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Question

Difficulty: MediumBreakdown Procedures

An engine warning indicator illuminates on your dashboard while travelling on a motorway, but your car remains fully driveable and a sign indicates a service area is half a mile ahead. What should you do?

  1. A
    Stop on the hard shoulder immediately and place a red warning triangle behind the car
  2. Continue to the service area, leave the motorway, and find a safe place to stopAnswer
  3. C
    Shift into neutral and coast along the carriageway until the car comes to a stop
  4. D
    Ignore the dashboard indicator and continue driving at normal speed to your final destination

Answer

Continue to the service area, leave the motorway, and find a safe place to stop.
Under Highway Code Rule 275, if your vehicle develops a fault but is still driveable, you should leave the motorway at the next exit or pull into a service area. This removes the vehicle entirely from high-speed traffic, which is much safer than stopping on the hard shoulder or active lanes.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Assess vehicle drivability and motorway exit opportunities
Identify that the car is operational and a service area exit is within immediate reach
Highway Code Rule 275 advises leaving the motorway at the next exit or service area if a problem arises and the vehicle can still be safely driven.
2
Select the safest location to investigate the issue
Avoid stopping on the hard shoulder or active carriageway and pull off into the service area
Stopping on a motorway or hard shoulder carries inherent risks from passing high-speed traffic; off-motorway parking is significantly safer.

Key Concept

Highway Code breakdown procedure: leaving the motorway at the earliest safe opportunity (Rule 275)
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Breakdown Procedures

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