Maine BMV Motorcycle Practice Test 52

  • Questions25
  • Correct to pass20
  • Passing score80%
  • Minimum age16 years

Minimum age: 16 years, with an 8 hour motorcycle education program required of every applicant

25 questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why; you need 20 correct answers to pass.

  1. 1. A small plate under a stop sign reads CROSS TRAFFIC DOES NOT STOP. What is it telling you?

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    Answer D: Traffic on the cross street is not required to stop at all

    The plate warns that the other road is uncontrolled, so you must wait for a gap instead of expecting anyone to take turns with you.

  2. 2. An exit ramp is separated from the highway by a triangle of pavement painted with white stripes. What may you do there?

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    Answer C: Nothing; keep off it and choose either the lane or the ramp

    The striped area between a ramp and the through lanes is not for driving, stopping or last-second changes of direction.

  3. 3. A freeway sign shows a minimum speed limit. What does it require?

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    Answer B: That you keep up with it unless conditions make that unsafe

    A minimum speed limit keeps very slow vehicles off the highway, but weather, traffic or a mechanical problem may make a lower speed necessary and lawful.

  4. 4. How much space should you hold behind the rider who is directly ahead of you in your own portion of the lane?

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    Answer D: At least two seconds

    Riders sharing the same track keep a following distance of at least two seconds so they have the time and the room to react to a hazard.

  5. 5. Besides air pressure, what should a rider look for when inspecting the tires?

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    Answer B: Tread depth, cuts, embedded objects and uneven wear

    Worn or damaged tires lose grip and can fail suddenly, and uneven wear also warns of a pressure or alignment problem.

  6. 6. What matters most about the armor built into a riding jacket?

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    Answer B: That it sits over the joints and stays there during a fall

    Armor only works where it is, so the jacket must fit closely enough that the pads stay over the shoulders, elbows and spine when the rider hits the ground.

  7. 7. You come upon a person riding a horse on the roadway ahead of you. What is the correct way to pass?

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    Answer A: Slow down, give plenty of room and do not use the horn

    Horses startle easily, and a frightened horse can throw its rider into your path. Pass slowly and wide, and avoid any sudden noise.

  8. 8. You are approaching a highway-rail grade crossing marked only with a crossbuck sign. What does that sign require?

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    Answer A: Yield to any approaching train and cross only when the tracks are clear

    The crossbuck is a regulatory yield sign, and a train can never stop or steer around a vehicle, so the driver must always give way.

  9. 9. You come to a place where a storm has dropped a power line across the road ahead. What should you do?

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    Answer B: Stop well back, keep everyone away from it and report it to the police

    A downed line may be live and can energize the ground around it, so keep well clear and let the utility or the police handle it.

  10. 10. Partway through a tight turn in a parking area you realize the motorcycle will not come around in the space available. What is the safest thing to do?

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    Answer C: Stop, put a foot down and reposition the motorcycle before trying again

    At very low speed there is no cost to stopping and starting the turn over, while forcing a turn the space does not allow simply drops the machine.

  11. 11. The added lane warning sign tells a driver that

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    Answer A: an extra lane begins ahead, so entering traffic does not have to merge into an existing lane

    Where a lane is added, traffic entering the roadway gets a lane of its own, so merging is not required, although drivers should still watch the vehicles beside them.

  12. 12. You reach an intersection with no signs, signals or markings clearly before a vehicle that is approaching on your right. What is the rule?

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    Answer B: You may go first because you got there first

    At an uncontrolled intersection the first driver to arrive goes first; the yield to the right rule only settles a tie.

  13. 13. In a work zone, the flagger's instructions conflict with the pavement markings still visible on the road. Which do you follow?

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    Answer B: The flagger, because a person directing traffic outranks the markings

    An authorized flagger controlling a temporary traffic control zone overrides signs, signals and markings, and drivers must obey the flagger's signals.

  14. 14. Two solid yellow lines are painted down the center of a two-way road. What do they mean?

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    Answer B: Traffic in neither direction may cross them to pass

    A double solid yellow line marks a no-passing zone that applies to traffic traveling in either direction.

  15. 15. The posted limit is 55 mph, but heavy traffic and rain make that speed unsafe. What does the law expect of you?

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    Answer D: You must slow to a speed that is safe for the conditions

    The basic speed rule requires a speed that is reasonable for the traffic, weather and road, and that speed is often well below the posted maximum.

  16. 16. Your vehicle breaks down on a busy highway. What is the safest course of action?

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    Answer D: Get it as far off the roadway as possible, switch on the hazard lights and keep clear of the traffic lanes

    A vehicle left in or beside a travel lane is a hazard, so move it well off the road, make it conspicuous with hazard lights and keep yourself away from passing traffic.

  17. 17. The throttle sticks open and will not close when you roll it back. What should you do?

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    Answer B: Squeeze in the clutch and shut the engine down with the cut-off switch

    Pulling in the clutch cuts power to the rear wheel immediately, and the cut-off switch stops the engine without the rider letting go of the handlebars.

  18. 18. What does Maine add for a second failure to yield to an emergency vehicle within 3 years?

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    Answer D: A mandatory 30 day suspension of the license

    A second conviction within 3 years brings a mandatory 30 day license suspension in addition to the fine.

  19. 19. You are driving on a road covered with a layer of wet fallen leaves. What should you expect?

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    Answer B: As little grip as on ice, plus hidden markings and hidden holes

    Wet leaves are as slippery as ice and they hide the lane lines and any potholes underneath, so slow well before curves and stops.

  20. 20. How can loose spokes be found on a spoked wheel?

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    Answer B: By tapping each spoke and listening for a dull sound instead of a clear ring

    A correctly tensioned spoke rings when tapped, while a loose one gives a flat, dull note that stands out from the rest of the wheel.

  21. 21. You are stopped in a line of traffic waiting at a red light. What is the safest way to wait?

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    Answer A: Stay in first gear, keep watching the mirrors and leave a way out

    A vehicle approaching from behind may not stop in time, and staying in gear with a gap ahead lets the rider move out of the way.

  22. 22. You are turning left from a two-way street onto a one-way street. Which lane should you enter?

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    Answer C: The first lane open to traffic on the left side of the one-way street

    Turn left from the lane closest to the center line and finish in the first available lane on the left of the one-way street, then change lanes if you need to.

  23. 23. When may a Maine driver drive over an unprotected fire hose laid across a way?

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    Answer B: Only with the consent of the police or fire official in command

    Maine forbids driving over an unprotected fire department hose laid on a way for a fire or alarm without the consent of the police or fire department official in command.

  24. 24. As a driver keeps drinking, in what order are driving abilities usually lost?

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    Answer C: Judgment, then vision, reaction time and coordination

    Alcohol reaches the parts of the brain that handle judgment first, and only later does it visibly affect sight, reactions and muscle control.

  25. 25. On a wet road, how should a driver adjust after passing this sign?

    A yellow diamond showing a small eight sided shape above a black arrow pointing at it
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    Answer B: Start braking earlier, because a slippery surface lengthens the stopping distance

    A wet surface lengthens stopping distance, so the extra warning distance should be spent braking gently and early instead of late and hard.