Your Vehicle, Speed, Signaling, Turns, Roundabouts, Passing, Backing and Parking: Required Equipment, Headlight Rules and the 500-Foot Test, Prohibited Lights, Tire Pressure and the Penny Test, Window Tint, When to Leave the Right Side, the Basic Speed Law and Default Limits, the 10 mph Passing Allowance, 100 mph Revocation, Signaling 100 Feet, Blind Spots, Left and Right Turns, Turning on Red, Roundabouts and Large Vehicles, J-Turns, Divided Highways, U-Turns, Right-Lane Travel, Passing Rules and the 700-Foot Sight Line, Passing on the Right, Backing, Where Parking Is Banned, Hill and Parallel Parking and Highway Parking

Written for aiforu2 as the source for a practice-test bank and the on-device tutor for the Minnesota Class D knowledge test. The facts follow the official manual; the wording is ours.

Source: Minnesota Driver's Manual (DPS DVS, June 2026 edition), Chapter 2 "Your vehicle" (pages 22–25) and Chapter 3 "Traffic laws and vehicle operation" through "Highway parking" (pages 26–37).

Required equipment

Know your vehicle, read the owner's manual, check lights, wipers, horn and tires regularly, understand the gauges and warning lights, and adjust the seat, mirrors and belts before driving with passengers seated where they do not block your view. Every car and truck needs two separate brake systems (foot and parking brake); front and rear bumpers on private passenger cars (pickups and vans may have rear reflectors instead of a rear bumper); a working horn, used to avoid a crash and never to announce yourself, while bells, sirens and whistles are for emergency vehicles only; two white headlights with high and low beams and red taillights that light when you brake, the high beams showing objects at least 350 feet ahead, with damaged lenses replaced, lenses kept clean (dirt can cut output by up to 75 percent) and aim checked yearly; a white light on the rear plate; working turn signals; a muffler, checked for carbon monoxide leaks; rearview mirrors, with an extra side mirror on moving trucks and pickups whose loads block the rear view; belts for everyone, with airbags as a supplement that do not stop ejection; and fenders or wheel guards. Headlights go on at sunset until sunrise, in rain, snow, hail, sleet or fog, and whenever you cannot see the road 500 feet ahead; daytime running lights come on alone but taillights and parking lights do not. Only snowplows, road maintenance equipment and emergency vehicles may use blue lights; emergency vehicles, school buses, maintenance equipment, tow trucks, service vehicles and farm equipment may use flashing lights; school buses, snow removal equipment and rural mail carriers may use strobes.

Tires, windows and tint

Inspect tires for cuts, cracks, uneven wear, bald spots, bulges and punctures, carry a good spare, and remember traction is lower on gravel and dirt. Tires can lose up to 1 PSI a month: check pressure before driving or at least three hours afterward against the sticker inside the driver's door or the owner's manual, not the sidewall, and add or release air to match. A tire is illegal with tread under one-sixteenth of an inch; in the penny test, if any part of Lincoln's head is covered when placed head-down in the shallowest groove, the tread is legal. The windshield and windows must be clear of cracks, discoloration, steam, frost, ice and snow, with nothing hung between driver and windshield except permitted stickers, navigation units near the bottom and driver-monitoring devices around the mirror, and no reflective or darkening treatment. Side and rear tint applied after August 1, 1985 must show its light transmission and reflection; tint transmitting under 50 percent or reflecting over 20 percent is allowed only on a pickup's rear window or the rear and side windows of a van, limousine or funeral vehicle. Working wipers and defrosters are required. Fuel-saving habits include a tuned engine, proper inflation, the right oil, combined errands, smooth driving at the limit, shedding heavy items, highway cruise control and overdrive, and alternatives to driving.

Driving on the right and speed

Drive on the right side of a wide road except when passing, when the right side is closed for work, on a three-lane road, on a signed one-way road, or when moving over under the Move Over law. Speed shortens reaction time and worsens crashes. The basic speed law requires a speed reasonable for weather, traffic and road conditions, and the posted limit is the maximum, except that on a two-lane highway posted 55 mph or higher you may exceed the limit by 10 mph while lawfully passing. Driving below a posted minimum under normal conditions is illegal. Approaching an intersection at an unlawful speed forfeits your right-of-way. Unless posted, limits are 10 mph in alleys, 30 mph on urban or town roads and 55 mph elsewhere; slow when children are present in school zones and in work zones. Extra fines apply at 20 mph or more over the limit, and a conviction for over 100 mph revokes your privileges for at least six months. You must slow for a stopped emergency vehicle with flashing lights (a surcharge of at least $25 is added to a speeding fine), for flaggers, pedestrians, barricades, flares and reflectors, in bad weather, on narrow or winding roads, near curves, hilltops and railroad crossings, and on gravel and dirt, and obey special limits and "No Passing" signs on bridges.

Signaling, lanes and blind spots

Signal at least 100 feet before a turn or lane change and keep signaling until it is complete. Hand and arm signals may be used in daylight with or instead of turn signals, but not at night or when the vehicle hides them: left arm straight out for left, bent up for right, bent down for stop. A traffic lane exists whether or not it is marked; stay in one without weaving or straddling. Before changing lanes make sure of space beside, behind and ahead and turn your head to check the lane, since mirrors miss the blind spots shaped by your roof pillars (dirty glass and glare add temporary ones); avoid lingering in other drivers' blind spots, especially near commercial vehicles.

