Early cars ran on steam, but slow start-ups, frequent refills and then the electric starter for petrol engines killed them off. The Doble brothers kept trying: a quiet, fast Model B, a Model C with thousands of orders but faulty engines, and a superb but hugely expensive Model E. Fewer than fifty were made, yet survivors still pass California's emissions laws.
The headings (14-20) take one paragraph each, A to G. The multiple choice (21-23) covers B, C and D. The summary (24-26) is in F and G.
Matching headings (i-viii)
Questions 14-20
How to attack this block: The story is a timeline, and each paragraph is a turning point: the inheritance from railway steam, a better rival arriving, good press for the Model B, orders for the Model C, customers let down, a cold-weather test, and a closing look at whether steam could return. One heading (about marketing) is never used.
Question 14
Answer: iiiParagraph A, third sentence
Which heading sums up paragraph A?
But these early cars inherited steam's weaknesses along with its strengths.
Question says → Passage says
Good and bad aspectsweaknesses along with its strengths
are passed oninherited
steam technologySteam had already enjoyed a long and successful career in the railways
Why: A explains that cars took steam from the railways and 'inherited' both its strengths and weaknesses. The rest of the paragraph lists them: hand-lit boilers, 20-minute waits and short range, but also quick transport. That's heading iii.
The trap: Heading viii (a better option arises) can look possible because A lists steam's problems, but no rival technology appears until B.
Question 15
Answer: viiiParagraph B, second and last sentences
Which heading sums up paragraph B?
A new technology called the Internal Combustion Engine soon appeared, which offered the ability to drive down the road just moments after starting up.
Question says → Passage says
A better optionA new technology… which offered the ability to drive down the road just moments after starting up
arisessoon appeared
than the steam carsteam power was gradually phased out
Why: B introduces the petrol engine, which starts in moments instead of twenty minutes, and once the electric starter arrives, steam is 'phased out'. A rival that wins is heading viii.
The trap: The paragraph spends a sentence on how unpopular the noisy, arm-breaking petrol cars were at first. That's a detail. By the end of B, they've beaten steam.
Question 16
Answer: viParagraph C, second half
Which heading sums up paragraph C?
it drew the attention of automobile trade magazines due to its numerous improvements over previous steam cars
Question says → Passage says
Positive publicitydrew the attention of automobile trade magazines / 'remarkable acceleration' by Automobile magazine
quietin virtual silence
cleanin contrast to clattering gas engines which emitted the aroma of burned hydrocarbons
fastamazingly swift
Why: The Model B gets attention from the trade magazines, and the paragraph shows why: silent, no burnt-fuel smell, and very fast. Positive press for a quiet, clean, fast car is heading vi. 'At last' fits too, after steam's decline in B.
The trap: Heading v (further improvements lead to orders) is tempting because C mentions 'numerous improvements'. But there are no orders in C; those come in D.
Question 17
Answer: vParagraph D, last two sentences
Which heading sums up paragraph D?
With these enhancements, the Dobles' new car company promised a steam vehicle which would provide all of the convenience of a gasoline car… had received 5,390 deposits for Doble Detroits
Question says → Passage says
Further improvementsexpand upon the innovations of the Model B / these enhancements
commercial orders5,390 deposits
Why: D describes the Model C, built to improve on the Model B (for example a key ignition), and then 5,390 people pay deposits. Deposits are orders, so heading v.
The trap: Heading vi (positive publicity) attracts people who see the list of promised benefits. But the promises come from the company, not the press, and the paragraph ends with orders.
Question 18
Answer: viiParagraph E
Which heading sums up paragraph E?
Those buyers who received the handful of completed cars complained that the vehicles were sluggish and erratic, sometimes going in reverse when they should go forward.
Question says → Passage says
A disappointing outcomeunhappy news
for customersthose eagerly awaiting the delivery / Those buyers
Why: Customers who paid deposits got 'unhappy news', and the few who got cars complained they were slow, erratic and even went backwards. That's heading vii.
The trap: Heading ii (marketing issues lead to failure) sounds like a business failing, but E is about faulty engines ('serious glitches'), not marketing. Heading ii is the one that's never used.
Question 19
Answer: iParagraph F, second and third sentences
Which heading sums up paragraph F?
After sitting overnight in freezing temperatures, the car was pushed out into the road and left to sit for over an hour in the frosty morning air.
Question says → Passage says
A period in cold conditionssitting overnight in freezing temperatures… for over an hour in the frosty morning air
before the technology is assessedto be road-tested by the Automobile Club of America
Why: The Model E is left out overnight in freezing weather and then in the frosty morning, all before the road test. Cold first, then the assessment: heading i.
The trap: Heading vi (positive publicity) is tempting because the test goes well: forty-second start, good handling. But nobody publishes anything, and the cold-then-test structure is what the paragraph is built on.
Question 20
Answer: ivParagraph G, last two sentences
Which heading sums up paragraph G?
Under the current pressure to improve automotive performance and reduce emissions, it is not unthinkable that the steam car may rise again.
Question says → Passage says
A possible solutionit is not unthinkable that the steam car may rise again
the issues of todaythe current pressure to improve automotive performance and reduce emissions
Why: G ends with today's problems (performance and emissions) and suggests steam could come back to help. 'Not unthinkable' = possible, so heading iv.
