Virginia Permit Practice Test 3
A third full-length Virginia practice test: 30 more questions with zero repeats from Tests 1 or 2 — including extra Virginia-specific rules. Check the DMV site for the current question count and passing score.
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. Several vehicles reach a four-way stop at different times. Who has the right-of-way?
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Correct answer: B. At an all-way stop, the vehicle that arrives and stops first proceeds first, with others following in arrival order. This first-come, first-served system prevents confusion. Think of it as taking a number at a busy counter.
2. How does NHTSA say alcohol changes the abilities needed to drive?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drunk-driving guidance says Alcohol is a substance that reduces the function of the brain, impairing thinking, reasoning and muscle coordination. All these abilities are essential to operating a vehicle safely.
3. You are driving at night with high beams on when a vehicle approaches from the other direction. What should you do?
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Correct answer: B. Dim to low beams for oncoming traffic so you do not blind another driver. If glare hits you, look toward the right edge of your lane to stay on course. Courtesy with light keeps everyone able to see.
4. Do automated driver-assistance features remove your duty to watch the road, according to NHTSA?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA automated-vehicle guidance says Every vehicle currently for sale in the United States requires the full attention of the driver at all times for safe operation. Even the highest level of driving automation available to consumers requires the full engagement and undivided attention of drivers.
5. How close to a fire hydrant may you park in Virginia?
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Correct answer: A. Virginia’s parking list includes no parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant, within 20 feet of an intersection, or within 50 feet of a railroad crossing. Fifteen, twenty, and fifty are three different spots — do not reuse one number for all three.
6. What is the highest posted highway speed limit in Virginia?
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Correct answer: A. Virginia's highest posted highway limit is 70 mph. Most stretches are lower, and work zones or weather can cut it further. Do not assume every freeway in Virginia is signed at the state maximum.
7. You turn onto a quiet Virginia street lined with houses and no speed sign. Unless a local rule posts something else, the usual default is:
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Correct answer: B. Unposted residential streets in Virginia are generally 25 mph. Watch for school and work-zone drops. When houses line the road and no sign argues otherwise, think 25 mph.
8. For a driver 21 or older in Virginia, the per-se BAC limit is:
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Correct answer: A. Virginia sets the adult per-se limit at 0.08%. That is a legal line, not a recommendation to drink up to it. Impairment starts earlier, and Virginia can still charge you for unsafe driving below the number.
9. You have been driving through a no-passing zone. Which sign tells you the zone has ended and passing is allowed again when safe?
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Correct answer: D. A white regulatory sign reading PASS WITH CARE marks the end of a no-passing zone. You may pass again, but only when the road ahead is clear. The word CARE reminds you the choice is still yours to judge.
10. In Virginia, supervised behind-the-wheel practice with a permit can begin once a teen reaches which age?
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Correct answer: C. Supervised practice starts at 15½ in Virginia, once the teen holds a learner's permit. Every practice hour with a licensed adult builds judgment that classroom study alone cannot teach, which is why the permit stage exists.
11. If headlights fail, what first step does the official AZ driver manual (nationally taught headlight-failure technique) list?
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Correct answer: A. Official Arizona Driver License Manual wording — taught the same way in many state manuals — says Try the high beam/low beam switch. This may restore normal function. Turn the headlight switch on and off several times. If neither of these steps work, put on the parking lights, emergency flashers or turn signals; pull to the side of the road and stop.
12. At a BAC of .02, what typical effect does NHTSA list first?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drunk-driving guidance says .02 Some loss of judgment; relaxation, slight body warmth, altered mood. Testers invent leftover first-skill folklore. Learn that official wording, then answer the knowledge test from those words.
13. A person with a white cane is about to cross the street ahead of you. What must you do?
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Correct answer: A. A white cane or guide dog marks a pedestrian who is blind, and that person has the right-of-way every time. Stop if needed and do not honk, which can confuse them. White cane means your brakes, not your horn.
14. About how far before a Virginia turn should you signal?
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Correct answer: A. Virginia says you should signal at least three or four seconds — 100 feet — ahead of the turn, then check left and right for pedestrians and traffic. A last-second flick does not give others time to react.
15. A yellow diamond sign shows a car with wavy skid marks trailing behind its tires. When does this warning matter most?
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Correct answer: D. The skidding-car sign warns that the road ahead becomes slippery when wet, so slow down and avoid sudden braking or sharp steering in rain, snow, or ice. The first minutes of rain are often the slickest, as water lifts oil off the pavement.
