Travelling by road in winter is simply exciting. Though the luggage is heavier and more in quantity, the atmosphere brings all the enthusiasm that any traveler would jump at. But if you are driving through colder country sides where you might have to defrost the windows often and tackle dangerous slippery roads you need to follow certain guidelines to reach your destination safely without any discomfort.
The Toms River Hyundai dealer shared some useful insights and safe driving tips when you are planning a trip for the winter.
Checking the Tyres
The tyres are going to have a tough time if you find snow on your way. So, make sure there are plenty of life left in them and all the four are overall in a good condition without anybulges or cracks. Fill the tyres with the optimum level of air pressure and keep checking them repeatedlybefore you start.
Slowing Down
Driving in winter needs some special knowledge and techniques. As on snow, ice and even wet roads, the tyres take much longer time to fully stop, it is always safer to drive slowly and leave some extra space from other vehicles.
Start in Second Gear
While driving on snow one needs to be ready to pull off when necessary. Starting the car in second gear would limit the wheelspin and help in pulling on the car.
Override the Automatic Headlights
It is a natural tendency of people while driving to switch the headlights on when it startsgetting dark, but if it is raining, the roads are snowy or foggy, you need to regulate the headlights to avoid visual illusions. Hence, turning off the automatic headlights would be a better idea.
Usage of Fog Lights
Foglights should be used only when there is a major drop in visibility and it islesser than 100m. Switch these on only while driving through dense fog and switch them off when the fog becomes thinner as these lights can blind the oncoming drivers.
Things to Carry
Driving in winter needs a few items to be necessarily present in the car. Forgetting or ignoring any of these can leave you in distress. Here goes the list of these essential items:
- Enough stock of water and food- in winter snow, fog, and ice can cause hours of traffic jams. To help yourself in those hours, keep a good stock of food, energy drinks, snacking items and drinking water.
- Carry good amount of washer fluid to avoid freezing to cope with drastic temperature fall.
- First aid kitto deal with injuries immediately
- The Hyundai Toms River dealers, a pair of shovel and snow socks would come handy if you face deep snow or a puddle of mud on your way. While the Snow socks would provide you better grip than the summer tyres can give on packed snow. You can also consider using snow chains to deal with deeper snow and ice packed roads.
The Bottom Line
To enjoy a trouble-free drive through the chilling winter, following these above-said tricks would suffice. But what you need to add to these is a calm and composed mind that is ready to face the odds.
