Vision, Health, Examinations and Preparing Your Vehicle: Seat, Mirrors, Belts, Car Seats and Air Bags: the Medical Advisory Board's 11 Categories, 20/40 in One Eye and a 90-Degree Field, Vision Tests After 65, the Certificate of Visual Examination, Mental Health and Medications, Functional Ability Evaluations and Review Examinations, the 80 Percent Written Test in 30 to 45 Minutes With Three Attempts per Fee, the 100 Percent Traffic Safety and Trends Exam, the Driving Skills Test at 16 With One Try a Day and Six Months to Finish, the Test Vehicle Checklist, Third-Party Testers, Automatic Failures, Safe Driving Tips and the Two-Second Rule, Sitting 10 Inches From the Wheel, Mirror Settings, Belt Facts From 23 Times to 4,500 Pounds, Belt Citations and the 30-Minute Course, Car Seats to Age Eight or 57 Inches, Rear-Facing to Two and 30 Pounds, the Smoking Infraction, and Air Bags at 200 mph
Written for aiforu2 as the source for a practice-test bank and the on-device tutor for the Utah Class D written knowledge test. The facts follow the official handbook; the wording is ours.
Source: Utah Driver Handbook (Utah DLD, 2026), Section 5 "Vision and Health" (pages 20–22), Section 6 "Examinations" (pages 23–26) and Section 7 "Preparing Your Vehicle" (pages 27–29).
Health conditions and driving safety
Driving is among the most dangerous things you will do, so good health is essential. Since 1979 Utah has let people with certain health conditions drive within safe limits; you must stay in reasonably good health, report to the division any condition that may affect safe driving, and seek advice from a health care professional (a medical doctor, physician assistant or advanced practice nurse). The Medical Advisory Board's guidelines, Functional Ability in Driving, cover 11 categories: diabetes and metabolic conditions, cardiovascular, pulmonary, neurologic, seizures and episodic conditions, learning, memory and communication disorders, mental health, alcohol and other drugs, visual disorders, musculoskeletal abnormality or chronic debility, and alertness or sleep disorders, with stricter standards for commercial drivers. For vision you need 20/40 in at least one eye and a visual field of at least 90 degrees for a Class D vehicle; a vision test is required at any field office visit and whenever you apply at over 65, and failing it sends you to an ophthalmologist with a Certificate of Visual Examination that must show your acuity before your application is accepted. Mental health matters as much as physical: always being angry at other drivers and trying to get even, confusion or frustration in heavy traffic, depression or worry that keeps your attention off the road, frequent citations and trouble adjusting to an emotional shock are warning signs; cool off with a walk or a talk before driving, concentrate with the radio or by singing, and leave early so you never need to speed or beat signals. Many medications cause drowsiness or other difficulty, so a physician may advise against driving until a non-impairing dosage schedule is set, and abuse of prescription drugs has caused many serious crashes. When applying you answer health questions, and a condition that may affect driving brings a Functional Ability Evaluation form by mail for your professional to complete and return; the division may then license you, add restrictions, require skills and knowledge testing or, for safety, deny a license, and you remain finally responsible for knowing your abilities. The division may also call you to a review examination on a medical professional's request, a confidential report, an officer's observation, a report from a person or agency, or a returned evaluation recommending it; a review rarely ends in withdrawal, usually in driving under any needed restrictions, but skipping a required review withdraws the privilege, and a hearing officer weighs your driving needs, the roads you use and the traffic you meet against the guidelines before setting any restrictions.
The written knowledge test and the traffic safety exam
The written test samples what you know to show a basic grasp of Utah law and safe driving, drawn from this handbook; it is untimed, usually takes 30 to 45 minutes, and needs 80 percent or better. You may take two written tests a day as capacity allows, a return visit after a failure needs a retest appointment, and one fee covers no more than three attempts within 12 months, after which another fee buys three more. Every first-time applicant holding a learner permit must also pass the online Traffic Safety and Trends exam with a 100 percent score, retaking it as often as needed before licensing; half its questions concern the leading causes of traffic deaths reported by the Utah Highway Safety Office. Those statistics show the top causes of Utah crashes as following too closely, failing to yield, failing to keep in the lane, unsafe lane changes and speed too fast for conditions, and the top causes of highway deaths as failing to keep in the lane, failing to yield, running off the road, reckless driving and driving on the wrong side.
