California DMV Permit Practice Test 9
Test 9 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
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1. You are turning left at an intersection just beyond the crest of a hill. What is the added risk?
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Answer B: Oncoming vehicles appear with very little warning and close quickly
A crest hides approaching traffic until it is close, so the gap you thought was empty can fill in the time the turn takes.
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2. What must a California driver do after striking an unattended parked car when the owner cannot be found?
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Answer C: Leave a written notice on the vehicle giving name and address
Section 20002 requires the driver to stop and either locate the owner or leave a conspicuous written notice giving the name and address of the driver and of the vehicle owner, along with a statement of the circumstances.
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3. What do flashing yellow lights on a school bus mean?
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Answer A: The bus is about to stop to load or unload, so prepare to stop
The amber lights are the warning phase that comes before the red lights and the stop arm, so drivers should slow down and get ready to stop.
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4. You are ready to pull out of a parallel parking space into the traffic lane. What should you do?
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Answer C: Signal, check the mirror and blind spot, and wait for a gap
A driver leaving a parking space must yield to traffic already in the lane, so signal, look for the gap and only then move out.
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5. Your light is green but the traffic beyond the intersection is stopped and there is no room on the far side. What should you do?
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Answer A: Wait behind the line until you can clear the far side
Entering an intersection you cannot clear blocks the cross traffic when their signal turns green, so you wait behind the line.
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6. A person in a wheelchair is traveling in the roadway because the sidewalk is blocked by construction. What should you do?
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Answer B: Pass slowly with plenty of room, or wait
A blocked sidewalk leaves the person no choice but the road, and a chair cannot move aside quickly, so pass wide and slow or wait for room.
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7. What is the maximum fine in California for riding a bicycle on a highway while under the influence?
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Answer B: $250
Section 21200.5 makes riding a bicycle under the influence of alcohol or a drug unlawful and sets a maximum fine of $250.
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8. You need to reverse direction on a busy street. Which choice is usually safest?
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Answer D: Driving around the block and using the intersections instead
Going around the block uses normal turns at controlled intersections instead of stopping across live traffic lanes.
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9. A steady downward green arrow is displayed over a lane. What does it indicate?
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Answer C: The lane is open to traffic in your direction
A steady downward green arrow means the lane it points to is open to traffic traveling in your direction.
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10. Why can an oncoming vehicle that looks comfortably far away leave you far less room than you expect?
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Answer D: You and that vehicle close the gap at the sum of both your speeds
Two vehicles approaching at 55 mph each close the distance between them at about 110 mph, so the gap disappears in half the time you would expect.
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11. What must a California driver file to regain the driving privilege after an uninsured collision suspension?
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Answer D: A California Insurance Proof Certificate, form SR 22 or SR 1P
The California Driver's Handbook explains that reinstatement during the suspension depends on obtaining and maintaining a California Insurance Proof Certificate, the SR 22 or SR 1P.
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12. You are already inside an intersection when you realize you should be in the lane beside you. What should you do?
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Answer C: Stay in your lane through the intersection and change lanes afterwards
Drivers in an intersection are watching for cross traffic and turning vehicles, so an unexpected sideways move there is easily missed.
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13. What penalty applies to a second or later violation of the California provisional license restrictions?
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Answer A: Sixteen to 24 hours of community service or a fine of not more than $50
Section 12814.6 raises the sanction for a repeat violation to 16 to 24 hours of community service or a fine of not more than $50.
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14. You are turning left out of a driveway onto a busy two-way street. What must you do?
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Answer D: Wait for a gap in both directions before you start to move
The turn crosses one direction of traffic and joins the other, so you need a gap in both before leaving the driveway rather than stopping across a lane.
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15. May you stop in the striped triangle that separates an exit ramp from the freeway lanes?
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Answer A: No, it is not a lane and stopping there is dangerous
The striped gore area is not a travel lane or a shoulder, and a vehicle stopped there sits directly in the path of drivers correcting a late exit.
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16. You are traveling at the same speed as a vehicle in the next lane, just behind its rear door. What should you do?
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Answer B: Change your speed so that you leave that driver's blind spot
That position is the classic blind spot. Slow slightly or move ahead so the other driver can see you before deciding to change lanes.
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17. What does a California REAL ID driver license let the holder do that a standard license does not?
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Answer B: Board a domestic flight and enter military bases and most federal facilities
The California Driver's Handbook explains that a REAL ID compliant card is needed to board an airplane for domestic flights, to enter military bases and to enter most federal facilities.
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18. How may California enforce the ban on phone use by drivers under 18?
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Answer A: Only after a stop made for some other violation
Section 23124 forbids an officer from stopping a vehicle for the sole purpose of determining whether the driver is violating the minor phone ban, although a stop under section 23123 or 23123.5 is allowed.
