Driver's License Test Prep
California Practice Adverse Conditions

According to the manual, when can pavement be at its most slippery?

  1. A.
    After several hours of rainfall.
  2. B.
    When it starts to rain. Correct
  3. C.
    When temperatures rise above 80 degrees.
The Why

The answer is "When it starts to rain."

The slippery-roads section warns that pavement is at its slickest when rain first starts, because oil and dust have not been washed off yet. The 'after several hours' choice assumes more water means more slip, which reverses the actual rule.

Why the others miss

The traps in the wrong answers

A. After several hours of rainfall.

The manual warns about the first minutes of rain, not the point after several hours. This answer assumes more water means more slip, when the trigger is oil lifting off dry pavement.

C. When temperatures rise above 80 degrees.

High temperatures are not what the slippery-roads section identifies as the slipperiness trigger. This answer confuses hot-pavement melt with the manual's oil-and-dust explanation for fresh-rain slickness.

The Rule

This question tests your knowledge of Adverse Conditions in California. Source: California Driver Manual, "Slippery Roads," p.61..

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