NM Permit Practice Test 23

All 20 questions in test 23

Every question below comes from the New Mexico question bank on this page. Open a question to see the correct answer and the explanation. Nothing here is hidden behind a signup.

1. 1. When turning right or left at a signal, whom must you watch crossing in front?

   1. Only bicyclists traveling in marked bike lanes.
   2. Only children crossing near a school.
   3. Watch for pedestrians crossing in front of the vehicle.
   4. No one once the turn is legally underway.
   Show answer

   Watch for pedestrians crossing in front of the vehicle.. When turning either right or left at a signal, the driver must watch for pedestrians crossing in front of the vehicle. A green signal or a legal turn does not remove that obligation. The warning is not limited to cyclists, children, or school areas, and it does not mean that nobody needs watching. The turning path crosses the area a pedestrian may already be using.

   Study this in the handbook: Traffic signals and arrows

2. 2. Before starting a vehicle with a manual transmission, what must its gear state be?

   1. First gear with the parking brake released
   2. Any gear as long as the brake is held down
   3. Out of gear, with the clutch depressed if required
   4. Reverse gear with the clutch fully released
   Show answer

   Out of gear, with the clutch depressed if required. Before starting a manual-transmission vehicle, the vehicle must not be in gear, and some vehicles also require the clutch to be depressed. First or reverse gear with the clutch released can move the vehicle unexpectedly. Holding the brake alone is not the stated condition. The neutral requirement prevents an unintended launch when the engine starts. Check the selector before turning the engine over.

   Study this in the handbook: Renewal, points, seat belts and insurance

3. 3. Under New Mexico law described in the manual, who must wear a motorcycle helmet?

   1. Only passengers under 16
   2. Every motorcycle driver and passenger under 18
   3. Only motorcycle drivers, regardless of age
   4. No one when traveling below 25 mph
   Show answer

   Every motorcycle driver and passenger under 18. The stated legal requirement applies to motorcycle drivers and passengers who are under 18. The manual separately recommends helmets for everyone on a motorcycle, but that recommendation does not change the age group identified in the law. Limiting the rule to passengers or drivers alone leaves out part of the requirement, and speed does not create the listed exception. Check both people on the motorcycle before moving, while also making sure any helmet is secured and meets the described safety standards.

4. 4. A big truck signals left ahead of you. Why wait and check its signals again before passing?

   1. The truck's left signal guarantees it is turning left at the next opening.
   2. A truck's signals are easier to read from its blind spot.
   3. A turn signal means the truck is stopping.
   4. The truck may really be turning right after swinging wide.
   Show answer

   The truck may really be turning right after swinging wide.. A large truck may swing left before making a wide right turn, so a left signal is not a guarantee that it will turn left. A blind spot makes the signal harder to interpret, not easier. A turn signal also does not mean the truck is stopping. The manual advises waiting a second and checking the signals again before passing because the truck may really be turning right. Watching the truck's movement as well as its signal helps prevent a pass into the path of a wide turn.

   Study this in the handbook: Following distance, passing and sharing the road

5. 5. A provisional driver has a late medical need to drive. What evidence supports driving between midnight and 5 AM?

   1. Signed parent statement for medical need
   2. A pharmacy receipt with no statement
   3. A text message from a friend
   4. An expired appointment card alone
   Show answer

   Signed parent statement for medical need. Medical necessity in the restricted hours rests on a signed parent or guardian statement. A receipt, a friend message and an old appointment card do not meet the listed evidence. Arrange the signed note before leaving when the need is planned. For a true medical emergency, a separate emergency exception applies instead. Keep clinic paperwork paired with the note during treatment weeks, since repeated late drives draw closer roadside checks.

   Study this in the handbook: Permits and the graduated license

6. 6. A driver has been drinking and wants to sober up quickly. Which method works?

   1. Drinking several cups of strong coffee
   2. Taking a long cold shower and walking
   3. Time, because only time removes alcohol
   4. Getting fresh air and light exercise
   Show answer

   Time, because only time removes alcohol. Nothing speeds the removal of alcohol except time. The body clears alcohol at a fixed pace, so coffee, a cold shower, fresh air, and exercise only make a drinker feel more awake while reaction time and judgment stay impaired. Waiting is the only method that actually lowers blood alcohol content. Do not read alertness as sobriety. If you have been drinking, hand the keys to someone who has not, call a cab, or stay where you are until the alcohol has cleared. A brisk walk may feel helpful, but it does not change the reading.

   Study this in the handbook: Alcohol, drugs and DWI

7. 7. How is a shared center turn lane marked on each side?

