Passing the Oregon Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) General Knowledge Exam is required to obtain a Commercial Learner’s Permit (CLP). The General Knowledge Exam includes questions about pre-trip inspections. Then, with your CLP (and a minimum 14-day waiting period), you must pass the Oregon Pre-Trip Inspection Test as part of the CDL skills exam for a CDL. This test determines whether drivers can identify and check critical vehicle components to prevent breakdowns and accidents. Our Oregon CDL Pre-Trip Inspection Practice Tests cover all necessary topics related to pre-trip inspections to help you ace that part of the knowledge exam.
There are three parts to the skills test that must be passed for your CDL: the federally mandated pre-trip inspection test (regulations 49 CFR § 392.7 and 49 CFR § 396.13), basic control skills test, and road test. In Oregon, if you fail one of the three sections of the skills test, you only need to retake the failed section, as you will receive credit for any segment passed. In Oregon, CDL skills test results are valid for six months; if you don’t complete all CDL requirements within this time, you must restart the process (and still adhere to the 365-day CLP validity period). Also, in Oregon’s CDL Manual (Oregon CDL Handbook 2025), there are exemptions for school bus drivers who have passed a Department of Education test. Oregon recognizes this test taken by school bus drivers as equivalent to the CDL skills test. This exemption pertains to school bus drivers only.