Stuck in the Snow?
Mother Nature has certainly been generous this last couple of weeks with the amount of snow that has fallen and it doesn’t seem to be ending yet.
Only 36 more days until Spring!
We thought you may be able to use some of these tips in the instance your vehicle ever gets stuck in the copious amounts of snow falling over the region.
- If you are stuck in deep snow, try rocking your vehicle. To do this, start forward, gently accelerate and you will move forward a little. When your wheels spin, immediately stop accelerating and hold the vehicle with the brake to stop it from rolling back. Shift to reverse, release the brake and accelerate gently. You will move back. When the wheels spin again, stop immediately. Repeat the forward-backward rocking movement, increasing the distance you move each time until you gain sufficient momentum to keep moving ahead. Be sure the wheels have stopped turning before changing gears to avoid damage to your transmission.
- Search for traction. Look for sand or grit. Choose snow rather than ice. A small movement to one side will often move you from a low traction icy patch onto snow or sand. This motion can usually be completed in your lane.
- To improve traction, good tire treads are necessary. Start off slow and easy, and do not spin your wheels, because this only digs you in deeper. In deep snow, in order to get room to move, a good idea is to turn your wheels from side to side to push the snow away from the tires.
- It’s recommended that at the very least, you should keep a small shovel and a set of traction mats in your vehicle during the winter, as well as an emergency car kit in the event you get stranded.