When using a hand signal to indicate a turn, when should drivers stop holding the signal?
- In the middle of the turn
- After completing the turn
- Immediately before making the turn ✓
- Three or four seconds before making the turn
Answer: C. Immediately before making the turn
Drivers should stop holding a hand signal immediately before making the turn, just as they begin the turn itself.
Why this is the answer
The handbook tells you to hold a hand signal until you are close enough to the intersection that other drivers can read your intention. Then it says plainly: do not keep the signal up while you turn, because turning takes both hands on the wheel. So the hand signal ends right before the turn begins, once you have been seen. Signaling much earlier and holding it through the turn are both outside what the handbook describes.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. In the middle of the turn — Holding the signal through the middle of the turn is exactly what the handbook says not to do, since you need both hands on the wheel to steer.
- B. After completing the turn — Waiting until after you complete the turn means steering with one hand and signaling after other drivers no longer need the information.
- D. Three or four seconds before making the turn — Dropping the signal three or four seconds before the turn is not the rule; the handbook says hold it until you are close enough to the intersection for others to know your intention.
Remember it
Think of the hand signal as an announcement you drop the moment the steering wheel needs both hands.