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Automotive & MechanicsBacking in a straight line along the curb
The examiner asks you to pull to the curb, back the car in a straight line without striking the curb and merge back into traffic. It is scored as entering, backing and exiting, with traffic checks, signals, speed, the line you hold and how many corrections you need. It is the backing maneuver of the California DMV Class C driving test.
Free to startScenarios
- A straight street with a curb on your right, during the noncommercial Class C driving test.
- A car with a manual transmission: proper gear and clutch use also count.
The steps
- Entering: check traffic ahead, to the right and behind you before pulling to the curb.
- Check the right blind spot over your shoulder and use your mirrors.
- Signal before pulling up to the curb and cancel the signal once you are there.
- Pull up to the curb at a safe speed.
- Before and while backing, look over your right shoulder through the rear window; mirrors or a camera alone do not count. Critical point
- Back in a straight line for 3 vehicle lengths, staying within 3 feet of the curb.
- Back up at a smooth, safe speed.
- Use no more than 1 correction; a correction is any movement forward.
- Do not touch the curb or drive over it. Critical point
- Keep control of the car, with the proper gear and clutch use.
- Exiting: check traffic ahead, to the left and behind you, and the left blind spot over your shoulder. Critical point
- Signal before pulling away from the curb and cancel it after.
- Pull away from the curb at a safe speed.
Safety rules that stop the station
- Turn your head and look through the back windshield: mirrors and cameras may not show every hazard.
- Backup cameras and self-parking cannot be used alone on the driving test.
To pass
- Needing 3 attempts to back the car is a critical driving error.
- Each item here that you miss is marked as an error on the scoring maneuvers; you pass with no more than 15 of them.
- A step marked critical is a critical driving error: a single one fails the test.
Official source
California · DMV, DL 955
Driving Test Criteria (DL 955)
The California DMV publishes its Driving Test Criteria (DL 955) free: the pre-drive checklist, the scoring criteria and the critical driving errors.
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