Virginia DMV Permit Practice Test 19
- Questions40
- Correct to pass34
- Passing score85%
- Minimum age15 years 6 months
-
1. Your steering suddenly feels light and unresponsive as you drive through standing water. What should you do first?
Show answer
Answer A: Ease off the accelerator and keep the steering wheel pointed straight
Those symptoms mean the tires are riding on a film of water, and gently lifting off the accelerator lets them settle back onto the pavement. Hard braking or sudden steering while hydroplaning can start a skid.
-
2. Which statement best describes what the basic speed law requires of you?
Show answer
Answer C: That you never drive faster than is reasonable and safe for the conditions
Nearly every state has a basic speed law that makes the conditions the real limit: weather, traffic, light and road surface can all require a speed well below the posted number.
-
3. Besides supervised organizational activities, what other common reason lets a Virginia provisional license holder drive during the midnight to 4 a.m. curfew window?
Show answer
Answer B: Driving to or from employment
Virginia's curfew exceptions for provisional license holders include driving to or from employment, along with supervised activities, certain passengers and emergencies.
-
4. A freeway sign shows a minimum speed limit. What does it require?
Show answer
Answer B: That you keep up with it unless conditions make that unsafe
A minimum speed limit keeps very slow vehicles off the highway, but weather, traffic or a mechanical problem may make a lower speed necessary and lawful.
-
5. You are on a country road with no sidewalk and two people are walking toward you on your side of the shoulder. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer C: Slow down and move over to give them room
Where there is no sidewalk, people are expected to walk on the shoulder facing traffic, and drivers must slow and give them space.
-
6. You and an oncoming driver are both turning left at the same intersection. What is the usual rule?
Show answer
Answer D: Both turn in front of each other unless markings show otherwise
The normal practice is to pass driver side to driver side, turning in front of one another, unless pavement markings or signs direct a different path.
-
7. What does the implied consent law mean for drivers?
Show answer
Answer D: By driving, you have agreed to a chemical test if lawfully arrested for impaired driving
Holding a license and driving on public roads is treated as consent to breath, blood or urine testing when an officer has grounds to arrest you. Refusing normally brings its own license penalties.
-
8. In which situation should you increase your usual following distance?
Show answer
Answer B: On wet roads, at night, in fog, when towing a trailer, or when following a motorcycle
Reduced traction, reduced visibility, a heavier load and a vehicle that can stop faster than yours all require extra space to keep the same margin of safety.
-
9. At 45 mph you look at a navigation screen for four seconds. Roughly how far do you travel unseeing?
Show answer
Answer D: About 260 feet
At 45 mph you cover roughly 66 feet a second, so four seconds on a screen is around 260 feet of road that you never looked at.
-
10. Approaching the point this sign refers to, which hazard is most likely?
Show answer
Answer A: A vehicle pulling out from the entering road into the driver's path
The main risk is a driver on the entering road who misjudges the gap and pulls out, so covering the brake and being ready to slow is the sensible response.
-
11. Which of these would appear as a symbol on a blue general service sign?
Show answer
Answer A: A hospital
General service signs cover facilities such as hospitals, fuel, food, lodging, camping, telephones and rest areas, all shown in white on blue.
-
12. You are driving on a rural road with no sidewalk. Where should you expect to meet pedestrians?
Show answer
Answer A: Walking toward you on your side of the road
Where there is no sidewalk, pedestrians are taught to walk facing traffic, so they appear on your side of the road coming toward you.
-
13. Which warning sign keeps its yellow background even when it is used inside a work zone?
Show answer
Answer D: The grade crossing advance warning sign
The round grade crossing advance warning sign keeps its black legend on yellow inside temporary traffic control zones because the railroad hazard it describes is not temporary.
-
14. You are turning left from a one-way street onto another one-way street. Which lane should you use?
Show answer
Answer B: Turn from the far left lane into the far left lane of the new street
The general turning rule is to turn from the lane nearest the direction of the turn into the nearest lane of the new roadway, which on a one-way to one-way left turn means far left to far left.
-
15. This sign comes into view ahead of a driver who has already started along a ramp. What should the driver do?
Show answer
Answer B: Pull clear where it is safe, then turn around and leave the ramp traveling properly
The driver is traveling against the legal flow, so the safest response is to stop clear of the lanes, turn the vehicle around and get off the ramp before meeting traffic head on.
-
16. A driver who wants to reverse direction arrives at this sign. What is allowed?
Show answer
Answer C: Going on and reversing direction only where the maneuver is permitted
The restriction removes that maneuver at that spot entirely, so the driver has to continue and turn the vehicle around at a place where it is not prohibited.
-
17. A yellow sign ahead of an underpass reads LOW CLEARANCE 12 FT 6 IN. What does the figure tell you?
Show answer
Answer B: The greatest height that can pass beneath the structure
The figure is the actual clearance available, so a vehicle taller than that must leave the road and take a marked alternative route.
-
18. Apart from other vehicles, who else must a driver let go first at this sign?
Show answer
Answer A: Pedestrians and cyclists already in or entering the crossing
The duty to give way covers every road user who has the right of way at that point, including people walking or cycling across the driver's path.
-
19. Which of these is an early warning that you are too tired to keep driving?
Show answer
Answer C: Not remembering the last few miles you drove
Memory gaps, repeated yawning, heavy eyelids and drifting are the body signaling that sleep is winning, and they mean stop rather than push on.
-
20. How long is the automatic administrative suspension in Virginia for a first offense when a driver refuses a breath test or registers .08 or higher?
Show answer
Answer A: Seven days
Virginia imposes an automatic administrative suspension of seven days for a first offense, 60 days or until trial for a second, and until trial for a third.
