Virginia DMV Permit Practice Test 27
- Questions40
- Correct to pass34
- Passing score85%
- Minimum age15 years 6 months
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1. Which effect appears as a drinker's blood alcohol level climbs well past the first drinks?
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Answer D: Loss of muscle control and steady steering
Higher levels of alcohol reach the parts of the brain that control movement, which shows up as clumsy steering, late braking and poor lane control.
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2. This sign leads to a crossing that has no gates and no flashing lights. What does that mean for the driver?
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Answer D: Nothing will warn of an approaching train, so the driver must check the tracks personally
At a passive crossing there is no active device to announce a train, so the whole judgment rests on the driver, who must approach slowly enough to stop after looking along the track.
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3. Two drivers each have three drinks, one over three hours and one in half an hour. What is the difference?
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Answer C: The fast drinker reaches a higher peak level
The liver removes alcohol at a steady rate, so drinking faster than the body can clear it pushes the blood alcohol level much higher.
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4. A small plaque mounted under this sign shows a numeral such as 2 or 3. What does that numeral report?
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Answer A: How many sets of tracks the crossing carries
The plaque states the number of tracks at that location, which is a warning that a second train may be running on another track behind the first.
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5. Why is hard braking the wrong response to a tire blowout at speed?
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Answer C: Because it can pull the vehicle further out of line and start it spinning
With one tire gone the braking forces are uneven, so heavy braking increases the pull to one side and can spin the vehicle.
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6. You have just had bad news and you feel very upset. What should you do?
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Answer B: Wait until you have calmed down, or else let somebody else drive
Strong emotion takes attention away from the road as surely as alcohol or fatigue, so it is a reason not to drive yet.
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7. 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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8. Your loaded vehicle weighs more than the figure shown on a posted weight limit sign. What must you do?
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Answer D: Find another route, because crossing is not permitted
A posted weight limit is a legal maximum, not advice, so an overweight vehicle has to take a different route.
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9. What is the fine for a first offense of holding a handheld personal communications device while driving in Virginia, outside of a highway work zone?
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Answer B: 125 dollars
A first offense of Virginia's handheld personal communications device law is a traffic infraction punishable by a fine of 125 dollars.
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10. You feel fine twenty minutes after your last drink. Why is that a poor guide to driving?
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Answer B: Your blood alcohol level can still be rising
Alcohol keeps being absorbed for some time after the last drink, so a driver who feels able at the door can be more impaired a few miles down the road.
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11. You correct a rear wheel skid and the back of the vehicle swings the other way. Why?
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Answer D: You steered too far, so be ready to correct back the other way
Over correcting sends the tail past straight and starts a second skid the opposite way. Steer smoothly and be ready to unwind the correction.
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12. May you stop briefly across the sloped ramp that joins the sidewalk to the street at a corner?
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Answer B: No, that ramp must stay clear for people using wheelchairs
A curb ramp is the only way many people can get from the sidewalk to the crosswalk, so blocking it even briefly is prohibited.
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13. What does a sign showing a bicycle inside a red circle with a diagonal slash prohibit?
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Answer D: Riding a bicycle on that roadway
This is a selective exclusion sign, used where bicycles are banned from a road such as a freeway or a tunnel.
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14. What is the first thing to do once your disabled vehicle is stopped on the shoulder?
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Answer A: Switch on the hazard warning lights so other drivers can see the vehicle
Hazard lights are the fastest way to make a stopped vehicle visible, and everything else can follow once traffic has been warned.
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15. What is the correct order of a pass on a two-lane road?
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Answer A: Check ahead and behind, signal left, move out, accelerate past, signal right and return
A pass begins with the decision that the road is clear and ends with a signaled return, and each step warns other drivers before the vehicle moves.
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16. Within how many days of establishing Virginia residency must a new resident title a vehicle with the Virginia DMV?
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Answer C: 30 days
A new Virginia resident must title a vehicle with the DMV within 30 days of establishing residency, a shorter window than the 60 days allowed to obtain a Virginia driver's license.
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17. 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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18. Cones and drums mark a shifted lane through a work zone. What should you do?
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Answer A: Follow the path that they mark and stay inside it
Channelizing devices define the temporary travel path, and the space on the other side of them belongs to the workers.
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19. You are stopped in slow traffic and a motorcycle comes up between the lanes. What should you do?
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Answer D: Hold your position and avoid any sudden lane change
The danger to a rider between lanes comes from a vehicle moving sideways without warning, so staying predictable is what protects them.
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20. Why should you set the parking brake even when an automatic transmission is in Park?
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Answer B: Because it takes the strain off the transmission and holds the vehicle
The parking pawl is a small part carrying the whole vehicle; the parking brake shares that load and holds the vehicle if the pawl fails.
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21. You will leave your vehicle for several hours after dark. Where is the best place to park it?
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Answer D: In a well-lit spot with people and cameras nearby
Light, passing people and cameras all discourage theft and make your own return to the vehicle safer.
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22. The lane you are in is marked with a straight arrow and a right-turn arrow together. What does that mean?
