There’s been a lot of snow all over the country, including where I live, today. Which leads me to one of the most timeless of all QOTDs — how do you handle the white stuff?
Yes, I mean actual snow, not that other white stuff.
I consider myself a decent snow driver, thanks to experience. For example, my tester this week is front-wheel drive, and this morning I was accelerating and felt the wheels break loose and started to slide towards the parked cars on the side of the road. No problem — I lifted off the gas and got most of my traction back, with a brake tap and steering adjustment finishing the job. No sweat, but someone driving in snow for the first time might panic, stay in the throttle, and be calling an insurance company.
One perk of doing this job is that most test cars also come with a snow scraper/snow brush, though I think I still have a few in my condo just in case. I try to be diligent about scraping ice/brushing snow before heading out. Visibility matters!
My rules for snow driving are this: Be gentle with gas/brake/steering inputs, slow down but don’t go so slow you become a rolling hazard, minimize lane changes across unplowed slush, do your best to maintain visibility, and be aware that sometimes the car will respond more like a boat on water than a wheeled vehicle on dry pavement. Stay patient and calm, minimize phone and infotainment distractions even more than usual, and just be careful.
What do you guys do? Who carries a shovel? Who shods their cars with winter rubber? Chains (assuming they’re legal where you live)? Anything I am missing?
Sound off below.
[Image: Gorloff-KV/Shutterstock.com]
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