Massachusetts CDL: General Knowledge Practice Test

Not quite. The answer is antilock brakes.

In stab braking, you deliberately keep locking and unlocking the wheels. Hence, stab braking should not be used in a vehicle with antilock brakes. Use controlled braking instead.

Not quite. The answer is Level III

A Level III inspection is a driver inspection. The inspector interviews you and checks your CDL and other documents. The inspector checks whether you're wearing your seat belt. The inspector also looks for obvious signs of impairment on your part, such as being under the influence of alcohol. Finally, the inspector identifies and verifies your carrier to be sure it is authorized to operate in the country. Unlike Levels I and II, the inspector does not examine your vehicle or cargo.

Not quite. The answer is Poor trailer ventilation can cause flammable cargo to catch fire.

Many things can cause fires, including underinflated tires, dual tires that touch, cargo that is improperly sealed or loaded, and cargo that is poorly ventilated.

Not quite. The answer is High beams

While driving at night, you should use your high beams to see farther as long as it is safe and legal and you will not blind any other drivers. You should dim your lights when you are within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle or following another vehicle within 500 feet.

Not quite. The answer is both of the above.

Cargo must be loaded to keep the weight of the vehicle properly balanced. If there's not enough weight over the front axle, the front tires won't have enough traction for the vehicle to be steered safely.

Not quite. The answer is Every 15 to 20 seconds

While driving, you should scan the environment ahead of you every 12 to 15 seconds. But it's also important to constantly monitor the status of your vehicle. You should scan your instrument panel, including the gauges and warning lights, every 15 to 20 seconds.

Not quite. The answer is 1/4 mile.

You should look ahead the distance that your CMV will travel in 12 to 15 seconds. At 60 mph (a mile a minute), your CMV will travel a quarter mile (1,320 feet) in 15 seconds.

Not quite. The answer is Under wet or icy road conditions

Retarders can slow your vehicle on a downgrade so you can avoid straining the service brakes. Many retarders can absorb as much or more horsepower as the engine can develop. But when the drive wheels have poor traction (such as on a slippery surface), some retarders can cause the drive wheels to lock, which can result in a skid. Therefore, you should turn the retarder off whenever the road is wet, icy, or snow covered.

Not quite. The answer is None of the above are true.

Many commonly held beliefs about safety belts are false, including all three here. To begin with, the large size of a semi-truck doesn't adequately protect the driver. In 2006, for example, 805 drivers and occupants of large trucks died in truck crashes, and 393 of them (49%) were not wearing safety belts. Of the 217 drivers and occupants who were killed and ejected from their vehicles, nearly 81% were not wearing safety belts. Fire or submersion occurs in less than 5% of fatal large truck crashes. Should your CMV catch fire or be submerged, it will take you at most one second to unhook your safety belt. The laws of physics make even relatively low-speed crashes dangerous. In a frontal crash at 30 mph, an unbelted driver will continue moving forward at 30 mph until he or she hits the windshield, unless the truck is equipped with a driver's-side airbag. Only some models of semi-trucks have driver's-side airbags, because it's still not a federal requirement. A final point: For large trucks, rollovers are among the deadliest of crashes. About half of fatalities in large trucks involve a rollover. But in a rollover, the driver is 80% less likely to die when wearing a safety belt.

Source: "9 Myths About Safety Belts for Truck Drivers," FMCSA, https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/9-myths-about-safety-belts-truck-drivers

Not quite. The answer is tire changing equipment.

Your vehicle must be equipped with a properly charged fire extinguisher and warning devices (flares, fusees, or reflective triangles). Optional emergency equipment can include tire chains in certain climates, tire changing equipment, emergency phone numbers, and an accident reporting packet.

Not quite. The answer is at all

According to the Hours of Service (HOS) regulations, the driver of a passenger-carrying vehicle must not drive for more than 10 hours following 8 consecutive hours off duty. The driver may not drive at all after having been on duty for 15 hours.

Source: "Summary of Hours of Service Regulations," FMCSA, https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-service/summary-hours-service-regulations

Not quite. The answer is Hard steering and possible damage to the tires

Keep your load of cargo balanced. You need enough weight on both the steering and drive axles for adequate traction. However, too much weight on the steering axle can result in hard steering and even damage the steering axle and tires. Too much weight on one side can increase the risk that the cargo will shift.

Not quite. The answer is Signal other drivers when it is safe for them to pass you.

If you must drive slowly, keep right and (if state laws allow it) use your four-way flashers to warn other drivers. Don't try to signal other drivers when you believe it's safe for them to pass you. If something were to go wrong, resulting in an accident, you could be held legally liable.

Not quite. The answer is keep your wheels from locking when you brake hard.

ABS kicks in only to keep the wheels from locking, which can cause a skid. ABS does not change the way you normally brake the rest of the time. It is not a substitute for careful braking, defensive driving, good brakes, or regular maintenance.

Not quite. The answer is 2

According to CVSA's North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria, the vehicle will be placed out of service if 20% (rounded up to the next whole number) or more of its brakes are found to be defective. For a 5-axle tractor-trailer, which has 10 brakes, if 20% × 10 = 2 or more brakes are defective, the vehicle will be placed out of service. In this context, defects include a brake shoe or brake pad that fails to contact the brake drum or rotor when the service brakes are applied, or an audible air leak at a brake chamber.

Not quite. The answer is False

If there's a fire under the hood, opening the hood will allow more oxygen to reach the fire, which can make the fire worse. Instead, try to shoot extinguishing foam through louvers or the radiator, or from the vehicle’s underside.

Not quite. The answer is Yes, as long as the engine isn't overheated.

Some vehicles have sight glasses, see-through coolant overflow containers, or coolant recovery containers. These permit you to check the coolant level while the engine is hot. If the container is not part of the pressurized system, the cap can be safely removed and coolant added even when the engine is at operating temperature. Never remove the radiator cap or any part of the pressurized system until the system has cooled.

Not quite. The answer is do all of the above.

Sleep debt is a dangerous condition in which missing sleep adds up until you risk falling asleep at the wheel unless you get some rest. People are often surprised that getting less than 6 hours of sleep per night triples the risk of an accident. Before a trip, you should get adequate sleep (adults need 8 to 9 hours to maintain alertness); prepare your route carefully to identify total distance, stopping points, and other logistical considerations; schedule trips for the hours during which you are normally awake, not the middle of the night; drive with a passenger; avoid medications that cause drowsiness; consult your physician if you suffer from daytime sleepiness, have difficulty sleeping at night, or take frequent naps; and incorporate exercise into your daily life to give yourself more energy.

Not quite. The answer is can be caused by the brakes becoming too hot.

Brakes use friction to convert the kinetic energy of your moving vehicle into heat. However, overuse of the brakes (which can happen if you don't use engine braking enough) can generate so much heat that brakes can fade (lose their effectiveness) or fail.

Not quite. The answer is All of the above

Your daily log (which must be recorded on an electronic logging device) must include the following information for the past 24 hours: the date; the total miles you drove today; the vehicle number or license number for each vehicle you drove; the name, address, and time zone of the carrier you work for; the name of your co-driver if any; the total hours for each duty status; the locations at which your duty status changed; and for each shipment, either the shipping document number or the name of the shipper and the contents of the shipment.