Now that the bad weather is approaching, we better take a look at the most dangerous mistakes when driving in the rain. Driving well under these conditions is not limited to slowing down a bit. A series of notions must be clear in order not to end up adding to the accident statistics.
The first thing you should be clear about is that don't drive if you don't have enough visibility. It does not matter if you avoid all the mistakes that we are going to describe below, if the rain is so intense that it does not allow you to see properly. It is not enough that you see the lights of other cars, you must see both the traffic signs and the lines on the ground to do it safely.
Tires in poor condition
Keep in mind that the condition of your tires is more important than ever when it rains. If you don't have one grooves deep enough, the risk of aquaplaning It is much higher than if they were in good condition. This is because your drawing cannot evacuate the water that accumulates in front of the rubber wave-shaped. An effect that occurs at highway or highway speeds. If this wave is pronounced enough, it will go under the wheel lifting it and causing loss of grip.
La legal minimum depth of the grooves of your tire is 1,6 mm, but you shouldn't reach that limit if you're driving in heavy rain. Nor should you neglect the windshield wipers, because if they are in poor condition your visibility will be greatly reduced in the rain.
Misuse of car lights
Many cars made in recent years have daytime running lights and automatic headlamps. Whether this is your case or not, you should have your lights on dipped headlights because daytime only works on the front. If the rain is very intense, you will have to use the fog lights. The DGT itself mentions them in its regulations for these issues:
Rear fog light
“The rear fog light should only be turned on when weather or environmental conditions are particularly unfavourable, such as thick fog, very heavy rain, heavy snowfall or dense clouds of dust or smoke.”
Front fog light (optional)
“When there are meteorological or environmental conditions that significantly reduce visibility, such as in the case of fog, heavy rain, snowfall, clouds of smoke or dust, any other similar circumstance will require the use of lighting. In these cases, the front fog light or the short or long range light must be used. The front fog light may only be used in such cases or on narrow road sections with many curves.”
Don't use the flashing emergency light or warning just because it rains heavily. These lights are used to warn other vehicles of a danger. If you turn them on, drivers ahead of you might think there's a stop or obstacle ahead, and that's not the case. Use them only in dangerous conditions like when the road is flooded.
Do not increase the safety distance
We all know that when it rains the braking distance is longer, but the tendency of many people is drive the same way in any circumstance. Especially if the path you travel is the same day after day. If this is the case for you, try to remember that when the pavement is wet the braking distance can be up to double compared to dry pavement.
Riding in the wrong place on the road
road inclines
Although not always easy to see, the road design it is intended so that evacuate the water as soon as possible. In the banked curves, the water will tend to go towards the lowest part, so it is advisable to be in the highest lane. When we are on a flat road, they are usually built with a somewhat curved towards its sides to clear the water. In these cases it is convenient to circulate on the part of your lane closest to the center.
grooves in the water
When the rain is intense, it is recommended take advantage of the mark they leave the preceding cars. Those grooves, which are not always visible, are because your tires have already evacuated some of the water that was on the ground. This ensures that yours have to do less work. This effect is greater and more visible when what we have in front of us is a truck or similar heavy vehicle. If you do this, you should never lose focus by focusing only on following a few marks. The remedy can be worse than the disease.
Avoid puddles
When the rainy season arrives, the workshops receive more cars with damage to the suspension, the bottom and the wheels. An effect that occurs because when it rains, there are many drivers who fall into the trap of tricky puddles. In the same way that you would not jump into a pond from which you don't know its depth, do not put the car in a puddle that you know nothing about. This imprudence can be much more serious if the puddle that hides a sinkhole is on a road that is driven at 90 or 100 km/h.
What if the rain turns into a flood?
If the storm is so intense that it becomes a flood or flood. Avoid driving as much as possible. If the current reaches half a meter high and 10 km/h speedmost likely to end lifting your car. You should not be inside when that point is reached, because when the car is dragged it can go into a deeper area or even tip over.
So that this does not happen to you, before reaching that situation get out of the car on the opposite side to which the water comes and move with the current. Fighting her will only cause you to be hit by objects she is dragging. Get on a high place and safe until the flood passes.
too much speed
Even if your tires are in good condition, it is important that adjust your speed to weather conditions. Do not trust yourself even if your car grabs a lot. Actually the wider the tire, the more chance there is that the water will lift them up and lose any grip they may have.
If for whatever reason you fall into the feared aquaplaning, keep your grip on the steering wheel firm and do not turn it more than the road requires. If you do, the car will lurch when it hits the asphalt again and it will be very difficult to control. Do not brake or accelerate either, just take your foot off the accelerator so that it is the water that slows you down little by little.
stepping on the road paint
This advice is vital for motorcyclists, but it should also be taken into account by drivers of any other vehicle. Although less and less are seen, the zebra crossings with a thick paint tome they eliminate the roughness of the asphalt and are authentic skating rinks. Imagine that this happens to you in an emergency stop with a pedestrian that you have not seen.
Images – Carol VanHook, Presidio of Monterey, Pablo Segade, JoshBerglund19 and M. Moers