How to Properly Prepare Your Car for Your Driving Test
Don’t sabotage your chance at getting a driver’s license. Make sure your vehicle is ready to perform.
You’re bound and determined to get your driver’s license, and you shouldn’t let anything get in your way — especially your own car! Whether you’re using your own vehicle or your parents’, make sure it’s ready for the big day. Thorough preparation will start your driving exam on the right foot, so before you arrive at the DMV exam station, make sure you prepare your car for your driving test.
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Adjust the mirrors
You should always do this before driving anywhere, but it’s especially important to adjust the rearview and side mirrors to your position. Having clear lines of sight around you are crucial for the maneuverability test and earning points on the evaluation.
Clean the windows
Another thing that could hinder visibility is dirty glass. If smears of mud or sheets of ice are obscuring your visibility out of the windshield, side windows, or rear window, make sure you scrub them until they provide a crystal-clear look outside.
Empty the passenger seat and slide it back
The test proctor will be sitting in the passenger seat of your car, so make sure there’s plenty of room for them. Clear out any fast food containers on the floor and books on the seat, and then slide the chair back as far as it can go. You don’t want to make your evaluator cranky before you even begin driving!
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Turn off the radio
Even if blaring Lithuanian folk-rock calms you while driving, don’t play that music when the assessor comes to your vehicle. Keep the audio system completely off when you arrive at the DMV so you don’t blast it at the wrong moment. Show the administrator that you’re responsible and focused behind the wheel.
Verify vehicle requirement compliance
Your state’s DMV has rules that dictate if a vehicle is safe to drive and therefore can be used for a driving exam. If it fails any of the requirements, you won’t be able to perform the test. Each state’s guidelines are slightly different, but most of them (such as those established by the California DMV) involve having up-to-date license plates, functioning exterior bulbs, uncracked mirrors, working brakes, working seat belts, sufficient tire tread, and no hazardous conditions.
Don’t let a messy or hazardous car hinder you from achieving freedom on the road. Clean and inspect the vehicle thoroughly before driving it to the DMV, and have a second car in mind in case your preferred option shows problems.
Aaron is unashamed to be a native Clevelander and the proud driver of a Hyundai Veloster Turbo (which recently replaced his 1995 Saturn SC-2). He gleefully utilizes his background in theater, literature, and communication to dramatically recite his own articles to nearby youth. Mr. Widmar happily resides in Dayton, Ohio with his magnificent wife, Vicki, but is often on the road with her exploring new destinations. Aaron has high aspirations for his writing career but often gets distracted pondering the profound nature of the human condition and forgets what he was writing… See more articles by Aaron.