South Carolina Permit Practice Test 2
A second full-length South Carolina practice test: 30 fresh multiple-choice questions with zero repeats from Test 1. You need 80% correct to pass the real SCDMV Knowledge Test.
Tap an answer. The explanation opens so you can learn it, then go on. Keyboard: A–D or 1–4 to answer, then Enter or Space.
Question 1 of 30
1. What does a posted speed limit actually tell you?
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Correct answer: A. A posted limit is the top legal speed when conditions are ideal: dry pavement, good visibility, light traffic. In worse conditions, a safe speed is lower. Treat the number as a ceiling to stay under, not a target to hit.
2. You have signaled and checked your mirrors before a lane change. What is the one step left before you move over?
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Correct answer: C. Mirrors leave blind spots big enough to hide a whole car, so turn your head for a quick over-the-shoulder check before moving over. Signal, mirrors, head check: the lane change is not done until your neck moves.
3. A 17-year-old in South Carolina claims, 'I only need to stay under the adult limit.' Under zero tolerance, the BAC that actually applies to under-21 drivers is what?
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Correct answer: C. The adult limit is irrelevant for minors. South Carolina's zero-tolerance law applies at 0.02% for drivers under 21, because any alcohol raises a new driver's crash risk. If you are under 21, drinking and driving do not mix.
4. You must park on a hill where the road has no curb. Which way should you turn your wheels?
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Correct answer: A. With no curb to catch the car, always turn your wheels toward the road's edge, uphill or downhill. A runaway car then rolls off the travel lanes instead of into traffic. No curb: aim for the shoulder.
5. A white vertical rectangle reads SPEED LIMIT 55. What does that number legally mean?
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Correct answer: C. A white rectangular speed limit sign is a regulatory sign, so the number is the maximum lawful speed in ideal conditions. Rain, fog, or heavy traffic can make even that speed illegal. Treat the posted number as a ceiling, not a target.
6. A South Carolina traffic signal is a flashing yellow caution signal. What may you do?
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Correct answer: A. South Carolina Code § 56-5-1000 says a flashing yellow caution signal lets drivers proceed through the intersection or past the signal only with caution. It is not a mandatory stop. Railroad crossings are carved out of this section.
7. Your street ends at a T-intersection with a through road. Who has the right-of-way?
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Correct answer: B. When your road ends at a T-intersection, traffic on the continuing through road has the right-of-way, and you must yield before turning onto it. The road that ends waits; picture the through road as the main current.
8. Traffic around you on a South Carolina highway posted at the state maximum starts flowing faster than the signs allow. Your personal legal limit remains which speed?
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Correct answer: C. Other drivers speeding does not raise your limit; on South Carolina's fastest highways it stays 70 mph. Move right and let them pass instead of matching them. Speed limits bind each driver individually, whatever the surrounding traffic does.
9. You fail your South Carolina road (skills) test on the first attempt. How long must you wait before retesting?
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Correct answer: A. In South Carolina the wait grows with each skills-test failure: two business days after the first, seven calendar days after the second, and 30 days after the third. Spacing forces real practice between tries. Remember the ladder 2-7-30.
10. A white rectangular sign reads WRONG WAY. You have just entered a ramp. What is the safest first move?
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Correct answer: C. WRONG WAY means you are driving toward oncoming traffic. Stop without blocking others if you can, then leave the roadway the way you came or wait for help. Continuing forward is how head-on crashes start.
11. While planning a road trip across South Carolina, you look up the fastest speed any of its highways allow. What is that statewide maximum?
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Correct answer: A. South Carolina's top speed limit is 70 mph, found only on its fastest designated highways. Expect lower posted limits on most stretches, and remember signs control: the maximum applies only where a sign actually posts it.
12. South Carolina permits a right turn on red except where a sign bans it. What must you do first?
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Correct answer: A. A right on red is legal in South Carolina only after you stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the turn and yield to pedestrians who are lawfully in the intersection. A “no turn on red” sign removes the option entirely.
13. You are making a study calendar for the South Carolina knowledge test. You can hold a learner's permit beginning at which age?
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Correct answer: B. Put 15 on the calendar for South Carolina. That is the first legal day for a learner's permit, after you pass the knowledge and vision screens the SCDMV requires.
14. Your younger sibling asks when they can get a learner's permit in South Carolina. What age do you tell them?
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Correct answer: A. Tell them 15; that is when South Carolina allows a learner's permit application. Until then, driving on public roads is off the table. Graduated licensing phases in privileges so new drivers gain experience under lower-risk conditions.
15. Headed downhill at a curb, which way does the official CA handbook (nationally taught hill technique) turn the front wheels?
