Iowa DOT Permit Practice Test 5
Test 5 of 10. Pick an answer for each question to see if it is right and why; your score appears at the end. You need 20 correct answers to pass, the same ratio as the real Iowa test.
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age14 years
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1. A loaded truck is coming up an entrance ramp as you approach in the right lane of the freeway. What is the most helpful action?
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Answer A: Adjust your speed to open a gap for it
A heavy vehicle accelerates slowly, so opening a gap or moving over costs you seconds and saves the truck driver from being forced to stop on the ramp.
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2. What minimum amount of railroad crossing safety instruction must an Iowa approved driver education course include?
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Answer C: Twenty minutes
Iowa Code section 321.178 requires a minimum of twenty minutes of instruction concerning railroad crossing safety within the classroom portion of the course.
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3. The gates at a railroad crossing begin to come down as you approach. What must you do?
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Answer A: Stop and wait until the gates are fully raised and the lights stop flashing
Once the gates start down you must stop clear of the tracks and wait until they are fully raised and the warning lights have stopped.
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4. What alcohol concentration will cause the Iowa DOT to revoke the license of a driver under 21?
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Answer B: .02 or more
Iowa Code section 321J.2A prohibits a person under the age of twenty-one from operating with an alcohol concentration of .02 or more and requires revocation of the license.
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5. How may an Iowa intermediate licensee lawfully drive unaccompanied between 12:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.?
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Answer B: By carrying a department waiver for travel to and from work or school extracurricular activities
Iowa Code section 321.180B lets an intermediate licensee drive to and from school-related extracurricular activities and work during the restricted hours if the licensee possesses a waiver on a form provided by the department.
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6. Why is parking next to a fire hydrant or in a marked fire lane prohibited?
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Answer D: It would delay firefighters who need immediate access to the hydrant or the building
Fire hydrants and fire lanes must remain clear at all times so emergency crews can connect hoses and reach a building without delay.
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7. The only person offering you a ride home has been drinking. What should you do?
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Answer B: Do not get in; find another way home
A passenger in an impaired driver's vehicle shares all of the risk and can do nothing about it from the seat, so the only safe answer is another ride.
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8. You are waiting to pull out of a driveway when a bicyclist comes along the bike lane in front of you. What must you do?
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Answer D: Wait until the bicyclist has gone past
A driver leaving a driveway yields to everything already on the road, and a bike lane is part of the roadway.
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9. You have just merged onto a freeway from an entrance ramp. What should you do next?
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Answer C: Settle into the right lane and build up speed before changing lanes
Crossing lanes while you are still below the speed of the traffic forces other drivers to brake, so the speed comes first and the lane change second.
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10. What does the Iowa electronic device statute say the word use includes?
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Answer C: Holding, viewing, or manipulating the device
Iowa Code section 321.276 defines use to include holding, viewing, or manipulating an electronic device, which is why simply having it in the hand can be a violation.
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11. How long must an Iowa applicant have held an instruction permit before applying for a special minor's restricted license?
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Answer A: At least six months
Iowa Code section 321.194 requires the applicant to hold an instruction permit issued under section 321.180B, or a comparable permit from another state, for a minimum of six months before applying.
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12. What must an Iowa insured do if the coverage is canceled before the date printed on the coverage card?
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Answer D: Destroy the card
Iowa Code section 321.20B requires the person to whom the financial liability coverage card was issued to destroy the card when coverage is canceled or terminated before the expiration date shown on it.
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13. Some states allow a left turn against a red light. Which movement is it?
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Answer A: A left turn from a one-way street onto another one-way street
The movement generally allowed on red is one-way to one-way, because the turn does not cross any lane of oncoming traffic; a few states also extend it to a two-way street turning onto a one-way street.
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14. A large X with the letters R and R beside it is painted across your lane. What does it mean?
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Answer A: A railroad crossing lies a short distance ahead
The pavement marking repeats the advance warning for a grade crossing, and it is used on paved approaches where speeds are high or where gates are installed.
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15. Why should you not rest your foot on the brake pedal as you drive?
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Answer D: The brake lights stay on and the drivers behind cannot read you
Resting on the pedal keeps the brake lights lit and wears the brakes, so following drivers stop believing your brake lights.
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16. How does Iowa word the duty that limits speed no matter what the posted limit says?
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Answer B: A driver must not exceed a speed that permits stopping within the assured clear distance ahead
Iowa Code section 321.285 requires a careful and prudent speed and forbids driving faster than will permit the driver to stop within the assured clear distance ahead.
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17. In a vehicle with automatic transmission, which foot should operate the brake and accelerator?
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Answer D: The right foot for both pedals
Using only the right foot prevents pressing both pedals at once and keeps the response the same in every vehicle you drive. The left foot rests on the floor or the footrest.
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18. How can you tell that a child safety seat is installed tightly enough?
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Answer C: It moves less than an inch side to side or front to back at the belt path
A correctly installed seat is nearly immovable where the belt or lower anchors pass through it. Excess movement lets the child's body travel farther in a crash.
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19. What is the minimum period of confinement for a first Iowa operating while intoxicated conviction?
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Answer B: Forty-eight hours
Iowa Code section 321J.2 sets a minimum period of imprisonment in the county jail of forty-eight hours for a first offense, up to a maximum of one year.
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20. What does Iowa's electronic device statute say a peace officer may not do?
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Answer C: Confiscate the electronic device from the driver or an occupant
Iowa Code section 321.276 provides that nothing in the section authorizes a peace officer to confiscate an electronic device from the driver or an occupant of a motor vehicle.
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21. A sign shows a lane joining from the right with no merge required. What does that mean?
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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.
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22. What is the minimum period of confinement for a second Iowa operating while intoxicated conviction?
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Answer D: Seven days
Iowa Code section 321J.2 requires a minimum of seven days in the county jail or a community-based correctional facility for a second offense, up to a maximum of two years.
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23. You realize you have turned the wrong way onto a one-way street. What should you do?
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Answer A: Pull to the right, stop, and back into the street you came from when clear
Get out of the traffic stream first: pull right and stop, then back out into the street you came from once you can see it is safe.
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24. A farm implement ahead of you on a two-lane road is wider than its own lane. What should you do?
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Answer D: Hang back until you can see past it and pass only with a clear road
Wide equipment hides the road ahead and may extend farther across the center line than it appears, so the pass needs more room and a much better view.
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25. An Iowa crash caused apparent property damage of 2,000 dollars and no law enforcement agency investigated it. How soon must the driver send a written report to the department?
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Answer D: Within seventy-two hours
Iowa Code section 321.266 requires a written report to the department within seventy-two hours when a crash causes injury, death, or apparent total property damage of one thousand five hundred dollars or more, unless a law enforcement agency investigated it.