16. A brown sign with white recreation symbols appears beside the highway. What kind of information is it giving?
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Correct answer: B. Brown signs point to cultural and recreation destinations. They do not change the speed limit or right-of-way. Use them to find the park; keep obeying the white and yellow signs for the rules.
17. On its fastest highways, Virginia allows a top posted speed limit of which value?
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Correct answer: A. The highest speed limit in Virginia is 70 mph, and only certain highways are posted that high. Most roads carry lower limits, so drive by the signs in front of you, and slow down when conditions worsen.
18. You come to an intersection where the signal is flashing red. How should you treat it?
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Correct answer: D. A flashing red light works exactly like a stop sign: stop fully, yield to traffic and pedestrians, then proceed when the way is clear. Flashing red still means red, so a complete stop is required.
19. How much of a traffic lane is a motorcycle entitled to use?
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Correct answer: D. A motorcycle is entitled to a complete traffic lane, and you may not squeeze past one inside that lane. Riders need the full width to dodge hazards. Treat a motorcycle's lane like a car's lane: whole and off-limits.
20. You are studying for the Virginia permit knowledge exam and want to schedule it as early as the law allows. You can hold a learner's permit beginning at which age?
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Correct answer: C. In Virginia, 15½ is the earliest age for a learner's permit, so plan your knowledge exam around that date. Study the official handbook, since permit questions come from it, and arrive with the required documents ready.
21. In Virginia, a driver who is 21 or older commits a per-se drunk-driving offense once their blood alcohol concentration reaches which level?
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Correct answer: B. 'Per se' means the number alone proves the offense. In Virginia, that number is 0.08%. No other proof of bad driving is needed at that level, and alcohol can still impair you below it.
22. What is parallel parking, according to the official CA handbook wording used nationwide?
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Correct answer: A. Official California Driver Handbook wording says Parallel parking is when you park in line with the road and other parked vehicles. State inch-from-curb finish numbers differ, so this leftover uses that nationally applicable definition instead of inventing a national inch rule.
23. You are passing a slower vehicle on a two-lane road. May you go over the speed limit to finish the pass quickly?
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Correct answer: D. The speed limit applies at all times, including while passing another vehicle. If you cannot complete a pass legally and safely, do not start it. Passing is a choice; speeding is not the tool that makes it legal.
24. Only one road sign is shaped like a sideways pennant, a triangle with its point aimed to the right. Which sign is it?
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Correct answer: A. The sideways yellow pennant is used for one message only: NO PASSING ZONE. It stands on the left side of the road where passing begins to be unsafe. One shape, one meaning makes it instantly recognizable.
25. Besides nighttime, when should you turn on your headlights?
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Correct answer: D. Turn on your headlights whenever conditions cut visibility, including rain, fog, snow, dusk, or dawn, because lights help other drivers spot you as much as they help you see. Handy habit: wipers on or gray sky means lights on.
26. A friend in Virginia says, 'I feel fine, so I can drive.' Feelings aside, the law sets the illegal BAC for drivers 21 and older at which number?
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Correct answer: B. Feeling fine proves nothing; alcohol dulls the very judgment you use to check yourself. In Virginia, 0.08% is the per-se limit for adults, and measurable impairment often shows up well before a driver reaches it.
27. Drivers under 21 in Virginia are held to a stricter alcohol standard than adults. What is the BAC threshold for these younger drivers?
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Correct answer: B. Adults have a higher per-se number, but the under-21 standard in Virginia is 0.02%. Alcohol is already off-limits for minors, so the driving rule matches: for young drivers, the practical limit is zero drinks.
28. You are on an entrance ramp about to merge onto a freeway. Who is responsible for yielding?
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Correct answer: A. Drivers merging onto a freeway must yield to traffic already on it, using the ramp to match speed and slide into a gap. Through traffic cannot stop safely at highway speeds, so the entering driver adapts.
29. A 19-year-old is pulled over in Virginia after a party. Under the zero-tolerance law, what BAC is enough for an underage drinking-and-driving violation?
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Correct answer: D. For drivers under 21 in Virginia, a violation begins at 0.02%. Zero-tolerance laws exist because young, inexperienced drivers face high crash risk with any alcohol. If you are underage, the only legal amount is none.
30. A yellow diamond sign shows a side lane curving in to join the main road ahead. You are on the main road. What does the sign mean?
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Correct answer: C. A merge sign warns that another roadway joins yours ahead. Entering drivers must yield, but you should adjust your speed or change lanes when safe to open a gap. Merging works best when both drivers cooperate like a zipper.
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