Which three factors go into determining how long it takes to stop?
- Rain, snow and fog
- Perception time, reaction time and braking time ✓
- Rain, snow and road conditions
- Brakes, road and tire conditions
Answer: B. Perception time, reaction time and braking time
Perception time, reaction time and braking time are the three factors that determine how long it takes to stop.
Why this is the answer
The handbook describes stopping as a sequence: you see a hazard, you think and decide to stop, then you apply the brake until the car comes to rest. It gives time for seeing and thinking, and says the vehicle only begins slowing after that. Those stages match perception time, reaction time and braking time. The other choices list weather, road or vehicle conditions. The passages treat those as things that can affect traction or braking distance, not as the three time factors in the stopping sequence.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Rain, snow and fog — Rain, snow and fog are weather conditions, and the passages do not present them as the three time factors in stopping.
- C. Rain, snow and road conditions — Rain, snow and road conditions are environmental conditions that can affect traction, not the three time stages described for stopping.
- D. Brakes, road and tire conditions — Brakes, road and tire conditions are equipment or road-surface matters; the handbook mentions tires and wet roads as affecting braking, but not as the three time factors.
Remember it
Remember the three stages as see it, decide, press—each stage adds time before the car actually slows.