16-year-old daughter roasts her dad after being given a frivolous driving instruction, wholesome bonding moment ensues: ‘He just laughed, called me a smart [aleck]’

Author image for Elna McHilderson
Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Apr 26, 2025 6:00 PM EDT

Being a parent is quite the roller coaster ride and the teen years might just very much be the loopty loop part of that ride. When it comes to adolescents, as a parent, you have to give everyone some grace, including yourself. The brains of these snarky almost-adults are literally wired to rebel, it's how the neurons mature so they can eventually be independent from their parents and blossom into a well functioning adult. Along with these comes the change in hormones, which adds a lot of explosive emotions. So, as a teenager, if you recall, you feel SO intensely about every little thing. And as a parenting of a teen, you literally cannot predict anything, so being prepared goes right out the window. 

 

That being said, you can still prepare for the societal norms of raising a teen, like teaching them how to drive! However, you can't prepare for just how snarky and witty they will be when responding to you trying to teach them something… You really just have to laugh—just like this dad did!

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  • This teen had already been learning to drive with her mom for the allotted time during her permit before the actual exam. On her way to the exam, however, her father wanted to give some pointers. He gave her one that made her epically roll her eyes, which frustrated her dad. So, she maliciously complied, in perfect teen fashion, and turned his frustrating teaching moment into a funny bonding moment between the two of them. We love family bonding! 

  • Cheezburger Image 10498350080
    via Unsplash+ (and Getty Images)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • "Driving with my dad"

    when I was freshly 16 I drove with my dad to the driver's test. I had practiced a lot with my mom, but she grew up in the city and was a much more aggressive driver than my dad. this was my first time driving with just him in the car, and he wanted to help me practice on the day of my actual test.
    via birdtwobird
  • well, he gives me the usual "every car on the road wants to kill you" and defensive driving stuff to the extreme. very nitpicky about everything. at a stop sign, he berated me for stopping too abruptly. "you should never accelerate whenever a stop sign is in sight - take your
    via birdtwobird
  • foot off the gas as soon as you see a stop sign, no exceptions". I kind of argued with him that sometimes that wouldn't work - we live in a very flat state and you can see stop signs from very far away sometimes. he got angry at me and told me he was just trying to help and I should
    via birdtwobird
  • accept his advice etc. I said fine. I also knew the next stop sign up on our drive was at the end of a six mile flat road, that isn't very busy. I planned my malicious compliance. as soon as I saw that stop sign (maybe half a mile out? idk im
    via birdtwobird
  • bad with distances) I took my foot off of the gas. about 15 seconds in we were going half the speed limit. 30 seconds in we come to a crawl. I look away from the road and make eye contact with him for the last ten feet or so - he was confused at first but cracked a smile when he realized what I was doing.
    via birdtwobird
  • the car came to a full stop a good fifteen to twenty feet. from the stop sign. "what should I do now?" | asked. he just laughed, called me a smart a, and was much more relaxed the rest of the day. I aced my test.
    via birdtwobird
  • RADIO MEDIA
    via Unsplash+ (and A.C.)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • Tremenda-Carucha I can really picture my guy losing his sh if I took our driving lessons as literally, but props for the epic prank! birdtwobird OP he was more persnickety that day than usual, so it was a calculated risk on my part lol
    via Tremenda-Carucha
  • avid-learner-bot This perfectly captures that age-old dynamic where dads just can't help being overprotective... but the son's quick wit and playfulness really turned the car ride into a fun bonding moment! Dad must've been relieved to see his kid thinking for himself.
    via avid-learner-bot
  • birdtwobird OP haha daughter!! but yes it ended up working out - I do still think of other cars as trying to kill me. weirdly helpful advice, has saved me from quite a few accidents where other people weren't paying attention while driving.
    via birdtwobird
  • Kingy_79 As the father of a smart 16 yo (who is getting his permit today), I approve. This is EXACTLY the stunt he would pull →
    via Kingy_79
  • Prof1959 Sounds like a great dad and a great teacher.
    via Prof1959
  • Sad-Roll-Nat1-2024 Very cool time man. My dad was the opposite. He didn't help me learn (I mostly did that solo with midnight joyrides). But when I went to get my permit, he sat back in the passenger seat and said "drive however fast or slow as you'd like, if you have any questions wake me up". He then proceeded to nap the 50 min drive home from the DMV.
    via Sad-Roll-Nat1-2024
  • Cheezburger Image 10498356736
    via Unsplash_+ (and Andrej Lišakov)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • I only woke him once when I asked if he cared if I passed someone. Basically same deal, do as I please, as long as I'm being safe and following the rules of the road. Said if I get a ticket it's on me to pay it. Did the same thing when I got my license. He had me go to the steakhouse up the road from the dmv. Treated me to a steak lunch. Then took a nap in the passenger seat on the ride home.
    via Sad-Roll-Nat1-2024
  • National Pension_110 Love this! I believe a combination of aggressive and defensive driving is the safest way to go, and it sounds like between your parents, you have your bases covered, lol.
    via National_Pension_110
  • sfled I never enjoyed driving with my dad. His foot was always stomping a phantom brake pedal on the floor. It wasn't just me, he did it with my Mom and then with my sisters when they began driving.
    via sfled
  • Spl4sh3r Sounds like a good lesson. I mean driving. instructors can give weird instructions that you are meant to follow. It is then up to you to follow them legally.
    via Spl4sh3r

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family bonding parents of teens teen driver dads funny dads witty parents funny moms wholesome family memes learning to drive kids toddlers teenagers good dad moms sarcastic parents driving parenting Memes raising teens lol teaching your teen parenting memes healthy family new parents new driver bonding moment funny parents funny parenting
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