A Wangaratta man used a pole to hit a car full of people driven by an L-plater, waved a machete in front of them and drove them off a Wangaratta road, a court has heard.

The man appeared at the Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court on Thursday to plead guilty to offences arising from the incident on 23 April last year.

The court heard about 10:50pm an L-plated driver was gaining experience driving around Wangaratta with four passengers.

They drove past a Thomson Street address where the accused threw a pole at the car and hit it.

The L-Plater pulled over nearby on Burke Street, where the man drove past in his partner’s car waving a machete in front of the occupants.

One of the passengers said they felt threatened.

They were later chased by the accused down Greta Road who forced the L-plater into the wrong lane and threw a soft drink can at them.

The incident was reported to police, who arrested the man about 1am the next morning.

The defendant told police he threw the pole at the car because it had driven past multiple times and he grabbed his knife and chased them in self-defence.

Defence counsel Geoff Clancy said his client suffers from intellectual disability and applied to deal with the matter through Forensic Disability Services.

The court heard the man had undergone a community corrections order assessment after pleading guilty to other charges.

Magistrate Megan Casey adjourned the matter to 7 September.