Friday, March 2nd, 2018
Safe Driving In The Snow.
It’s quite possible that many people have never driven in snow before so, for those of you that haven’t or for those of you that need a refresher, lets have a look at some advice.
Be prepared for every thing that could go wrong by ensuring that your car has:
Demisting pad.
Torch (with spare battery or even a wind up torch)
Hi-visibility clothing.
Blanket and spare warm clothing.
Snacks (chocolate is good for energy).
A flask of warm drink or even a bottle of water.
De-icer and ice scraper.
Spade (just in case).
Phone charger.
First aid kit.
Jump leads.
Before you set out always make sure your phone is fully charged and that you know the number of your breakdown service provider, i.e. The AA or The RAC. At Golds we are proud to be certified and recommended by both services.
Other points to remember:
Accelerate gently and don’t over rev the engine. Change up to a higher gear as soon as you can.
Pull away in second gear as this will help reduce wheel spin.
Don’t get too close to the car in front, leave as much as ten times the normal recommended gap so you have time to brake and this will also allow you to maintain a forward momentum to get up hills.
Use lower gears for going downhill and try to avoid braking unless necessary.
When approaching a bend, brake before you actually start to turn the wheels. If your car loses grip don’t panic; the key thing is to take your foot off the accelerator and make sure that your wheels are pointing in the direction you want to go.
Steer gently into a skid – for example, if the rear of the car is sliding to the right, steer to the right. Do not take your hands off the steering wheel or stamp your foot on the brakes.
When in heavy snow make sure that you use your lights. Daytime running lights don’t always put lights on the back of your car.
Try not to drive in the wheeltracks or other vehicles as compressed snow is likely to be more icy than fresh snow.
Make every movement of the vehicle smooth and slow. Not too heavy on the accelerator or the brakes.
Should the worst happen and you do suspect that any part of your vehicle has become damaged from driving in the snow then give us a call at Golds Garage 01543 376 438 so we can stop the fault in its tracks.
Safe driving everyone.