Front light colors — Tennessee Permit Test

Front light colors on the Tennessee permit test — 2 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

Since January 1, 2018, a vehicle in Tennessee may not have steady-burning lights showing to the front in any color other than white or amber.

Drivers read light colors fast. A red or blue light on the front of a car can be mistaken for a police car or a stop signal.

Effective January 1, 2018, no vehicle operated in Tennessee shall be equipped with any steady-burning lights that display to the front of the vehicle in any color other than white or amber or in any combination of colors other than white and amber.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.45

Since January 1, 2018, the only flashing lights allowed to show to the front of a vehicle in Tennessee are factory-installed emergency flashers.

Flashing lights on the front of a car make others think an emergency vehicle is coming. Drivers may swerve or stop for no reason.

Also effective January 1, 2018, no vehicle operated in Tennessee shall be equipped with any flashing lights in any color or combination of colors that display to the front of the vehicle, other than factory installed emergency flashers.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.46

On the test

What colors may steady-burning lights on the front of a car in Tennessee be?

White or amber. Drivers read light colors fast. A red or blue light on the front of a car can be mistaken for a police car or a stop signal. Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.45: “Effective January 1, 2018, no vehicle operated in Tennessee shall be equipped with any steady-burning lights that display to the front of the vehicle in any color other than white or amber or in any combination of colors other than white and amber.”

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.

What it costs

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Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, published by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-10-03.