How to pass the license test at the Winnetka DMV

TrafficSchool.com Says

Hello Helen!

Thanks for reaching out. We reached out to the driving school experts at Drivers Ed Direct and this is the advice they had to give about DMV tests, including a few insider tips for passing at the Winnetka DMV:

For a list of reasons teen often fail the DMV drive test, check out this comprehensive video discussing the Top 10 reasons students don't pass the driving test: https://www.driverseddirect.com/videos/top-10-dmv-fails/

We are not allowed to discuss the exact Winnetka test routes, but the truth is that each DMV examiner will take different streets, so there is no single test route we could reveal to you anyway. In general, you should be comfortable driving on all the streets around the Winnetka DMV: Lurline, Valerio, Oso, Hart, Sherman Way, De Soto, Vanowen, Victory, Saticoy, Winnetka, and Mason.

With that said, here are some good things to keep in mind when testing at the Winnetka DMV:

- First, when exiting the DMV parking lot at the start of the test, they will either have them make a left and take them into the residential neighborhood to start or they will have them make a right and then they'll have to make another right onto a busy main street. Each examiner is different in how they do it. Regardless of the direction they take, they will still always do some of the test in both residential and the main streets.

- However, one thing to note and this is key...as they are exiting the DMV, they need to make sure to stop before the sidewalk and make certain there is no pedestrians, and then ease out and stop at the end of the driveway before the curb and be sure to look... left-right-left... exaggerate it and make sure there is no cross traffic. Lots of kids fail just coming out of the DMV because they don't cross check to be sure it's clear and almost crash into cars when exiting.

- Let's assume they take a left into the residential area to start... they will possibly turn off right on to one of the side streets (even though not a through street) and ask them to curbside park. When they curbside park, they will ask them to reverse on the curbside as well.

- They will do a bunch of lefts and rights through the residential area, nothing too crazy. There will be a stop sign that is an all way stop - make sure to stop completely behind the limit line, check for traffic, and employ proper right of way rules. Where they go from there either straight, right or left is again different from every examiner, but they just basically are going to continue to have them show car control and exercise good judgment going through the area.

- At some point, they will have them driving on the main streets and ask them to do proper lane changes (be sure to SMOG: Signal, Mirror, Look Over Shoulder, Go) and make some turns at intersections. If asked to make a right turn at an intersection and the light is red; they do not have to go as it's not required to turn right on red and we generally suggest they don't on the test. However, if they do make the right on the red than be sure there is no cross traffic AT ALL coming as what they think is a safe distance for a turn may not be according to the examiner and this is another big reason kids fail. This is common when they have them come out of the DMV initially making the right and then tell them to make the first right on a major street. If making a right at an intersection... BE SURE THE CROSS TRAFFIC IS CLEAR... DON'T IMPEDE ONCOMING CARS. Also, be sure there are no pedestrians in the cross walk when turning through.

- Near the end of the test, they will almost always have them make a left turn using a center left turn lane. This is a lane with a solid yellow outside and dashed inside lines. They will need to safely change lanes into this lane (be sure to SMOG) and establish position in this lane and then make the left safely at the intersection. A lot of kids have trouble with this and make a left from the left most straight lane instead of merging into that center lane, and then they auto fail. Also, many kids merge into this lane without proper SMOG and auto fail for not looking over their shoulder or mirrors to check blind spots. (We have an example of using a center left turn lane in our video noted above as well.)

- Lastly, keep in mind that they won't drive farther than a radius of 2-3 miles (10 minutes max) away from the DMV since the test in never longer than 15 minutes so if you happen to go over there beforehand... stay close to the DMV in your practicing.

We hope that helps. If you have any other driving school or drivers ed questions, Drivers Ed Direct has great resources:
Drivers Ed Direct Home | Drivers Ed Videos.

* This question and answer may have been modified to remove any identifying personal information of the person asking the question.
** The information contained within this FAQ is up to date as of 2/17/2021. We always recommend that you get the latest information available by contacting TrafficSchool.com, the DMV, or Court directly.