Iowa DOT Permit Practice Test 9
Test 9 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. Your vehicle leaves the road and enters deep water. What gives you the best chance of escape?
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Answer B: Release your seat belt and get out through a window as quickly as possible
Water pressure holds the doors shut, so a window is the reliable exit and the first seconds after entry are the best time to use it.
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2. Which driver does Iowa exempt from the electronic device restriction?
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Answer A: A driver operating an implement of husbandry
Iowa Code section 321.276 lists an operator of an implement of husbandry among the exempt persons, along with public safety members, health care professionals in emergencies, and several others.
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3. The motorcyclist ahead of you keeps moving from one side of the lane to the other. What should you understand?
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Answer B: The rider is avoiding surface hazards and staying where drivers can see the bike
Riders shift their lane position to avoid debris, grease strips and potholes and to be seen. That movement is normal and never an invitation to share the lane.
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4. You are approaching the entry of a roundabout and a pedestrian is crossing the marked crosswalk on your approach lane. What must you do?
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Answer D: Stop before the crosswalk and let the pedestrian cross
Roundabout crosswalks sit a short distance back from the yield line, and drivers must yield there before they ever reach the circulating lanes.
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5. You are traveling at 55 mph on a rural road and come up behind a horse-drawn buggy. What is the main danger?
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Answer D: You close on it very quickly because it moves at walking pace
A buggy travels only a few miles an hour, so the gap closes far faster than drivers expect and there is very little time to brake once you see it.
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6. A traffic signal is dark and you reach the intersection at the same moment as a vehicle on your right. Who goes first?
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Answer A: The vehicle on your right, as at any all-way stop
A dark signal is treated as an all-way stop, and the usual tie-breaker then applies: the vehicle on the right goes first.
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7. What speed limit applies on an Iowa street or highway between an installed cattle guard and the point where the road dead ends?
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Answer D: 15 miles per hour
Iowa Code section 321.285 sets the speed limit at fifteen miles per hour between the point where a cattle guard is installed and the point where the street or highway terminates in a dead end.
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8. What civil penalty does the Iowa DOT assess whenever it revokes a license under the operating while intoxicated chapter?
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Answer C: Two hundred dollars
Iowa Code section 321J.17 requires a civil penalty on every revocation under the chapter, half of which is deposited in the victim compensation fund and half in the general fund.
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9. You are driving on a road covered with a layer of wet fallen leaves. What should you expect?
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Answer B: As little grip as on ice, plus hidden markings and hidden holes
Wet leaves are as slippery as ice and they hide the lane lines and any potholes underneath, so slow well before curves and stops.
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10. 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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11. How does Iowa treat a conviction for using an electronic device while driving, for licensing purposes?
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Answer B: As a moving violation
Iowa Code section 321.276 states that a violation of the electronic device section shall be considered a moving violation for purposes of chapter 321 and the rules adopted under it.
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12. Cannabis is legal for adults in some states. What does that mean for driving?
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Answer C: Driving while impaired by it is still an offense
Legal possession has nothing to do with driving law, and every state treats driving while impaired by cannabis as an offense.
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13. You are at a red light where right turns on red are allowed, you cannot see clearly, and the driver behind sounds the horn. What should you do?
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Answer C: Stay stopped until you can see that the turn is safe
Turning right on red is permitted, never required, so you wait until you can see that the way is clear no matter what the driver behind does.
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14. Which part of the space around your vehicle can you control best?
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Answer A: The space ahead of you
You choose your own following distance, so the gap in front is the space you truly control and the one that gives you time to react.
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15. In Iowa, what must you do when you meet a school bus that has its flashing amber warning lamps on?
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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.
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16. It is cold and the road looks wet, but you notice the tires of vehicles ahead are throwing up no spray. What does this suggest?
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Answer B: The surface has frozen and is probably icy
Water throws spray, but ice does not. A shiny road with no spray in freezing temperatures is a strong sign of black ice, so slow down and avoid sudden inputs.
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17. You come up behind a group of cyclists riding two abreast on a narrow rural road. What should you do?
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Answer A: Wait for a clear stretch and pass them as one group
Passing a group as a single unit when the way ahead is clear is safer than several rushed passes, and cutting through the group leaves nobody any escape room.
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18. You are making a U-turn at a signal on a green left arrow. Who must you still watch for?
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Answer D: People in the crosswalk you will cross as you come around
Even a protected arrow does not clear the crosswalk, and a U-turn sweeps across a crosswalk that pedestrians may already be using.
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19. For how long after an Iowa driver's license expires may it be renewed without a driving test or written examination?
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Answer B: One year
Iowa Code section 321.196 makes a driver's license renewable without a driving test or written examination within a period of one year after its expiration date.
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20. 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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21. Under Iowa's electronic device law, when may a driver use a phone while the vehicle is moving?
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Answer A: Only in a voice-activated or hands-free mode
Iowa Code section 321.276 bars using an electronic device while driving unless the vehicle is stopped off the traveled portion of the roadway, but a person does not violate the section when using the device in a voice-activated or hands-free mode.
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22. What is the statutory speed limit on Iowa highways that are part of the interstate road system?
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Answer B: 70 miles per hour
Iowa Code section 321.285 sets the speed limit at seventy miles per hour for highways that are part of the interstate road system.
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23. A pedestrian is crossing a wide four-lane street and has reached the lanes on the far side. When may you go on?
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Answer C: Only after the person has finished crossing the roadway
Waiting until the pedestrian has finished crossing is correct in every state and removes any doubt about how much clearance your state demands.
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24. What additional fines does Iowa attach to a move over violation that injures or kills another person?
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Answer D: Five hundred dollars for injury and one thousand dollars for death
Iowa Code section 321.323A adds a fine of five hundred dollars where the violation causes bodily injury and one thousand dollars where it causes death, on top of the scheduled fine.
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25. For how long is an Iowa driver's license valid only for operating a motorized bicycle issued?
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Answer D: Two years
Iowa Code section 321.189 makes a license valid only for operation of a motorized bicycle effective for a period not to exceed two years from the licensee's birthday anniversary in the year of issuance.