What is the worst time for this? Wet ice. Very cold snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive on. But wet ice can be even more trouble because it may offer the least traction of all. You can get wet ice when it is about freezing (32°F; 0°C) and freezing rain begins to fall. Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews can get there.

Whatever the condition — smooth ice, packed, blowing or loose snow — drive with caution.

If you have traction control, it will improve your ability to accelerate when driving on a slippery road. But you can turn the traction system off if you ever need to. You should turn the system off if your vehicle ever gets stuck in sand, mud, ice or snow. See If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow on page 4-30. Even though your vehicle has a traction system, you will want to slow down and adjust your driving to the road conditions. Under certain conditions, you may want to turn the traction control system off, such as when driving through deep snow and loose gravel, to help maintain vehicle motion at lower speeds See Traction Control System (TCS) on page 4-10.

If you do not have a traction system, accelerate gently. Try not to break the fragile traction. If you accelerate too fast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surface under the tires even more.

Unless you have the anti-lock braking system, you will want to brake very gently, too. If you do have anti-lock, see Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) on page 4-7. This system improves your vehicle’s stability when you make a hard stop on a slippery road. Whether you have the anti-lock braking system or not, you will want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry pavement. Without anti-lock brakes, if you feel your vehicle begin to slide, let up on the brakes a little. Push the brake pedal down steadily to get the most traction you can.

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Buick 2005 manual