Wet weather driving

When it rains, water mixes with fuel that has been spilt on the road, along with soot, dust, and debris from tyres and cars, creating a slippery surface. Even light rain can create these hazardous driving conditions.

There are three things you can do if find yourself driving on wet roads:

1. Slow down
This will allow your tyres a better grip than if you were travelling fast. It will also reduce the chances of aquaplaning, which happens when a layer of water forms between the road surface and your tyres. As a result, the tyres don’t touch the road, which means you could lose control over both steering and braking.

2. Increase your stopping distance
Be prepared to double your stopping distances in heavy rain. So, the ‘two-second rule’ should increase to four seconds in the wet. Increasing the distance between you and the car in front gives you more time to think about what’s happening around you and react to it. By widening the gap, drivers can increase their reaction times and gain valuable seconds to avoid a collision. Slow down by easing off the accelerator, not slamming on the brakes!

3. Use your headlights
Turn your lights on to make yourself more visible to other drivers in dull conditions.

In a skid
The main thing to do if you find yourself starting to skid is not to panic. Most injuries during skids are caused by the driver panicking, and doing one of three things.

1. Pressing the brake too hard, causing the wheels to lock
2. Hitting the accelerator, making the skid worse
3. Steering erratically and attempting to straighten the car

The best way to deal with a skid is this: as soon as you’re aware of it, take your foot quickly but smoothly off the accelerator. Turn the wheel gently towards the direction of the skid to bring the rear end of your car in line with the front.

If your car is equipped with an automatic braking system (ABS), push firmly on the brake pedal as you turn the wheel. If you car doesn’t have automatic braking, keep your braking to a minimum.

Flooded roads
The rules of driving through flooded roads are:

1. Don't take risks
If you try to drive over a flooded road, you could get stranded. Go back and find another route.

2. The power of water
Two feet of water, moving quickly, is enough to cause a car to float. Slow moving water is capable of sweeping a car off a road or bridge.

3. Driving through floodwater
If you have no choice but to drive through floodwater, move slowly in first gear. Keep the engine revs high to prevent it from stalling, and to keep water from backing up the exhaust pipe. If you don’t know what the depth of the water is though, you really shouldn’t take the risk at all and take a longer route to your destination.

Finally...
Some other things to remember when driving in the rain are:

1. Take extra care around pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and horse riders
2. Make sure your wiper blades still have a sharp wiping edge, and don’t leave streaks
3. At night, use your low-beam headlights to avoid excessive glare from the raindrops
4. Keep the windows clear by using the de-misting setting on your air conditioning

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