5-50
Driving your vehicle
Driving in the rain
Rain and wet roads can make driving
dangerous. Here are a few things to
consider when driving in the rain or
on slick pavement:
• Slow down and allow extra follow-
ing distance. A heavy rainfall
makes it harder to see and increas-
es the distance needed to stop
your vehicle.
• Replace your windshield wiper
blades when they show signs of
streaking or missing areas on the
windshield.
• Be sure your tires have enough
tread. If your tires do not have
enough tread, making a quick stop
on wet pavement can cause a skid
and possibly lead to an accident.
See “Tire Tread
”
in chapter 7.
• Turn on your headlights to make it
easier for others to see you.
• Driving too fast through large pud-
dles can affect your brakes. If you
must go through puddles, try to
drive through them slowly.
• If you believe your brakes may be
wet, apply them lightly while driv-
ing until normal braking operation
returns.
Hydroplaning
If the road is wet enough and you are
going fast enough, your vehicle may
have little or no contact with the road
surface and actually ride on the
water. The best advice is SLOW
DOWN when the road is wet. The
risk of hydroplaning increases as the
depth of tire tread decreases, refer to
“Tire Tread” in chapter 7.
Driving in flooded areas
Avoid driving through flooded areas
unless you are sure the water is no
higher than the bottom of the wheel
hub. Drive through any water slowly.
Allow adequate stopping distance
because brake performance may be
reduced.
After driving through water, dry the
brakes by gently applying them sev-
eral times while the vehicle is moving
slowly.
