California DMV Permit Practice Test 5
Test 5 of 10. Pick an answer for each question to see if it is right and why; your score appears at the end. You need 30 correct answers to pass, the same ratio as the real California test.
- Questions36
- Correct to pass30
- Passing score83%
- Minimum age15 years 6 months
-
1. A high truck ahead of you hides the traffic signal as you approach the intersection. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer A: Drop back so you can see the signal and the truck's brake lights
Extra following distance restores your view of the signal, so you are reacting to the light yourself rather than copying the truck driver.
-
2. Your passengers are being noisy and you are losing concentration. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer B: Ask them to settle down, or pull over safely until they do
The driver is responsible for the conditions inside the vehicle, and stopping is always better than driving distracted.
-
3. A pedestrian using a white cane or walking with a guide dog starts to cross the street ahead of you. What must you do?
Show answer
Answer A: Yield and stay stopped until the person has finished crossing
A white cane or guide dog identifies a pedestrian who may not be able to see your vehicle, so you must yield and wait rather than maneuver around the person. The horn can confuse the pedestrian or the dog.
-
4. Why are sign shapes and colors standardized across the whole country?
Show answer
Answer D: So a driver knows the kind of message before reading it
Uniform shapes and colors let a driver classify a sign as regulatory, warning or guide from a distance, before the legend can be read.
-
5. You are traveling beside a tractor-trailer and cannot see the truck driver's face in any of the truck's mirrors. What does that tell you?
Show answer
Answer A: The truck driver probably cannot see your vehicle
Large trucks have deep blind spots on all four sides, so if the driver's face is not visible in a mirror the driver has no view of you. Move ahead or drop back until you are out of that area.
-
6. A driver is tailgating you. Why is it a bad idea to tap or stab the brakes to warn them?
Show answer
Answer C: Because it cuts the little space they have and can cause a crash
Brake checking removes the small margin the tailgater has left and can provoke a collision; add space in front of you instead and let them pass.
-
7. What point totals make a California driver a presumptively negligent operator?
Show answer
Answer A: Four points in 12 months, six in 24 months or eight in 36 months
Section 12810.5 presumes a driver to be a negligent operator at four or more points in 12 months, six or more in 24 months, or eight or more in 36 months.
-
8. How much room must a California driver leave when overtaking a bicyclist?
Show answer
Answer A: At least three feet between the vehicle and the bicycle or its rider
Section 21760 forbids passing a bicycle at less than three feet of clearance, and requires the driver to slow to a reasonable and prudent speed when that clearance is not possible.
-
9. Why does the speed of the right-hand lane of a freeway change so often?
Show answer
Answer B: Vehicles entering and leaving the highway all use that lane
Entrance and exit ramps feed into the right lane, so traffic there is constantly slowing to leave or speeding up to join.
-
10. Where does California's move over law apply?
Show answer
Answer D: On any highway in the state
Section 21809 applies to a person driving a vehicle on a highway, so the duty is not confined to freeways.
-
11. You are stopped at a stop sign on a two-way stop intersection and the cross street has no stop signs at all. What does that mean for you?
Show answer
Answer A: You yield to all cross traffic no matter how long that takes
At a two-way stop only your direction is controlled, so there is no taking turns; you wait for a gap big enough to enter safely.
-
12. How long must a California minor wait to retake a failed behind-the-wheel drive test?
Show answer
Answer C: 14 days, not counting the day of the failure
California requires minors to wait 14 days before retaking a failed drive test, while the wait after a failed knowledge test is seven days.
-
13. You are about to pull out of a driveway when someone on the sidewalk is walking toward it. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer D: Wait, because traffic on the sidewalk has the right-of-way
A vehicle entering the roadway from a driveway yields to people on the sidewalk as well as to traffic on the street.
-
14. The engine dies at speed and the dashboard lights go out on a dark road. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer C: Hold the wheel firmly, steer over to the shoulder and use the hazard lights
Never switch the ignition to lock, because the steering can lock; steer to the shoulder and warn traffic with the hazard lights.
-
15. What is the illegal blood alcohol concentration in California for a driver under 21 years old?
Show answer
Answer D: 0.01 percent or higher
California sets the limit at 0.01 percent or higher for drivers under 21, and the same figure applies at any age to a driver on DUI probation.
-
16. What fine range applies to a California driver convicted a second time within three years of driving without insurance?
Show answer
Answer C: $200 to $500, plus penalty assessments
Section 16029 raises the fine to not less than $200 and not more than $500 plus penalty assessments for a conviction within three years of a prior one.
-
17. You brake hard in a vehicle with antilock brakes and feel the pedal pulsing under your foot. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer A: Keep firm, steady pressure on the pedal and steer where you need to go
The pulsing is the system releasing and reapplying the brakes so the wheels keep rolling, which is what lets you steer while braking. Pumping the pedal defeats it.
-
18. The gates at a railroad crossing are down, and you can see that the road beyond them is clear. What is the correct action?
