Having recently purchased an M3 I thought an investment in a driving course would be worthwhile – on the one hand to brush up on my driving technique, and on the other hand to have the opportunity to enjoy the car to the full in a safe environment.

What I didn’t appreciate in advance was just how much I had to learn, and my first attempts at the handling circuit were an eye-opener! Fortunately Ivan is an excellent teacher. He was able to explain key concepts clearly and succinctly, and demonstrate these in practice. He also structured the day well, so that I built on different areas over the course of the day, and it is to his credit that I felt I made real progress during the session.

As a result, I now feel more able to enjoy my M3 on the road, with a smoother, more economical style that is both faster and safer. Equally, I have also realised how much more I have to learn and I sincerely hope to be back soon. Many thanks to Ivan for his patience, for his approach and for making me a better driver.

B. Jackson

It was a pleasure to spend the day in your tuition; I couldn’t have asked for anything more, from your knowledge, the pace of learning and patience to your understanding of my skills.

Really looking forward to booking my next masterclass with you to further hone and sharpen my driving abilities!

M. Dahan

After a year of enjoying my 911 Turbo S, my wife bought me the best Christmas present I’ve ever had – the Dynamic Handling Masterclass. After 25 years as a member of the IAM, I thought I might still be a novice when it came to understanding how to drive quickly and safely. I was right. Under very patient and expert guidance from Ivan, I learned so much during the day as well as being stretched and thrilled in the process.

Ivan is a huge enthusiast and massively knowledgeable about the physics of driving. His teaching style is very positive, yet to the point. He allowed my confidence and techniques to grow, gradually pushing me to drive better and faster. It certainly helps when the coach is having as much fun as the student! I would thoroughly recommend Total Car Control to anyone. I’ll be signing up to do the road training too. Ivan and Total Car Control, thank you for my best ever driving experience and education.

P. Cartwright

Since my On Road Masterclass, driving my Ghibli has become a more enjoyable experience. I love ‘B’ roads and am now able to read them better; I now position the car allowing for a smoother drive with a little more speed while feeling totally safe.

My overtaking is much safer and I now know where to position the car and when to apply the power while having the option to cancel without having made a total commitment. I thought I was a good driver, however after a day with Ivan I felt much more confident and my ego remained intact.

I. Davis

One of the key things from the two days that I was truly surprised about was the escapism. Focusing on nothing other than driving turned out to be as restorative to that which I have felt following a two week holiday!

I’m not sure if I can critique the course, I enjoyed it and I learnt a lot. I would have liked to have emerged as Ayrton Senna, but quite frankly I also understand that for me to do so could have taken you a tad more than two days.

My driving on the road has changed and I am confident that I am 100% safer whilst also a little quicker. I enjoy driving just as much as previously, when driving like I stole it was the typical approach!

R. Ledger

I had a spectacular two day course with Ivan. The first day was at the proving ground which gave me the tools I believe, to not only drive with more skill but with a renewed confidence when it came to the second day, on the road.

Ivan is extremely nice and approachable. He is a fantastic teacher who has the patience to help you become a better driver. I would highly recommend the course and hope to do it again some time.

R. Bowden

Having recently acquired my own sports car, I wondered if I might benefit from some performance coaching to get the best from it and be able to enjoy this car properly and safely. I wanted to know what my Jaguar XKR can handle and to understand its limitations, and indeed my own. I never imagined though that there was so much more to learn about not just performance driving but also driving in general.

Having driven for so long, I had wondered just what else there was for me to know, but Ivan’s instruction has completely opened my eyes and taken my driving awareness to a whole new level! I learned more in 2 days with Ivan than in all my previous 30 years of driving across the UK, Continental Europe and US.

It was really interesting to have Ivan challenge so many of my long-held perceptions and add massively to my knowledge and technique but, just as importantly, my understanding of why as well as how to apply my new skills on a daily basis. I now feel much more comfortable driving the XKR, with a confidence in the car itself that I never thought possible, and completion of this 2 day course has brought owning a sports car to a level of true enjoyment for me. The combination of using Millbrook on the first day and some great public roads on the second is just brilliant, and the whole experience really good fun as well.

