General Driving Knowledge — Michigan
Michigan CDL practice test: 371 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. General Driving Knowledge: 136 questions.
Questions that do not fit a single topic: lane use, turning, signalling and other rules of the road.
This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines.
| Topic / Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Topic | General Driving Knowledge |
| License test | Michigan CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 136 (37% of 371 total) |
| Review status | This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines. |
Official handbook
Not yet verified
Advertisement
Questions (136)
1. Which type of material may be required to have a transport index?
- Liquid
- Combustible
- Radioactive ✓
Answer: C. Radioactive
Radioactive material is the type that may be required to have a transport index. The handbook ties the transport index to Class 7 (Radioactive) materials. It says some packages of that class carry this number, and the shipper labels them Radioactive II or Radioactive III and prints the index on the label. The index tells you how much control is needed during transport, including how close packages may be to people, animals, and film. Nothing in the passages attaches a transport index to liquids or combustible loads generally.
2. Which agency helps coordinate emergency response to chemical hazards?
- The National Response Center ✓
- The Federal Containment Organization
- The United Center for Chemical Assistance
Answer: A. The National Response Center
The National Response Center is the agency that helps coordinate emergency response to chemical hazards. The handbook says the National Response Center helps coordinate emergency response to chemical hazards and serves as a resource to police and firefighters. It keeps a 24-hour toll-free line, and you or your employer must call it after certain serious hazardous materials incidents. Since the question asks which agency coordinates emergency response to chemical hazards, the National Response Center is the match. CHEMTREC is a separate line that gives technical information about the properties of hazardous materials, and the two stay in close contact.
3. Keeping cargo low can:
- Prevent a rollover. ✓
- Help you drive faster.
- Make turns more dangerous.
Answer: A. Prevent a rollover.
Keeping cargo low helps prevent a rollover. The handbook explains that piling cargo high raises the vehicle's center of gravity, which makes the truck easier to turn over. It gives two ways to help prevent a rollover: keep cargo close to the ground and drive slowly around turns. It also says a high center of gravity, such as cargo piled high or heavy cargo on top, makes tipping over more likely in curves or when swerving, and it advises distributing cargo as low as possible. So a low load is a stability measure aimed at rollover prevention.
4. Operating combination vehicles usually requires ____ operating single vehicles.
- Less skill than
- About the same level of skill as
- More skill than ✓
Answer: C. More skill than
5. While driving:
- Creating a text is not permitted, but reading a text is.
- Creating a text is permitted, but reading a text is not.
- Neither creating nor reading a text is permitted. ✓
Answer: C. Neither creating nor reading a text is permitted.
Neither creating nor reading a text is permitted while driving. The handbook defines texting as manually entering text into, or reading text from, an electronic device. It also directly says not to type or read a text message on a mobile device while driving. The federal rule quoted in the handbook prohibits texting by commercial motor vehicle drivers. Since both writing and reading are covered by that definition and prohibition, the choice that rules out both activities is the one that matches the handbook.
6. How many identical placards must be placed on a vehicle?
- Three
- Two
- Four ✓
Answer: C. Four
A placarded vehicle must have four identical placards. The handbook says a placarded vehicle must have at least four identical placards. It places them on the front, rear, and both sides, and says they must be readable from all four directions. That matches the answer of four. The point is to warn others about hazardous materials and identify the hazard class of the cargo from every side of the vehicle, not just one or two sides.
7. When applying for an original or renewed HazMat endorsement, you must undergo a background check through which agency?
- The Transportation Security Administration ✓
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation
- The Department of Energy
Answer: A. The Transportation Security Administration
You must undergo the HazMat background check through the Transportation Security Administration. The handbook says the USA Patriot Act requires background checks for hazardous materials licenses and renewals. It names the Transportation Security Administration as the agency that investigates the driver's criminal history and immigration status and determines whether the driver poses a security risk. Another section also says you must pass a TSA background check to get the hazardous materials endorsement.
8. Class 1, Class 2.1, and Class 3 materials should not be placed in a trailer with:
- A heater. ✓
- An air conditioner.
- Other items.
Answer: A. A heater.
Class 1, Class 2.1, and Class 3 materials should not be placed in a trailer that has a heater. The handbook sets out a block of special Cargo Heater Rules and lists Class 2.1 flammable gas and Class 3 flammable liquids among the materials those rules cover. Elsewhere it says the rules usually forbid cargo heaters and warn against loading such products into a cargo space with a heater unless you have read all the related rules. For Class 1 explosives it adds a step-by-step precaution: shut the engine off, then disable the cargo heaters, disconnect their power sources, and drain their fuel tanks. The equipment those rules single out is the heater.
9. Fueling a bus while passengers are on board is:
- Acceptable only at night.
- Acceptable only on trips of more than 100 miles.
- Acceptable only if doing so is unavoidable. ✓
Answer: C. Acceptable only if doing so is unavoidable.
Fueling a bus with passengers on board is acceptable only if doing so is unavoidable. The handbook's passenger-safety section tells drivers to avoid fueling the bus while riders are on board unless it is absolutely necessary. So the only time this is allowed is when there is no practical way to fuel without them aboard. The same passage adds a firm never: do not refuel inside a closed building with riders on board. Notice the rule is about riders, not about the time of day or the length of the trip.
10. The radiator cap:
- Should not be removed when the coolant is hot. ✓
- Can be removed when the coolant is hot.
- Should be cool to the touch under normal driving conditions.
Answer: A. Should not be removed when the coolant is hot.
You should not remove the radiator cap when the coolant is hot. The handbook warns that the radiator cap is part of a pressurized system. It says never remove the cap or any pressurized part until the system has cooled, because steam and boiling water can spray out under pressure and cause severe burns. It also gives a simple check: if you can touch the cap with your bare hand, it is probably cool enough to open. A hot engine means leave the cap alone and let the system cool first.
Advertisement
Source
Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook