EZ Wheels Driving School — Attraction in Passaic

Honest review of my experience with the Passaic office. When I signed up for the class B lessons, I came with over 10 years of experience driving manual and over 2 years of experience as a heavy duty diesel mechanic, 2 years of maneuvering and parking tractors with single, dual drive axles and straight trucks in my job’s small compact yard, I’ve even test drove them around the block. I decided to take the school because I wanted to know exactly what I had to say for my in cab inspection on the test, not for the driving and handling, cause I was already comfortable with that. Right off the back when I chose the cheapest plan with only 8hrs of training and 1 road test for the B class, some lady that is not fluent in spanish kept trying to upsell me. She started with trying to push the A class, I explained my situation that I just needed a B to continue doing my job and have no interest. After trying to persuade me about signing up for A class with no success, she then moved on to try to push a more expensive package, I had chosen the $915 package, cause honestly that stuff is expensive and I was pretty confident. She kept on pushing that I was not gonna pass with only 8 hrs, even after I explained to her my experience with trucks. That was annoying, I guess they get paid commission on the packages they sell, whatever. Then comes the week of my first two classes. With less than 24 hrs of notice, they cancel my first class. Meanwhile if you as the student try to cancel class with less than 48 hrs of notice, they wanna charge you $30/hr, wow whatever. When I finally go for my first class, I was surprised how unorganized the whole curriculum is. I show up at the yard, there’s no office, no one to tell you where to wait. I called the office to see where I go, who to talk to, office told me to just stand there and an instructor will walk up to you. Uhm ok? Finally my instructor comes up to me, and has the wrong name down -.- . My first lesson, instructor skims through the in cab inspection. Like this is the most important part to me AND the sole reason why I paid for this service. Second class, different guy, he took his time with the in cab inspection, but he taught it to me completely out of order, in an order I would of failed with. It wasn’t until my third class that I finally landed an instructor that went through the interior and exterior inspection with a fine toothed comb. Apparently his name is Armando. He was the first instructor that sent me a copy of a pdf file that listed everything I had to know for my in cab and exterior inspection. He did such good job explaining that as soon as my class ended, I called the Passaic office and requested him for my final class. On my final class, I finally drove on the highway with an instructor. If it wasn’t for Armando, I don’t think I would have had passed the in cab inspection. In conclusion, if you have experience with trucks, I guess you could try out EZ wheels, but be ready for an unorganized teaching method. Mind you when I went to take my road test, two other ez wheels students showed up, and they had failed 2-3 times before for lack of training. However, if you have 0 experience with trucks, I would suggest that you spend the extra money and go somewhere else. Do your research. You honestly get what you pay for. As for me, I passed my road test on my first try. As soon as I left DMV with my CDL, I called the Passaic office, thanked them for their time, and made sure I let them know that I signed up for the cheapest plan with only 8 hrs of training. Maybe a little petty, but I do not like when people try to upsell me something I do not want several times. I honestly think EZ wheels should improve their curriculum, at least be more organized about it, and demand better from their instructors. And if you are a student here and unhappy with something, call and complain, at the end of the day you are paying for a service, so do not be shy about expressing...

I paid $2,500 for 40 hours of training, and this school did the absolute bare minimum. Once they get your money, you’re on your own.

The office staff is rude and unprofessional, and the “training” is a joke. Most of the time, they just have you drive in traffic for 2 hours at a time, over and over—barely any time is spent on parking or the actual skills you need to pass. For the pre-trip inspection, they don’t even teach you—they just tell you to watch a video on your own.

To make it worse, the first instructors I had didn’t even speak English. I had to complain just to get someone who could explain things to me—and they still charged me for that day.

They also sign you up for DMV road tests 2+ hours away in places like Camden or Delanco. If you want to take your test locally, they charge you $800 for the truck and another $500 just to schedule the test nearby. And if you miss your DMV appointment? That’s another $300 penalty.

This school is a money trap, not a place to learn. I regret ever signing up. Save your time, money, and frustration—go somewhere else if you actually want to get your CDL.

*Replying to what they said to me since I couldn’t reply back under there comment …

I appreciate your response, but I stand by my experience and review.

I paid $2,500 expecting proper CDL training—not just driving in traffic with minimal instruction. Most of my time was spent behind the wheel without real coaching, and pre-trip was not taught in-person, just referred to a video. That’s not “comprehensive.”

Also, the first instructors I had did not speak English, and when I complained to get someone I could understand, I was still charged for that lost day.

As for the DMV issue—yes, I was assigned a site over 2 hours away, and when I asked for a local option, I was told it would cost $800 for the truck and $500 for rescheduling, plus $300 if I missed the appointment. None of that was explained upfront.

This review isn’t to “harm your reputation.” It’s to warn other students what to expect. I gave you chances to make it right, and nothing was done. If this school works for some people, great—but my experience was very different, and others deserve...

After reading about the great reviews for EZ wheels- I had decided to go to the Passaic location to set up some 1 on 1 training sessions by the hour. ( I wanted at least 1 x 4 hour block) Once I had arrived- the girl at the desk had asked to see my CDL permit which I did - and my test receipt which I had left home. She told me I needed to go back and get the test receipt before I could schedule anything. There was no effort to promote or discuss the their services which I found odd. Anyway- I told her that I couldn’t come back today but said I could either fax the receipt or take a pic with my phone and send it to them- but she said I couldn’t. Not quite sure why this is their policy as the other place I had taken a course at only required the photo ID to schedule the training. Besides that- I assume they are only making copies of my original anyway so I don’t know why my copy I would send to them wouldn’t be enough to just schedule my lessons. I would bring the test receipt on the day of the lessons. She also said that training was pretty booked and I could be looking at a month wait for my four hour block. She gave me no info on the school or the training and basically told me that I needed to come back with my test receipt before discussing any further. Was really looking forward to this and am a bit disappointed because I’m usually only in NJ on weekends so I guess I will have to find another place that can do the scheduling via phone and fax/email for my documents. Maybe it’s a legal issue or something but I would’ve thought that since I was looking to pay 500$ right there- they would’ve been more accommodating. So for anyone looking to use this place - just a heads up that you need to have all of your documents on hand just to pay and schedule your training. If not- you will have to come back with them before you can purchase anything. Shocked at the total lack of motivation by the staff - to close a sale. Almost seemed like they didn’t want my business. I walk in as a customer ready to buy and I’m the one being asked all of the questions. Extremely turned off by the customer...