SD Permit Practice Test 25

All 20 questions in test 25

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. After stopping a disabled vehicle, where should you stand while waiting?

   1. In front of the vehicle to flag passing traffic
   2. Off the road where you are safe from traffic
   3. Between your vehicle and the moving traffic lanes
   4. On the center line to become visible sooner
   Show answer

   Off the road where you are safe from traffic. Stand clear of the roadway where traffic cannot reach you, because disabled vehicles attract the very collision you are waiting beside. Flagging from in front puts you between approaching cars and a steel obstacle. The gap between vehicle and lanes is the crush zone in a secondary strike. Center lines maximize exposure in both directions at once. Distance and a barrier, a ditch bank, guardrail, or simply far shoulder grass, turn waiting into the safest part of a breakdown.

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

2. 2. After completing a turn, how should the steering wheel be straightened?

   1. Straighten it by hand rather than letting it slip through your fingers
   2. Let it slip back through your fingers without guiding it
   3. Release it fully and catch it later
   4. Straightening is automatic in all vehicles
   Show answer

   Straighten it by hand rather than letting it slip through your fingers. Unwind the wheel deliberately by hand after a turn; letting it spin back through your fingers surrenders control exactly while the vehicle is settling into a new direction. A free slipping wheel can over-rotate or catch a finger on a spoke. Releasing and catching later abandons the recovery interval entirely. Some caster self-centering helps, yet it is assistance, not automation. Hand-over-hand in, controlled unwind out: the symmetry keeps the vehicle's nose answering your intentions through the whole maneuver.

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

3. 3. What can many infant carrier models become after the baby outgrows rear-facing use?

   1. A household rocking seat only
   2. They must be discarded as soon as the baby sits alone
   3. A booster for school age children
   4. Upright, forward facing safety seats for toddlers
   Show answer

   Upright, forward facing safety seats for toddlers. Many carriers convert into upright, forward facing safety seats for the toddler stage, extending the same shell into the next developmental phase. A converted seat remains vehicle safety equipment, not demoted to furniture. Booster stages come years later for much bigger children. Immediate discarding wastes a designed second life. Follow the manufacturer's conversion instructions precisely; a convertible seat installed by guesswork protects like neither stage, and the manual for the seat is as binding as the vehicle manual beside it.

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

4. 4. To qualify for an unrestricted South Dakota driver license, what vision scores are required?

   1. Perfect 20/20 vision in both eyes with no exceptions
   2. 20/70 vision in one eye if the other eye is perfect
   3. 20/40 or better with both eyes, but no worse than 20/50 in either eye
   4. No vision standard applies during license renewals
   Show answer

   20/40 or better with both eyes, but no worse than 20/50 in either eye. The unrestricted standard asks for twenty forty or better using both eyes together, with neither eye individually worse than twenty fifty. Perfect twenty twenty vision is welcome but never demanded. One weak eye at twenty seventy fails the per-eye floor even if its partner is flawless. Renewals still screen vision, so the standard follows the license for life. Falling short does not end the road; it routes you toward corrective lenses or restrictions that match the vision you actually bring to driving.

   Study this in the handbook: Vision, fatigue, distraction and aggressive driving

5. 5. You realize you overshot your exit on the interstate. What does the handbook forbid as a way back?

   1. Continuing forward to the next exit and turning around there
   2. Turning around at the next interchange
   3. Slowing in the right lane to look for signs
   4. Backing up on the interstate under any circumstances
   Show answer

   Backing up on the interstate under any circumstances. Backing up on the interstate is prohibited under any circumstances, so a missed exit is recovered at the next exit or interchange instead. Reversing against high-speed flow gives following drivers almost no time to react and breaks every expectation they hold. Continuing forward keeps you inside the one-way pattern built for safety. Slowing in the right lane to read signs is legal though hardly ideal, and turning at an interchange is the designed recovery. Forward is the only direction the interstate forgives.

6. 6. On an undivided highway near the crest of a hill, when is a U-turn barred by visibility?

   1. When an approaching driver within 500 feet cannot see your vehicle
   2. When trees shade the roadway near the crest
   3. When the road's posted speed limit is over 45 mph
   4. When another vehicle is approaching within 100 feet
   Show answer

   When an approaching driver within 500 feet cannot see your vehicle. Near a crest on an undivided highway, the U-turn restriction applies when an approaching driver within 500 feet cannot see your vehicle. Tree shade is not the standard, because the rule measures whether another driver can see the vehicle. The posted speed limit also does not decide this restriction, and 100 feet is not the distance stated in the passage. The relevant check is the approaching driver's visibility of your vehicle from the required distance.

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

7. 7. What is the last wheel movement to center your vehicle in a parallel parking space?