Turns

Improper turns cause many crashes. Get into the correct lane well ahead, slow down, signal at least 100 feet before, keep the wheels straight and your foot on the brake while waiting so a rear-end hit does not push you into oncoming traffic, keep signaling until the turn begins, never turn suddenly from the wrong lane, watch the road you are entering, finish in the correct lane, and slow when the car ahead signals a left turn. Waiting to turn left on green with oncoming traffic, position the car in the intersection with your body even with the curb line; you may only get to turn on yellow. For a left turn, signal, move into the lane nearest the center line (or just right of center with no markings), look both ways, yield, steer hand over hand and finish in the first lane right of the center line; for a right turn, move close to the right curb and finish in the lane next to the curb. With two or more marked turn lanes, stay in your lane through the turn.

At many intersections you may turn right on red after a complete stop in the correct lane, unless a "No Turn on Red" sign is posted, checking for pedestrians and traffic in all directions and for oncoming left-turners who may have a green arrow first. A left on red is allowed only from a one-way street onto another one-way street, after a complete stop, when the intersection is clear, yielding to pedestrians and vehicles, and only into the direction traffic is permitted to travel.

Roundabouts, J-turns and divided highways

Roundabouts move traffic better and more safely than four-way stops. Slow on approach, pick the correct lane before entering a multi-lane one, yield to pedestrians and bicyclists crossing, obey the lane signs and markings, yield to vehicles already circulating and do not enter until traffic from the left has cleared, drive counterclockwise to your exit, and never stop, pass or change lanes inside; if an emergency vehicle approaches, exit immediately and then pull over. A vehicle over 40 feet long or 10 feet wide, or any combination vehicle, may leave its lane as needed, and when two large vehicles go through a multi-lane roundabout together the one on the right yields to the one on the left.

A J-turn cuts broadside crashes on four-lane divided highways: from the side street, stop completely, turn right onto the highway, move into the designated left-turn lane (you may cross both lanes in one motion when safe) and make a U-turn through the median opening, yielding to oncoming traffic and stopping if necessary before entering the through lanes. Crossing a rural divided highway, you may cross one half and wait in the median if there is room, staying right of center, or cross both at once when clear; turning left onto one uses the same procedure, with enough gap that you do not impede traffic while accelerating.

U-turns and right-lane travel

A U-turn reverses direction and is allowed only when it does not disrupt traffic and no sign bans it; U-turns are illegal on interstate freeways and near hilltops or on curves where you cannot be seen from 1,000 feet. On a road with two or more lanes in your direction you may turn into the farthest lane and briefly use the shoulder. On a single-lane road, if you are slow enough to be a hazard, keep as close to the right edge as possible. On multi-lane highways drive in the right lane when available and leave the left lane to let others pass, except when passing, preparing to turn left at an intersection, driveway or private road, preparing for a left-side freeway exit, driving an emergency vehicle, or when directed by a device, officer or work zone.

Passing

Improper passing causes many crashes; take extra care at night, in poor visibility and on slippery roads. On two-lane roads pass on the left where allowed, without exceeding the limit except for the 10 mph allowance on highways posted 55 or higher. Check the gap to oncoming traffic and whether anyone behind is about to pass you, signal left before moving out and right before returning, return when you can see the entire passed vehicle in your mirror, and be back on the right before coming within 100 feet of an oncoming vehicle. Do not pass at a "No Passing Zone" sign or a solid yellow line on your side; double solid yellow bans passing both ways. Do not pass on a curve or hill without a clear view of at least 700 feet, within 100 feet of an intersection, underpass, tunnel or railroad crossing, or when about to meet oncoming traffic, and when someone passes you, hold your lane and speed. Passing on the right is allowed only when safe and never in a bike lane, on the shoulder or off the pavement: when the vehicle ahead is turning left, on a road wide enough for two or more lanes each way, or on a one-way street wide enough for two lanes with no obstructions.

Backing

Backing is banned on freeways and expressways except for on-duty emergency vehicles, and backing on a public road can be charged as careless or reckless driving. Backing out of a driveway, back into the nearest lane and drive forward, never across lanes unless sure it is safe. First walk around the vehicle, look front, sides and rear, keep looking out the rear window rather than relying on mirrors or the camera, and back slowly.

Parking

Parallel-parked wheels must be within 12 inches of the curb, turned toward the curb or shoulder, with the vehicle in park and the parking brake set so it rolls out of traffic if the brakes fail. Parking is banned in an intersection; on a crosswalk or sidewalk; within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection; within 30 feet of a flashing light, stop sign or signal; within 50 feet of the nearest rail of a crossing; within 10 feet of a fire hydrant; beside or across from an excavation or obstacle where you would block traffic; at the street end of a driveway; on a bridge or in a tunnel; on the traffic side of a parked vehicle (double parking); at a yellow curb or No Parking sign; and in front of mailboxes where local rules say so. Before opening a door, check for vehicles, motorcycles, bicyclists and pedestrians, and keep traffic-side doors open no longer than needed. On a hill, wheels turn toward the curb facing downhill, away from the curb facing uphill with a curb, and toward the shoulder facing uphill with no curb. To parallel park, stop even with the car ahead about 1½ feet away, turn the wheel sharply right and back slowly, turn sharply left when clear of that car and keep backing, then turn sharply right and pull toward the curb into the center of the space. On a state highway or freeway, move the vehicle off the main roadway or mark it if it cannot move; parked on a highway at night you must show at least one white or amber front light and one red taillight visible from 500 feet, use parking or hazard lights, and set headlights to low beam.

Practise this with Minnesota Driver License questions

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