SD Permit Practice Test 23

All 20 questions in test 23

Every question below comes from the South Dakota 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. You begin a parallel parking maneuver. Where should you stop first relative to the vehicle ahead of the space?

   1. Even with that vehicle, about 2 feet away from it
   2. One full car length behind that vehicle before starting to back
   3. Beside its rear bumper, about 4 feet away
   4. Ahead of it, angled toward the curb already
   Show answer

   Even with that vehicle, about 2 feet away from it. The setup position is alongside the vehicle in front of the space, even with it and about 2 feet away, before any backing begins. Starting a car length behind shortens your swing room and forces a sharper correction beside the curb. Four feet of side gap at the rear bumper leaves you too wide to tuck into the space cleanly. Angling toward the curb early scrapes the sequence; alignment comes first. Match bumpers, hold that two-foot corridor, then start the turn sequence from a known square position.

2. 2. At 55 mph, about how much clear distance do you need to pass safely?

   1. About 800 feet
   2. About 400 feet
   3. Over 2,400 feet
   4. Over 1,600 feet
   Show answer

   Over 1,600 feet. At 55 mph your car covers more than 800 feet in ten seconds, and an oncoming vehicle covers a similar distance in that time. Adding the two gives a requirement of more than 1,600 feet, roughly one-third of a mile, before a pass is safe. The 800 foot figure counts only your own travel, and 400 feet is shorter still. A 2,400 foot answer overshoots the handbook figure. Pick a straight stretch with a visible gap of about a third of a mile, and wait if the oncoming car appears to be growing larger.

   Study this in the handbook: Following distance, passing and large vehicles

3. 3. How many lenses make up a pedestrian hybrid beacon head, and how are they arranged?

   1. One red lens above two yellow lenses
   2. Two red lenses above one yellow lens
   3. Three red lenses arranged in a row
   4. Two yellow lenses above one red lens
   Show answer

   Two red lenses above one yellow lens. A pedestrian hybrid beacon has two red lenses above a single yellow lens. The lenses remain dark until a pedestrian who wants to cross presses the call button, which activates the beacon's sequence. The one-red arrangement reverses the number and order of the lenses. Three red lenses are not part of this device, and putting yellow above red also reverses the described layout. Treat a dark beacon as inactive, not as permission to ignore the crossing, and watch for the sequence after it is activated.

   Study this in the handbook: Right of way, funerals and intersections

4. 4. How should the inside rearview mirror be adjusted before driving?

   1. Tilted down to show the rear seat area
   2. Set to show mostly the passenger side
   3. Aimed at the ceiling to reduce glare
   4. Adjusted so that it frames the rear window
   Show answer

   Adjusted so that it frames the rear window. Frame the whole rear window in the inside mirror and the view behind becomes a single glance rather than a head turning search. A downward tilt spends the mirror on rear seat upholstery. Ceiling aim abandons the road behind entirely to dodge glare that the day-night setting handles properly. Favoring one side blinds the other approach lane. The framed window view pairs with outside mirrors set wide, and together they shrink the blind areas a lane change depends on knowing.

   Study this in the handbook: Seat belts, child seats and driving position

5. 5. With parent or guardian permission, during which hours may a Restricted Minor's Permit holder drive alone?

   1. From 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. while carrying the permit
   2. From 8 a.m. to midnight while carrying the permit
   3. From 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. while carrying the permit
   4. From 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. while carrying the permit
   Show answer

   From 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. while carrying the permit. Daytime driving on a Restricted Minor's Permit runs from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. with parent or guardian permission and the permit carried on the driver. Choosing 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. borrows motorcycle permit hours and cuts two lawful evening hours away. Midnight and late evening options cross into hours that need a parent or guardian beside the driver. A simple cue is the car window ending at ten, while motorcycle teaching stops earlier at eight each evening.

   Study this in the handbook: Instruction and Restricted Minor's Permits

6. 6. Your traffic light is green, but pedestrians are still crossing in the intersection ahead. Who holds the right-of-way?