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Answer D: Drivers in that lane may either go straight or turn right
A lane marked with two arrows serves both movements, so a driver in it may take either one.
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23. A set of reversible express lanes is closed off with gates and signs while it runs the other way. What must you never do?
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Answer C: Enter past a closed gate or a sign showing the lanes are closed
When reversible lanes are closed they may already be carrying traffic in the opposite direction, so entering past a gate can put you head-on into that traffic.
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24. A sign showing a walking figure inside a red circle with a diagonal slash stands at the start of a bridge. What does it mean?
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Answer C: People on foot may not use that roadway
The no pedestrians sign excludes people on foot from that roadway altogether, which is common on high-speed bridges and freeways.
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25. You are about to pass a bicyclist on a narrow two-lane road. What is the correct way to do it?
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Answer A: Wait for a clear gap and move well left, giving the rider wide space
Pass a cyclist as you would a car: wait for clear road, change lane position to leave generous clearance, and return only when the rider is well behind you.
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26. What must a driver be ready for beyond this sign?
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Answer C: Vehicles approaching from the opposite direction in the next lane over
The separation between the two directions runs out, so from that point oncoming vehicles share the same pavement and the driver has to keep right.
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27. Two left-turn lanes are marked at the intersection and you are in the left one. What must you do?
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Answer A: Stay in your own lane all the way around the turn
With dual turn lanes each driver must hold a lane through the whole turn and come out in the matching lane of the new street.
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28. What do zero tolerance laws mean for a driver who is under 21?
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Answer B: They commit a violation at an alcohol level far below the adult limit
Drivers under 21 may not legally drink, so every state sets a limit far below the adult one and treats even a trace reading as a violation. The exact figure is set by each state, and the penalty usually includes losing the license.
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29. You are in the middle lane of a one-way street with three lanes when a police car approaches from behind with lights and siren. What should you do?
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Answer C: Pull to the nearest curb and stop clear of the lanes
On a one-way street you clear to whichever curb is closest, so the emergency vehicle gets a clear path down the open lanes.
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30. How far should the driver chest be from the steering wheel?
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Answer B: At least about ten inches
The airbag deploys with great force in the first instants of a crash, so about ten inches between your chest and the wheel is the recommended minimum.
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31. What does a marked crosswalk tell a driver approaching a corner?
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Answer D: Where pedestrians are expected to cross and must be given way
Crosswalk markings show pedestrians where to cross and warn drivers to yield to anyone using the crossing.
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32. Your vehicle stalls on railroad tracks and you see a train approaching. What should you do?
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Answer D: Get everyone out and run toward the train at an angle away from the tracks
Leave the vehicle at once. Running toward the oncoming train and away from the tracks keeps you clear of the wreckage, which is thrown forward in the direction the train is moving.
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33. Freeway traffic ahead of you has come to a stop. Besides braking early, how can you warn the drivers behind you?
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Answer B: By switching on the hazard lights for a few seconds
A short burst of hazard lights is a recognized way to tell following traffic that the queue ahead has stopped, and it carries much further back than brake lights. Some states restrict hazard lights on a moving vehicle, so use them only for the moment you are slowing.
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34. A speed limit sign carries a second panel reading TRUCKS 55. What does that panel do?
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Answer B: It sets a lower legal limit for trucks
A truck speed limit panel is regulatory, so trucks are bound by the lower figure while other traffic keeps to the main limit.
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35. You face a red light at an intersection that has no stop line and no marked crosswalk. Where must you stop?
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Answer C: Before entering the intersection
With no line and no crosswalk, the stopping point is the near edge of the intersecting roadway, close enough to see cross traffic but clear of it.
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36. What is the safest way to deal with the situation this sign announces?
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Answer B: Match the speed of the other traffic stream and open a gap so vehicles can blend without hard braking
Blending works when speeds are matched and gaps are opened, so nobody has to brake hard or swerve where the two streams come together.
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37. What is the correct order of steps as you finish parking an automatic on a grade?
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Answer C: Turn the wheels, set the parking brake, then select park
Setting the parking brake before shifting into park lets the brake take the load, instead of leaving the whole weight of the car on the parking pawl.
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38. Traffic safety experts describe three kinds of driver distraction. Which set is correct?
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Answer A: Visual, manual and cognitive
Distraction takes the eyes off the road, the hands off the controls or the mind off driving, and many activities do more than one of those at once.
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39. A Virginia driver is convicted of several traffic offenses that all arose from the same single occasion. How are demerit points assessed?
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Answer B: Points are assessed for only one offense, the one carrying the highest point value
When a Virginia driver is convicted of multiple offenses arising from a single occasion, points are assessed for only one offense, using the highest applicable point value.
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40. Your light turns green, but a vehicle from the cross street is still finishing a turn inside the intersection. What should you do?
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Answer B: Wait until that vehicle has cleared the intersection
A green indication lets you proceed only after yielding to pedestrians in the crosswalk and to vehicles already lawfully within the intersection.