Pontiac G8 manual Driving on Snow or Ice, If You Are Caught in a Blizzard

8-26 Driving and Operating

Driving on Snow or Ice

Most of the time, those places where the tires meet the road probably have good traction.

However, if there is snow or ice between the tires and the road, you can have a very slippery situation. You have a lot less traction, or grip, and need to be very careful.

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 can 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.

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.

The Antilock Brake System (ABS) improves your vehicle’s stability when you make a hard stop

on a slippery road. Even though you have ABS, begin stopping sooner than you would on dry pavement. See Antilock Brake System (ABS) on page 8-15.

•Allow greater following distance on any slippery road.

•Watch for slippery spots.

The road might be fine until you hit a spot that is covered with ice. On an otherwise clear road, ice patches can appear in shaded areas where the sun cannot reach, such as around clumps of trees, behind buildings, or under bridges. Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass can remain icy when the surrounding roads are clear. If you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before you are on it. Try not to brake while you are actually on the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers.

If You Are Caught in a Blizzard

If you are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a serious situation. You should probably stay with your vehicle unless you

know for sure that you are near help and you can hike through the snow. Here are some things to do to summon help and keep yourself and your passengers safe:

•Turn on the hazard warning flashers.

•Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that you have been stopped by the snow.

•Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you. If you do not have blankets or extra clothing, make body insulators from newspapers, burlap

bags, rags, floor mats — anything you can wrap around yourself or tuck under your clothing

to keep warm.

You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.