Iowa DOT Permit Practice Test 13
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age14 years
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1. Traffic is heavy and a truck is stopped in the lane on your right. How do you keep an out?
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Answer B: Keep space open ahead of you and avoid being boxed in on both sides at once
Being hemmed in on both sides with no gap ahead removes every option, so keep at least one direction open.
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2. The added lane warning sign tells a driver that
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Answer A: an extra lane begins ahead, so entering traffic does not have to merge into an existing lane
Where a lane is added, traffic entering the roadway gets a lane of its own, so merging is not required, although drivers should still watch the vehicles beside them.
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3. 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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4. As a driver keeps drinking, in what order are driving abilities usually lost?
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Answer C: Judgment, then vision, reaction time and coordination
Alcohol reaches the parts of the brain that handle judgment first, and only later does it visibly affect sight, reactions and muscle control.
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5. A school sign paired with a plaque showing a diagonal downward-pointing arrow is installed
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Answer D: at the school crossing itself, or as close to it as possible
The diagonal downward arrow points at the crossing, so this assembly is placed at the crossing location rather than in advance of it.
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6. You are in the middle of an intersection when you hear a siren and see an emergency vehicle approaching. What should you do?
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Answer A: Keep going, clear the intersection, then pull to the right and stop
Stopping inside an intersection blocks the emergency vehicle. Clear the intersection first, then pull over to the right and stop.
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7. A driver's destination lies along the street to the right, and this sign stands at that corner. How should the driver reach it?
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Answer D: By going on and using a later intersection where turning is allowed
When a movement is barred at one corner the driver has to reroute, normally by continuing and coming back to the destination from a permitted approach.
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8. 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?
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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.
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9. The brake warning light stays on even though the parking brake is fully released. What does it indicate?
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Answer B: A possible brake system problem, so have the brakes checked promptly
The brake warning light also signals low brake fluid or a failure in one part of the hydraulic system. Do not ignore it, because braking may be reduced.
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10. Once you are moving, which way of using a navigation device costs you the least attention?
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Answer B: Listening to the spoken directions
Voice guidance lets you keep your eyes on the road, while anything that needs the screen takes glances that add up over a trip.
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11. A dust storm is blowing across the highway ahead of you. What is the recommended response?
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Answer B: Leave the road if you can, park well clear and take your foot off the brake
Get well off the pavement, switch the lights off and keep your foot off the brake, so drivers still on the road do not follow your tail lights off the highway.
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12. At a four-way stop you and an opposing driver arrive together. You are going straight and the other driver is turning left across your path. Who goes first?
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Answer B: You do, because the left turn crosses your path
When two opposing drivers arrive together, the one going straight goes first and the left-turning driver yields.
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13. 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?
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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.
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14. A center lane is bordered by a solid yellow line on the outside and a broken yellow line on the inside, with turn arrows painted inside it. What is that lane for?
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Answer C: Left turns made by traffic traveling in either direction
That marking pattern identifies a two-way left-turn lane, which drivers approaching from both directions may use to prepare for a left turn.
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15. Your low beams light about 250 feet of road, but at your speed you would need more than that to stop. What is that called?
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Answer D: Overdriving your headlights
When your stopping distance is longer than the stretch of road your headlights show, you cannot react to anything you finally see. Slow down until you can.
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16. You are waiting in a left-turn lane at a green light when a fire engine with lights and siren comes toward you in the oncoming lanes. What should you do?
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Answer D: Hold your position and let the fire engine pass
Turning across the path of an approaching emergency vehicle is exactly what you must not do; stay put until it has gone by.
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17. 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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18. You are backing out of a home driveway onto a street with a sidewalk. Who must you yield to?
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Answer D: All traffic on the street and everyone on the sidewalk
A driver entering the roadway from private property yields to everyone already using the sidewalk and the street.
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19. A child has outgrown the rear-facing seat. What comes next?
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Answer D: A forward-facing seat with a harness, used up to its own stated limits
The stages run rear facing, then forward facing with a harness, then a booster, then the adult belt alone.
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20. A freeway sign shows a minimum speed limit. What does it require?
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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.
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21. What are Iowa's minimum motor vehicle liability limits?
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Answer B: 20,000 dollars per person, 40,000 dollars per accident, 15,000 dollars property damage
Iowa Code section 321A.21 requires a motor vehicle liability policy of at least twenty thousand dollars for bodily injury to one person, forty thousand dollars per accident, and fifteen thousand dollars for property damage.
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22. Which statement about standard drinks is correct?
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Answer C: A standard serving of beer, of table wine and of distilled spirits each contain about the same amount of pure alcohol
Roughly 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of table wine and 1.5 ounces of 80 proof spirits each contain about the same amount of pure alcohol, so the type of drink does not change the effect.
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23. You are about to open your door after parking on the traffic side of the street. What should you do first?
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Answer C: Check the mirror and look back for approaching vehicles and bicyclists before opening the door
A door opened into traffic can strike a passing bicyclist or vehicle, so you check behind you first and keep the door open no longer than necessary.
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24. In a normal signal cycle, what comes after a steady red indication?
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Answer A: A green indication that starts the next movement
Yellow is a warning that a movement is ending, so it never precedes a green; a red is followed by a green or a green arrow.
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25. A line beside your lane is painted about twice the normal width. What does the extra width convey?
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Answer B: Greater emphasis on the restriction it carries
Width is part of the marking code: a wide line carries more emphasis than a normal one, which is why it is used at gores and channelizing lines.