Michigan road tests are administered by the Secretary of State. You need 50 supervised hours before testing — 10 at night. You must hold your permit for at least 6 months.

What the test covers

Michigan road tests run on public streets near the Secretary of State branch. The examiner uses a standard scoring form.

Skills tested:

Intersection navigation
Left and right turns
Stopping at signs and signals
Lane changes
Parallel parking
Backing
Speed management
Following distance
Mirror and observation habits

Michigan tests parallel parking at most locations.

What gets people failed

Not stopping fully at stop signs. Every stop sign requires a complete stop — wheels fully stopped before proceeding. This is the most common reason people fail in Michigan.

Blind spot checks on lane changes. The examiner watches for head movement. Signal, mirror check, head turn, move. Skipping the head turn is a deduction.

Parallel parking. Hitting cones, mounting the curb, or ending up too far from the curb are the common failure points. You have multiple attempts but each costs points after the first.

Turning wide. Left turns should end up in the left lane, right turns in the right lane. Swinging wide or drifting into the wrong lane is a deduction.

Speed management. Michigan residential streets are typically 25 mph. Going 30 is a consistent speed violation on test day.

Before the test

Michigan requires 50 hours including 10 at night. The permit hold period is 6 months.

Bring:

Valid Michigan learner’s permit
Completed driving log showing 50 hours (10 night)
Vehicle registration and current insurance
Parent or guardian if under 18

Tracking your hours

Michigan’s night hours use a sunset-to-sunrise definition. Michigan spans two time zones and has significant seasonal variation in sunset times — Detroit sunset in December is around 5:00 PM, while the Upper Peninsula sees sunset as early as 4:30 PM.

Moda tracks Michigan hours and applies the correct sunset for your specific location. Download on the App Store

Full Michigan permit requirements: Michigan permit hours

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