Cambridge IELTS 2 · Academic · Test 3 · Passage 2
The Motor Car — IELTS Reading Answers
All 13 answers for The Motor Car, Cambridge IELTS 2 Academic Reading Test 3 Passage 2, with the passage evidence and an explanation for each.
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The Motor Car answer key at a glance
Questions 14–26. Tap an answer to see the evidence.
What this passage tests
This passage is tested with Matching Information (Q14–19), Yes / No / Not Given (Q20–26). Each section below gives the strategy for that question type, the answers, and the sentence that proves them.
Questions 14–19: Matching Information
Strategy: Scan for the idea, not the exact words. The answer is a paragraph letter, and one paragraph may be used more than once unless the instructions say otherwise.
a comparison of past and present transportation methods
“Until a hundred years ago, most journeys were in the 20 km range, the distance conveniently accessible by horse. Heavy freight could only be carried by water or rail. The invention of the motor vehicle brought personal mobility to the masses and made rapid freight delivery possible over a much wider area.”
Paragraph C contrasts journeys a hundred years ago, limited to about 20 km by horse, with today's mass personal mobility and 90 per cent road freight.
how driving habits contribute to road problems
“Many people buy larger cars than they need for daily purposes or waste fuel by driving aggressively”
Paragraph F blames driving habits, naming people who buy larger cars than needed and waste fuel by driving aggressively.
the relative merits of cars and public transport
“A 1993 study by the European Federation for Transport and Environment found that car transport is seven times as costly as rail travel in terms of the external social costs it entails such as congestion, accidents, pollution, loss of cropland and natural habitats, depletion of oil resources, and so on”
Paragraph E cites a 1993 study finding car transport seven times as costly as rail in external social costs, comparing the two modes.
the writer's own prediction of future solutions
“A more likely scenario seems to be a combination of mass transit systems for travel into and around cities, with small 'low emission' cars for urban use and larger hybrid or lean burn cars for use elsewhere”
Paragraph H predicts a likely future mix of mass transit with small low-emission and hybrid cars, the writer's own forecast.
the increasing use of motor vehicles
“There are now over 700 million motor vehicles in the world - and the number is rising by more than 40 million each year. The average distance driven by car users is growing too - from 8 km a day per person in western Europe in 1965 to 25 km a day in 1995”
Paragraph A gives over 700 million vehicles rising by 40 million a year and average daily distance growth, showing increasing use.
the impact of the car on city development
“In Europe most cities are still designed for the old modes of transport. Adaptation to the motor car has involved adding ring roads, one-way systems and parking lots. In the United States, more land is assigned to car use than to housing. Urban sprawl means that life without a car is next to impossible”
Paragraph D describes ring roads, one-way systems, parking lots, land assigned to cars and urban sprawl, showing the car's impact on city development.
Questions 20–26: Yes / No / Not Given
Strategy: These test the writer's opinions, not facts. Look for evaluative language, and treat 'may' or 'could' as weaker than the question's claim.
Vehicle pollution is worse in European cities than anywhere else.
“Even Moscow has joined the list of capitals afflicted by congestion and traffic fumes. In Mexico City, vehicle pollution is a major health hazard”
The passage mentions Moscow's congestion and Mexico City's hazard but never compares pollution levels to claim European cities are the worst.
Transport by horse would be a useful alternative to motor vehicles.
“Clearly the world cannot revert to the horse-drawn wagon”
The text says clearly that the world cannot revert to the horse-drawn wagon, contradicting the idea of horse transport as a useful alternative.
Nowadays freight is not carried by water in the United Kingdom.
“Today about 90 per cent of inland freight in the United Kingdom is carried by road”
The passage says 90 per cent of UK inland freight goes by road but never states that water freight has stopped.
Most European cities were not designed for motor vehicles.
“In Europe most cities are still designed for the old modes of transport”
The text says most European cities are still designed for the old modes of transport, so they were not designed for cars.
Technology alone cannot solve the problem of vehicle pollution.
“Technical solutions can reduce the pollution problem and increase the fuel efficiency of engines. But fuel consumption and exhaust emissions depend on which cars are preferred by customers and how they are driven. Many people buy larger cars than they need for daily purposes or waste fuel by driving aggressively.”
Technical fixes can reduce pollution, but fuel use depends on customer choice and driving style and global car use grows faster, so technology alone cannot solve it.
People's choice of car and attitude to driving is a factor in the pollution problem.
“But fuel consumption and exhaust emissions depend on which cars are preferred by customers and how they are driven. Many people buy larger cars than they need for daily purposes or waste fuel by driving aggressively”
Fuel consumption and exhaust emissions depend on which cars customers prefer and how they are driven, with many buying oversized cars or driving aggressively.
Redesigning cities would be a short-term solution.
“One solution that has been put forward is the long-term solution of designing cities and neighbourhoods so that car journeys are not necessary - all essential services being located within walking distance or easily accessible by public transport”
The text calls designing cities so car journeys are unnecessary a long-term solution, contradicting the claim that it is short-term.
Learn the question types in this passage
Frequently asked questions
Where does the The Motor Car passage come from?
It is Passage 2 of Cambridge IELTS 2 Academic Reading Test 3, and it covers Questions 14–26.
What question types appear in The Motor Car?
The passage is tested with Matching Information, Yes / No / Not Given. Each type is explained on this page, alongside the answers.
Are these reading answers reliable?
Every answer is paired with the sentence that proves it, so you can check each one against the passage yourself. Use the page after a timed attempt, not instead of one.
Cambridge IELTS is published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Band9Prep is not affiliated with Cambridge. This page is an independent study aid: it gives the answer key, the passage evidence and an explanation so you can review an attempt you have already made.