When making a left turn, which method should you use to avoid striking a vehicle or a sign post on an island?
- Ask a passenger to keep an eye on the left side
- Use your left outside mirror ✓
- Turn your head around fully to the left
- Use your right outside mirror
Answer: B. Use your left outside mirror
Use your left outside mirror to watch the trailer's path through a left turn.
Why this is the answer
The handbook says that when you turn left in a truck, the trailer can swing off its path, and unless you watch that path in your left outside mirror, the trailer may hit a vehicle or a sign post on an island. The mirror is what lets you see where the trailer is actually going, so you can turn in a wide arc and bring the unit back to its proper position just right of the centre line once the turn is done.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Ask a passenger to keep an eye on the left side — A passenger watching the left side is not what the handbook tells you to rely on, and the driver still has to monitor the trailer's path.
- C. Turn your head around fully to the left — Turning your head fully around to the left takes your eyes off the road ahead and is not the method the handbook gives for checking the trailer.
- D. Use your right outside mirror — The right outside mirror shows the right side of the vehicle, not the trailer's path on the left during a left turn.
Remember it
Before you swing wide, glance in the left mirror: that is where the trailer's tail shows up.
Official handbook: Official MTO Truck Handbook, Left turns