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19. Your vehicle does not have antilock brakes and you must stop quickly on a slippery road. What is the correct technique?
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Answer B: Apply the brakes firmly without locking the wheels, releasing slightly if they lock
Locked wheels slide and cannot steer. Squeezing the brakes to just short of lockup, and easing off if they lock, gives the shortest stop with control.
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20. What fine range does California set for a first conviction of driving without evidence of financial responsibility?
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Answer B: $100 to $200, plus penalty assessments
Section 16029 sets a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $200 plus penalty assessments for a first conviction.
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21. Two solid white lines separate your lane from the lane beside it. What do they mean?
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Answer B: Crossing from one lane to the other is prohibited
A solid double white line marks a boundary that road users may not cross, such as the entrance to a preferential lane.
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22. A car is coming straight at you in your lane and there is no time for it to move back. What should you do?
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Answer A: Brake, sound the horn and steer to the right, toward the shoulder or ditch
Steering right takes you away from the other vehicle even if its driver corrects course, and the shoulder or ditch is survivable.
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23. Why is backing up on a freeway or on its shoulder prohibited?
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Answer A: Traffic arrives far too fast to expect a vehicle moving the wrong way
Freeway traffic closes on a stopped or reversing vehicle at highway speed and has almost no time to react to something moving against the flow.
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24. You are backing out of a driveway that crosses a public sidewalk. What should you do?
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Answer C: Stop before the sidewalk and check both ways
Walkers, runners and riders use the sidewalk at speeds that can bring them into your path in a second, so the stop and the look belong before the sidewalk, not after it.
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25. From what age does California's safety belt requirement apply to a passenger in place of the child restraint rules?
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Answer B: 16 years old
Section 27315 requires the driver and all passengers 16 years of age or over to be properly restrained by a safety belt, and makes the passenger personally responsible as well.
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26. A regulatory sign reads TURN ON HEADLIGHTS NEXT 15 MILES. What does it require?
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Answer C: Low beam headlights on for that stretch, day or night
Such a section is signed where a road is hard to see along, and the requirement is to run headlights, not just daytime running lamps, through the whole stretch even in bright daylight.
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27. Why is passing on a curve prohibited even when the traffic seems light?
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Answer C: You cannot see far enough around it to know the lane is clear
A pass is only as safe as the distance you can see, and a curve hides the very lane the maneuver uses.
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28. A live power line is lying on your car and the car has caught fire, so you must get out. How should you leave it?
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Answer D: Jump clear without touching the car and ground at once, then shuffle away
Touching the vehicle and the ground together makes you the path to earth, and long strides can bridge the voltage spread through the ground.
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29. Why should your thumbs rest along the rim rather than hook inside the spokes?
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Answer D: A jolt can spin the wheel and injure hooked thumbs
A pothole or a dropped wheel can snap the wheel round violently, and thumbs hooked through the spokes are trapped when it happens.
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30. What is wrong with slowing to a crawl at a stop sign and then rolling on through?
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Answer C: It is not a stop, and you may miss a pedestrian or cross traffic
A rolling stop is a violation and it also cuts short the moment you need in order to look carefully in each direction before entering.
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31. The trailer you are towing begins to sway from side to side at highway speed. What should you do?
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Answer D: Ease off the accelerator, hold the wheel steady and let the speed drop
Sway grows with speed and with sudden inputs. Reducing speed gently while keeping the steering steady lets the trailer settle behind you.
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32. Why should a driver crossing several lanes change only one lane at a time?
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Answer B: Each lane has its own traffic and its own blind spot to be checked
Sweeping across two or three lanes means entering lanes you never checked, so each change gets its own signal, mirror check and head check.
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33. What fine ceiling applies to a second California conviction for driving over 100 miles per hour within three years of the first?
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Answer D: $750
Section 22348 raises the maximum fine to $750 for a second conviction within three years, and the department must suspend the driving privilege.
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34. What does a steady yellow traffic light tell the driver facing it?
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Answer A: The green movement is ending and a red indication is about to appear
A steady yellow warns that the related green movement is being terminated and that red will follow, so you should stop if you can do so safely.
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35. In California, which child must ride in a rear-facing child passenger restraint system?
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Answer D: A child under 2 years old who weighs under 40 pounds and is under 3 feet 4 inches tall
California requires a rear-facing restraint for a child who is under 2 years old, under 40 pounds and under 3 feet 4 inches tall, and that child may not ride in front of an active airbag.
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36. What does California impose for a second conviction of driving on a suspended license within five years?
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Answer A: Five days to one year in county jail and a fine of $500 to $2,000
Section 14601.1 requires not less than five days and not more than one year in county jail, plus a fine of $500 to $2,000, for a repeat offense within five years.