   1. Double white lines on both sides throughout
   2. Solid plus dashed yellow each side
   3. Orange lines marking a work zone lane
   4. Blue lines marking a bus only lane
   Show answer

   Solid plus dashed yellow each side. A shared center lane wears a solid yellow plus dashed yellow pairing on each side, with opposing left turn arrows alternating inside. Double white, orange and blue schemes belong elsewhere or nowhere. Both directions may enter for left turns, so nose in slowly and watch for an opposing driver claiming the same stretch. Never use that center space for passing or merging speed, since opposing turners expect slow entries only.

   Study this in the handbook: Pavement markings and special lanes

8. 8. If you must park on the roadway, how should you leave the vehicle?

   1. In the lane nearest the destination
   2. Far from traffic and close to the curb
   3. With the driver side toward the curb
   4. Where streetlights make it easiest to see
   Show answer

   Far from traffic and close to the curb. When parking on a roadway is unavoidable, put the vehicle as far from moving traffic as the space allows and snug it close to the curb. That leaves the widest usable lane for everyone else. Parking in the lane nearest the destination does the opposite. Placing the driver side toward the curb parks the vehicle on the wrong side facing against traffic. Streetlights may improve visibility, but they do not replace distance from traffic and curb alignment.

   Study this in the handbook: Speed limits

9. 9. You drive past a row of parked vehicles. How much room should you give them?

   1. As much room as you can give them
   2. Only a few inches from their mirrors
   3. Room only when a door is already open
   4. No extra room on a wide street
   Show answer

   As much room as you can give them. Parked vehicles hide people who may step out or open a door without warning, so give them as much room as you can while staying in your lane. A few inches leaves no escape when a door swings wide, waiting for an open door reacts after the hazard appears, and a wide street does not remove the hidden pedestrian risk. Slow down where rows of parked cars crowd the curb, especially near shops and schools. Watch for brake lights and heads moving inside parked cars.

   Study this in the handbook: Road conditions, sight distance and wildlife

10. 10. Which places count as intersections for scanning purposes?

    1. Only signalized city corners
    2. Railroad grade crossings outside towns
    3. Private garages closed to public traffic
    4. Cross streets, side streets, and driveways
    Show answer

    Cross streets, side streets, and driveways. An intersection is any place where traffic merges or crosses, including cross streets, side streets, driveways and shopping center or parking lot entrances. Limiting your scan to signalized corners misses the side entries where surprise pullouts begin. Railroad crossings demand their own track check, and a closed private garage carries no crossing traffic. Treat every side opening as a place to slow, look both ways, and be ready to yield before you pass it.

11. 11. At an intersection with no stop sign, yield sign, or traffic signal, which driver must yield?

    1. Drivers must yield to vehicles coming from the right
    2. The driver in the largest vehicle proceeds first
    3. The driver who sounds the horn first may enter
    4. Drivers yield only to vehicles approaching from the left
    Show answer

    Drivers must yield to vehicles coming from the right. Where no sign or signal assigns the order, the driver yields to a vehicle arriving from the right side. Size and horn use confer no priority, and yielding only toward the left would leave the right side conflict completely unmanaged. Approach an uncontrolled crossing slowly enough to stop, look right as well as left, and let the vehicle on your right clear before you roll forward. A cautious entry also gives a hidden driver time to appear from behind parked cars near the corner.

    Study this in the handbook: Right of way at intersections

12. 12. How often should breaks come on a long trip, and what should they include?

    1. Stop about every hour, walk around, get air and a drink.
    2. Wait four hours before taking a break.
    3. Stop only when the fuel tank is nearly empty.
    4. Take one break at the hotel each day.
    Show answer

    Stop about every hour, walk around, get air and a drink.. On a long trip, the manual recommends stopping about every hour or when needed, walking around, getting fresh air, and having coffee, soda, or juice. Waiting four hours, stopping only for fuel, or resting once at the hotel allows fatigue to build for too long. A break is an active pause that refreshes the driver before continuing, not merely a chance to remain seated.

    Study this in the handbook: Vision, fatigue, health and distraction

13. 13. At the first sign of rain, snow or sleet, what speed response does the manual give?

    1. Hold your speed until the road becomes slippery
    2. Wait until other drivers slow first
    3. Speed up to reach shelter
    4. Slow down
    Show answer

    Slow down. Rain, snow, and sleet make the roadway slippery, so the manual says to slow down at the first sign of any of them. Waiting for other drivers, speeding toward shelter, or holding speed until flooding occurs delays the response until traction has already changed. Early reduction gives the tires more opportunity to maintain contact and gives the driver more time to control the vehicle.

    Study this in the handbook: Road conditions, sight distance and wildlife

14. 14. How much of total stopping power can a motorcycle front brake provide when used properly?

