Exam-Day Cheat Sheet

Signal timing, speeds, parking distances and trick wording on one page. Print it or save as PDF.

One page to review before the written test. The numbers are the same as in this app’s questions, and the trick wording is shown in the Japanese that appears in the real questions.

MenkyoDojo · Exam-Day Cheat Sheet

Test format

  • Karimen (provisional) test 50 true/false questions / Time limit: 30 minutes / Pass: 45 or more out of 50
  • Honmen (full licence) test 90 true/false + 5 hazard-prediction questions / Time limit: 50 minutes / Pass: 90 or more out of 100
  • Knowledge check (conversion) 50 true/false questions / No time limit / Pass: 45 or more out of 50

Who goes first (junctions without lights and more)

  • Traffic on a priority road or a clearly wider road goes first. Slow down and do not get in its way
  • If the roads are about the same width, the vehicle coming from your left goes first. Trams always go first
  • Vehicles going straight or turning left go before a vehicle turning right
  • If anyone is crossing or about to cross at a crosswalk, stop before it
  • Emergency vehicle near a junction: keep out of the junction, pull left and stop. Elsewhere: pull left and let it pass
  • When a bus signals to pull out from a stop, do not block it (unless you would have to brake or swerve suddenly)

Traffic lights

  • 青信号 Green light. You MAY proceed — it is permission, not priority. You still yield to pedestrians already crossing.
  • 黄色の灯火 Steady yellow. You must STOP. Only if you cannot stop safely at the stop line may you continue.
  • 赤色の灯火 Red light. Stop before the stop line. Left turn on red is NOT allowed in Japan.
  • 矢印信号 Green arrow. You may go in the direction of the arrow, even when the main light is red.
  • 点滅信号 Flashing light. Yellow: proceed with care. RED: you must stop completely, then go — the same as a stop sign.

Look-alike terms

    • 徐行 Proceed slowly — at a speed where you can stop immediately (roughly 10 km/h or less).
    • 一時停止 Come to a complete stop (wheels fully stopped), then check and go.
    • 追い越し Passing the vehicle ahead by CHANGING your course (moving out of your line).
    • 追い抜き Passing the vehicle ahead WITHOUT changing your course.
    • 駐車 Parking — the driver has left and cannot drive off at once, or loading/unloading for over 5 minutes.
    • 停車 Stopping — any short stop that is not parking. Letting people in or out is always "stopping".
    • 法定速度 The default limit when no sign is posted: 60 km/h on ordinary roads, 30 km/h for mopeds.
    • 指定速度 The limit shown by a sign or road marking. Where posted, it overrides the default limit.

Trick wording (Japanese in the question)

  • Absolute wording 必ず・絶対・いかなる・どんな場合でも・すべて
  • Only / just だけ・のみ
  • Exemption wording しなくてもよい・しなくともよい・必要はない・必要ない・差し支えない
  • Permission wording してもよい・してよい・認められ・よいことになっている・ことができる
  • Ignoring conditions 関係なく・かかわらず・拘らず・問わず
  • "Parking" vs "stopping" 駐車・停車
  • "Overtaking" vs "passing" 追い越し・追越し・追い抜き・追い越そう
  • "Slow down" vs "stop" 徐行・一時停止
  • Uphill vs downhill 上り坂・下り坂・頂上・こう配

Practical test basics

  • Signal 30 m before a left/right turn or U-turn; about 3 seconds before changing lanes
  • Move to the left edge before a left turn, and toward the centre before a right turn
  • Before moving off, changing lanes or turning left: mirrors plus a look over your shoulder
  • At a “止まれ” sign, stop just before the stop line. Stop before level crossings and check
  • Check behind before opening the door

Numbers to remember

How to drive on the road

  • 30 m How many metres before a turn or U-turn must you signal?
  • 3 sec How many seconds before changing lanes must you signal?

Overtaking

  • 30 m Within how many metres before an intersection, railway crossing or pedestrian crossing is overtaking prohibited?

