During the DMV pre-drive inspection, what does California require of your vehicle's horn?
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A.
Loud enough to be heard from at least 200 feet away. Correct
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B.
Loud enough to be heard by drivers in adjacent lanes.
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C.
Any working horn is acceptable, regardless of loudness.
The answer is "Loud enough to be heard from at least 200 feet away."
The pre-drive checklist ties the horn to a specific 200-foot audibility standard. Choice B swaps that measured distance for a vague neighbor-lane test, which is the standard drivers pick up from everyday use rather than the figure California prints.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. Loud enough to be heard by drivers in adjacent lanes.
Substitutes a vague adjacent-lane standard for the manual's measured 200-foot rule. This answer falls back on how drivers judge horns in daily use rather than the printed distance.
C. Any working horn is acceptable, regardless of loudness.
Skips the audibility standard by treating any horn that sounds as sufficient. This answer assumes a horn passes inspection as long as it works, missing the printed threshold.
This question tests your knowledge of Vehicle Equipment in California. Source: California Driver Manual, "Behind-the-Wheel Drive Test," p.5..
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