Crazy Eights – The head-to-head reverse figure-eight challenge will be first on the docket. This year, both cars (both Honda CR-X del Sols, one gray and one red) will start in the middle of the figure-eight, and the passing point will also be in the middle, after both cars have made one loop. Andrew will continue to accompany Dale (after her falling out with her nominator last episode), while driving opposite head instructor Peter (in the gray car). Peter finishes quickly and has to wait for Dale to pass and to finish. Dale eventually has to be stopped after a rim she hits punctures the gas line on her red car. Diane and Dean make the second heat. Dean, frustrated by the slow reverse, goes too far, passing the midway point and intentionally backs into Diane, forcing both to stop, though neither hit anything else. Jamie and Brad form the third heat. Brad quickly grows frustrated due to Donna's laughter and her controlling nature, which Donna admits is a problem on her part. In contrast, Jamie is reluctant to take control of the car. Both Brad and Jamie do finish with minimal incident. Lance and Paul make up the final heat. Lance, having taken every private lesson opportunity available to him, quickly gets into the halfway point in 48 seconds with minimal incident, while Paul's back problem makes him unaware of an errant rim, which, as Paul (in the red car) runs over the rim, ruptures the gas tank. Paul admits failure in the challenge, while Lance is let off the hook.
Camaro Challenge: The Slalom Challenge – Back in the first episode, everyone failed the slalom portion of the basic assessment. After Philippe gives everyone lessons on how to do this properly, everyone must do this challenge again... but at 80 km/h. This had never been done in previous seasons due to the crew having never trusted the older used cars employed for a challenge of this nature, hence the use of the Camaro. Lance and Diane both go too fast and hit things. Paul passes despite intense frustrations. Donna's lack of screaming (an effort on her part to reduce a negative influence on Brad) nets Brad a pass as well. Andrew is terrified at Dale's driving, but she passes, much to his astonishment. Jamie, going at 88 km/h, also passes to Eric's astonishment. Speed freak Dean has had a bad habit of letting go of the brake when things go wrong; and things went wrong just as Dean passed the last obstacle, turning a pass into a fail in the last minute.
Rules of the Road – Peter administers a test of the rules of the road. Of the 10 rules tested, Paul did the best with eight correct, while Lance was the worst with only two correct.
The Water-Tank Challenge – The annual smooth-driving challenge returns, this year using a Plymouth Reliant "K-car" station wagon. The course starts with a slow acceleration to 60 km/h before slowing down and turning into a precision driving course with many turns. The challenge leads into a raised platform before finishing with a slalom in reverse. For the third consecutive year, Andrew gets splashed on after being too ambitious on the raised platform. The water lost is still very little in comparison with the contestants: Jamie quickly panics after the first brake and fails the reverse slalom. Brad is barely able to make the corner while going fast, and is never able to drive slowly through the course. Chronically slow Diane also goes too fast on the straightaway, and like Jamie, quickly loses concentration (and composure) thereafter. Paul has minimal issues in the initial portion, and most of his lost water came from hitting obstacles. He learns that concentration is the key to success, and Tommy reiterates this throughout the challenge. John returns to rehab with Dale this challenge, but she destroys much of the course in her run. Lance loses all his water nearly failing to make the first turn. Dean is too afraid to accelerate fast, and runs out of room going forward. The ensuing spill of water from having to brake quickly floods the engine.
In deliberation, Jamie expresses the desire to graduate. Lance also expresses the desire to graduate, but admits that he has no real chance to do so. Paul expresses the desire to graduate. Dale expresses further resolve to improve, while Brad admits he needs work on the relationship front more than his driving skills. The experts make a unanimous decision to graduate Paul, described as "the perfect student", as the season's first graduate without further discussion.
