Drive test scoring — Colorado Permit Test

On the drive test a turn signal must be on continuously for 100 feet before turning or changing lanes in urban areas, and 200 feet on 4-lane highways.

Other drivers need warning in time to react, and a car doing 55 covers ground fast. The faster road gets the longer warning for that reason.

Turn signal is turned on continuously 100 feet before turning or changing lanes in urban areas and 200 feet before turning or changing lanes on 4-lane highways

A turn signal should be canceled within 3 seconds of turning or changing lanes.

A signal left blinking tells everyone behind you that you are about to turn again. They plan around a turn you never make.

Turn signal is cancelled within 3 seconds of turning or changing lanes

Lane management on the drive test means remaining entirely within the turning lane and keeping both hands on the wheel.

Drifting out of the turning lane puts your car where another driver is already going. Both hands on the wheel is what lets you correct that in time.

Remain entirely within the turning lane, keep both hands on the wheel

When turning right you turn from the rightmost portion of your lane, and when turning left you turn from the left-most portion of your lane.

Starting from the right part of the lane keeps your path inside the lane the whole way round. Swinging wide crosses into a lane somebody else is using.

Choose the correct portion of the lane for making your turn (when turning right, always turn from the rightmost portion of your lane or when turning left, always turn

On the drive test you must come to a complete stop with no forward motion of the vehicle, without encroaching over the stop line or the crosswalk.

A rolling stop is not a stop, and the examiner is watching the wheels. Stopping short of the line leaves the crosswalk for the people crossing it.

Come to a complete stop, no forward motion of the vehicle

While stopped, keep the wheels pointed straight ahead and do not turn them until you begin to make the turn.

A car struck from behind goes wherever its front wheels point. Pointed straight, it moves forward instead of into the traffic coming the other way.

keep the vehicle’s wheels pointed straight ahead while stopped, do not turn the wheels until beginning to make the turn and maintain an adequate distance between vehicles (If you can see the rear wheels touching the ground of the vehicle in front of you, you are at an adequate distance).

You are at an adequate following distance when stopped if you can see the rear wheels of the vehicle in front of you touching the ground.

It is a distance you can check without guessing. That much room lets you pull around if the car ahead stalls, instead of being boxed in.

If you can see the rear wheels touching the ground of the vehicle in front of you, you are at an adequate distance

On the drive test you must look left, right and left again before entering an intersection, and look behind after each turn.

The second look left catches the car that arrived while you were checking right. Looking behind after a turn tells you who followed you round.

looks left, right, left before entering intersections, looks behind after each turn

Back-up cameras and blind spot and lane departure warnings are allowed on the drive test but do not take the place of physical searching skills.

The camera shows one rectangle behind the car and nothing beside it. Turning your head is still the only way to see the whole picture.

During the test, use of safety-critical technologies such as back-up cameras, and blind spot and lane departure warnings are allowed but do not take the place of physical searching skills

Acceleration on the drive test must be smooth, without jerking, lugging the engine, coasting, impeding traffic, clashing gears or stalling.

Smooth acceleration is predictable to everyone around you. Lurching and stalling make the drivers behind guess, and guessing is how they hit you.

Accelerates smoothly without jerking, doesn’t lug the engine, coast, impede traffic, clash gears or stall the vehicle

How far ahead must a turn signal be on before a lane change in an urban area?

100 feet. Other drivers need warning in time to react, and a car doing 55 covers ground fast. The faster road gets the longer warning for that reason. Colorado Driver Handbook, p.2: “Turn signal is turned on continuously 100 feet before turning or changing lanes in urban areas and 200 feet before turning or changing lanes on 4-lane highways”