Speed & stopping distance

  • 60 km/h What is the statutory maximum speed for a car on an ordinary road?
  • 30 km/h What is the statutory maximum speed for a moped?
  • 4× If your speed doubles, roughly how many times longer is the braking distance?
  • 2× On a wet road, the braking distance can be roughly how many times that of a dry road?

How a vehicle behaves

  • 4× If your speed doubles, roughly how many times greater is the impact force in a crash?

Slowing & stopping

  • 10 km/h Driving slowly ("jokō") is roughly what speed or less?
  • 1 m As a rule of thumb for "slow speed", within how many metres of braking must you be able to stop?

Expressways

  • 100 km/h What is the statutory maximum speed for a standard car on a national expressway?
  • 50 km/h What is the statutory MINIMUM speed on the main carriageway of a national expressway?
  • 60 km/h What is the statutory maximum speed on a motor-vehicle-only road?
  • 100 m At 100 km/h on a motorway, roughly how many metres of following distance should you keep?
  • 2 hours On a long motorway drive, you should take a break roughly every how many hours?

Parking & stopping

  • 5 m Within how many metres of an intersection or a road corner is stopping and parking prohibited?
  • 5 m Within how many metres before and after a pedestrian or cycle crossing is stopping and parking prohibited?
  • 10 m Within how many metres before and after a railway crossing is stopping and parking prohibited?
  • 10 m Within how many metres of a bus stop post is stopping and parking prohibited (during service hours)?
  • 10 m Within how many metres before and after a safety island is stopping and parking prohibited?
  • 5 m Within how many metres of the edge of a roadworks area is parking prohibited?
  • 3 m Within how many metres of the entrance to an off-road facility such as a car park or garage is parking prohibited?
  • 5 m Within how many metres of a fire hydrant is parking prohibited?
  • 1 m Within how many metres of a fire alarm is parking prohibited?
  • 3.5 m When you park, how many metres of clear road must remain to the right of your vehicle?
  • 5 min Loading and unloading becomes "parking" once it exceeds how many minutes?

Signs & road markings

  • 6 m Where a "parking space 6 m" sign is posted, how many metres must remain clear to the right of your vehicle?

Driver's responsibilities

  • 6 years old A child seat is required for children under what age?
  • 70 years old From what age are drivers expected to display the older-driver plate?

Licences & vehicle classes

  • 1 year The novice driver plate must be displayed for how many years after getting your licence?

Bad conditions

  • 50 m Parking at night, you may omit the warning device where the car is visible from how many metres behind?

Accidents & first aid

  • 5 cm In CPR chest compressions, the chest should be pressed down by about how many centimetres?

Signs that are easy to confuse

No parking 駐車禁止
You may not park, but you may stop, for example to let people in or out.
No parking or stopping 駐停車禁止
You may neither park nor stop.
Stop 一時停止
Stop just before the stop line (or the intersection if there is none) and check it is safe.
Slow down 徐行
Proceed at a speed from which you can stop at once (roughly 10 km/h or less).
Closed to all traffic 通行止め
No pedestrians, vehicles or trams may pass.
Closed to vehicles 車両通行止め
No vehicles may pass — cars, mopeds and light vehicles alike. Pedestrians may still pass.
No entry 車両進入禁止
Vehicles may not enter from this direction. It is posted at the exit end of a one-way street.
One way 一方通行
You may only travel in the direction of the arrow.
Maximum speed 最高速度
You must not drive faster than the speed shown.
Minimum speed 最低速度
You must not drive slower than the speed shown.
Mopeds: two-stage right turn 原動機付自転車の右折方法（二段階）
Mopeds must make a two-stage right turn at this intersection.
Mopeds: normal right turn 原動機付自転車の右折方法（小回り）
Mopeds must not make a two-stage right turn here. Turn right as other vehicles do.
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Karimen vs honmen vs gaimen kirikae

Key Numbers to MemoriseThe distances, speeds and time limits the written test asks about, grouped by topic so you don't mix up the similar ones.Practical Driving Test: Safety-Check GuideWalk-around, over-the-shoulder checks, keeping left before a left turn. Step through what examiners watch for.