Motorcycle Module 2 Test Day Checklist

#Documents you must bring

You need three documents at the test centre and the examiner will ask for them before anything else happens. Forget any one and the test does not run, you lose your fee, and you book again. The list is short and worth checking the night before:

• Your Module 1 pass certificate (the one you got after the off-road test). Bring the paper original, not a photo of it
• Your motorcycle theory test pass certificate (must still be in date, two years from the theory pass)
• Your CBT certificate (DL196), in date if you are riding on it as a learner
• Your provisional or full driving licence, the photocard

The CBT certificate has a two-year validity from the date you passed it. If yours is close to expiry, double check the date before booking the test. If your theory test pass has expired you have to retake the theory before you can sit Module 2 again, even if you previously passed Module 1. This is one of the most painful self-inflicted Module 2 fails.

#Gear standards on test day

The DVSA does not legally mandate full gear, but examiners will reject riders who turn up under-equipped. The minimum that will not get you turned away is: a helmet conforming to current UK standards, gloves, an over-jacket suitable for motorcycling, sturdy trousers (jeans are usually accepted, joggers are not), and proper boots that cover the ankle. Trainers, shorts, t-shirts and open-finger gloves will not pass the inspection.

Helmets need to be in good condition without obvious damage, and the visor should be clean enough that the examiner can see you have visibility. A scratched or fogged visor is a small thing the examiner can make a fuss about. Tinted visors are fine if it is bright, but a dark tint at dusk or in rain might be queried. Most training schools will lend you the right gear if your own is borderline.

#The bike itself

The bike must match the category of test you booked. For full A you need a bike of at least 595cc and at least 40 kilowatts (54 brake horsepower). For A2 it must be at least 245cc and produce no more than 35 kilowatts (47 brake horsepower). For A1 it must be at least 120cc and no more than 11 kilowatts. Turning up on the wrong category bike is an automatic test cancellation. Most riders use a school bike for the test, which removes this risk entirely.

L-plates: required for learners, on both front and rear of the bike, sized to the legal minimum (178mm by 178mm with a 70mm wide red L). Wales tests can use D-plates instead but L-plates are accepted everywhere. The plates need to be securely attached, not flapping in the wind, not obscured by paniers or a tail bag.

• Fuel: at least quarter of a tank, ideally half. Running out mid-test is a fail
• Tyres: pressures right, tread legal, no obvious cuts or bulges
• Lights and indicators: all working, including the brake light when you press both front and rear brakes separately
• Mirrors: both clean, both adjusted before you ride out
• Chain: tension within spec, lubricated. The examiner may check this
• Helmet locked or on you: never left dangling on a strap as you walk in

#The radio and headset

The examiner brings the radio and the headset. They fit the headset inside your helmet, usually as a small earpiece with a microphone clipped to your jacket or helmet strap. Check the volume before you leave the centre car park. Examiners will speak to you on the radio and they cannot adjust it once you are riding. If the volume is wrong it is your responsibility to flag it before you set off, not theirs.

Test the comms with a quick exchange in the car park. The examiner usually does this anyway. They will say something like "can you hear me clearly" and you reply "yes, loud and clear" or whatever feels natural. If the line is fuzzy, ask them to swap the headset before you ride out. Doing it on the road is a faff and counts against your concentration during the test.

#Arriving at the centre

Get to the centre 15 to 20 minutes early. That gives time to park the bike (most DVSA centres have dedicated bike spaces), settle, do a final visual check of the bike, find the toilet, take off your jacket gloves, and breathe. Arriving five minutes before is the worst possible move because you walk in already rushed and the examiner picks up on it.

Use the time to do one final mental run through the show-me tell-me questions. The examiner will ask one at the centre and one during the ride. The list is on the show-me tell-me guide and the bike-specific version is on the Mod 2 show-me tell-me page. You will not get a full marks for them, but a confident answer signals you know the bike, and that flavours the rest of the test in your favour.

#After the test starts

Once you are on the road, the checklist work is done. The examiner is in your ear and you are riding. The most useful mental switch at this point is to treat it like a normal lesson, not a test. Riders who tense up on Module 2 because of the radio audio in their ear tend to make jerky, hesitant decisions. The radio is just a different way of receiving directions. The riding part is what you have practised dozens of times.