Your car has working foot brakes but a defective parking brake. Does that meet Missouri's requirement for two adequate braking systems?
Correct answer: No; both required braking systems must be kept in working order.
The two required sets of brakes must remain adequate and functional. One working system does not excuse neglecting the other.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 3, adequate brakes in working order. ↗
Which condition calls for attention before using a car with a suspected steering defect?
Correct answer: Excessive free play or binding in the steering mechanism.
Too much looseness or binding can interfere with reliable control. Have a steering defect assessed and corrected rather than adapting your driving around it.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Steering Mechanism. ↗
A badly broken area of windshield interferes with your view of the road. What is the appropriate response?
Correct answer: Have the damaged viewing area properly repaired or replaced before driving.
The driver needs a usable forward viewing area. Do not treat an obstructed view as acceptable merely because the vehicle can still move.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Windshield. ↗
Your windshield wipers no longer clear water properly. What should you do?
Correct answer: Restore their proper operation before driving in conditions that need them.
Wipers must work so the driver can maintain a clear view. Speed, stronger lights or following another vehicle cannot replace that function.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Windshield Wipers. ↗
You find a leaking fuel hose while checking your parked car. What is the safe choice before a trip?
Correct answer: Do not drive it until the leak is properly repaired.
Fuel lines, hoses, connections and tanks must be firmly attached and free of leaks. An engine that starts is not evidence that a leaking system is safe.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Fuel System. ↗
May you use an open muffler cutout on a Missouri road to make your ordinary car louder?
Correct answer: No; the muffler must work and the cutout must not be used.
Missouri prohibits using muffler cutouts and requires properly attached mufflers. A modification is not acceptable merely because it leaves the engine running.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 2, mufflers and cutouts. ↗
A load prevents you from seeing the road behind by looking back or around the side. What equipment must provide that view?
Correct answer: A properly adjusted mirror visible from the driver's seat.
The mirror must actually reveal the road behind from the driving position. Its presence alone is not enough if it is poorly adjusted or obstructed.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 4, mirrors when construction or load blocks rearward view. ↗
Your gasoline car has factory-installed air-pollution controls. Should you remove them to simplify the engine compartment?
Correct answer: No; keep the required controls as originally installed.
The guide requires applicable pollution-control equipment to remain as installed by the manufacturer. A safety or registration document is not permission to remove it.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Air Pollution Control Devices. ↗
What headlamp arrangement is required for an ordinary passenger car in Missouri?
Correct answer: At least two approved headlamps, with one on each side at the same level.
An ordinary car needs the paired front arrangement. Do not apply the separate motorcycle rule to a passenger car.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.045, subsection 1, ordinary motor vehicle headlamps. ↗
From how far behind must a car's lighted red taillamps be plainly visible?
Correct answer: 500 feet.
Required rear lamps must show red light visible from 500 feet. This is different from the shorter distance specified for reading the rear license plate.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.075, subsection 1, rear lamps. ↗
What must the light on a car's rear license plate do?
Correct answer: Use white light to make the plate readable from 50 feet behind.
The plate needs white illumination and legibility from 50 feet. Working taillamps do not excuse a missing plate-light function.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.075, subsection 1, white light on the rear registration marker. ↗
Before a trip, why should you check the car's brake lights and turn signals as well as its headlights?
Correct answer: They communicate slowing and turning to other road users.
The manufacturer-installed brake and turn lights must function. A dashboard indication alone does not prove that the exterior lamps are working.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 86, printed page 84; Equipment Needed; Signaling Devices. ↗
Missouri issues two plates for your ordinary passenger car. Where should they be securely mounted?
Correct answer: One on the front and one on the rear.
A two-plate passenger car must display the plates at the front and rear. Truck and other vehicle exceptions do not turn this car into a one-plate vehicle.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 301.130, subsection 5, front and rear display. ↗
A decorative frame hides part of your license plate. What should you do?
Correct answer: Remove or change it so the entire plate remains clearly visible.
All parts of the plate must remain plainly visible and reasonably clean, without impairing reflectivity. Decoration must not defeat identification.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 301.130, subsection 5, visibility and reflective qualities. ↗
May you drive a car with metal-studded tires on Missouri public roads in July?
