Iowa DOT Permit Practice Test 30
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age14 years
-
1. In plain words, what is understeer?
Show answer
Answer B: The vehicle keeps going straight even though the wheels are turned
Understeer means the front tires have run out of grip, so the vehicle takes a wider line than the one you steered.
-
2. 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.
-
3. You are stopped at a T-intersection and a driver on the through road is signaling a right turn into your road. What is the safe assumption?
Show answer
Answer B: The driver may not actually turn, so wait until the vehicle slows and starts turning
A blinking signal may have been left on by mistake or may be for the next street, so wait until the vehicle actually slows and turns.
-
4. 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.
-
5. Your green left-turn arrow goes out and a steady green ball stays lit. What may you do?
Show answer
Answer A: Continue turning left, but only after yielding to oncoming traffic
When the arrow ends and a green ball remains, the turn changes from protected to permissive, so it is still allowed but oncoming traffic goes first.
-
6. Your vehicle has broken down at night on a rural road and your phone has no signal. What is the safest thing to do?
Show answer
Answer C: Stay with the vehicle, keep the hazard lights on and wait for help
A lit vehicle is far easier to find than a person walking in the dark, and running the engine while you sleep risks carbon monoxide.
-
7. What does this sign warn a driver about?
Show answer
Answer A: Traffic from another roadway will enter the same lane ahead
Two traffic streams come together into one lane beyond this point, so drivers on both roadways have to adjust speed and spacing to fit together.
-
8. In heavy stop-and-go traffic, why does using both lanes right up to a merge point help?
Show answer
Answer D: It stores the queue in two lanes, so the backup is shorter
Filling both lanes halves the length of the queue and keeps it away from the traffic upstream, which is why alternating at the merge point works better when traffic is slow.
-
9. A driver on the street this sign governs is preparing to turn left at the next corner. Which lane should the vehicle be in beforehand?
Show answer
Answer A: The lane closest to the left curb
All the traffic here runs the same way, so nothing is coming toward the driver and the turn is taken from the extreme left lane rather than from beside the middle of the roadway.
-
10. During which hours must an Iowa intermediate licensee be accompanied by a qualifying adult driver?
Show answer
Answer C: Between 12:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.
Iowa Code section 321.180B requires an intermediate licensee driving between 12:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. to be accompanied by a qualifying licensed adult.
-
11. A black and white regulatory sign facing traffic at a divided section reads KEEP LEFT. What does it require?
Show answer
Answer D: Passing the island or obstruction on its left side
Keep Left is posted at an island or obstruction that traffic must pass on the left, which is the opposite of the far more common Keep Right situation.
-
12. You are leaving a freeway on an exit ramp posted with an advisory speed of 25 mph. Where should you slow to that speed?
Show answer
Answer A: In the deceleration lane, before you reach the curve of the ramp
Slowing belongs in the deceleration lane so you arrive at the curve already at the advisory speed and do not hold up traffic still in the through lanes.
-
13. In an Iowa passenger vehicle, who is required by section 321.445 to wear a safety belt while the vehicle moves forward?
Show answer
Answer D: The driver and the front seat occupants
Iowa Code section 321.445 requires the driver and the front seat occupants of a registered vehicle to wear a properly adjusted and fastened safety belt, while children under eighteen are covered by the child restraint rules in section 321.446.
-
14. In Iowa, what must you do when you meet a school bus that has its flashing amber warning lamps on?
Show answer
Answer B: Reduce speed to not more than 20 miles per hour
Iowa Code section 321.372 requires a driver meeting a school bus with flashing amber warning lamps to reduce speed to not more than twenty miles per hour, before the bus switches to red lamps and the stop arm.
-
15. You have started to pass and you see the no-passing zone beginning ahead. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer D: Ease off, drop back and return to your own lane
A pass must be completed before the no-passing zone starts. If it will not fit, abandon it and slot back in behind.
-
16. How does the blood alcohol standard for a driver operating a commercial vehicle compare with the one for a car driver?
Show answer
Answer D: It is lower, set at 0.04
Commercial drivers are held to a stricter standard of 0.04 because of the size of their vehicles and the risk they carry.
-
17. A grade crossing is marked only with a crossbuck and has no lights or gates. What does the crossbuck require of you?
Show answer
Answer C: Yield to rail traffic and cross only when no train is approaching
The crossbuck requires road users to yield the right-of-way to rail traffic, so you must look and listen and be ready to stop.
-
18. A yellow diamond shows a horse with a rider. Besides slowing down, what else should a driver do?
Show answer
Answer C: Avoid using the horn or revving the engine
The equestrian crossing sign warns of horses on or across the road, and a sudden noise can startle an animal into the traffic lane.
-
19. 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?
Show answer
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.
-
20. You have fitted the small temporary spare tire after a flat. What should you keep in mind?
Show answer
Answer C: It is meant for low speed and short distances until the regular tire is repaired
Compact spares have limited grip, handling and durability. Follow the speed and distance limits printed on the tire and get the regular tire fixed soon.
-
21. What does a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 mean for the driver of a car?
Show answer
Answer B: It is the level almost every state treats as legally intoxicated
In almost every state a driver at 0.08 or above is legally intoxicated whatever the driver seems like, but impairment starts well before that level is reached.
-
22. What is sensible when you drive in an unfamiliar town for the first time?
Show answer
Answer C: Drive a little slower and give yourself more time to read the signs
In unfamiliar surroundings you need longer to take in signs, junctions and markings, and lower speed buys that time.
-
23. Traffic in a work zone is down to one lane in each direction, separated by a temporary double yellow line. May you pass?
Show answer
Answer C: No, temporary markings prohibit passing just as permanent ones do
A temporary marking has the same legal force as a permanent one, and a work zone is the last place with room to spare for an overtaking vehicle.
-
24. Why is smooth, early braking better than hard, late braking?
Show answer
Answer D: It keeps you in control and gives the driver behind more warning
Braking early and gently keeps the tires well within their grip and gives following drivers time to react to your brake lights.
-
25. The light ahead is green but traffic beyond the intersection is backed up. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer B: Wait behind the intersection until there is room to clear it completely
You may not enter an intersection unless you can get completely through it, because stopping inside blocks cross traffic when the signal changes.