   1. You do, because a green light overrides pedestrians
   2. The first vehicle that reaches the crosswalk area
   3. Only pedestrians who entered on their own green signal
   4. All pedestrians in the intersection, even though your light is green
   Show answer

   All pedestrians in the intersection, even though your light is green. A green light permits you to proceed when the way is clear; it never cancels the right-of-way of pedestrians already crossing in the intersection. Their signal phase may have started the crossing, yet your duty survives regardless of which lamp authorized them. Arrival order between vehicles settles vehicle conflicts, not a person on foot mid-crossing. Green means go if able, not go regardless. Lift off, let the crossing empty, and treat the delay as the light working exactly as designed for everyone.

   Study this in the handbook: Controlling speed

7. 7. Which steering wheel grip is specifically warned against?

   1. Holding the wheel firmly at the three and nine positions
   2. Gripping the wheel from the inside of the steering wheel while turning
   3. Using both hands on longer trips
   4. Resting thumbs along the wheel face
   Show answer

   Gripping the wheel from the inside of the steering wheel while turning. Turning the wheel while gripping from inside the rim places hands and arms in the path of a deploying air bag and weakens control at the same time. Three and nine is the recommended modern position. Both hands belong on the wheel for any trip length. Thumbs along the face are part of the correct grip taught. Hands should ride the outside of the rim where leverage lives and where an air bag explosion will not drive your own arms into your face.

   Study this in the handbook: Seat belts, child seats and driving position

8. 8. You are approaching a roundabout and traffic is already circulating. Who do you yield to?

   1. Traffic on your left already in the roundabout
   2. The vehicle behind you at the entrance
   3. A vehicle approaching the next entrance from your right
   4. A vehicle that has stopped before entering the roundabout
   Show answer

   Traffic on your left already in the roundabout. The roundabout rule gives priority to traffic already circulating on your left. A vehicle behind you cannot determine your entry. A vehicle approaching another entrance from your right has not entered your path in the circle. A vehicle stopped before an entrance is also not the circulating traffic named by the rule. The manual pairs this yield with entering only after a safe gap, so the ring, not the waiting approaches, controls your decision.

   Study this in the handbook: Turns, U turns and roundabouts

9. 9. A school bus finishes loading and its red lights stop flashing while the stop arm folds away. What should you do?

   1. Accelerate past quickly before children move
   2. Stop again until the bus leaves the roadway
   3. Honk once and continue at the posted limit
   4. Proceed slowly while watching for children
   Show answer

   Proceed slowly while watching for children. Once the red lights stop flashing and the stop arm is no longer visible, traffic may move again, but only slowly and with eyes searching for children who may still dart from behind the bus. Speeding past to beat movement reverses the caution the moment demands. A honk adds noise without adding sight, and the posted limit is too fast for a zone where kids scatter. Holding a second stop after release blocks traffic without cause. Creep forward, scan the bumpers and the far curb, then build speed gently.

   Study this in the handbook: Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and school buses

10. 10. After you perceive a hazard, what average reaction time does the handbook give for moving your foot and starting to brake?

    1. Roughly four seconds
    2. About a tenth of a second
    3. Between ¾ and 1 second
    4. Half a minute on dry pavement
    Show answer

    Between ¾ and 1 second. Reaction time begins once you know you must stop and ends when your foot leaves the accelerator and starts pressing the brake, averaging three quarters of a second to one second for a typical driver. A tenth of a second belongs to reflex blinks, not a deliberate foot transfer. Four seconds would roll the vehicle far beyond most city gaps before slowing begins. Half a minute is travel time, not human response. Add this span to perception time and braking distance, and total stopping room grows quickly with speed.

    Study this in the handbook: Controlling speed

11. 11. About what share of traffic crashes in which someone is killed involve alcohol or other impairing drugs?