In summary, this first 2-day Total Control Masterclass has opened my eyes to become so much more aware and mindful of how I drive. It’s made me much safer, but also able to enjoy my car in a much more relaxed manner as a result. I found the course to be absolutely fantastic and thoroughly recommend it to anyone. If you really want to enjoy your car and improve your skills, this course is a must.

V. Pavelcik

I just wanted to say thanks for a very informative, great training day. Having bought a Mustang GT I knew it would be a handful, and thought it would be a good idea to get an idea of the limits and how to get the most out of the power. I had done other driver training courses before but this, being bespoke and one to one with Ivan, was totally different.

After some initial theory tuition we went to the Outer Handling track and put it into practice, which was a revelation – including learning to trail brake to get the front end to tuck in and allow the car to rotate quickly into tight bends whilst staying planted, plus looking through the side windows on the approach to tight bends for early identification of exit points and therefore judging apexes.

The wet handling ‘skidpan’ was very challenging and Ivan was very patient when I got petulant and challenged him to catch the slides; which obviously he did without a problem.

The High Speed Circuit was a lot of fun, especially looking ahead as far round the bend as possible rather than simply looking straight ahead. This was fine at 50 mph, but a bit more worrying when speeds rose to 130 mph! Yet it worked really well, increasing the comfortable depth of my vision and helping me plan so much further ahead than I was before; and making it really easy to do so when speeds were brought back to 90 mph.

Ivan was never condescending or patronising in his assessment of my driving which, as a female, is a refreshing change!

Overall, I feel far more confident driving my Mustang now that I know how it responds to different conditions, and my daily drive has become all the more enjoyable now that I am putting into practice everything that I have learned. Thank you Ivan.

V. Cotton

Ivan was never condescending or patronising in his assessment of my driving which, as a female, is a refreshing change! Overall, I feel far more confident driving my Mustang now that I know how it responds to different conditions, and my daily drive has become all the more enjoyable now that I am putting into practice everything that I have learned.

I am delighted to be able to provide as many kind and effusive remarks as you can take following my Total Control Masterclass!

Both days were extremely enjoyable and highly educational, even if they did highlight how bad my driving was, and the advice and training you gave me has improved my overall vision and positioning on the road so much that driving has taken on a whole new perspective for me.

I continually find myself referring to your simple techniques to allow me to be so much more aware of my surroundings and the way I am driving and controlling the car.

P. Allan

You will be pleased to hear that I now consider myself to be a somewhat average driver after your instruction. Don’t take that the wrong way! The two days with you helped me appreciate how poor a driver I had become after driving on small islands in the Caribbean for the past 25 years. Thankfully, you were the consummate professional, with constructive advice throughout the two days.

I now find myself more involved and observant, and actually enjoying the art of driving again. When I think of all the incremental improvements to my driving as a result of your handy tips (I have a little voice at my shoulder now calling out P1, P3, P3, keep it in P3, keep it in P3, now straighten up and accelerate), I know my driving is much smoother, a great deal safer and I no longer receive complaints from my wife and daughters (not about my driving anyway!).

M. Byrne

I thoroughly enjoyed, and have learnt massively from my two day Total Control Masterclass. I have described it to friends as “Before the course I could make a car move; now I can drive”. I found the whole course extremely informative and enjoyable. The teaching methods really worked well to deliver a quick, clear understanding of the concepts, consolidated when putting these into practice.

I found my knowledge built steadily and significantly over the two days as further skills developed. Day 1 at Millbrook definitely benefits learning in a closed environment, before moving on to the road. In summary, I thoroughly enjoyed the course and am now enjoying putting what I have learnt into practice, and will certainly be back to develop my skills further. I would highly recommend Total Car Control to everyone!

J. Hunter

Ivan was patient and incredibly focused on allowing me to get the most out of my Dynamic Handling Masterclass, meaning that I was able to realise the potential of my car and enjoy it to the full.

Would I recommend Total Car Control? This should be compulsory when buying any car, not just a performance car; as you teach people how the car feels and behaves.

G. Hickman