Some basic precautions can make a huge difference on the ice, writes TONY TONER
1 Keep your car road-fit
Know if your car is front-wheel or rear-wheel drive or is four-wheel drive. Each will behave differently as the car’s weight and the driver’s input will have a direct influence. Motorists should ensure their car is in a fit condition for the road. Always ensure you have enough fuel to cope with an emergency.
2 Time equals distance
Descents, ascents and road camber will have an effect on your vehicle’s behaviour. All inputs by the driver must therefore be smooth and well thought out so as to avoid the tyres losing the grip they need to keep it under your control.
When following another driver make sure you can see what is dictating their progress: are they showing signs of competency, nervousness, aggression, stupidity? Keep a prudent distance from the vehicle directly in front of you. Remember in icy conditions that you may be able to stop the wheels, but your vehicle keeps going.
3 Front-wheel drive
Front-wheel-drive vehicles are better than rear-wheel-drive in icy conditions because the weight of the engine is on the front wheels, improving traction. Use the torque of the engine and not the revs. Be smooth on releasing the clutch, feeding in only enough drive – too much causes skidding.
4 Rear-wheel drive
With minimal weight over the rear wheels, rear-wheel-drive cars have great difficulty keeping stability in icy conditions. This can cause the car to slide out on corners where the rear wheels push the car straight instead of in the direction of steering. There is a case for adding weight in the boot of a rear-wheel-drive to improve traction in icy conditions.
5 ABS, EBD, EBA, ESC, TCS – know your car’s systems
The owner’s manual will provide information about your car’s electronic monitoring systems. As not all cars carry the same systems, find out which type of electronic monitoring systems your vehicle is equipped with.
Anti-lock braking systems
(ABS) are a standard fit on all new cars and give the driver significant advantages on slick roads, if used correctly. In icy conditions ABS will activate early due to the minimal grip available. To operate ABS effectively, drivers should apply steady pressure to the brake pedal during the entire stop. ABS will automatically pump the brakes, if necessary, to keep the wheels from locking.
Cadence braking or pumping the brakes is not required on an ABS equipped car as this is the electronic function of the Anti-lock Braking System. Apply only steady pressure continuously until you come to a complete stop.
If you don’t have ABS, you should gently and rapidly apply pumping pressure to your brakes during slippery conditions. Do not apply steady pressure to your brakes. Standing on your brakes will only cause wheel lock and may result in your car spinning out of control.
Traction Control System monitors the driven wheels of your car and its grip during acceleration. When it detects wheel slippage, it will cut power to the wheels and prevent them over spinning.
6 When grip is lost
In a front-wheel-drive car, if you need to slow down or stop, keep pressure on the brake pedal and steer smoothly around that which caused you to brake. When cornering or turning, the car can run wide as the tyres haven’t got the normal grip (understeering).
Where the car fails to respond normally to steering input, gently ease off the throttle and the steering, and wait for the car to respond.
Most rear-wheel-drive cars skid due to the rear of the car sliding away from the drive line chosen by the driver. It generally is because too much power has been applied to the rear wheels as the car was turning or cornering. Should the car slide on as it is being steered to the left, the rear will slide to the right, wanting to go straight in effect. The driver should then steer smoothly to the right, easing off the throttle and always being ready for a secondary skid ad the car comes back into line.
Allow 8-10 seconds between you and the vehicle in front of you.
When driving uphill on ice, pick a path that will allow the most traction. Unpacked snow will give most vehicles sufficient uphill traction.
To maintain control on corners and turns, reduce speed before the turn. Any sudden acceleration or deceleration during a turn can send you into a skid.
Avoid braking while driving on ice. If you are approaching a patch of ice, brake during your approach. Applying pressure to your brakes while on ice may activate ABS early.
7 Safety kit
In case you get stuck in the snow, carry a small piece of old carpet or a mat in the boot. This can prove useful to put under a driven wheel that’s stuck to set the car free. A small shovel also comes in handy.
Finally, the following items should be carried in the car: mobile phone and car charger; high-visibility vest; anti-glare sunglasses; warm, waterproof outer jacket/trousers, headwear and gloves and a blanket (just in case)
- Tony Toner is a former Garda driving instructor and is training director with Institute of Advanced Motorists of Ireland Ltd
Danish snow-how
MANY ELEMENTSof Denmark's arsenal of anti-snow weaponry such as ice-breaking ships and large fleets of snow ploughs, are heavily capital intensive and appropriate only for countries where at least a few days' snow a year is a certainty. Far more interesting, from an Irish perspective, are the tools ordinary Danes employ to lessen the impact of severe weather.
The simplest of these is as low-tech as it is ubiquitous – the shovel. Or snow shovel, to be more precise. I’ve got one – a chunky beast with a steel-reinforced blade that set me back €15 – and which I put to good use at 6am this morning to clear the footpath in front of my house.
Similarly armed, all my neighbours were out before dawn too. With morning temperatures of around 10 degrees, it’s hardly the nicest start to the day but we shovel because the law says we must. And what happens should the snow fall and both my husband and myself forget to clear it away? “It could cost you a great deal of money,” said a spokesman for our local council.
Should somebody slip in the snow, the council will only assume liability if the pavement is faulty. Ice and snow are the householder’s responsibility and if you are away for the weekend, unwell or unable for whatever reason to clear your own snow it remains your obligation to see that the job is done.
Commercial options usually involve contracting gardeners (who switch between hoes and snow shovels according to the season). Neighbours, family or friends can also be recruited though the council insists that a formal declaration with details of the nominated shoveller is lodged with them.
The road network remains the responsibility of the city and county authorities, which by and large do a good job of gritting the motorways, trunk roads and minor roads.
As in Ireland, this is turning out to be a particularly severe winter in Denmark and temperatures here are expected to remain below freezing for another two weeks. Even those motorists who have taken the optional precaution of fitting winter tyres might find themselves in difficulty. But again, Danish law provides another safeguard to make the best of a bad scenario – practical training in driving in hazardous conditions including ice and snow is a mandatory part of the driving test. This doesn't come cheap. Driving schools charge beginners around €1,300 for a basic package. But as one driving instructor put it – it's cheaper than a funeral.
CLARE MCCARTHY
