Searching and blind spots — Virginia Permit Test
Searching and blind spots on the Virginia permit test — 6 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.
The rules
Expert drivers focus their eyes 20 to 30 seconds ahead, which in a city is about one block.
Looking that far ahead turns a sudden problem into one you saw coming.
Expert drivers try to focus their eyes 20 to 30 seconds ahead. In the city, that equals approximately one block.
At an intersection, look left first, because cars coming from the left will reach you sooner, then right, then left again.
The near lane is the one that arrives first, and it comes from your left.
At any intersection, look to the left first, since cars coming from the left will be closer to you.
Check the traffic behind you in your rearview mirror about every ten seconds.
It tells you early when somebody is closing on you far too fast.
Use your rearview mirror to check the traffic behind you frequently, about every 10 seconds.
Adjust your inside mirror so it frames the whole back window, and both side mirrors so you can only just see the sides of your own car.
Mirrors set to show your own car twice are showing you the same thing twice.
Adjust both side mirrors so you can barely see the sides of your vehicle.
The best way to see a car in your blind spot is to turn your head and glance over your shoulder before changing lanes or passing.
No mirror covers it, so the only fix is to look with your own eyes.
The best way to see a car in your blind spot is by quickly turning your head and glancing over your shoulder to ensure the way is clear before changing lanes or passing another vehicle.
Avoid driving in another driver's blind spot; speed up or drop back rather than sitting in it.
You are invisible there, and the other driver may change lanes into you.
Avoid driving in someone else’s blind spot. This can be just as dangerous as not checking your own blind spot. Speed up or drop back; but, don’t stay in the other driver’s blind spot.
On the test
How far ahead do expert drivers try to look?
20 to 30 seconds ahead. Looking that far ahead turns a sudden problem into one you saw coming. Virginia Driver's Manual, p.19: “Expert drivers try to focus their eyes 20 to 30 seconds ahead. In the city, that equals approximately one block.”
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 Virginia Driver's Manual, published by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-06.