   1. Turn the wheels left and back toward the curb until the tire makes contact
   2. Turn the wheels right and back until touching the curb
   3. Hold the wheels straight and roll to the rear bumper
   4. Turn the wheels to the right and pull toward the center of the space
   Show answer

   Turn the wheels to the right and pull toward the center of the space. After backing in, turn the wheels right and pull forward toward the center of the space so the vehicle settles evenly between its neighbors. Another left turn with reverse drives the rear deeper and risks the curb or the vehicle behind. Rolling straight backward only closes the gap you need in front for leaving later. Backing until contact treats the curb as a stop block, which it is not. That short forward pull finishes the job and leaves balanced room on both ends.

8. 8. Your engine died on the road and will not restart after you stop. What should you do next?

   1. Leave the vehicle dark so the battery recovers
   2. Push the vehicle alone along the travel lane
   3. Raise the hood and turn on the emergency flashers
   4. Wait inside with the engine cranking continuously
   Show answer

   Raise the hood and turn on the emergency flashers. Raise the hood and switch on the emergency flashers, the universal roadside signals that your vehicle is disabled and needs room. A dark vehicle on the roadside is an invitation to be struck. Pushing a car along a live lane on foot exposes you to the traffic that already passed the hazard. Endless cranking only finishes the battery without moving you to safety. Once visible and marked, get yourself clear of traffic flow and summon help; the raised hood speaks to every approaching driver before you say a word.

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

9. 9. What can wearing the shoulder harness the wrong way cause in a crash?

   1. Minor skin irritation where the belt crosses
   2. Serious internal injuries from the misrouted belt
   3. Automatic air bag failure in the vehicle
   4. A citation instead of any physical harm
   Show answer

   Serious internal injuries from the misrouted belt. A misrouted harness can produce serious internal injuries, because webbing meant to load the shoulder and rib cage instead presses into soft abdomen or concentrates force across unprotected ribs. Minor irritation trivializes documented trauma. Air bags operate on their own sensors and do not fail because a belt is misworn. Citations address the legal side after the fact, not the physics during impact. The belt is an engineered load path; wear it on the bones designed for it, or it becomes a blade.

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

10. 10. Why drive slower than the posted limit through playground and residential areas?

    1. Children could run out from between parked vehicles, so be prepared to stop quickly
    2. Posted limits are suspended near playgrounds during every hour of the school day
    3. Residents are allowed to direct traffic there
    4. Slower driving is required only during school hours
    Show answer

    Children could run out from between parked vehicles, so be prepared to stop quickly. Playgrounds and residential blocks hide children behind parked vehicles, and a child sprinting from that curtain arrives faster than brakes can answer at the full limit. Slowing below the posted number and staying ready to stop quickly converts a surprise into a survivable stop. The limit remains legal; conditions simply argue for less. Residents gain no traffic authority from their address. School hours focus risk but driveways release children at every hour. Treat each parked row on a family street as a door that can open into your lane without knocking.

    Study this in the handbook: Controlling speed

11. 11. Why should you avoid slowing down or stopping quickly near a bicyclist?

    1. Bicycle brakes need less distance than vehicle brakes
    2. Your vehicle brakes are stronger and could cause a crash
    3. Bicyclists expect vehicles to stop suddenly ahead of them
    4. Quick stops leave more room for a following bicyclist
    Show answer

    Your vehicle brakes are stronger and could cause a crash. Your vehicle can shed speed far more abruptly than a bicycle can. Braking hard or stopping suddenly near a rider can force that rider into a panic stop, a swerve, or a fall, because bicycle brakes cannot match your stopping power. Expecting a rider to handle a sudden stop, as one choice claims, reverses that gap in ability. Keep changes smooth near bicycles, signal early, leave extra space, and let the rider keep a steady line.

    Study this in the handbook: Controlling speed

12. 12. What do the lenses of a pedestrian hybrid beacon do before anyone activates it?

    1. Flash yellow continuously throughout the day and night
    2. Remain dark until a pedestrian calls
    3. Show a steady green for drivers
    4. Cycle red and yellow every minute
    Show answer

    Remain dark until a pedestrian calls. A pedestrian hybrid beacon rests completely dark until a person on foot pushes the call button, so a black signal head at a marked midblock crossing is normal, not broken. Continuous flashing yellow would be a different device entirely. No steady green ever faces drivers from this beacon. It does not cycle on a timer either; activation is demand driven. Dark lenses mean you may proceed with ordinary caution, watching the sidewalks, because the moment a pedestrian calls, the sequence wakes and your duty to stop follows quickly.

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

13. 13. You parked on a hill and are ready to leave. What should you do before pulling out?

    1. Release the brake and roll out without signaling
    2. Turn the wheels sharply left before moving
    3. Put your turn signal on, check mirrors and blind spots
    4. Sound the horn and pull out quickly
    Show answer

    Put your turn signal on, check mirrors and blind spots. Leaving a hill space is a merge, and it starts with communication. Signal, sweep the mirrors, and check the blind spots before releasing into the traffic lane, then pull out only when the way is safe. Rolling out unsignaled surprises drivers who had no warning. A sharp left wheel turn before moving can swing the vehicle wider than the lane allows. A horn blast with a quick exit substitutes noise for observation. The same scan you used to pull in protects you on the way out, hill or no hill.