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Correct answer: A. Official California Driver Handbook parking technique — taught the same way nationwide — says Headed downhill: Turn your front wheels into the curb or right toward the side of the road. Remember to set the parking brake and leave the vehicle in park, or in gear for manual transmission.
16. Why do most GDL programs limit teen passengers in the first months of licensure?
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Correct answer: A. Crash data show that extra teen passengers raise risk more than almost any other GDL factor. The limit is a safety rule, not a punishment. Fewer friends in the car means more attention on the road.
17. While driving, you notice a brown sign with white letters pointing toward a destination. What kind of place does a brown sign identify?
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Correct answer: A. Brown signs guide you to recreational and cultural spots such as parks, campgrounds, monuments, and historic sites. The earthy brown color hints at outdoor places. When you are hunting for scenery or history, follow the brown signs.
18. You are towing a small trailer on a highway posted 70 mph. What should you assume about a safe speed?
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Correct answer: B. Added weight and sway stretch your stopping distance, and some states post a lower tow limit. Even when the big number is legal, the safe number is often lower. If it sways, you are already too fast.
19. What should you do when you approach an intersection with a flashing yellow light?
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Correct answer: C. A flashing yellow light does not require a stop; it tells you to slow down, scan the intersection, and proceed carefully. It marks spots with extra risk, so treat flashing yellow as a caution flag, not a green light.
20. A school bus is stopped with red lights on the opposite side of a divided highway that has a concrete median. Must you stop?
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Correct answer: B. The median exception is the item testers and Reddit threads say people miss. A painted line is not a median. A real barrier or unpaved median means the far side typically may proceed with care. When in doubt, stop.
21. If your vehicle catches fire, what first steps does the U.S. Fire Administration list?
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Correct answer: A. Official USFA vehicle-fire guidance says Pull over as quickly as you can when it is safe. Once you have stopped, turn off the engine. Get everyone out of the vehicle. Never return to a burning vehicle. Move everyone at least 100 feet from the burning vehicle and well away from traffic. Call 911.
22. Leaving a one-way street, you see a yellow diamond sign with two vertical arrows pointing in opposite directions. What is it warning you about?
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Correct answer: A. The two-way traffic sign warns that the one-way section is ending and vehicles will now come toward you. Keep to the right and use extra care when passing. Two opposite arrows mean the road now flows both ways.
23. Where does modern guidance tell you to place your hands on the steering wheel?
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Correct answer: D. Hold the wheel near the 9 and 3 o'clock positions, level on each side. This grip gives balanced control and keeps your arms out of the path of a deploying airbag. Think low and wide, clear of the bag.
24. A South Carolina traffic signal is a flashing red stop signal. What must you do?
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Correct answer: A. South Carolina Code § 56-5-1000 treats flashing red as a stop signal. Stop at the marked line, or before the crosswalk, or at the nearest point with a view, then follow ordinary stop-sign rules. The section does not apply at railroad grade crossings, which follow § 56-5-2710.
25. In places where marijuana can be bought legally, how do the laws treat driving while high?
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Correct answer: D. Legal to use does not mean legal to drive impaired. Marijuana slows reactions and distorts judgment of time and distance, so impaired-driving laws still apply everywhere. Treat being high exactly the way you would treat being drunk.
26. You are driving through a residential district in South Carolina and see no speed limit signs. What is the default speed limit?
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Correct answer: C. Where no sign is posted, South Carolina's default residential limit is 30 mph. Homes mean driveways, pets, and kids near the road, so the default stays low. A posted sign overrides the default, so watch for one.
27. You are driving past a school crossing just as classes let out. What must you be prepared to do?
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Correct answer: C. Near school crossings you must slow to any posted school speed and stop whenever children or crossing guards are in the crosswalk. Kids are small, quick, and unpredictable, so extra caution is required. Expect the unexpected wherever students gather.
28. A 30-year-old driver in South Carolina takes a chemical test after a crash. Prosecutors can prove DUI from the test result alone once the BAC is at least which value?
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Correct answer: D. A test showing 0.08% or higher proves per-se DUI in South Carolina without any other evidence of impairment. Lawmakers chose that threshold because crash risk climbs sharply near it, though alcohol degrades driving skills at lower levels too.
29. Why does Ready.gov say to disable cruise control on slippery roads?
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Correct answer: A. Official Ready.gov car-safety guidance says Disable your vehicle’s cruise control when driving on slippery, icy or snowy roads. That’s because if you lose traction or start to skid, the cruise control will accelerate to maintain your vehicle’s speed, causing your wheels to spin even faster.
30. A GPS in South Carolina suggests 40 mph on a residential block with no posted limit. The handbook-style default you should prefer is:
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Correct answer: C. Apps guess; South Carolina's default for this kind of street is 30 mph unless a sign posts otherwise. Believe the sign first, then the state's default, then the gadget.
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