OODriving in the cold requires being smooth. Any rapid movements of the car might result in you losing control since snow and ice diminish the friction between the car tyres and the road. To safely drive in winter driving conditions, heed the tips provided below.
DRIVER SLOWLY
Reduce your speed so you have time to respond to shifting circumstances gently and gracefully. Less traction is necessary to maintain control of the car when you drive more slowly since it will take less effort to stop or turn.
SLOWLY ACCELERATE AND DECELERATE
According to Newton’s first law of motion, an item in motion tends to continue unless another force acts on it. Your car will obey Newton’s law if you slam on the brakes while driving on an icy road, maybe putting you in a ditch or worse. To gently harness the decreased traction of a slick road and prevent spinning out or entering a skid, always remember to accelerate and decelerate carefully.
INCREASE YOUR FOLLOWING DISTANCE
Giving oneself ample time to respond to changes gradually and smoothly is the focus of this guideline. You should leave two to three times as much space between your car and the one in front of you as you would in dry weather when driving on slick roads. Corresponds to six to ten seconds of space between you and the vehicle in front of you on the highway.
AVOID STOPPING IF POSSIBLE
Driving more fluidly includes avoiding a complete stop whenever conditions permit. An automobile needs far more traction to start rolling than to accelerate from a complete stop. Try to pace your approach to the light so that you are still moving when it turns green, for instance, if you notice a red light up ahead. bviously only viable under certain conditions, and you should always stop immediately if continuing might endanger you or others.
PAY ATTENTION TO THE WARNING LIGHT ON THE STABILITY CONTROL SYSTEM
Sensors in a stability control system can spot even brief skids that a driver would miss. To assist the car stay under control, these systems can modify the power going to the wheels, the anti-lock brake systems, and other traction characteristics. The dashboard’s stability control warning light, which features a car with wavy lines for tyre tracks, would flash if it senses an issue. If this occurs, you must gradually reduce your accelerator pressure until the tyres regain traction. Once more, this braking should be gradually done because a quick loss of power might make a skid worse.
KNOW YOUR TYRES AND DRIVETRAIN
How well your car performs on slick roads is largely dependent on how the drivetrain distributes power to the wheels. Front-wheel drive (FWD), rear-wheel drive (RWD), all-wheel drive (AWD), and four-wheel drive are the four primary types of powertrain layouts (4WD). The finest layouts for winter driving conditions are AWD and 4WD.
As shown below, each arrangement performs differently on slick roads.
FWD
Passenger vehicles and crossovers tend to use this configuration the most. The front of a vehicle has more weight, so the wheels with power on them get forced more firmly onto the road and have a higher grip. This method transfers engine power to the front wheels, which has some benefits on snowy roads. The car’s rear is actually kept more stable by doing this. Winter tyres are crucial if you drive a car with this layout and reside in a region where there is frequent snow.
RWD
The back wheels receive power in this setup. This design is typically found on trucks, huge SUVs, and sports automobiles. Because it is lighter towards the rear end, where the power is, it is not the best option for snow because it might cause the car to fishtail or spin out. In areas with winter weather, RWD cars need winter tyres significantly more than FWD ones.
AWD
Depending on how much traction each tyre has, power gets distributed to all of them in this situation. Normally, the front or the back of the car receives the majority of power, not both. AWD systems provide more power to the wheels with the highest traction when the road is slick. This is particularly useful when accelerating but has little positive effect on how well you can turn and brake on slick roads. Nonetheless, it is an advancement above FWD and RWD. For driving on regularly ploughed roads and in places with little to no snowfall, an all-season tyre and AWD combination may be appropriate.
4WD
All wheels receive equal power from this configuration. 4WD vehicles often have a limited gear range and need manual engagement (meaning 4WD does not operate at all times). It works well in all types of situations, even on unplowed or bumpy roads. It is a decent substitute for country driving, particularly if there are steep gradients that call for low gearing.
CAN YOU USE ALL-SEASON TRYES IN THE SNOW?
In moderate winter weather, several car types may get by with all-season tyres. A winter tyre will perform better in some locations than an all-season tyre when driving in the snow since its rubber and tread handle a wide range of situations.
Specialized winter tyres contain rubber compositions that get optimized to maintain traction at very low temperatures, a tread pattern created especially to grab snow, and they may even have studs. For all-season tyres, which also need to be able to withstand scorching temperatures and copious amounts of water on roads, various compounds, and tread patterns may not be present.