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

14. 14. What does a reflective orange triangle on the rear of a vehicle tell you about its speed?

    1. It is traveling between 30 and 45 mph
    2. It is limited to 15 mph on any road
    3. It is a parked maintenance vehicle
    4. It is traveling less than 25 mph
    Show answer

    It is traveling less than 25 mph. The fluorescent or reflective orange and red triangle identifies a slow-moving vehicle traveling less than 25 mph. Farm equipment, animal-drawn vehicles, and construction equipment may display it. A speed between 30 and 45 mph is above the warning's stated range, while 15 mph invents a fixed limit that the manual does not give. A parked maintenance vehicle is not what the triangle identifies. When you see the emblem, slow down and wait until passing is safe.

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

15. 15. On a horizontally mounted traffic signal in a metropolitan area, where is the red light?

    1. On the left end of the signal
    2. On the right end of the signal
    3. In the middle of the signal
    4. At the bottom of the signal
    Show answer

    On the left end of the signal. Signals are not always stacked vertically. Where a city hangs them sideways, the lens order runs red at the left end, yellow in the middle, and green at the right end, so a driver reads the same sequence from left to right instead of top to bottom. The right end choice describes the green lens in that layout, and the middle choice is where yellow sits. A bottom position belongs to a vertical signal, where green is lowest. If you are new to a city with sideways signals, find the lit lens and match its slot before you move.

    Study this in the handbook: Traffic signals and arrows

16. 16. What does it mean if you cannot see a truck driver’s face in the side view mirror?

    1. The truck driver cannot see your vehicle
    2. The truck driver has made eye contact with you
    3. You are far enough ahead to merge in front of the truck
    4. The truck’s right blind spot is empty
    Show answer

    The truck driver cannot see your vehicle. The side mirror provides a practical visibility check: if you cannot see the truck driver's face, the driver cannot see your vehicle in that mirror. The absence of eye contact is not proof that you are safely ahead, and it does not mean the blind spot is empty. A truck's right-side blind area can extend behind the cab and along the vehicle. Move through the area or fall back instead of remaining beside a truck whose driver cannot see you.

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

17. 17. Which test types can determine an alcohol concentration reading?

    1. Only a roadside breath screening device
    2. A field sobriety walk and turn only
    3. A breath, blood, or urine test
    4. A pupil reaction check by flashlight
    Show answer

    A breath, blood, or urine test. An alcohol concentration test usually comes from breath, blood, or urine, each measuring how much alcohol sits in your system. Roadside breath screening is only the preliminary cousin of the evidential testing that follows. Walk and turn exercises observe coordination; they produce no concentration number at all. A flashlight pupil check likewise yields impressions, not a percentage. When an officer requests the chemical test after arrest, the number it returns becomes the evidence that the impairment argument is built upon in court.

    Study this in the handbook: Alcohol, zero tolerance and implied consent

18. 18. Which action is an allowed exception to the bicycle path or lane restriction?

    1. Driving through a traffic jam
    2. Using hazard flashers
    3. Entering or leaving an alley or driveway
    4. Passing when cyclists are absent
    Show answer

    Entering or leaving an alley or driveway. Entering or leaving an alley or driveway is one of the exceptions to the rule against stopping, parking, or driving on a designated bicycle path or lane. The manual also lists official duties, police direction, and an emergency. A traffic jam does not create permission to use the path. Hazard flashers do not create permission either, and the absence of visible cyclists does not remove the designation. The exception is tied to the listed action, not to convenience or appearance.

    Study this in the handbook: Controlling speed

19. 19. What driving time may count toward the 180 days required on a Motorcycle Instruction Permit?

    1. Time spent riding as a motorcycle passenger
    2. Time spent watching another rider practice
    3. Time driving alone after a permit expires
    4. Time driven on a car Instruction Permit
    Show answer

    Time driven on a car Instruction Permit. Driving time earned on a car Instruction Permit may substitute for the 180 days required on a Motorcycle Instruction Permit. Passenger time tempts new riders because the motorcycle is moving, yet the passenger never operates it and gains no qualifying driving time. Driving after expiry lacks a valid permit, and watching practice builds observation rather than credited operation. Log car permit dates carefully; those recorded days carry the value here.

20. 20. An applicant appears physically impaired during the licensing process. What may the examiner do?

    1. Issue the license without any evaluation of the applicant's actual ability
    2. Require the applicant to test to show driving capability
    3. Deny all future applications permanently
    4. Ask the applicant to bring a passenger instead
    Show answer

    Require the applicant to test to show driving capability. Examiners cannot license anyone physically incapable of driving, and when a license seeker shows signs of physical impairment the examiner may require testing to measure actual capability. Issuing without evaluation would abandon the safety gate licensing exists to provide. Permanent denial without a test punishes appearance rather than measuring ability. A passenger never substitutes for the applicant's own demonstrated control. The test decides: some impaired applicants drive safely with restrictions or equipment, and the examination is how the state learns which outcome is honest.

    Study this in the handbook: License rules, insurance and the point system