Correct answer: No; July is within the prohibited studded-tire season.
Metal or carbide studs are prohibited between April 1 and November 1. This question does not prohibit ordinary nonstudded winter tires.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.171, subsection 1, prohibited season. ↗
A secured load extends six feet behind your vehicle on a clear day when lights are not required. What marks its end?
Correct answer: A red flag or cloth at least 16 inches square.
An overhang exceeding five feet needs the daytime red marker at its end. Marking does not replace securing the load.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 5, daytime projection marking. ↗
A secured load extends six feet behind your vehicle after dark when lights are required. What must mark the projecting end?
Correct answer: A red light at or near the end of the load.
During required-lighting conditions, use the red light on the projection. The rule is not limited to clear nighttime weather; other required-lighting conditions also matter.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 5, projection light. ↗
For an ordinary car-to-car tow, not a wrecker or exempt farm-implement arrangement, what is the maximum connecting-device length?
Correct answer: 15 feet.
The connecting device may not exceed 15 feet in this situation. Both vehicles must display required lights; a legal length does not establish that an unsafe towing setup is acceptable.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsections 6 and 7, towline limit and exceptions. ↗
Your car tows a registered trailer with an ordinary bumper-supported ball hitch, not an exempt coupling. What additional connection is required?
Correct answer: A suitable safety chain, cable or equivalent backup connection.
A secondary connection must be strong enough to control the trailer if the primary coupling fails. Electrical wiring is not a substitute for a suitable safety connection.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.170, subsection 6, secondary coupling device. ↗
Your car has a spotlight. How must you aim and use it near other people?
Correct answer: Keep it from dazzling or glaring into anyone's eyes.
A permitted spotlight still has a glare restriction. Extra lighting must not interfere with another person's ability to see.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.090, subsection 1, avoiding dazzling or glaring light. ↗
A normal passenger car is within ten years following its model year but has 160,000 miles. Does it qualify for the age-and-mileage safety-inspection exemption?
Correct answer: No; that exemption also requires fewer than 150,000 miles.
Both age and mileage conditions must be met. Other specific exemptions have separate rules; recently rebuilt prior-salvage vehicles are not covered simply by satisfying this age-and-mileage test.
Source: Missouri Revised Statutes, section 307.350, subsection 1(1), ten-year and mileage conditions. ↗
Outside the special dealer-purchase rule, how long is a Missouri safety-inspection certificate valid for a registration application?
Correct answer: 60 days from the inspection date.
The ordinary certificate period is 60 days. A qualifying dealer purchase has a separate 90-day provision; do not confuse certificate submission timing with the biennial inspection cycle.
Source: Missouri DOR, Motor Vehicle - Additional Help Resource; Safety Inspections; standard Certificate of Inspection and Approval; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
Where should you first look for guidance on whether your next Missouri registration renewal needs an inspection?
Correct answer: Your DOR registration renewal notice and current official requirements.
The renewal notice helps identify applicable requirements. Check current official exemption rules if circumstances differ, rather than assuming every vehicle follows the same schedule.
Source: Missouri Driver Guide, August 2026; PDF page 85, printed page 83; Safety Inspections; renewal notice guidance. ↗
Which list gives Missouri's current emissions-inspection registration areas, subject to vehicle exemptions?
Correct answer: St. Louis City and St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson counties.
Current DOR guidance lists these four areas. Franklin County is not on the current list, although it remains in an older guide summary. Vehicle exemptions must still be checked.
Source: Missouri DOR, Motor Vehicle - Additional Help Resource; Emissions Inspections; covered registration areas; reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
For a purchased vehicle transferred on an out-of-state title, what does an ID/OD inspection verify?
Correct answer: The vehicle identification number and odometer reading.
ID/OD refers to vehicle identity and mileage, not the driver's examination. A transfer on a Manufacturer's Statement of Origin has a separate exception; other safety or emissions requirements may also apply.
Source: Missouri DOR, Motor Vehicle - Additional Help Resource; Identification Number/Odometer Reading Inspection (ID/OD); reviewed September 15, 2026. ↗