The driving skills test
You demonstrate your driving in a vehicle you provide, properly registered and complying with safety laws including working belts, and it may be rejected if its condition could harm the examiner or the examiner's clothes. You must be at least 16 to test at the Driver License Division and at least 15 to test with a third-party tester or high school; arriving unqualified means rescheduling. Only you and the examiner ride along, and beyond the rules of the road you are scored on behavior and attitude, proper techniques, posture and lane use, left, right and three-point turns, starting and stopping, parking on hills, between cars and parallel, observing signs and signals, backing, U-turns and steering, attention at intersections and overall safe operation, including multiple lane changes; the examiner directs you and never asks for anything unsafe or illegal. After a failure you are expected to practice, may take only one skills test a day, may wait days or weeks between attempts, pay another fee after three failures, and must finish all tests within six months of paying; additional testing may be required if your ability seems questionable, and the examiner discusses results and improvements afterward. Practice with a properly licensed parent, guardian or friend over 21 in quiet residential areas before urban roads and expressways, and watch video demonstrations of the maneuvers. Bring your permit or license, valid registration and insurance, and the valid license of the accompanying adult, who must be at least 21, or a parent, guardian or spouse at least 18. The vehicle must be registered, clean, free of debris and odor and safe, with a rear plate showing current registration (no front plate required since January 1, 2025), front and rear turn signals and brake lights, a working horn made for the vehicle, tires without bald spots, adequate brake pressure, a driver's window that rolls down, an unobstructed windshield, two rearview mirrors including one outside on the driver's left, driver and front passenger doors that open from inside and out, a permanently attached passenger seat, working belts and a working parking brake. Certified third-party testers, licensed commercial driving instructors, may give the skills test for their own fee. Extra written or skills testing may be required if your permit expired, you did not finish the application within six months, or your previous testing expired. Automatic failures: a citation for a moving violation, disobeying signs or signals, speeding, rolling stops or ignoring laws; failing to yield to pedestrians or other users; an avoidable crash or any contact with vehicles, objects or pedestrians; any unsafe act or forcing another driver to take evasive action; putting the vehicle over sidewalks or curbs unnecessarily; the examiner taking control; or driving too fast or too slow. Safe driving tips: steer smoothly with both hands outside the wheel by hand-over-hand or push-pull; accelerate smoothly without racing or stalling; stop gently by braking early, know where to stop, watch crosswalks and edge forward carefully when your view is blocked; use the correct gear without grinding or coasting; obey posted limits and slow for conditions; follow at a safe distance using the two-second rule, more in bad weather or poor visibility; know and obey the signals; use the proper lane, turning from and into the correct lane; signal every lane change and turn; scan for hazards and check mirrors often; look over the proper shoulder before lane changes, leaving the curb or turning; and drive defensively, expecting others' errors.
Seat, mirrors and safety belts
Sit straight with your back against the seat and feet on the floor, adjust seat and mirrors to see clearly, reach the pedals, keep 10 inches between your chest and the wheel without leaning the seat back, move your foot easily from brake to gas with the heel on the floor, keep the top of the wheel no higher than your shoulders and below your chin, and set the headrest to touch the back of your head above your ears. Adjust the inside mirror to frame the rear window with the day/night setting right for the time of day, and set the outside mirrors so you can barely see each side of the vehicle, widening the view of adjacent lanes. Always fasten your belt and make sure everyone has a fastened belt or child seat; belts reduce injury and death, keep you from being thrown out and help you keep control. Wear the shoulder harness snug across shoulder and chest and the lap belt across the hips, never under the arm or behind the back, and buckle securely. Belt facts: buckling up is the law, and children eight and younger must be properly restrained in a car or booster seat; being thrown from a car makes death 23 times likelier; 70 percent of crashes happen under 40 mph; crash forces equal your weight times the car's speed, so a 150-pound person at 30 mph feels 4,500 pounds, impossible to brace against; three of four fatal crashes happen within 25 miles of home; under half of one percent of injury collisions involve fire or submersion, and a belt may keep you conscious to escape; belted drivers keep more control in emergencies; and about two of three Utah motor vehicle deaths would not happen if belts were worn. You can be cited for each unrestrained passenger, the fine may be waived by completing a 30-minute online belt safety course, you may be stopped and cited if anyone under 16 is unrestrained, and occupants 16 and older may be cited for a belt violation if stopped for another reason.
