RAINY DAY TIPS FOR YOUR CAR AND PERSONAL SAFETY

Everybody likes to conserve money when they can, especially when it comes to vehicle upkeep. Driving on a rainy day can be a costly and dangerous proposition unless you and your vehicle are very well prepared.

Many drivers overlook the impact rainy weather can have until its too late, but a few smart driving tips from the experts at Steve’s CARSTAR Auto Body Repair in Arnold, part of the nation’s largest chain of collision repair shops, can keep you out of trouble. Knowing how to drive defensively in the rain is a good investment in you and your car or truck.

Here are a few tips from Steve’s CARSTAR Auto Body Repair, also serving Arnold, Oakville, Imperial, Festus and St. Louis that make both sense and cents.

• Before it starts to rain, change out old or damaged wiper blades.
  
• Check all of the vehicle’s light bulbs to make sure they are working.
  
• Stay toward the middle lanes – water tends to pool in outside lanes.
  
• Maintain proper following distance (3 second rule). This needs to be multiplied in wet weather.
  
• Drive in the tracks of a car or truck ahead of you.
  
• Don’t follow large trucks too closely, because the spra
  y created by their large tires can reduce vision.
  
• Be more alert watching for brake lights in front of you.
  
• Keep Away From using your brakes; if possible, take your foot off the accelerator to slow down.
  
• Turn your headlights on anytime you feel a need to use your wipers, in a light rain and in gloomy, foggy, or overcast conditions to help you see the road and help other drivers see you.
  
• Do not use cruise control on rain soaked roadways – you’ll have better control in wet weather without it.
  
• Never drive through moving water if you can’t see the ground through it; your vehicle could be swept off the road.
  
• Watch out for places where floodwater collects, particularly low-lying roads adjacent to streams, and dips under rail or highway bridges.
  
• Avoid driving through deep water, because it can cause serious damage to a modern vehicle’s electrical system.
  
• If possible, stay off the road during heavy thunderstorms. Large flashes of lightning can temporarily blind and disorient drivers, and the accompanying high winds and heavy rain can create deadly driving conditions.
  
• When you need to stop or slow, do not brake hard or lock the wheels and risk a skid. Maintain gentle pressure on the brake pedal.
  

Steve’s CARSTAR Auto Body Repair in Arnold also knows a most unwelcome situation – hydroplaning – may develop when conditions are wet. Vehicle speed, tire tread depth and water depth all factor into hydroplaning.

As speed increases, wet traction is considerably reduced. Maintaining proper treading on tires and replacing them when necessary can help prevent hydroplaning. The deeper the water, the sooner you will lose traction, although even thin water layers can cause a loss of traction, including at low speeds.

If you find yourself hydroplaning or skidding, Steve’s CARSTAR Auto Body Repair offers the following advice:

• Do not brake or turn suddenly.
  
• Ease your foot off the gas until the vehicle slows and you can feel traction on the road again.
  
• Turn your steering wheel in the direction of the skid. As you regain control, gradually straighten the wheels.
  
• If you need to brake, do it gently with light pumping action. If your vehicle has anti-lock brakes, then brake normally because the car or truck’s computer will imitate a pumping action.