Tennessee Motorcycle Knowledge Test Cheat Sheet
The fastest way to review before your Driver Services motorcycle test — the numbers and rules most likely to appear.
🪪 Permit & License
- Class M license — any two/three-wheeler over 125cc
- Minimum age 16 for a Class M license
- Learner permit at 15: 650cc max, daylight, no passengers, 20-mi radius
- At 16, exchange the permit for a license — no further tests
- TN-certified MREP course waives BOTH the knowledge and skills tests
- An MSF course (any state, within 3 yrs) waives the skills test only
🔢 Most-Tested Numbers
- Test30 questions — 24 to pass (80%)
- Following gap2 seconds minimum
- Wet / heavy / night3 seconds or more
- Front brake70%+ of stopping power
- Scan ahead12 seconds
- DUI limit.08% adult · .02% under 21
🪖 Helmet & Gear
- Helmet required — every rider and passenger, every age
- Must meet federal standard 49 CFR 571.218 (DOT)
- 21+ may use a 218 helmet with an ASTM, CSPM, or Snell label
- Eye protection: goggles/glasses or face shield unless a windshield is fitted
- Headlight on at all times while riding
- Never wear tinted eye protection at night
✅ Remember This Answer
- Quick stop? Use both brakes together
- Front brake? Squeeze firmly — never grab
- Curve? Slow, Look, Press, Roll
- To lean/turn? Press the handgrip toward the turn
- Swerve? Brake before or after — never during
- Helmet & eyewear? Always — a windshield is no substitute
✅ Remember This Answer (2)
- Starts to rain? Ride in cars' tire tracks, not the center
- Railroad tracks? Cross straight, within your lane
- Tailgater behind you? Let them pass
- Cut reaction time? Cover the clutch and both brakes
- Daytime visibility? Headlight on — 2× as likely to be seen
- Where do crashes happen? Intersections, and the first few miles
⚠️ Common Test Traps
- "No room to stop" → Swerve — don't just brake harder
- "Stop fastest" → Both brakes — not front alone, not rear first
- "Brake while swerving" → Wrong — brake before or after only
- "It starts to rain" → Slow down, ride in the tire tracks
- "Following distance" → 2 sec; 3+ in poor conditions
- "Made eye contact" → Driver still may not yield
⚠️ More Test Traps
- "Curve, too fast" → Slow before — don't brake hard mid-curve
- "Lane splitting" → Illegal in Tennessee
- "Two abreast" → Allowed — but never three or more
- "Carrying a passenger" → Bike responds slower — ride slower
- "Waited an hour per drink" → Effects can still remain
- "Small animal in your lane" → Stay in your lane — don't swerve into traffic
🚨 Emergency Situations
- Tire goes flat → Hold grips, ease off throttle, keep straight, edge off the road
- Stuck throttle → Twist it; if still stuck, kill switch + pull in clutch
- Wobble → Close throttle gradually — don't brake, don't accelerate
- Rear wheel locks → Keep it locked until stopped if straight and upright
- Front wheel locks → Release the front brake, then reapply
- Engine seizes → Squeeze the clutch, pull off the road
🌧️ Surfaces, Weather & Night
- Pavement is most slippery in the first minutes of rain
- Slippery surface: slow before it, no sudden moves, both brakes gently
- Cross parallel seams or grooves at 45° or more
- Night: ride slower and open a 3-second-plus following gap
- Night: high beam when not following or meeting a car
- Running wide in a curve is a top single-vehicle crash cause
🏍️ Motorcycle Control
- Countersteer: press left grip → lean left → go left
- Use both brakes every stop — the front gives 70%+ of the power
- Corner in four steps: SLOW · LOOK · PRESS · ROLL
- Slow tight turn: lean the bike only, keep your body upright
- Pick the lane third that helps you see and be seen
- Head-check your blind spot before every lane change
🍺 Alcohol & Impairment
- Legally intoxicated.08% BAC (adult)
- Under 21.02% BAC = impaired
- Refuse the test12-month suspension
- Leaves the body~1 drink per hour
- As little as one drink hurts judgment and balance
- DUI covers prescription and OTC drugs too
🎯 Last-Minute Before the Test
- 30 questions — 24 correct (80%) to pass
- Both brakes to stop — front brake = 70%+ of power
- Every curve: SLOW · LOOK · PRESS · ROLL
- Brake OR swerve — never both at once
- Follow at 2 seconds — 3+ when wet, crowded, or at night
- Helmet + eye protection always; headlight always on
- SEE = Search, Evaluate, Execute · .08% BAC = intoxicated
Confirm every number against the official Tennessee Motorcycle Operator Manual before test day. Full helmet law →
Source: Test details are confirmed on the official agency page. Confirmed in an official search snippet: 30 questions, minimum 80% to pass. State law requires at least 25% of the test to cover alcohol and drugs.