I have been driving for eons and yet, I STILL breakout in an upper lip sweat, whenever there is ice or snow on the ground. For me, ice plus snow plus driving is NOT a good equation! I try to be super careful when the weather is bad but sugar, honey, ice, tea, happens! A few of my sisterfriends have urged me to do a quick safety tips piece on ice and snow driving. I have to be honest, basically, you just have to experience stuff firsthand, in order to learn how to maneuver your vehicle during emergency situations like skidding, hydroplaning and white-outs but I can still offer some tips, keep my fingers crossed and hope, that you’ll remember them. Here goes:
Basics 101
Common sense tip number 1—slow down! This is the foundation for all that is to come. If you’re going too fast in bad weather, I guarantee, something awful is bound to happen.
Easy with the brakes when you’re trying to stop, you’ll avoid skidding. If your wheels start to lock up, ease off the brakes (in cars with no ABS).
Using low gears, especially on hills, will help you improve traction. I’ve said this time and time again!
Whoa Nelly!!!
If your rear wheels skid, don’t panic, just take your foot off the accelerator and steer in the direction you want your front wheels to go. If your rear wheels are moving left, steer left; if they’re moving right, then steer right. If your rears start sliding the other way as you’re trying to recover, then ease the steering toward that particular side. You’re probably going to have to steer left/right for a few seconds in order to get your vehicle back on track. If you have standard brakes, pump them, but do so gently; ABS vehicles don’t need to be pumped. Try applying steady pressure to the brakes, you should feel them pulse.
If your front wheels skid, take your foot off the gas and shift to neutral. As the wheels skid sideways, the vehicle should slow down and traction should return at that point. Now, as traction returns, carefully steer the vehicle where you want it to go. Then put the transmission in ‘drive’ or release the clutch and CAREFULLY give it a little gas.
“HELP! I’m Stuck and I Can’t Get Out!!!
How many of us have just sat there, wheels just spinning and spinning!! I once upon a time blew out my transmission while I was stuck in the snow; wheels just spinning and spinning senselessly, (this was in my earlier days of driving, of course!!). Just try turning your wheels side to side a few times to move some snow out of the way. Carefully and using a LIGHT touch give the vehicle some gas. If this does not work, try using a shovel to move some of that snow away from the tires. Pouring a little kitty litter or even sand in the tires’ path will give you some much needed traction.
This is a LAST resort!!!! I am a little old school, so this was an old tried and true method of getting unstuck for me back-in-the-day. Rocking the vehicle. This method can damage some transmissions, so check with your owner’s manual BEFORE attempting to do this. Also, if you have a bad back or heart condition, call AAA for PENELOPE’S SAKE!!!! Ok, in order to rock your vehicle, shift from forward to reverse, then back again. Every time you’re in gear, give it a little gas, until you feel the vehicle moving.
Hope these tips work for you!
--Car Chick
For more information check out the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website: www.nhtsa.dot.gov
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