Where should the lap portion of a properly worn lap-and-shoulder belt rest?
Correct answer: Low and snug across the hips.
The lap portion belongs low across the hips, not over the abdomen. Wear the shoulder portion correctly as well; hiding it behind the back defeats part of the restraint.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 45: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Adult Safety Points ↗
A tractor driver ahead extends the left arm straight out. What should you consider before attempting to pass?
Correct answer: The driver may be signaling a left turn.
A tractor driver's left-turn signal can be mistaken for an invitation to pass. Do not make that assumption; anticipate the tractor's intended turn and wait until passing can be done safely.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 51: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Safe Driving Around Farm Equipment ↗
Your mirrors show no vehicle beside you. What additional check is needed before a lane change?
Correct answer: A brief shoulder check of the area the mirrors do not show.
Mirrors do not reveal every area near the rear corners of the car. Briefly check the blind spot before changing lanes while continuing to monitor the roadway ahead.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 68: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Defensive Driving - Scanning ↗
You are approaching your exit in free-flowing traffic and the exit has a separate deceleration lane. Where should you normally reduce to the ramp's safe speed?
Correct answer: In the deceleration lane after leaving the through lane.
Signal in advance and move into the exit lane safely, then slow for the ramp. Under the stated free-flowing conditions, avoid an unnecessary slowdown in the through lane; congestion or other hazards may require earlier slowing.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 64: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Interstate Highways ↗
The last car of a train has just cleared one track at a crossing with several tracks. What danger remains?
Correct answer: Another train may approach on a different track or follow the first.
Do not assume the crossing is clear as soon as one train passes. Another train may be approaching; continue to obey the warning devices and check that crossing is safe.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 61: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Railroad Crossing Safety - after a train passes ↗
Your car has functioning four-wheel ABS and you must make an emergency stop. How should you apply the brake pedal?
Correct answer: Use firm, continuous pressure rather than pumping it.
For a car with functioning four-wheel ABS, maintain firm, steady brake pressure. Pumping or repeatedly releasing the pedal interferes with the system; know the instructions for your particular vehicle.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 66: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Vehicle Equipment - Anti-lock Braking System; NHTSA Winter Weather Driving Tips - Safety Technologies ↗
Parked vehicles narrow your side of the road, and an oncoming car leaves too little room to pass them safely at the same time. What should you do?
Correct answer: Wait in a safe position until the oncoming car has passed.
When there is not enough room to negotiate both hazards safely, separate them in time. Wait safely for the oncoming vehicle, then proceed with adequate clearance.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 69: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Defensive Driving - Adjusting ↗
Rain has ended, but your route still has wet pavement and puddles. What is the prudent choice about cruise control?
Correct answer: Leave it off while the wet-road conditions continue.
The handbook advises against cruise control in rain or on the wet road afterward. Puddles and reduced traction can remain after the shower stops, so do not treat the end of rainfall as the end of the hazard.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 72: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Hydroplaning ↗
After safely stopping off the road, you see an injured wild animal nearby. What should you do?
Correct answer: Keep your distance and report it rather than approaching.
An injured wild animal may be dangerous. Remain safely away and report the situation to appropriate assistance; do not approach or attempt to handle it.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 75: Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Wildlife - If you hit an animal or come across an injured one ↗
You are judging a gap before crossing the path of an approaching tractor-trailer. What visual trap should you avoid?
Correct answer: Its large size can make it appear slower than it is.
A large truck can appear to be traveling more slowly than it actually is. Assess a genuinely safe gap instead of relying on that impression or expecting the truck to compensate for your move.
Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, Revised May 2025 (printing 09/25), printed p. 91: Chapter 6 - Sharing the Road, Trucks and Other Vehicles ↗
An operating circular signal at an intersection is flashing yellow toward you. What does that displayed indication mean?
Correct answer: Proceed cautiously and yield to conflicting traffic
Flashing yellow permits cautious movement while yielding as required. This question concerns an actual flashing-yellow display, not a dark malfunctioning signal or a flashing-red display.
Source: NCDMV Driver Handbook, revised May 2025, printing 09/25, current-linked 108-page PDF metadata modified September 10, 2026; Chapter 5 Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings; printed 81 / physical PDF 83; Flashing Signals - yellow. Current corroboration read September 13, 2026: G.S. 20-158(b)(4); NCDOT May 10, 2024 malfunction-flash program read for context, not used to erase the actual statutory yellow meaning. ↗
The road appears empty as you approach this sign. How does that affect its stop requirement?
Correct answer: It still requires a complete stop
A STOP sign requires a full stop even on an apparently empty road. Check and yield as required before continuing; no arbitrary minimum waiting time is added.
Source: NCDMV Driver Handbook, revised May 2025, printing 09/25, current-linked 108-page PDF metadata modified September 10, 2026; Chapter 5 Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings; printed 83 / physical PDF 85; Regulatory Signs - STOP. Current corroboration read September 13, 2026: G.S. 20-158(b)(1). ↗
You see this yellow sign before a bend that hides the next intersection. What should you prepare for?
Correct answer: A stop sign ahead that will require a stop
This is an advance warning of a stop sign. It lets you prepare before the actual control becomes visible; it is not the stop line or a road-closure instruction.
Source: NCDMV Driver Handbook, revised May 2025, printing 09/25, current-linked 108-page PDF metadata modified September 10, 2026; Chapter 5 Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings; printed 84 / physical PDF 86; Warning Signs - STOP AHEAD. ↗
This circular yellow sign appears before you reach any tracks. What is it telling you?
Correct answer: A railroad crossing is ahead
The round RR warning is placed in advance of a railroad crossing. It is different from the crossbuck at the crossing and does not by itself state that a train is present.
Source: NCDMV Driver Handbook, revised May 2025, printing 09/25, current-linked 108-page PDF metadata modified September 10, 2026; Chapter 5 Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings; printed 84 / physical PDF 86; Warning Signs - round railroad advance warning. ↗
At night, the pavement markers facing your car appear red. What warning should that color give you?
Correct answer: You may be traveling in the wrong direction
The handbook identifies red pavement markers as a wrong-way indication. Treat that warning seriously and assess a safe correction; it is not an instruction to make an abrupt turn across traffic.
Source: NCDMV Driver Handbook, revised May 2025, printing 09/25, current-linked 108-page PDF metadata modified September 10, 2026; Chapter 5 Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings; printed 88 / physical PDF 90; Pavement Markings - reflective marker colors. ↗
