Brake lightly, don’t tailgate and stay home if you can.
While it is obviously not applicable to our customers in Southern Florida and other warm-weather areas, we’d like to share some valuable tips about driving on snow and in inclement winter weather. While we are always happy to perform restorative body work, we’d prefer you keep your ride intact and you and your passengers safe.
Here are five tips to keeping it between the ditches in winter weather:
- Inspect: First off, make sure your car has been properly inspected and readied for winter. This includes inspections of wiper blades, antifreeze levels, tires and your car battery.
- Go slow: If you must drive on snow-covered roads, the first rule is to SLOW DOWN. You can lose control in an instant and it can be hard to regain traction and control once your car takes on a mind of its own on snow and ice.
- Keep control: Never use cruise control while driving on snowy or ice-covered roads. This might lull you to distraction when you need all your faculties focused on driving. It also means you may be driving too fast for conditions, and If you have to brake suddenly you can lose control in a heartbeat.
- Don’t tailgate: Increase following distance substantially, as much as five times the distance you might follow on dry pavement.
- Don’t stop: When possible, slow down as you approach traffic signals so you don’t have to stop and lose forward momentum. This is doubly important on hills. And on that note, don’t pound your accelerator going uphill. It’s easy to lose traction and get stuck. When going downhill, apply the brakes gently.
If it is snowing heavily, your best bet may be to take a snow day and enjoy the winter view from the warmth of your home. But if you must get out on the roads, follow the tips above to keep the tow trucks and ambulances at bay. Above all, use common sense, and rest assured that spring will be sprung before you know it.
Contact your local Tint World® so our experts can make sure your car is winter-ready.
