driving in light snow for first time, precautions.

[Voltmaster]

Hi,

I am driving my 2000 accord SE 2.3 Vtec in light snow for first time.

I have changed tires to match each axel with good all season tires. All fluids have been replaced, I plugged 2 holes in the trunk with weatherproof goo.
New wiper blades were installed.

I have portble battery, tow straps, and a hydrolic jack and some common tools in my trunk.

What other precautions or stuff I should be taking?

Anybody know what is a good speed on highway during light snow fall? both for legality and safety standpoint.

Thanks!

 

[GutsyGecko]

Light snow? Just do the speed limit. Go with the flow of traffic. That's the safest thing to do.

 

[sciphi]

Stay as far right as you can, have your lights on, and leave lots of extra time to do anything, even changing lanes.

I can't stress leaving extra time for routine actions enough, especially if you have little or no previous snow driving experience. Stopping and turning especially need lots of extra time and space to accomplish.

 

[ls1mike]

Don't go out. You will screw everyone else up.

If you are not used to it SLOW DOWN. Let the other go around you. If there is lots of it and you are going up hill you need momentum, don't slow down half way through the hill.

I grew up in Upstate NY we got lots of snow. New drivers, would sometimes find an empty snowed covered parking lot to get some experience and see how the car handle in the snow. It does help.

Remember slow down, and momentum for hills. People in Washington State don't have these ones figured out yet.

What is light snow to you?

 

[Wolf359]

Depends how much snow is actually on the ground. Just finished driving through a snow storm a few days, highway had 3-4 inches of snow on the ground, hadn't really been plowed. Depending on conditions, it was anywhere from 20-30mph. Once we hit a section that was cleared, was good for 50-60. Certain sections even had a notice where they said the speed limit was 40. Just remember, no sudden moves. Also you don't mention if you have ABS, but it's a bit safer stopping if you have it, but you could still go into a spin if you turn too quickly. And make sure your windshield washer fluid is topped up, you can go through it pretty quick. Clean off all snow off the car and make sure tail lights, headlights and license plates are visible.

 

[Donald]

All season tires are just that, all season, not snow tires. Along with snow comes ice, maybe black ice. Nothing helps with ice except for going slow and lots of distance between you and the next vehicle. Wait for the plows to do their thing. If you get into a skid, turn in the direction you want to go (front wheel drive) but do not over-orrect.

Gloves, ice brush/scrapper, warm coat, blanket, small folding shovel, some sand and maybe a Jeep Cherokee in tow.

If you get stuck, gunning the engine will not help.

 

[y_p_w]

Are you prepared for possible chain conditions? Once R2 conditions hit, you're going to have to chain up unless you have the right vehicle and enough tread using a once over. Even in R1 conditions there might be a checkpoint where your tire depth is checked and you're legally supposed to carry chains.

Driving in the snow is interesting. Just remember that momentum can be your best friend and your worst enemy. Someone else noted that slowing down too much going uphill can really screw up things. You also need to understand how long it takes to stop. I practiced in a parking lot with lots of snow. It got interesting learning how to modulate the brakes to stop properly. I remember stopping somewhat quickly, and sliding about a couple of feet further than I thought I'd go. Backing out of a parking spot can be interesting with fresh snow.

 

[Kruse]

If you drive in fresh, light snow, there is no problem. It's just that when hundreds of cars drive over your light snow it becomes hard ice. Then you could possibly have a problem.

 

[Lead Shoes]

Engage Vtec and enjoy the ride, nothing bad will happen if you follow speed limits with good tire tread and drive defensively.

 

[Bandito440]

Best option: stay home.

If you must go out, find a parking lot where you can practice stopping and turning. When you hit the road, decrease your speed and increase your following distance considerably. It will take much longer to stop when things get slick.

 

[Kuato]

Slow down. Use pressure on the brake and gas as if you had an egg between your foot and the pedal. Don't do anything suddenly, be smooth and make gradual changes.

"Light snow" can be extremely variable, depending on temperature, wind, shade vs sun on the road, how much traffic has gone before you, etc etc. plan for it to be slippery and be conservative.

Before you go out on the road, practice in a safe place such as an empty parking lot, if you can like Bandito suggested.

Edit: as far as equipment, if you are going a long way and the weather is expected to be bad, take water and food and cold weather clothing, enough of all to survive for awhile if you get off the road and have to stay there for some time.