    1. About 10 percent of all fatal crashes each year
    2. About 25 percent of fatal crashes
    3. Approximately 40 percent of fatal crashes
    4. Nearly 75 percent of all fatal crashes each year
    Show answer

    Approximately 40 percent of fatal crashes. Alcohol and other impairing drugs show up in approximately forty percent of traffic crashes where someone dies each year, a large share that still falls short of half. Ten and twenty five percent both shrink a toll the handbook states plainly. Seventy five percent overshoots it toward nearly all deaths, which the figure does not claim. The lesson hides in the size of the real number: impairment is not a rare sideshow but a central cause, so planning a sober ride is a primary safety decision, not an afterthought.

    Study this in the handbook: Instruction and Restricted Minor's Permits

12. 12. On what basis are passing and no-passing areas established?

    1. The width of the shoulder on each side
    2. How far you can see ahead
    3. The number of driveways per mile
    4. The posted limit minus ten miles per hour
    Show answer

    How far you can see ahead. Passing zones are drawn around sight distance: how far ahead you can see decides where a pass can finish before hidden hazards appear. Shoulder width affects recovery room, not the legal passing map. Driveways count among the hidden hazards that shorten sight lines, yet they are one factor inside the visibility judgment, not the measure itself. Subtracting ten from the limit is a folk rule with no standing here. Hills, curves, and side entrances all shrink what you can see, so markings close passing where the view runs out.

    Study this in the handbook: Regulatory, stop, yield and guide signs

13. 13. A motorcycle ahead shows a flashing turn signal for a long distance. Why wait before assuming the turn?

    1. Motorcycle turn signals may not self-cancel and the rider may have forgotten them
    2. Motorcycle signals always indicate the opposite direction from the intended turn
    3. Riders must signal a full mile before turning
    4. The signal means the rider is stopping soon
    Show answer

    Motorcycle turn signals may not self-cancel and the rider may have forgotten them. Many motorcycle signals lack the self-canceling feature cars have, so a forgotten signal can blink for miles while the rider intends to go straight. The lamp still means the direction it points when a turn truly comes; it is not reversed. No mile-long signaling rule exists for riders. A turn signal also says nothing about stopping. Wait for the motorcycle to lean, slow, and commit before you pull out, because acting on a stale signal puts you in front of a rider traveling straight through.

    Study this in the handbook: Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and school buses

14. 14. During hard ABS braking, what pedal sensations are normal?

    1. You may feel the pedal vibrate and hear a clicking noise
    2. The pedal goes completely soft and stays silent through the whole stop
    3. The pedal locks solid and cannot move
    4. A burning smell from the brake pedal
    Show answer

    You may feel the pedal vibrate and hear a clicking noise. A pulsing, vibrating pedal with clicking sounds is ABS cycling the brakes many times per second, which is the system working rather than failing. A pedal sinking soft and silent suggests real brake trouble instead. The pedal never locks solid; modulation is continuous movement. Burning smells belong to overheated components, not normal anti-lock operation. Drivers who mistake the pulse for failure lift off and surrender the system. Keep hard pressure planted through the noise and steer around the hazard while the machinery prevents lockup.

    Study this in the handbook: Skids, brake failure and other vehicle emergencies

15. 15. A young driver receives a Class 1 misdemeanor or felony conviction. How long is the license suspension?

    1. Thirty days from the conviction date in every case
    2. One full year regardless of age
    3. 180 days or until the 16th birthday, whichever is longer
    4. Until the fines are paid in full
    Show answer

    180 days or until the 16th birthday, whichever is longer. For a Class 1 misdemeanor or felony conviction at this level, the suspension runs one hundred eighty days or until the sixteenth birthday, whichever stretches longer. Thirty days belongs to far lighter penalties elsewhere in the schedule. A flat year regardless of birthday ignores the age-linked half of the formula. Paying fines settles court debt without shortening a licensing term set by age and days. For a fifteen year old, the birthday may outlast the day count, so calendar math, not hope, sets the return date.

