New Mexico Car / Permit practice
New Mexico Car / Permit: Parking & Stopping practice test
Legal and illegal parking, colored curbs, distances from hydrants and crossings, and how to park safely on hills.
Content reviewed against official driver handbooks · August 12, 2026
14 questions · pass with 11 correct. You get instant feedback and an explanation after every answer.
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Study questions with answers
12 sample Parking & Stopping questions with the correct answer, a short explanation, and the official handbook reference. Read through them, then take the quiz above.
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1. What is the safer habit when getting out of a vehicle parked along a street?
Correct answer: Check traffic first and exit on the curb side when possible
Look for traffic before the door opens and step out on the curb side when you can. If the street side is your only option, check traffic first and shut the door promptly.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
2. What does a red-painted curb tell a driver?
Correct answer: A fire zone where parking and standing are banned
Red marks a fire zone, where neither parking nor standing is allowed.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
3. Which of these is a parking violation described in the manual?
Correct answer: Double parking beside another parked vehicle
Stopping on the road side of another parked car — double parking — is prohibited, along with parking on a bridge, in a tunnel, on the wrong side of the street, or in a marked handicap space without the proper plate, tag, or sticker.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
4. How far from a fire hydrant must you keep a parked vehicle in New Mexico?
Correct answer: 15 feet
Parking is barred within 15 feet of a hydrant.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
5. What should you always do with the transmission and brake when leaving a parked vehicle?
Correct answer: Set the parking brake and leave the vehicle in gear or in park
Set the parking brake every time. A manual car should be left in gear; an automatic belongs in park.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
6. What is indicated by a curb painted white?
Correct answer: Only short stops are allowed
White means only brief stops are permitted there. Yellow marks a loading zone or similar restriction, and blue is set aside for handicap parking.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
7. How far from the curb may a legally parked vehicle sit?
Correct answer: No more than 18 inches
The body of the vehicle has to be within 18 inches of the curb; anything farther out is a parking violation.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
8. What parking rules apply around a fire station driveway?
Correct answer: 20 feet on the same side and 75 feet on the opposite side
On the fire station's own side of the street you must stay 20 feet clear of the driveway, and across the street the distance grows to 75 feet.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
9. What is the minimum distance you must keep between a parked vehicle and a crosswalk at an intersection?
Correct answer: 25 feet
Keep 25 feet clear of an intersection crosswalk when parking.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
10. What two conditions must a parked vehicle meet so it is not a hazard?
Correct answer: It must be clear of the travel lane and visible from both directions
Leave it far enough back from the travel lane that it does not interfere with traffic, and in a spot where drivers coming from either direction can see it.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
11. Which way should you point the front wheels when parking on a hill?
Correct answer: Sharply toward the curb or road edge
Crank them sharply toward the curb or the edge of the road. Then if the vehicle starts rolling, it heads away from moving traffic rather than into it.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
12. What does a curb painted yellow indicate?
Correct answer: A loading zone or other restriction
Yellow marks a loading zone or some other limitation on parking at that spot.
Source: New Mexico Driver Manual — Parking
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Every New Mexico question is written from the official New Mexico driver handbook and checked against its current edition. DMV Test Free is a free, independent study resource — not affiliated with any DMV or government agency. About DMV Test Free