New Mexico MVD Permit Practice Test 30
- Questions25
- Correct to pass18
- Passing score72%
- Minimum age15 years
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1. Where should your hands normally rest on the steering wheel?
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Answer C: On opposite sides of the wheel, near the 9 and 3 positions
Hands placed opposite each other near the middle of the wheel give smooth, balanced control and keep the arms clear of a deploying air bag.
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2. Why are drivers required to turn the front wheels when parking on a grade?
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Answer A: So that a vehicle that starts to roll leaves the traffic lanes instead of entering them
The wheel position is a last line of defense if the parking brake or transmission fails, directing the vehicle into the curb or off the roadway.
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3. In a work zone a flagger signals you to stop, but the sign beside the road says the lane is open. What should you do?
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Answer C: Obey the flagger
A flagger controls the work zone in real time and the instruction outranks the signs and markings, which cannot reflect what is happening at that moment.
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4. At an intersection the signal flashes red toward you and flashes yellow toward the cross street. Who must yield?
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Answer D: You must, because the flashing red faces your road
A flashing red means stop and yield like a stop sign, while a flashing yellow lets the other road proceed with caution.
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5. Which steering method gives the most control when you must turn the wheel a long way at low speed?
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Answer C: Hand over hand, feeding the wheel from one hand to the other
Hand over hand keeps both hands on the wheel through a large turn, so you never lose the ability to correct quickly.
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6. Which sign tells you that the vehicles ahead are part of a funeral procession?
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Answer C: Headlights burning in daylight, with small flags or markers on the vehicles
Processions are normally identified by daytime headlights, hazard lights and flags or windshield markers, not by emergency lights or sirens.
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7. Traffic is heavy and crawling where a sign warns that your lane ends and two lanes must become one. What is the best practice?
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Answer C: Use the lane to the end, then take turns merging one by one
In stop-and-go traffic the zipper merge, using both lanes up to the merge point and then alternating, keeps the queue shorter and traffic moving; in free-flowing traffic move over as soon as it is safe.
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8. You are on a one-way street with two marked lanes. May you pass a slower vehicle on the right?
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Answer A: Yes, using the right lane, provided that the move is safe and signaled
On a roadway with two or more marked lanes in your direction, moving into the free lane and going by is a normal lane change rather than an unlawful pass.
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9. What does a New Mexico driver need to reinstate a license after a five-year or ten-year revocation?
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Answer A: A certified Order of Restoration signed by a District Judge
Reinstating after a five-year or ten-year New Mexico revocation requires a certified Order of Restoration signed by a District Judge.
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10. How many qualifying documents must a New Mexico REAL ID applicant provide to prove state residency?
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Answer D: Two documents
New Mexico's REAL ID rules require an applicant to provide two qualifying documents, each showing the applicant's name and a New Mexico address.
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11. 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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12. A marked accessible space is signed as van accessible. What is different about it?
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Answer B: It has a wider aisle for a ramp or a lift to come out
The extra width beside the space is there so a side ramp or lift can deploy and a wheelchair can get clear of the vehicle.
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13. Which statement about standard drinks is correct?
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Answer C: A standard serving of beer, of table wine and of distilled spirits each contain about the same amount of pure alcohol
Roughly 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of table wine and 1.5 ounces of 80 proof spirits each contain about the same amount of pure alcohol, so the type of drink does not change the effect.
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14. Why does safety guidance say a child should ride in the back seat rather than in front of an active passenger airbag?
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Answer D: Because the airbag inflates with enough force to injure a small child badly
Airbags deploy at very high speed and are sized for adults, so a child seated close to one can be badly hurt by the bag itself, which is why the back seat is recommended for children.
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15. About how far ahead do low beam headlights let you see on a dark road?
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Answer B: About 250 feet
Low beams light roughly 250 feet of road, and high beams roughly 350 to 500 feet, which sets the limit on a safe night speed.
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16. What is the most common cause of rear-end collisions?
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Answer C: Following too closely to stop in time
A driver who leaves too little space has no room to perceive, react and brake when the vehicle ahead slows, which is why space management prevents rear-end crashes.
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17. You will leave your vehicle for several hours after dark. Where is the best place to park it?
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Answer D: In a well-lit spot with people and cameras nearby
Light, passing people and cameras all discourage theft and make your own return to the vehicle safer.
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18. You come back to find that your parked car has rolled out into the street. What most likely went wrong?
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Answer C: The parking brake was not set and the wheels were not turned
The parking brake, a gear or park, and turned front wheels are three separate safeguards, and a runaway means at least the first two were missing.
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19. A school bus ahead of you has its red lights flashing and its stop arm extended. What are you required to do?
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Answer A: Stop and stay stopped until the lights stop flashing and the bus starts moving
Flashing red lights and an extended stop arm mean children are getting on or off, so traffic must stop and wait until the bus withdraws the signals and moves again.
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20. Why does the situation ahead of this sign deserve extra care from a motorcyclist?
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Answer C: Because a narrow machine is easy to overlook in a mirror or a blind spot
A motorcycle fills very little of a mirror and disappears easily into a blind spot, so the rider should adjust speed and lane position to stay visible where the streams come together.
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21. A yield sign is posted where an entrance ramp meets the highway. What must you do?
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Answer C: Give way to the traffic already on the highway and merge into a gap
The yield sign confirms that the merging driver is the one who must fit into the traffic stream rather than the other way round.
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22. How much should you normally reduce your speed on a road covered with packed snow compared with dry conditions?
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Answer C: By about half
Packed snow roughly doubles the distance needed to stop, so a common guideline is to cut speed by about half. On ice, slow to a crawl.
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23. Driving at night you notice that the raised markers along the line beside you are throwing back red light. What does that tell you?
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Answer C: You are facing traffic and must get off that roadway
Red retroreflection is shown only toward traffic that should not be there, so a red return means the vehicle is heading the wrong way.
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24. How does a wet road change the distance you need to stop?
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Answer C: It lengthens it, so you need a much bigger gap ahead
Water between the tire and the road cuts grip, so braking distance grows and the gap that works on dry pavement is no longer enough.
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25. What is meant by keeping a space cushion?
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Answer C: Keeping open space on all sides of your vehicle so you always have somewhere to go
Open space ahead, behind and to the sides gives you time to react and an escape path when a hazard appears, which is the core idea of defensive driving.