    Study this in the handbook: Instruction and Restricted Minor's Permits

16. 16. What surprise maneuver should you anticipate from animal-drawn vehicles on rural roads?

    1. Left turns made into fields and driveways
    2. Sudden high speed passing attempts
    3. Reversing along the shoulder without lights
    4. Turning only at signalized intersections
    Show answer

    Left turns made into fields and driveways. Animal-drawn vehicles turn left into fields and farm driveways without the signals and brake lights car drivers rely on, so anticipating that turn keeps you from passing into it. High speed passing is beyond the vehicle's nature. Reversing along shoulders is not the documented pattern. Rural animal traffic rarely enjoys signalized intersections to turn at. Watch the driver's hands and the animal's head for telegraphing, slow early, and never commit to a pass beside a field entrance on the left.

    Study this in the handbook: Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and school buses

17. 17. Which event is listed as a trigger for future financial responsibility?

    1. A parking violation
    2. A citation for failing to signal
    3. A judgment from an uninsured accident
    4. An expired registration
    Show answer

    A judgment from an uninsured accident. South Dakota lists a judgment resulting from an uninsured auto accident among events that can require proof of financial responsibility before the operator may drive or reregister a vehicle. A turn-signal citation, parking violation, or expired registration is not the trigger named in this passage. The rule concerns future financial responsibility after the listed judgment or convictions, not ordinary paperwork mistakes. When studying this section, separate insurance responsibility requirements from routine traffic or registration violations.

    Study this in the handbook: Instruction and Restricted Minor's Permits

18. 18. When must you not attempt to change a flat tire yourself?

    1. When the spare tire is slightly dirty or dusty
    2. If changing it means you will be in a traffic lane
    3. When the vehicle sits parked on loose gravel
    4. During daylight hours on quiet residential streets
    Show answer

    If changing it means you will be in a traffic lane. A tire change that puts your body in a traffic lane is not a repair, it is an exposure: wait for help or move the vehicle somewhere survivable first. A dirty spare still rolls to a safer place or a shop. Gravel footing complicates jacking but endangers nothing like live traffic does. Daylight and quiet streets actually improve the safety math rather than forbidding the work. Kneeling beside moving traffic is how roadside fatalities happen to careful people; the tire can wait, the person cannot be replaced.

    Study this in the handbook: Night, winter, deer and work zones

19. 19. When danger is actually present, how should you use the horn?

    1. Stay silent so nobody nearby is startled at all
    2. Do not be afraid to sound a sharp blast on the horn
    3. Use only the light tap reserved for courtesy alerts
    4. Flash the headlights instead of using the horn
    Show answer

    Do not be afraid to sound a sharp blast on the horn. Real danger earns the sharp blast: when a collision is forming, hesitate less about feelings and warn loudly enough to break another driver's distraction. Silence sacrifices the one channel that reaches a driver not looking your way. The courtesy tap is calibrated for calm moments, not emergencies. Light flashes help, yet a horn reaches drivers whose eyes are elsewhere entirely. Match the tool to the threat: tap for presence, blast for peril, and never let politeness mute a warning somebody's safety depends on hearing.

    Study this in the handbook: Night, winter, deer and work zones

20. 20. Another driver is passing you on a two-lane road. What should you do while being passed?

    1. Speed up slightly so the pass ends sooner
    2. Move toward the center line to guide the driver
    3. Slow down sharply to create a larger gap
    4. Stay in your lane and maintain a constant speed
    Show answer

    Stay in your lane and maintain a constant speed. Hold your lane and keep a steady speed while another driver passes you. Predictability lets the passing driver judge the gap, the closing speed, and the return point without surprises. Speeding up, as one choice proposes, stretches the pass and can trap both vehicles beside each other near oncoming traffic. Stay centered in your lane, keep your pace even, and glance ahead for anything that might force the other driver back toward you early.

    Study this in the handbook: Crashes, emergency vehicles and traffic stops