North Carolina NCDMV Motorcycle Practice Test 3
Test 3 of 6. 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 North Carolina test.
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age16 years
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1. 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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2. At an intersection that uses a lagging left turn, when is the left-turn arrow displayed?
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Answer B: After the through movement has run
A lagging left turn phase runs at the end of the green rather than the start, so a driver waiting to turn should not assume the arrow has been missed.
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3. When should you enter a destination into a navigation device?
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Answer B: Before you start driving, or after parking in a safe place
Programming a route is a visual, manual and mental task at the same time, so it belongs to the moments before the vehicle moves rather than to any point in traffic.
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4. Heavy rain has left water standing on the highway. What is the main risk to a rider?
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Answer D: The tires can ride up on the water and lose contact with the road surface
At higher speeds a tire can no longer push standing water aside and starts to hydroplane, so the rider slows and eases off rather than braking or turning hard.
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5. You are already inside an intersection when you realize you should be in the lane beside you. What should you do?
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Answer C: Stay in your lane through the intersection and change lanes afterwards
Drivers in an intersection are watching for cross traffic and turning vehicles, so an unexpected sideways move there is easily missed.
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6. How does NCDMV schedule motorcycle skills tests?
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Answer B: By appointment only, Tuesday through Thursday as weather permits
NCDMV gives motorcycle skills tests by appointment only at selected driver license offices, Tuesday through Thursday and as the weather permits, with one attempt allowed per day.
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7. Why is the road often most slippery during the first few minutes of rain after a long dry spell?
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Answer C: Oil and dust on the surface mix with the water into a slick film
Oil drippings and road dust build up on dry pavement, and the first light rain lifts them into a slippery film before heavier rain washes it away.
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8. You are ready to pull out of a parallel parking space into the traffic lane. What should you do?
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Answer C: Signal, check the mirror and blind spot, and wait for a gap
A driver leaving a parking space must yield to traffic already in the lane, so signal, look for the gap and only then move out.
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9. What does the Lights and Electrics step of T-CLOCS include?
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Answer A: The battery, the headlight, the brake light and the wiring
This step covers the battery and its terminals, the headlight, tail and brake lights, the turn signals, the switches, the mirrors and the wiring.
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10. A sign with a green background and a white legend normally provides
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Answer A: directions, distances and destinations
Green is the background color of the guide sign series, which names routes and destinations and gives the distance to them.
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11. What extra requirement does NCDMV place on motorcycle learner permit applicants aged 16 to 18?
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Answer A: Parental consent and completion of an approved motorcycle safety course
NCDMV requires applicants aged 16 to 18 to have parental consent and to complete a motorcycle safety course through the Motorcycle Safety Foundation or the North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program.
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12. A North Carolina driver is convicted of DWI and has a prior offense that occurred within three years. What revocation applies?
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Answer C: Four years
North Carolina mandates a four-year revocation on a second DWI conviction when the prior offense occurred within three years of the current one.
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13. How far ahead should you normally be looking as you drive?
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Answer C: About 12 to 15 seconds ahead, well beyond the vehicle in front
Looking that far down the road lets you see a problem developing and slow smoothly, instead of discovering it in time only for hard braking.
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14. How far ahead must a North Carolina driver signal a turn where the speed limit is 45 mph or more?
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Answer C: At least the last 200 feet
North Carolina requires a signal for at least the last 100 feet before turning or stopping, and at least the last 200 feet where the speed limit is 45 mph or more.
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15. How much clearance does North Carolina law require when passing a vehicle on its left?
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Answer D: At least two feet
North Carolina requires the passing driver to pass at least two feet to the left of the vehicle being passed, and the handbook repeats the same figure for passing a moped.
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16. A small yellow plaque showing a speed number below a curve warning sign gives
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Answer C: the speed recommended for the condition being warned about
The advisory speed plaque belongs to the warning series and states the speed judged safe for the condition ahead under good circumstances, not a regulatory limit.
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17. A center lane is bordered by a solid yellow line on the outside and a broken yellow line on the inside, with left-turn arrows painted in it. How may you use that lane?
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Answer A: Only to make a left turn or to prepare for one from either direction
That marking identifies a two-way left turn lane, which may only be used for left turns or to prepare for a left turn and never for travel or passing.
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18. Who must wear a helmet on a motorcycle in North Carolina?
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Answer A: All operators and passengers, using a helmet that meets FMVSS 218
North Carolina has a universal helmet law: every operator and passenger on a motorcycle or moped must wear a helmet complying with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218.
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19. What suspension does North Carolina impose for speeding over 55 mph and at least 15 mph above the limit while attempting to avoid arrest?
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Answer B: One year
North Carolina lists a one-year suspension for speeding in excess of 55 mph and at least 15 mph over the legal limit while attempting to avoid arrest.
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20. The crossing gates begin to lower while your vehicle is still on the railroad tracks. What should you do?
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Answer B: Keep going forward and push through the gate if it should block your way
Gates are made to break away, and driving forward off the tracks is far safer than staying between them or backing up.
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21. How close to an intersecting street with a curb may a North Carolina driver park?
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Answer A: No closer than 25 feet from the curb line
North Carolina bars parking within 25 feet of the curb line of an intersecting street, or within 15 feet of the intersecting right of way lines where there is no curb.
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22. How should cargo be carried on a motorcycle?
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Answer D: Kept low, in saddlebags or at about seat level
Keeping the load low preserves the center of gravity and the normal handling of the motorcycle, while a high load makes it top heavy and unstable.
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23. Which tests does North Carolina require for a motorcycle learner permit?
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Answer C: Vision, traffic signs and the motorcycle knowledge test
North Carolina requires vision, traffic signs and the motorcycle knowledge test for a motorcycle learner permit; the skills test comes later, for the endorsement.
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24. Someone stops drinking heavily at two in the morning and drives to work at eight. What is true?
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Answer A: They may still be impaired and over the limit
The body removes alcohol at a slow, fixed rate, so a heavy night can leave a driver impaired well into the next morning no matter how they feel.
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25. On traffic control devices, the color green shows direction to a destination and also shows
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Answer C: that a movement is permitted
Green carries two assignments: guidance toward destinations, and the idea that the movement shown is allowed, as on a green arrow.