LOS ANGELES – According to the results from the 2007 GMAC Insurance National Drivers Test, one in six drivers on the road — roughly 36 million licensed Americans — would not pass their written department of motor vehicles exam if they had taken it today, according to the Web site www.knbc.com. The annual survey by GMAC Insurance gauges driver knowledge of the rules of the road by testing licensed Americans on actual questions from state DMV license exams.

According to this year’s results, New York drivers ousted Rhode Island by ranking last in all 50 states and the District of Columbia on driver knowledge.

Idaho, on the other hand, topped the list and dethroned Oregon’s tenure at first place as the most knowledgeable drivers in the United States. While the national average score was 77.1 percent, New Yorkers had an average of 71 percent and the highest failure rates — 36 percent. Idaho had an average score of 81.7 percent.

Arkansas, Minnesota, Kansas, and Wisconsin ranked in the top five, and New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Massachusetts, and Rhode Island were in the bottom five among all states, according to the Web site www.knbc.com.

Respondents completed 20 questions drawn from actual DMV tests. GMAC Insurance National Drivers Test respondents found two questions particularly vexing this year, driving scores down across the board: 81 percent couldn’t identify the proper following distance from the car in front of them — the correct answer is two seconds. Even more (84 percent) couldn’t identify the correct action to take when approaching a steady yellow traffic light — which is to stop if it is safe to do so.