According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration, rain is responsible for more than 500,000 car accidents across the country each year. Additionally, rain-related accidents are responsible for over 200,000 injuries and almost 2,500 deaths annually. With these statistics in mind, you should be very careful when driving in extremely heavy rain conditions. The team at Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram (CDJR) of Walla Walla have collected these seven tips for driving in heavy rain that will help keep you safe on the road.
Leave Early
There will be times when it starts to rain unexpectedly while you’re driving. However, in many cases, it may already be raining before you leave, or you may expect it to start soon. In these instances, you should try to leave a little earlier than you originally planned to avoid rushing while driving through heavy rain. It’s not worth it to be in a hurry when it’s raining hard since it can put both you and other drivers at risk.
Use Your Headlights
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Washington doesn’t have any specific laws that state your car’s headlights must be on when it’s raining outside like some other states do. But you shouldn’t let that stop you from turning on your headlights anyway when you’re driving in heavy rain. Your headlights will help you to see the road better. More importantly, they’ll allow other drivers to see you, helping to avoid collisions due to compromised vision in heavy rain.
Slow Down
This should almost go without saying, but when it’s raining heavily, you should not speed at all. Instead, you should try to slow down to avoid slipping and losing control of your car if you have to hit the brakes. You don’t want to slow down too much and have someone slam into the back of your car, but you also don’t want to put yourself in a position where you may be unable to stop on a slippery road because you’re driving well above the speed limit.
Avoid Puddles
If it’s raining extremely hard while you’re driving, there are undoubtedly going to be some puddles forming on the road. You should try to steer clear of these puddles as best you can. Even if they don’t look very deep, there is always a chance that their appearance could be deceiving. You could end up driving through a puddle that’s much deeper than you expected.
You may also start hydroplaning if you drive through a puddle too fast. Hydroplaning occurs when your car’s tires lose contact with the road and glide over the surface of a pool of water. If you’re not careful, this can cause you to lose control of your car and get involved in an accident. Therefore, when you see puddles or large amounts of water pooled on the road, try to avoid them or at least drive through them very slowly to prevent hydroplaning.
Handle Hydroplaning
There may be times when you’re unable to avoid driving through pooled water on the road. For example, if you’re out on the open highway, you may unexpectedly drive through a puddle that has formed in your lane. This can very easily result in hydroplaning. If you’re ever in a situation where you feel like you’re losing control due to hydroplaning, you should try to stay calm and work your way through the problem as best you can. Here’s how you can handle hydroplaning:
1.Try not to make any sudden movements when you first realize you’re hydroplaning.
2.Take your foot off the gas pedal immediately.
3.Steer your car in the direction you would like to go.
4.Continue driving like usual once you feel your car stop hydroplaning.
5.Look out for other puddles and avoid them to avoid hydroplaning again.
It can be extremely scary when you start hydroplaning in heavy rain. But with some quick thinking, you can get yourself out of the situation fast and remain safe.
Tap the Brakes
If you encounter deep puddles while driving in heavy rain, your brake rotors are probably going to get soaked. This may make it difficult for you to bring your car to a sudden stop if you need to do. Because of this, you’ll want to tap your brakes a few times after exiting a puddle to help dry out your rotors. It’ll make them more effective if you have to unexpectedly hit your brakes and bring your car to a quick stop.
Pull Over
If the rain really starts coming down at any point so that you’re struggling to see through your windshield, you should stop driving altogether as long as it’s safe to do so. You can pull your car over to the side of the road and let the rainstorm pass before continuing your journey. Just make sure that you get your car to a safe spot where it won’t be at risk of being hit by another car that comes from behind and may not see you.
You should also turn your hazard lights on while you’re on the side of the road to increase your visibility to other road users and prevent accidents.
Don’t Let Driving in Heavy Rain Turn Into a Disaster
Driving in heavy rain can be very dangerous. It’s possible to lose control of your car if you drive too fast. You may also struggle to see what’s going on around you and hit a car that doesn’t have its headlights on.
You should keep each of the tips listed here in mind since they will help you to safely navigate heavy rain while driving. You should also consider pulling over if the rain gets too heavy since it’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to driving in inclement weather.
Get your hands on more helpful driving tips by browsing our website, and contact us at CDJR of Walla Walla if you’d like to test-drive some vehicles that will handle well in rainy conditions.
0040 by Edgar Guerra is licensed with CC BY 2.0
Posted in Tips