-
21. You come up behind a bicyclist who is descending a steep hill in the middle of the traffic lane. What should you take into account?
Show answer
Answer D: The rider may be moving at close to the speed of the traffic
A bicycle can reach the speed of traffic on a descent, so there is little to gain from a pass and the rider needs the whole lane to steer around surface hazards.
-
22. What is worth carrying in the vehicle during a winter trip?
Show answer
Answer A: A blanket, a flashlight, a scraper and a small shovel
A winter kit keeps you warm and visible if you are stopped for hours, and lets you clear glass and dig the wheels out. Hot water can crack cold glass.
-
23. The street you are turning right onto has a bike lane along its right edge. Where should your vehicle end up?
Show answer
Answer B: In the first traffic lane to the left of the bike lane
A bike lane is not a travel lane for motor vehicles, so the nearest lane you may finish a right turn in is the first general traffic lane beside it.
-
24. You have loaded the trunk heavily. Why might oncoming drivers flash their lights at you at night?
Show answer
Answer D: The rear sits lower, so your headlights point higher and dazzle them
Weight in the back tips the vehicle nose up and lifts the beam pattern, so low beams shine into the eyes of drivers coming the other way.
-
25. You have a green light and are turning right while people are crossing the street you want to enter. Who goes first?
Show answer
Answer B: The pedestrians, and you wait until they are clear of your path
A green light permits the turn but does not remove the duty to yield to pedestrians already crossing the street you are turning into.
-
26. Does using a hands free device remove the risk of distraction?
Show answer
Answer A: No, the conversation still takes attention away from driving
Hands free equipment removes the manual part of the distraction but not the mental part, and a driver deep in conversation can look straight at a hazard without registering it.
-
27. You are on a city street with two lanes in your direction, cars parked along the curb and driveways every few yards. Which lane is usually safer?
Show answer
Answer B: The lane farther from the curb, away from opening doors and vehicles pulling out
Most of the hazards on such a street come from the curb side, so the inside lane gives you more space and more time to react.
-
28. You feel dizzy and get a headache while driving with the windows closed. What could be the cause and what should you do?
Show answer
Answer D: An exhaust leak letting carbon monoxide into the cabin, so open the windows and stop to get fresh air
Carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless, and headache, dizziness and drowsiness are early signs. Get fresh air at once and have the exhaust system inspected.
-
29. You park in your own driveway and the rear of the vehicle sticks out over the sidewalk. What is wrong with that?
Show answer
Answer C: It blocks the sidewalk and forces people into the street
A vehicle overhanging the sidewalk pushes pedestrians, wheelchair users and strollers into the roadway, and blocking a sidewalk is prohibited.
-
30. Where is a strong crosswind most likely to hit you suddenly?
Show answer
Answer D: Coming out of a tunnel or a cut onto an open bridge
Gusts arrive the moment you leave shelter, which is why bridge approaches and the ends of cuts and tunnels catch drivers out.
-
31. At what point accumulation may the Virginia DMV mail a driver an advisory letter listing recent convictions and points?
Show answer
Answer D: 8 points within 12 months, or 12 points within 24 months
Virginia may mail an advisory letter when a driving record shows at least 8 demerit points within 12 months or 12 points within 24 months, a lower threshold than the one that triggers a mandatory suspension and clinic.
-
32. Reaching for a drink in the cup holder is which kind of distraction?
Show answer
Answer A: Manual and visual at the same time
Your hand leaves the wheel and your eyes flick down to find the cup, so a task that feels trivial takes away two of the three things driving needs.
-
33. On a highway with mileage-based exit numbering, you have just passed exit 42 and are looking for exit 55. About how far is it?
Show answer
Answer B: Thirteen miles
With mileage-based numbering each exit takes the number of the nearest milepost, so subtracting one exit number from another gives the distance in miles.
-
34. Which of the four blind spots around a tractor-trailer is the largest?
Show answer
Answer A: The one on the right side of the truck
A truck has no-zones on all four sides, and the right-side blind spot is the largest because it runs back along the trailer and reaches across more than one lane.
-
35. At a freeway exit, the paved triangle between the ramp and the through lanes is filled with diagonal white lines. What do they mean?
Show answer
Answer A: Stay out of that area, because it is not meant to be driven on
Chevron and diagonal markings fill paved areas that traffic is not intended to use, so drivers should keep out of them.
-
36. The brake pedal goes to the floor and the vehicle does not slow. What should you try first?
Show answer
Answer C: Pump the pedal quickly to try to build pressure
Most vehicles have a split braking system, so rapid pumping can often build enough pressure to slow you. If it does not, use the parking brake gradually.
-
37. An oncoming vehicle at night has its high beams on and you are being dazzled. Where should you look?
Show answer
Answer A: Toward the right edge of your lane
Looking toward the right edge line keeps you on course while sparing your eyes the worst of the glare. Slow down and do not retaliate with your own high beams.
-
38. A sign shows a lane joining from the right with no merge required. What does that mean?
Show answer
Answer B: The joining traffic gets its own new lane, so nobody has to merge
An added lane means the roadway gains a lane at that point, so entering vehicles have somewhere to go without anyone changing lanes.
-
39. You have a steady green ball to turn left, and the oncoming traffic gets a green left arrow. What does that mean for you?
Show answer
Answer C: Oncoming vehicles will turn across your path, so you must wait
A green ball is permissive, so when the oncoming side receives a protected arrow those vehicles have priority and you must yield until they clear.
-
40. You leave your car so that its rear overhangs a marked crosswalk. What is wrong with that?
Show answer
Answer B: Pedestrians must step around it into the traffic lane
A crosswalk has to stay completely clear; anything sticking into it pushes people on foot out into the path of moving vehicles.