A bit of a mixed experience.
I bought a package deal with this auto school that included 6 lessons plus car for road test for $242 (single lessons are $33/45 min). I also took the DMV 5 hour class here.
My instructor, Mr. James, was nothing short of phenomenal. Very patient, courteous, and full of useful suggestions, he painstakingly taught me how to do things I've been doing for 25 years[1] differently. That is, the way the examiner wants you to do them. If you follow what Mr. James says, you WILL get your license.
Mr. Jean, the business owner and instructor for the DMV 5 hour class, was also very good. I mean: he must have given that class a gazillion times, and still he managed to show some enthusiasm, if not passion, about his work. Moreover he spent quite some time at the end of the class to answer any questions the students might have had regarding the road test.
The problems are with Maggie, the person from the office you have to deal with to book lessons, the road test, etc... Here are a few examples:
1) When I booked the first driving lesson, Maggie did not tell me that I was supposed to pay half of the package deal at the first class, cash. Luckily, I had enough cash with me that day to pay that at least in part in part. Equally, I wasn't told that I was supposed to pay the remaining of the package deal by the third class, again in cash. This is not a minor detail, since if you haven't paid in full, in cash, by the third lesson, they will not consider that a package deal any more. So, it would be nice if they actually said all these things upfront when I called the first time.
2) I had to leave the country for 3 weeks in between lessons; making a reservation 3-4weeks in advance turned out to be a major, major issue. Apparently generating the lesson calendar/schedule for the following month is extremely hard. Just as hard it was to schedule the road test 4 weeks in advance[2].
3) One time Mr. James had to cancel a class, but Maggie never called me to let me know.
4) Maggie was supposed to call me the evening before the road test, but she never did. In fact, every single time Maggie told me she would call me back she never did. I ended up calling Mr. James myself, and made arrangements for the road test directly with him.
2.5 stars; rounded up to 3 since in the end I got the license.
---------------------------------------
[1] I have a European driving license, and been driving manual transmission cars all my life.
[2] This is particularly puzzling since Mr. Jean told us during the 5 hour class that the waiting list for a road test was 4-6 weeks, and we had to book the test immediately. read more