Maine BMV CDL General Knowledge Practice Test 5
Test 5 of 5. Pick an answer for each question to see if it is right and why; your score appears at the end. You need 40 correct answers to pass, the same ratio as the real Maine test.
- Questions50
- Correct to pass40
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age16 years
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1. After starting the engine, how quickly should the oil pressure gauge come up to its normal range?
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Answer B: Within a few seconds
Oil pressure should build within seconds of starting; if it stays low, the engine is not being lubricated and should be shut down.
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2. You are about to slow down sharply on a highway to make a turn into a narrow driveway. How can you warn the drivers behind you?
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Answer C: Tap the brake pedal a few times so the brake lights flash before you slow down
A few light taps flash the brake lights and give following drivers an early warning that you are about to slow or stop.
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3. After the first inspection of a trip, how often must cargo securement be checked again?
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Answer D: Every 3 hours or 150 miles or at each change of duty status, whichever happens first
The load must be re-checked at whichever of those points arrives first, so a loosening tiedown is found long before it fails.
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4. How does a typical escape ramp stop a runaway vehicle?
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Answer B: With a bed of loose gravel or sand, often on an upgrade
Escape ramps use deep loose material, usually combined with a rising grade, so the vehicle is slowed gradually instead of being stopped by impact.
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5. What is the basic rule about backing a large vehicle?
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Answer B: Avoid backing whenever there is another way
Backing is dangerous because you cannot see everything behind you, so the manual tells drivers to plan routes and parking that avoid it.
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6. Which set of maneuvers makes up the basic control skills part of the commercial driving test?
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Answer D: Straight line backing, offset backing, parallel parking and alley docking
The basic control skills test is carried out off the road and consists of low speed exercises such as straight line backing, offset backing, parallel parking and the alley dock.
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7. What actually lowers the amount of alcohol in the bloodstream?
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Answer B: Time
The liver removes alcohol at a fixed rate, so nothing but the passage of time reduces blood alcohol concentration.
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8. Why is a sudden, sharp lane change dangerous in a loaded heavy vehicle?
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Answer D: The vehicle can lean far enough to roll over, especially when the load sits high
A quick swerve throws the weight of a tall, heavy load sideways, and a rollover can begin before the tires ever slide.
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9. A tire has a cut deep enough to expose the body ply or the belt material. What does that mean?
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Answer D: The vehicle must not be driven on that tire
Once the structural plies are exposed the casing has lost its strength, and federal rules treat that tire as unfit for the road.
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10. At 55 mph, about how far does a vehicle travel during a typical 3/4 second perception time plus 3/4 second reaction time, before the brakes even begin to work?
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Answer C: About 120 feet
Each 3/4 second at 55 mph covers about 60 feet, so perception and reaction together use up roughly 120 feet before braking starts.
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11. You are pulling a loaded pneumatic dry bulk trailer and approach an exit ramp posted at 35 mph. What is the safest approach?
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Answer C: Slow to well below the posted speed before the ramp begins
A dry bulk trailer carries its weight high and the load can move, so the ramp speed posted for a car is far too fast and the slowing must be finished before the curve.
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12. Most rollovers of loaded trucks on exit and entrance ramps happen for which reason?
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Answer B: The ramp was taken faster than the load could tolerate
A posted ramp speed is set for cars, and a loaded trailer with a high center of gravity can roll at a speed a car would take easily.
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13. Why is it harder to judge speed and distance at night?
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Answer C: You see much less detail and have fewer reference points
Darkness removes the visual references that the brain uses to estimate distance and closing speed, so drivers routinely misjudge both.
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14. You are stopped in a line of traffic behind a car. How much space should you leave in front of you?
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Answer C: Enough to see where the rear tires of that car meet the road
That amount of space lets you pull around the vehicle ahead if it stalls and absorbs some of the shock if you are struck from behind.
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15. You are given a ratchet strap with a deep cut along one edge. What should you do?
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Answer C: Do not use it; a damaged tiedown cannot be relied on to hold its rated load
Cuts, burns, knots and broken stitching weaken a strap far below its marked working load limit, so it must be taken out of service.
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16. Your vehicle begins to hydroplane on a wet road. What should you do?
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Answer B: Release the accelerator and push in the clutch so the wheels can turn freely and regain grip
Hydroplaning tires are riding on water; slowing without braking lets them settle back onto the road and grip again.
