Think everyone is spot on. As a Yank engaged to an Aussie I just wanted to reiterate some of the things that always strike me as different when I'm in the lucky country.
1. Driving on 'wrong' side of the road is never a problem as long as there's other traffic to give you visual clues. The only time I want to screw up is on an empty highway where after a while I want to drift back onto the 'right' side.
2. Everyone is right about speed limits being precisely enforced -- don't expect to have a 10 Km/h grace speed. Speed limits are also generally low from what I'm used to in California and it's easy to subconsciously accelerate to what feels right - 50 to 60 Km in a residential zone seems like a crawl but then again we don't have possums which jump onto the highway at night.
3. Note that the actual speed limits are the numbers inside a red circle. Unlike here, signs around bends & stuff are a recommended speed not a maximum speed.
4. As the last poster mentioned no
left turn on red (geez that sounds dyslexic
) unless signed. I'm not sure but I think you can also turn left on red if you're in a 'feeder' lane (a lane that forces you to turn left) even if unsigned. Just an observation of other drivers.
5. Roundabouts (traffic circles) can actually be fun. Just yield to traffic on the right. Unfortunately there isn't a hard & fast standard for multiple lane roundabouts, but a rule of thumb is to stay in the outer lane if you want to get off at the 90 degree exit (left turn). Take the inner lane if you want to go straight thru or take the 270 degree exit. Not all roundabouts are created equal & even the local have to remember how the weird ones work. Always always signal when exiting.
6. Pay at the pump petrol stations are very rare. Normally you drive up, remove the nozzle and the pump will reset to $0. If it doesn't, look for a reset button. Fill the car then go inside to pay. One other thing which is very different from here is that there are a lot of alliances between supermarkets & petrol stations. If you buy $X amount of groceries, at the bottom of the receipt is a coupon for a 4c / liter (or 16c / gallon) discount at one of their affiliates.
7. The one thing that bugs me the most and will immediately brand you as a drongo (idiot) is constantly hitting the windshield wipers instead of the turn signal. I've taken to holding the wheel with a kung-fu grip with my right hand as a reminder when I know a turn will be coming up.