You are stopped in the intersection waiting for a gap to turn left. How should your front wheels be pointed?
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A.
Straight down the road ahead. Correct
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B.
Angled toward the left.
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C.
Angled toward the right curb.
The answer is "Straight down the road ahead."
Keep the wheels straight while you wait to turn left; if a vehicle rear-ends you with wheels turned left, you would be pushed into oncoming traffic. The 'angled toward the left' impulse comes from parking-lot habits of pre-aiming the wheels for the next move, which the manual specifically warns against here.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. Angled toward the left.
If a car strikes you from behind with wheels turned left, you are pushed into oncoming traffic. This answer applies the pre-aim habit from parking maneuvers to a wait the manual treats differently.
C. Angled toward the right curb.
Angling right stalls the turn and drifts you toward the wrong lane once you release the brake. This answer confuses the intersection wait with the uphill-no-curb parking rule, which does turn wheels toward the road edge.
This question tests your knowledge of Turning in California. Source: California Driver Manual, "Left Turns," p.19..
Related California questions
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- Before beginning a right turn at an intersection, how does the manual tell you to check for traffic? →
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