Car seats, children and air bags
All children eight and under must ride in an approved child safety seat unless they are 57 inches tall; children ride rear-facing in the back seat until at least two years and 30 pounds or longer if the seat allows, forward-facing with a harness in the back seat until at least four years and 40 pounds or longer, and from about four years and 40 pounds in a booster until the belt fits and they reach 57 inches; children eight to 12 must be restrained in an appropriate device or belt, and children 12 and younger should keep riding in the back. About 500 Utah children under five are injured and up to 10 killed each year in crashes; emergency vehicles, mopeds, motorcycles, school buses and vehicles built without belts are exempt from the belt law; and seats must be crash-tested to federal standards, shown on the label. Smoking in a vehicle carrying children 15 or younger is an infraction. Air bags save lives, working with belts rather than replacing them, and they are no soft pillow: a bag leaves the dashboard at up to 200 mph, faster than a blink, and can hurt anyone too close, so children twelve and under ride buckled in the back in seats approved for their age and size, infants never ride in front of a passenger-side air bag, everyone wears both lap and shoulder belts every trip, front occupants sit as far back as practical, and a child who must sit at an air bag position rides with the seat as far back as possible in an appropriate seat, or with the bag switched off where the vehicle allows; removing, modifying or failing to repair an air bag so it cannot work is a Class B misdemeanor.
Practise this with Utah Driver License questions
More of this guide
Who needs a Utah license, driver education hours and 40 supervised hours, the 18-month entry-level permit at 15 and the six-month permit at 16, who may sit beside a learner, the midnight-to-5 a.m. rule and family-only passengers at 16, fees, license classes and cards, endorsement and restriction codes, identity and residency documents, eight-year renewals, the good driver program and the 10-day move rule.
Head checks and traffic checks, backing, two-second signals for lane changes, finishing a turn in the matching lane, the far-right lane rule, the gore area and zipper merge, every no-parking distance, hill and parallel parking within 12 inches, passing and returning 200 feet ahead of oncoming traffic, snowplows, stopping 15 to 50 feet from the rails, school bus rules and the $3,000 fine, two- and three-point turns and U-turns.
Flex lanes, freeway rules and the emergency lane, express lanes for two or more and C decals, ramp meters, runaway ramps, single-point, continuous flow, diverging diamond and thru-U-turn intersections, yellow and white lines, the 500-foot shared center lane rule, Utah speed limits, roundabouts, every light and arrow, dead signals, officers over signals, signs and who yields, with sign pictures.
How alcohol and drugs impair, underage possession suspensions, the Not-a-Drop Act, the 0.05 limit and 0.04 for commercial drivers, 120 days and two years for DUI, implied consent and refusal revocations, alcohol-restricted status, ignition interlock periods, impound, interdicted cards, the driving record, driving while suspended, every ground for suspension and revocation, and points with hearings at 200 and 70.
Distractions, road rage, animals, desert and mountain driving, fatigue, floods, handheld device rules by age, work zones with doubled fines, lightning, night driving and dimming distances, rural roads, hydroplaning and black ice, submersion, hot and cold weather and the survival kit, duties after a crash and the $2,500 report, defensive driving facts, brake failure, breakdowns and blowouts, financial responsibility, SR22 and insurance coverage.
Vulnerable users and three feet, bicycle and e-bike rules, staying 500 feet behind fire trucks, the move over law, truck size limits and blind spots, motorcycles, helmets under 21 and lane filtering, pedestrians, police stops, slow vehicles, street-legal ATVs, railroad crossings and TRAX light rail, every equipment rule and towing with warning device placement.