beware.

Negative experience: This driving class is meant to eat students money... they themselves don’t obey a rules when scheduling for behind the wheel driving...

Negative experience: if i could give zero stars i would

Fantastic experience: The instructors are very personable. Some kids might get on your damn nerves, though, so if you're easily annoyed like me, find away to keep your nerves down.

Fantastic experience: Great drivers Ed classes

Negative experience: Horrible driving school. For people that teach teenagers they should have more patience, my kid got yelled at. WHAT? Teach them, she straight yelled at her, for a second I thought that was she was in there for free, we paid money for this service, not to have my kids yelled at.

Negative experience: Racist instructer .. If your white go for it she'll welcome your business any other race she will not be interested and she'll refer you to different driving schools