    1. Front brake can provide up to three-quarters of stopping power.
    2. About one-quarter of stopping power comes from the front brake.
    3. None, the rear brake does it all.
    4. Exactly half in every stop.
    Show answer

    Front brake can provide up to three-quarters of stopping power.. When used properly, the motorcycle front brake can provide as much as three-quarters of the total stopping power. The rear brake does not provide all of it, and the manual does not state a fixed half or one-quarter share. The figure explains why riders should develop skill with the front brake instead of treating it as an emergency-only control. Smooth practice matters before an emergency demands maximum braking.

    Study this in the handbook: Renewal, points, seat belts and insurance

15. 15. What marking should slow vehicles such as farm tractors carry on the back?

    1. A red triangle decal
    2. A yellow square decal
    3. An orange triangle decal
    4. A white diamond decal
    Show answer

    An orange triangle decal. The manual says farm tractors, animal-drawn vehicles, and roadway maintenance vehicles usually travel twenty-five miles per hour or less. It says these slow vehicles should display a slow-moving vehicle decal, which is an orange triangle on the back. The color and shape matter because the marking warns faster traffic that the vehicle ahead may be traveling far below the normal flow. A red triangle, yellow square, or white diamond is not the marking named for this purpose.

    Study this in the handbook: Road conditions, sight distance and wildlife

16. 16. Spotting a slow vehicle early gives you time to do what safely?

    1. Tailgate it until it speeds
    2. Pass without checking mirrors because you saw the slow vehicle early
    3. Honk continuously from afar
    4. Change lanes or slow down safely before reaching it suddenly
    Show answer

    Change lanes or slow down safely before reaching it suddenly. Seeing a slow vehicle early gives the driver time to change lanes or slow down safely before reaching it. Tailgating, blind passing, and continuous honking waste that advance notice. The manual also warns that sudden slowing can cause a traffic accident, so the useful response is a planned adjustment made while there is still room. Early recognition turns an abrupt conflict into a manageable one.

    Study this in the handbook: Road conditions, sight distance and wildlife

17. 17. Which driving behavior does the manual identify as causing skids?

    1. Leaving extra space from other vehicles
    2. Driving too fast for the road conditions
    3. Steering gently through a turn
    4. Reducing speed on a wet road
    Show answer

    Driving too fast for the road conditions. The manual first describes a skid as a loss of tire grip, then identifies drivers traveling too fast for conditions as the cause to avoid. Wet pavement, snow, and ice make a road more hazardous, but the keyed behavior is failing to reduce speed for those conditions. Slowing on a wet road, steering gently, and leaving more space are protective choices rather than causes. The practical lesson is to lower speed before a surface or sudden maneuver demands more grip than the tires have.

    Study this in the handbook: Vehicle emergencies and skids

18. 18. What should a driver do with the parking brake after stopping in a space?

    1. Rely on the transmission alone
    2. Release it so the car can settle
    3. Use it only when parked on a slope
    4. Set it before leaving the vehicle
    Show answer

    Set it before leaving the vehicle. Every time you park, set the parking brake, then leave a manual transmission in gear or an automatic in park. The brake holds the vehicle if the transmission slips or the grade is steeper than expected. Releasing it so the car can settle removes that backup and lets the vehicle creep. A parking brake is not just for slopes, because a level lot can still allow movement after a bump or a failed park pawl, and the transmission alone is a second layer rather than a substitute. Make setting the brake part of the same routine as shutting off the engine and locking the doors.

    Study this in the handbook: Speed limits

19. 19. In which single situation may a vehicle back up in a travel lane?

    1. To reach a missed exit quickly
    2. Only to parallel park a vehicle
    3. To let passengers board faster
    4. Whenever the lane looks empty
    Show answer

    Only to parallel park a vehicle. The manual permits backing in a travel lane only when parallel parking. Backing to a missed exit, letting passengers board, or using an apparently empty lane is not an exception. Reverse movement surprises drivers who expect traffic to travel forward and can create a conflict with vehicles approaching from behind. Continue forward until a legal and safe place allows the needed correction.

20. 20. You are unsure whether a medicine is safe to combine with driving. What should you do?

    1. Take half a dose and drive slowly
    2. Drive a short distance to test your reaction
    3. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about any side effects
    4. Skip the label if the drug needs no prescription
    Show answer

    Ask your doctor or pharmacist about any side effects. When safety is in doubt, ask a doctor or pharmacist about side effects before combining the medicine with driving. Halving a dose still leaves unknown effects, and testing yourself on the road turns traffic into the experiment. A drug sold without prescription can still cause drowsiness or slowed reactions, so the label deserves reading either way. Ask the question at the pharmacy counter before the first dose, and arrange another ride if driving warnings appear.

    Study this in the handbook: Vision, fatigue, health and distraction