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17. Your load projects more than 4 feet beyond the rear of the vehicle. How must the projecting end be marked?
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Answer A: With a red or orange flag by day and a red lamp after dark
Federal rules require a warning flag on a rear projecting load in daylight and a red lamp on the end of it when lights are required.
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18. May a commercial driver use a hand-held phone while stopped at a red light?
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Answer B: No, a stop in traffic still counts as driving
Hand-held use is allowed only when the vehicle has been moved to the side of or off the highway and halted where it can safely remain stopped.
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19. What should you check about the air hoses and the electrical cord running to the trailer?
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Answer D: That they are free of damage, properly connected and not dragging or rubbing
Lines that chafe on the frame or drag on the road wear through, and a broken line takes away trailer braking or trailer lighting without warning.
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20. What should the ammeter or voltmeter show once the engine is running?
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Answer D: A reading in the normal charging range
With the engine running, the alternator should be charging; a discharge reading or an abnormal charge level means an electrical fault.
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21. During the walkaround inspection, where does the driver normally start and how does the check proceed?
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Answer C: At the left front of the vehicle, working around it in a set order that returns to the cab
The walkaround follows the same route every time, starting at the left front and circling the vehicle, so that nothing is skipped when the driver is tired or rushed.
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22. Why should you avoid using your lights to tell a following driver that it is safe to pass you?
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Answer B: You may misjudge the gap and the driver will act on your signal
The manual warns against signaling others to pass, because the responsibility for a head-on crash then rests on a judgment you could easily get wrong.
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23. Using the snub braking method on a downgrade, when does the driver release the brakes?
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Answer A: After speed has dropped about 5 mph below the safe speed
The driver brakes firmly to about 5 mph under the chosen safe speed, releases to let the brakes cool, then repeats when the safe speed returns.
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24. Taking your eyes off the road for about five seconds at highway speed means traveling roughly how far unseen?
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Answer A: About the length of a football field
At highway speed a five second glance away covers roughly 100 yards, which is far more road than any driver can afford to travel blind.
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25. You are asked to drive a truck loaded with enough hazardous materials to require placards. What must you have?
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Answer C: A hazardous materials endorsement on your commercial driver license
Driving a vehicle that must be placarded requires the H endorsement, which involves a separate knowledge test and a security background check.
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26. When turning left, what should a driver of a long vehicle do before beginning the turn?
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Answer B: Reach the center of the intersection so the rear wheels clear the corner
The rear wheels follow a tighter path than the front, so the vehicle must reach the center of the intersection before the turn begins.
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27. Under the federal air brake standard, the low air pressure warning must come on before reservoir pressure drops below what level?
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Answer A: Before pressure falls below 60 psi
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 121 requires the warning to operate while service reservoir pressure is still above 60 psi, which leaves enough air to bring the vehicle to a normal stop.
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28. How do you avoid the sharp lurch that comes at the very end of a stop in a heavy vehicle?
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Answer A: Ease off the brake pressure just before the vehicle actually comes to rest
A smooth stop is finished by reducing pedal pressure as the vehicle settles, so the suspension does not rock the cab and the load forward.
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29. What does the federal bridge formula do?
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Answer C: It reduces the weight allowed on a group of axles as those axles get closer together
Axles bunched together concentrate the load on a short span of a bridge, so the formula lowers the allowable weight as the spacing shrinks.
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30. Dry bulk tanks call for extra caution mainly because of what?
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Answer C: A high center of gravity combined with a load that can shift
Dry bulk loads ride high and can move inside the tank, which makes the vehicle easier to tip in a curve.
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31. How soon must warning devices be placed after a commercial vehicle stops on the traveled part or the shoulder of a highway?
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Answer D: As soon as possible and in any case within 10 minutes
The hazard warning flashers go on immediately and the warning devices must be in place as soon as possible, never later than 10 minutes after stopping.
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32. Besides allowing the move at all, what does an oversize load permit usually set out?
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Answer C: The route to be followed, the hours of travel allowed and the warning equipment needed
Permits for oversize movements normally name the roads that may be used, restrict the times of travel, and list the flags, signs and escorts required.
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33. Which wheel or rim condition must be treated as a defect during the walkaround?