 

[Lead Shoes]

"Light Snow" take extra clothes food/water with to survive some time, Lol.

This is a joke. Deal with it, take to a parking lot to learn a bit if you're worried then get on the road and watch out for people who cant drive for [censored] in little snow

This may be Cali + snow but the same logic should apply no matter what, drive as fast as you feel capable and safe doing, be defensive and don't go out if you don't need to just to drive in the snow for fun.

 

[y_p_w]

Originally Posted By: Brenden
"Light Snow" take extra clothes food/water with to survive some time, Lol.

This is a joke. Deal with it, take to a parking lot to learn a bit if you're worried then get on the road and watch out for people who cant drive for [censored] in little snow

This may be Cali + snow but the same logic should apply no matter what, drive as fast as you feel capable and safe doing, be defensive and don't go out if you don't need to just to drive in the snow for fun.

Depends on what part of California. I've driven in white out conditions on US-50 while leaving the Lake Tahoe area. I remember just following a snowplow, which made things a lot easier. I've also done an understeer wipeout into a 2 ft high snow bank in Yosemite.

Of course sometimes it gets odd. I've seen R2 chain conditions on a road with almost no standing snow. I saw a tiny bit of slush that was quickly melting. And Caltrans set up an employee at the chain checkpoint. I also saw one set of tire cables that got thrown off a car. Those were exactly the kind of high-traction conditions that will destroy chains quickly.

 

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: Kuato

"Light snow" can be extremely variable, depending on temperature, wind, shade vs sun on the road, how much traffic has gone before you, etc etc. plan for it to be slippery and be conservative.


Yeah, this! Dry snow, which happens when it's cold and there isn't much water, will blow off a highway if enough traffic keeps going fast enough. It's also got more traction, until something happens to make it icy slush. Then it's a nightmare.

To answer your question, 25-35 MPH is good. Approach 35 only if you have a wide shoulder and you can scrub off speed before hitting something. If there are pedestrians, parked cars, etc go 25.

Every minute, do a small test. Either blip the wheel, brake, or throttle, to see if it lets go. This is natural to a snow driver and hard to describe, and worse with ABS and traction control "interfering". But if you have TC there should be a yellow light telling you it's working. Try to trigger that light to see what sort of action it takes to do that-- then adjust your driving so your "new normal" is below that threshold.

If you manage to find ruts, they are your friend. Even one rut on one side is helpful. Don't nail any pedals and you won't spin.

 

[95busa]

Lower gears provide more control. Don't run into things. That is all.

 

[zpa]

As others have said, find a large area where you can safely practice. Do braking, steering and all kind of stuff. Get the car into a slide with the handbrake (if it's a lever) and get a feeling for how to correct it. I wouldn't suggest going into traffic without any experience if it's snowy.

 

[eljefino]

Will you be driving with others who know what they're doing or will they all be fish out of water?

A good question to ask yourself before you jump in. Watching others' bad habits won't help you, but watching pros will.

 

[Olas]

Just be careful an you'll be fine - we all have to learn sometime so just remember to go slow an leaver a big gap and you'll be fine.

If you're concerned about how to handle a sliding car then fin an open space like the above posters mentioned, provoke a slide with the handbrake and get used to how the car behaves under those conitions...although if you drive carefully it's unlikely that you'll need to deal with a slide - they usually happen when you hit a corner to quickly, or are too aggressive with steering input.

Be smooth. Imagine you have a cup of coffee on the dash, and imagine you have 24 eggs, and a lot of fragile glass in the passenger footwell. If you can drive smoothly enough to protect your coffee an your eggs then the snow will be no problem.

 

[toneydoc]

If you have a roof rack, put a light snowmobile on top and strap it down. When you or others get in trouble in the snow and cause a back up, you will be able to help them with that machine. Just kidding. Be careful and pack warm clothes and food and water.

 

[rjundi]

Absolutely ignore the poor advice here that its just light snow and drive on. Stupid. The reason is that light snow can be beyond slick even if 0.5" thick depending on a myriad of factors including wetness, ice temperature and how it settles on road. It tend to turn into ice if not treated quickly.

That being said I would advice doing EVERYTHING gently including accelerating, turning and braking. That means leaving lots of room and pretending an egg is between your foot and pedal. Any sudden jerk of steering wheel or a pedal will send you in a spin if slippery enough.

This is my experience driving with cruddy all-seasons w/FWD and AWD with okay all-seasons in New England.