The trap: Heading ii (marketing issues lead to failure) fits the opening: the car was never a financial success. But the cause given is the high price and constant tinkering, not marketing, and the paragraph moves on to the car's future.
Multiple choice
Questions 21-23
How to attack this block: Question 21 is the glory days being 'few'. Question 22 is about the first car: it ran badly, so they built a second and third prototype. Question 23 is about what Abner did before the Model C, which was to seek investment in Detroit.
Question 21
Answer: AParagraph B, first sentence
What does the writer say about steam cars in paragraph B?
But the glory days of steam cars were few.
Question says → Passage says
Its successthe glory days of steam cars
was short-livedwere few / gradually phased out
Why: 'Glory days' means the time of success, and 'were few' means it didn't last long. Within a few years of 1912, steam had been phased out. That's A.
The trap: D is the strongest distractor: B does say cars were 'more complicated to operate' with dangerous hand-cranks. But that describes the petrol cars, not the steam cars.
Question 22
Answer: CParagraph C, third and fourth sentences
What is true about how the Doble brothers built their first steam car?
Though it did not run well, the Doble brothers went on to build a second and third prototype in the following years.
Question says → Passage says
needed several attemptswent on to build a second and third prototype
to achieve a competitive modelThe Model B proved to be superior to gasoline automobiles in many ways
Why: The first car ran badly, so they built a second and a third. Only the third, the Model B, beat petrol cars in many ways. Three tries to get a competitive car is C.
The trap: A is wrong because the first car 'comprised parts taken from a wrecked early steam car', so they didn't make every part. Only the engine was their own design. B and D aren't mentioned.
Question 23
Answer: BParagraph D, first sentence
What did the Doble brothers do to produce the Model C?
Abner Doble drove the Model B from Massachusetts to Detroit in order to seek investment in his automobile design, which he used to open the General Engineering Company
Question says → Passage says
raised financial capitalseek investment in his automobile design, which he used to open
Why: Abner went to Detroit to find investment and used it to start the company, where they began work on the Model C. Raising investment is raising capital: B.
The trap: A tempts because he drove from Massachusetts to Detroit, and the car is even called the Doble Detroit. But the trip was to find money, and the passage never says production moved. D is wrong: the Model C built on the Model B rather than abandoning it.
Summary completion (ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 24-26
How to attack this block: The later Model E pushed its top speed past a hundred miles per hour. 'Fewer than fifty' becomes 'under ___' (the word or the number both work). The last gap is the adjective the writer uses about California's emissions laws.
Question 24
Answer: speedParagraph F, last sentence
What did a later version of the Model E increase?
As the new Doble steamer was further developed and tested, its maximum speed was pushed to over a hundred miles per hour
Question says → Passage says
A later versionfurther developed and tested
raised itswas pushed to over
keeping its emissions extremely lowwith negligible emissions
Why: 'Pushed to over a hundred miles per hour' means its maximum speed went up. The summary has 'its ___', so you need the noun: speed. 'Maximum speed' is two words and breaks the limit.
The trap: 'Pressure' appears nearby (the boiler reached operating pressure), but that's how fast it started, not what was raised in the later version.
Question 25
Answer: fiftyParagraph G, fourth sentence
Also accepted: 50
How many Model Es were built before the company closed?
By the time the company folded in 1931, fewer than fifty of the amazing Model E steam cars had been produced.
Question says → Passage says
Underfewer than
went out of businessthe company folded
Why: 'Folded' means went out of business, and 'fewer than fifty' becomes 'under ___'. You can write 'fifty' or '50'.
The trap: Don't write '1931', the year the company folded, or '18,000', the price. The gap is how many cars.
Question 26
Answer: strictParagraph G, near the end
What does the writer say California's emissions laws are like?
an unmodified Doble Model E runs clean enough to pass the emissions laws in California today, and they are pretty strict
Question says → Passage says
satisfypass
California's ___ emissions lawsthe emissions laws in California… they are pretty strict
Why: The gap sits before 'emissions laws', so it needs an adjective describing them. The writer adds 'and they are pretty strict', which is the only description given.
The trap: 'Clean' is the adjective right next to it, but it describes the car, not the laws.
Paragraph F. The car sat overnight in freezing weather and was left out for an hour before being tested, so the heading about cold conditions fits. The good results come later in the paragraph.
B. He drove to Detroit to seek investment and used it to open the company. A tempts, but nothing says production moved.
Words from this passage worth keeping
replenishment(A)
filling something up again
shortcomings(A)
faults or weaknesses
phased out(B)
gradually stopped being used
rekindle(C)
bring back to life something that had faded
sluggish(E)
slow and lacking energy
plagued with(E)
constantly troubled by
negligible(F)
so small it hardly matters
adamant(G)
completely sure and refusing to change your mind
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The full Cambridge 18 Test 3 reading paper: all three passages, 60 minutes, marked the second you finish with a review of every answer. Already done it? Take it again and see if the same traps still get you.
Cambridge IELTS 18, Test 3, Reading Passage 2. The passage and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full text, or sit the test on Langujet.
