Driving in snow when the roads are slick and slippery, and visibility is poor is hazardous and severely affects your safety. The following tips from your Mazda dealer will ensure you navigate winter roads expertly and stay safe behind the wheel of your Mazda 3, CX-5, or CX-9.
1. Ensure Your Mazda Is in Tip-Top Condition
Before plowing through the snow in your Mazda, ensure your vehicle is in top condition to handle even the harshest winter conditions. Visit your dealer for a maintenance service and get the lights, windshield wipers, brakes, and defroster checked. Mount a set of quality winter tires to give you the necessary traction and handling ability on snow-covered roads.
2. Perform Weekly Vehicle Checks
Perform weekly safety inspections in winter, check all four tires, and keep them inflated to the proper pressure levels. Inspect the battery and check that the lights and windshield wipers are working correctly.
Keep the gas tank full or half full to prevent moisture from forming and freezing in the fuel line. A full gas tank will also reduce the risk of you running out of gas and getting stranded in the freezing cold.
3. Reduce Your Speed
When it snows, your car can easily lose traction and cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Reduce your speed, steer more carefully, avoid suddenly jerking the steering wheel, and brake and corner carefully to prevent your car’s wheels from spinning. Avoid cruise control because the snow can affect the sensors, causing skidding and spinning.
4. Brake Carefully
Your car’s braking distance is severely reduced in the snow when the roads are slick and slippery. Avoid braking hard and jerking the steering wheel. When you drive slower, you will approach intersections slowly and have enough time to brake carefully long before you need to stop.
5. Keep a Safe Following Distance
When you drive in the snow on slippery roads, you want to keep as much space between your car and the vehicle in front of you as possible to give you enough time to react and brake early and safely without skidding and losing control of your vehicle. When it snows, increase the space between your car and the vehicle ahead from the usual three-car lengths to at least five to give you enough space to react when you need to brake suddenly.
The key to staying safe on the road in the snow is ensuring your car is in excellent running condition, driving slowly and carefully, braking gently, and keeping a safe following distance. Stop at Flood Mazda today for a thorough vehicle checkup and a set of quality winter tires, and tackle the roads with confidence this winter.
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