[Thad E Ginathom]

Somebody has posted this before, possibly in this very thread?

[samyakmodi]

another thing worth trying is using cigarette tobacco.
just scrub the windshield with a cigarette's tobacco. for some reason the visibility is great. water hardly stays on the screen and the wipers work like a charm.

try it before suggesting it to anyone though. i tried it and found a considerable difference.

[speedsatya]

I remember having a scary incident in a 1995 zen in the last month on the wet Nh48 .This car had brand new 145/70r13 tires and I was doing about 50-60 kph at 3 am in the night ,about 40 kms from Mangalore when before I could realise the car just refused to take the curve and headed straight to the gorge on the other side.I was very lucky that I was driving slower than my zen or the lancer (both have the potenza GIII) and that there was no oncoming traffic .

The car must have hit some oil patch on the curve .I was lucky that I was somehow able to control the skid .Parked the car and then walked back to this spot...and couldnt make out anything ..and when I was walking back to the car ..heard a loud bang ..an Accent did a 180 turn and its rear end hit the mountain side!!!

I think both of us ( the accent driver and me ) must have tapped the brakes on the turn .
I never brake in the middle of a turn ..its always gear changes for me ...dunno this time how I did this.

Lessons learnt :

Stock tires on most cars are useless most of the times.If possible ,always try and go for better rubber .Its worth the investment.Its better to change tires for once than change body panels and change bandages.

Never brake in the middle of a turn !!Brake before you enter the curve or downshift before it.

[auto-one]

Originally Posted by GTO

Flooded areas

• When in a flooded area, choose the first gear, slip the clutch and keep the revs high enough to ensure that exhaust gases are pushed out of the tail pipe. Do NOT stop revving. The lower your car's speed, the better. If your car stalls, it is very difficult to start it again.

Credits : Many points in this article have been compiled from Normally_Crazy's thread (Driving in the Rains - Tips) (Driving in the Rains - Tips). Thanks to all those who commented!

First, thanks to all those who have contributed to this thread.
Yesterday I had to drive through knee deep water near Mhatre bridge ( the route was unavoidable ) . Before entering the water I was too apprehensive. However, I drove in the first gear, keeping in mind the above point mentioned on this thread . I was relieved after I successfully passed through the water, without stalling.Thanks TBHP ! Thanks my great little M800!

[narendra.vw]

My opinion ,
Avoid night travel in rainy season . Always have lighter tinted glass. Make sure wiper blades are clean from dust, clean the wind shield with soap oil. Make sure there is sufficient W/S cleaning water. have extra yellow lights fixed, slightly adjust it to low beam angle. Now, while driving in rain, keep air pressure slightly low. This helps in more griping of tyre. On high ways never be in over drive. This will not help you in sudden braking. Speed cornering, No jamming of brakes but light taping of brake and shifting to lower gear will help. Even in the day have parking lights on. Sudden spray of slush on wind shield, don’t panic shift to lower gear then slightly tap the brake to slow down until visibility is clear. Sudden pot holes or road hump, don’t jam the brake. Realize throttle pedal to slow down.

[honeybee]

Rubbing tobacco on the windshield works surely in the rains. Though I have never tried that myself, I remember the first time we rented a car, the driver used the same trick as we drove from Tuljapur and were caught in a heavy shower.

Secondly, keep a bag of dryfruits in the car instead of chocolates. Chocolates can melt and actually become a problem to clean up. An airtight container with a mix of the different dryfruits should help you stay full of nutrition. You could get it at any grocer's.

Regarding first aid kit, make sure the medicines and other items in the kit are valid. I have the original first-aid kit with the original medicines and ointments lying in my Santro (more than 6 years old). As good as useless!

[Urban_Nomad]

^^ And for all the cars with electronic lock / unlock mechanism, keep a hammer in an easy to access spot (glove box). Went shopping for one this weekend but the hammers available were big enough to kill dinosaurs. Till such time I can get the "right size" hammer, I am thinking of keeping the spanner in the glove box.

Or am I being paranoid?

[Sudarshan]

Wonderfull,may I add /suggest something
1) a small drizle (a very small amount of rains) makes roads very slippery/sticky,especially in the start of the seasons, so beware !
2) Somewhere I read about 'To See & Be Seen' while you drive .
3) Avoid combination of Rain & Darkness
4) A proper rainwear for bikers, when you are wet & hit the wind you get cold
(fingers get Numb) so responce time gets Slower. also save your eyes from a direct hit
of water ( I had a very bad experiance about this)
Cheers . (dear Moderators delete this if you feel this worthless)

[Sudarshan]

Originally Posted by Urban_Nomad

^^ And for all the cars with electronic lock / unlock mechanism, keep a hammer in an easy to access spot (glove box). Went shopping for one this weekend but the hammers available were big enough to kill dinosaurs. Till such time I can get the "right size" hammer, I am thinking of keeping the spanner in the glove box.

Or am I being paranoid?

Nope Its Funny but a real life saver,I have recomended this to my sister who lives in Mumbai.Only difference is I have given her a pice of pipe 1& half foot long that doubles as a extention to wheel spanner & is stored below driver seat.

[honeybee]

The most important advice, specially after the Mumbai floods: If you have to choose between your car and yourself, forget about the car. Save your life, even if it means abandoning your car on a flooded street in an unknown neighbourhood.

Carry car chargers for your cellphones and have a GSM and a CDMA handset with you. You could also go for a tri-SIM phone which can connect two GSM and a CDMA card, but the trouble is only one or two of them would be active at a time. With separate handsets you have both the networks accessible at the same time, and even if you accidentally dropped one handset into the water, or it got wet or in any way damaged, you still have another handset available. Getting your handsets laminated or at least covered in a sealed plastic envelope would help too.

[dhall_gagan]

AWESOME... mail today took cues from this article and look what they posted in today's edition of their newspaper.

please find the attached jpeg

[Akki_5]

Originally Posted by GTO

Flooded areas

• When in a flooded area, choose the first gear, slip the clutch and keep the revs high enough to ensure that exhaust gases are pushed out of the tail pipe. Do NOT stop revving. The lower your car's speed, the better. If your car stalls, it is very difficult to start it again.

I've used this technique several times while driving through flooded areas. Though this technique works perfectly, i would still advise avoiding flooded areas, as i don't think everyone can get their car through flooded areas safely. If your car stalls, DO NOT attempt to start the engine whilst in water. You'll only ruin your car.

EDIT: A question that popped in my mind the other day: How do you slip the clutch on an AT vehicle? We can't keep revs high with slow speed in an AT vehicle.

[alstonlobo]

I have a tip to add. This is for those whose cars come with cruise control. NEVER use cruise control during the rains or on wet/slippery roads. It will cause the car to hydroplane. The rest is self explanatory I hope.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Driving too fast for the conditions causes the car to hydroplane: there is a direct relationship between depth of water (yes, it has to be solid water, not just a wet road) and speed.

All cruise control does is maintain a constant speed: I do not see any way that that, any more than doing the same by hand (or foot, rather) can lead to aquaplaning.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Akki_5

i would still advise avoiding flooded areas, as i don't think everyone can get their car through flooded areas safely. If your car stalls, DO NOT attempt to start the engine whilst in water. You'll only ruin your car.

Agree on both points. Flooded areas are best avoided; however, if you have no choice, then my advice sticks.

We can't keep revs high with slow speed in an AT vehicle.

You can.

1) Stick in "1" or "L" (if you transmission offers this option)

2) Accelerate and brake together.

Note : NOT recommended for frequent practice. Only when driving through a flood is inevitable.