Show answer
Answer A: Wait until the gates rise completely and the lights go out
Lowered gates mean rail traffic is expected, and driving around them removes the only protection the crossing provides.
-
19. How long does a parallel parking space need to be for the car you are driving?
Show answer
Answer D: About five or six feet longer than your vehicle
A few extra feet at each end give you the room to swing in and to straighten up without touching the vehicles in front or behind.
-
20. Under California's implied consent law, which tests has a driver arrested for driving under the influence already agreed to?
Show answer
Answer B: Chemical testing of blood or breath, with urine when neither is available
Section 23612 deems a driver arrested for driving under the influence to have consented to chemical testing of the blood or breath, with a urine test when neither of those is available.
-
21. Traffic ahead of you has stopped in your lane while the next lane is still moving. What is the first thing to do?
Show answer
Answer C: Slow down first and check the next lane before moving over
Braking is the action that keeps you from hitting the stopped traffic, and the lane change is only safe once you have looked.
-
22. Under what condition does California allow people to ride in the back of a truck in a parade?
Show answer
Answer D: Law enforcement supervises it and the truck stays at 8 mph or less
Section 23116 exempts a parade supervised by a law enforcement agency in which the truck does not exceed eight miles per hour.
-
23. In heavy fog at night on a rural two-lane road, which marking best helps a driver hold position?
Show answer
Answer C: The solid white line along the right edge
Steering by the right edge line keeps a driver clear of oncoming traffic, while watching the center line tends to pull the vehicle toward it.
-
24. How should a pregnant driver or passenger wear a seat belt?
Show answer
Answer A: Lap belt below the belly across the hips, shoulder belt across the chest
A properly worn belt protects both mother and baby. The lap portion goes low under the belly, snug across the hip bones, and the shoulder belt crosses between the breasts.
-
25. You are turning right onto a one-way street. Which lane of that street should you enter?
Show answer
Answer C: The lane closest to the right curb
Even though every lane on a one-way street runs your way, a right turn must end in the lane nearest the right curb; you may change lanes afterwards when it is safe.
-
26. You want to turn right at a steady red light and no sign prohibits the turn. What is required?
Show answer
Answer B: Come to a complete stop, then yield to traffic and pedestrians before turning
A right turn on a steady red is permitted only after a complete stop and only after yielding to cross traffic and to pedestrians, and a posted sign can prohibit it entirely.
-
27. How does California's handheld device law treat a system built into the vehicle by the manufacturer?
Show answer
Answer B: It falls outside the prohibition on handheld wireless devices
Section 23123.5 excludes a manufacturer-installed system embedded in the vehicle from the prohibition on handheld wireless telephones and electronic wireless communications devices.
-
28. You are waiting to turn and the traffic ahead has stopped. Where must you not come to rest?
Show answer
Answer D: On the crosswalk, which people need in order to cross the street
Stopping on a crosswalk forces pedestrians out into the traffic lanes to get around you, so you hold back before it instead.
-
29. A yellow curve warning sign carries a yellow plaque showing a speed. What does that number mean?
Show answer
Answer D: The recommended maximum safe speed for the curve under ideal conditions
An advisory speed plaque on a yellow warning sign gives the recommended maximum speed for the hazard ahead when conditions are good.
-
30. What does a NARROW BRIDGE warning sign tell a driver?
Show answer
Answer A: The bridge is tighter than the road leading up to it
A narrow bridge still carries both directions, but with much less clearance than the approaches, so drivers should slow and hold their lane position carefully.
-
31. A broken white line separates your lane from the lane on your right. What does it permit?
Show answer
Answer C: Changing lanes when it is safe to do so
A normal broken white line marks a boundary between lanes traveling the same way that road users may cross when it is safe.
-
32. You and an opposing driver reach a four-way stop at the same time and both of you are turning right. What should happen?
Show answer
Answer C: Both may turn at the same time into their own lanes
Two opposing right turns take drivers into different lanes without crossing, so both can proceed together once pedestrians are clear.
-
33. How do stimulant drugs such as amphetamines or cocaine typically affect driving?
Show answer
Answer D: They can make the driver overconfident and more willing to take risks
Stimulants create a false sense of alertness and encourage aggressive, risky driving. When they wear off, sudden fatigue can follow.
-
34. How soon must a person who establishes residency in California obtain a California driver license?
Show answer
Answer D: Within 10 days of establishing residency in the state
Section 12505 lets a new resident drive on an out-of-state license for no more than 10 days after establishing residency, and driving for employment requires a California license immediately.
-
35. Blue pavement markings are used together with white markings at
Show answer
Answer D: parking spaces reserved for people with disabilities
Blue supplements the white markings of accessible parking spaces, which is the only assignment blue has on the pavement.
-
36. What is the maximum fine set by statute for violating California's move over law?
Show answer
Answer C: $50
Section 21809 makes the violation an infraction punishable by a fine of not more than $50, before penalty assessments are added.