Required equipment — Illinois Permit Test

A vehicle must have two brake systems and brakes on all wheels, and the foot brake must stop a vehicle traveling at 20 mph within 30 feet.

Two systems mean one can fail without leaving the car unable to stop. The distance is the standard the foot brake has to meet.

Brakes - Vehicles must have two brake systems and brakes on all wheels. The foot brake must be strong enough to stop a vehicle traveling at a speed of 20 mph within 30 feet.

The emergency or parking brake must stop a vehicle traveling at 20 mph within 55 feet and must be able to hold the vehicle on a grade or hill.

The parking brake is the backup, so it is allowed a longer distance than the foot brake. Holding on a hill is its other job.

The emergency or parking brake must be strong enough to stop the vehicle in 55 feet at the same speed. The emergency brake also must be able to hold the vehicle on a grade or hill.

A vehicle must have two headlights, which must be on from sunset to sunrise, whenever rain, snow or fog calls for the windshield wipers, and whenever objects 1,000 feet away cannot be seen.

Three separate triggers, and the last one is the widest: if you cannot see that far, the lights go on whatever the weather is doing.

Headlights - Vehicles must have two headlights, which must be on from sunset to sunrise and be used when rain, snow, fog, or other conditions require windshield wipers. They should also be used when objects 1,000 feet away cannot be seen.

A motorcycle or moped headlight must show objects 500 feet ahead and must be on whenever the vehicle is driven, and no tinted or smoked lenses are allowed on any vehicle.

A motorcycle runs its headlight in daylight because being seen is the whole problem. Tinting a lens undoes what the lamp is for.

Motorcycles and mopeds require a headlight, which must show objects 500 feet ahead and be turned on whenever the vehicle is driven.

A vehicle must have two red taillights visible for 500 feet from behind, and mopeds and motorcycles need only one.

Five hundred feet is enough for a following driver to see you before they are committed. Two lamps mean one can fail unnoticed.

Taillights - Vehicles must have two red lights visible for 500 feet from behind.

A vehicle other than a motorcycle, trailer or semitrailer must have right and left turn signals on the front and rear, visible from 300 feet.

Three hundred feet is roughly the distance at which a following driver can still react to what you are about to do.

Turn signals - Vehicles, except motorcycles, trailers, and semitrailers, must have right-and left-turn signals on the front and rear visible from 300 feet.

A vehicle must have a white license plate light making the plate readable from 50 feet away, and it must be on whenever the headlights are on.

The plate is how a vehicle is identified after a hit and run. Fifty feet is the distance a following driver can read it from.

License plate light - Vehicles must have a white light making the license plate readable from 50 feet away and must be on when headlights are on.

Front and rear parking lights are required for any vehicle stopped on a highway at night, though some local communities allow unlighted night parking on streets.

A dark car on a highway shoulder is invisible until the headlights reach it. Town streets are lit, which is why they are the exception.

Parking lights - Front and rear parking lights are required for any vehicle stopped on a highway at night. Some local communities may allow unlighted night parking on streets.

A passenger vehicle must have two sets of safety belts in the front seat, and a vehicle made in 1965 or later may not be sold or operated in Illinois without safety belts.

The year is the line between a car that was built with belts and one that was not. After 1965 there is no exemption.

Safety belts- Passenger vehicles must have two sets of safety belts in the front seat. Vehicles manufactured in 1965 or after may not be sold or operated in Illinois without safety belts.

A vehicle must have at least one rearview mirror letting the driver see at least 200 feet behind.

Two hundred feet is roughly the length of a passing move. A mirror that shows less leaves a car hidden.

Mirrors - One rearview mirror is required so you can see at least 200 feet behind your car.

All window glass must be approved safety glass, the windshield must be free of snow, ice, moisture and any defect that distorts vision, and tinted windows are not allowed on the front windshield apart from a 6-inch strip along the top.

The strip at the top is above the line of sight, which is why it is allowed. Anything lower is glass you have to look through.

Windows - All window glass must be approved safety glass. The windshield must be free of snow, ice, moisture, and any defects that distort vision. All glass must be free of obstructions between the driver and front or rear windows. Tinted windows are not allowed on the front windshield. A 6-inch strip of tinting is allowed along the entire length at the top of the front windshield.

A vehicle must have a horn that can be heard from 200 feet, and sirens, whistles and bells are only allowed on authorized emergency vehicles.

Two hundred feet is far enough for the warning to arrive before you do. A siren on an ordinary car is impersonating an emergency vehicle.

Horn - Vehicles must have a horn that can be heard from 200 feet. Sirens, whistles and bells are allowed only on authorized emergency vehicles.

A muffler must be fitted to the exhaust system to prevent excessive noise and smoke, and cutouts, bypasses and changes that increase noise are illegal.

A modified exhaust is louder than the sirens and horns a driver needs to hear. The ban covers the modification, not just the noise.

Muffler - A muffler must be on the exhaust system to prevent excessive noise and smoke. Cutouts, bypasses, and changes to the system to increase noise are illegal.

A vehicle weighing 9,000 pounds or less, and every recreational vehicle, must have a front and a rear bumper, it is illegal to alter the suspension to lift the body more than 3 inches, and the horizontal line from front to rear may not vary by over 3 inches.

A lifted vehicle rides over the bumper of the car it hits and into the cabin. Three inches is where Illinois stops it.

lift the body from the chassis frame in excess of 3 inches. The horizontal line from the front to the rear may not vary over 3 inches.

Windshield wipers must work properly to clear ice, snow and moisture.

Wipers are the one piece of required equipment that also triggers the headlight rule. Using them means the lights go on.

Wipers - Wipers must operate properly to clear ice, snow, and moisture.

Within what distance must an Illinois foot brake stop a vehicle traveling at 20 mph?

30 feet. Two systems mean one can fail without leaving the car unable to stop. The distance is the standard the foot brake has to meet. Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.92: “Brakes - Vehicles must have two brake systems and brakes on all wheels. The foot brake must be strong enough to stop a vehicle traveling at a speed of 20 mph within 30 feet.”