Hand signals — South Dakota Permit Test

Hand signals on the South Dakota permit test — 4 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

Hand and arm signals may be used when bright sunlight makes flashing turn signals hard to see, or when driving an antique vehicle made before July 1, 1958.

In bright sun your flashing signal can go unseen, and the driver behind is surprised by your turn.

An example would be when bright sunlight can make it hard for other drivers to see flashing turn signals, or when driving an antique vehicle (one manufactured before July 1, 1958) that may not be equipped with turn signals.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.56

The standard hand signal for a left turn is the hand pointing straight out.

A driver who guesses the wrong arm position can tell others to expect a stop instead of a turn.

Left turn: Hand pointing straight out.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.56

The standard hand signal for a right turn is the hand pointing up.

Mixing up the signals tells the driver behind the opposite of what you will do.

Right turn: Hand pointing up.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.56

The standard hand signal to stop or slow down is the hand pointing down.

If the car behind misreads your slowing, it keeps its speed and hits your bumper.

Stop or slow down: Hand pointing down.
South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.56

On the test

An antique vehicle that may lack turn signals is one made before what date?

July 1, 1958. In bright sun your flashing signal can go unseen, and the driver behind is surprised by your turn. South Dakota Driver License Manual, p.56: “An example would be when bright sunlight can make it hard for other drivers to see flashing turn signals, or when driving an antique vehicle (one manufactured before July 1, 1958) that may not be equipped with turn signals.”

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

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Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against South Dakota Driver License Manual, published by the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-10-04.