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Answer C: Cracks, illegal welded repairs, or missing and loose lug nuts
Cracked or welded rims and missing or loose fasteners can let a wheel separate from the vehicle and must be corrected before driving.
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34. What is axle weight?
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Answer C: The weight carried to the ground by one axle or one set of axles
Axle weight describes how the load is shared among the axles that carry it to the road, not how much the whole vehicle weighs.
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35. Besides staying secure, cargo carried inside a vehicle must not do what?
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Answer C: Block the driver view or access to emergency equipment and exits
Cargo may not obstruct the view to the front or sides or prevent the driver from reaching emergency equipment and exits.
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36. Which brake lining condition must be reported?
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Answer C: Linings that are worn thin, loose, cracked or soaked with oil or grease
Linings must have enough material left and must be securely attached and clean, because a thin, loose or contaminated lining cannot deliver its share of braking.
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37. What does safe practice require of a commercial driver who wants to eat, drink or read a delivery note?
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Answer B: Handle it before or after driving, not while moving
Anything that takes hands, eyes or attention away from the task belongs outside the driving time, not inside it.
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38. A chain rated at 6,600 pounds is fitted with a hook rated at 4,700 pounds. What is the working load limit of that assembly?
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Answer A: 4,700 pounds, the rating of the weakest part
An assembly is only as strong as its weakest component, so hooks, binders and links all count and the lowest rating governs.
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39. The coolant temperature gauge climbs above its normal range on a long grade. What is the correct response?
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Answer C: Stop when it is safe to do so and find the cause before going on
Rising coolant temperature signals a fault such as a lost belt, a leak or a blocked radiator, and continuing can turn a repair into a destroyed engine.
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40. You have finished a lane change in a vehicle whose turn signal does not cancel by itself. What must you do?
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Answer D: Turn the signal off yourself
A signal left running tells other drivers you are about to move again, and they may act on that false information.
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41. Compared with a fully loaded one, an empty truck under hard braking will often do what?
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Answer A: Need a longer distance to stop because traction is poor
Stiff suspension and little weight over the tires reduce grip, so the wheels lock early and the vehicle can take longer to stop.
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42. Which shock absorber condition is a defect?
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Answer C: A shock that is leaking, broken or disconnected at either mounting
A shock that has lost its fluid or its mounting no longer damps the suspension, so the wheel bounces and loses contact with the road.
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43. Federal rules forbid operating a commercial vehicle in which condition?
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Answer C: In a condition likely to cause a crash or a breakdown
A defect that makes a crash or a breakdown likely has to be corrected before the vehicle is driven, not reported at the end of the trip.
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44. A car is following you far too closely. What is the safest response?
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Answer A: Open up more space ahead so you can slow gradually, avoid sudden changes, and do not speed up
Extra room in front lets you slow smoothly instead of braking hard, which is exactly what the driver behind cannot cope with.
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45. You have backed into the same loading bay every week for a year. How often should you still get out and walk to the rear before backing?
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Answer D: Every time, since the area can change while you are away from it
A familiar space is no guarantee; vehicles, pallets, people and overhead obstructions appear between one visit and the next, so you check on every occasion.
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46. The rear wheels of your vehicle lock during braking and the rear starts to slide sideways. What should you do first?
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Answer A: Stop braking so the rear wheels can roll again, then steer quickly in the direction you want to go
Locked wheels have no side grip; releasing the brakes restores traction and then countersteering brings the vehicle back into line.
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47. Which vehicle is most likely to be pushed around by a strong crosswind?
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Answer B: An empty van trailer
A large flat side with very little weight behind it gives the wind the most surface and the least resistance, which is the empty van trailer.
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48. When must a driver first inspect the cargo and its securement devices?
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Answer C: Before starting the trip, as part of the pre-trip inspection
Cargo is part of the pre-trip inspection; the later checks within 50 miles and every three hours or 150 miles come on top of that first inspection.
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49. In hazard perception, what counts as a hazard?
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Answer C: Any road user or condition that could become a danger
A hazard is anything with the potential to create danger, which is why drivers are taught to spot them early rather than react to emergencies.
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50. Total stopping distance is made up of which parts?
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Answer A: Perception distance, reaction distance and braking distance
The vehicle travels while the hazard is recognized, while the driver moves to the pedal, and again while the brakes slow the vehicle.