Here we are wrapping up the third week of January, 2012, and we’ve been driving through all sorts of wacky winter weather here in Northern New Hampshire. And while perhaps in many places it hasn’t been the fiercest of winters so far, many of us have certainly had to contend with a variety of winter weather driving conditions like snow and sleet and freezing rain. Keep in mind, the typically heaviest snowfall months of February and March are still to come.  As such, if you have been as lax about your winter driving preparedness as Mother Nature has been about throwing the white stuff our way, now is a good time to make sure you’re in Winter Driving Mode and be prepared for the worst.

In this first of a 3-part series on what Tim O’Neil calls “Winter Driving Mode” (WDM), we talk about what it means to be in WDM.  Being in WDM means both having your car properly prepared for winter, and most importantly, making sure your brain has switched over to WDM.

First, let’s review WDM for your car.  We talked about this somewhat in our January newsletter “The Drift” and Tim is featured discussing some of this as well in the January/February issue of Yankee Magazine, but we wanted to recap it here too (hey – the more you hear something, the more it sinks in!).

• Have the Right Stuff in Your Vehicle.  That is, be sure to have a survival kit that consists of a scraper or brush, jumper cables, emergency triangles, flat tire kits, flashlights, and windshield-wiper fluid.  Have an extra cell-phone battery on hand or alternative means for charging your phone.  Also, during the winter months always make sure you have an extra jacket, gloves, hats, appropriate footwear for the snow and cold, and a blanket.

• Check Your Tires.  The best tires for winter are snow tires, which are made with a softer rubber and are designed to ride over the snow and compress it to make it grippy.  Studded snow tires offer even more protection against icy conditions.  It’s important to note that the better the snow tire, the worse its tread wear rating.  Proper snow tires are noisy, feel squishy, and won’t last very long, but they’ll be a lot better in the snow, and your ABS and dynamic stability control will improve with good snow tires.  Also, be sure to have four of the same kind of tire – having just two snow tires can lead to poor control when driving around slippery corners.  And finally, you’ll want to adjust your tire pressure, which should be slightly lower in the winter than in the warmer months.  Not sure what tires to use or what pressure to set your tires at?  Ask a mechanic that you trust.

• Understand what ABS Brakes Can – and Can’t – Do.  ABS brakes are designed to allow you to brake and steer at the same time.  However, while ABS works great on paved roads or on glare ice, it’s not as effective on snow or gravel or other loose surfaces under which there is some grip.  With ABS, you should increase your braking distances in snowy conditions (so if you have a tendency to ride up on other drivers’ rear ends, well, let’s just say you should back off when the weather turns snowy…).  You may also want to consider turning off your traction control.  Not sure how to do that?  Check out your car’s manual.  When you’re plowing through deep snow, you will want that traction control turned off so your tires can dig for grip on the road under the snow.  But if your tires are only going to find ice under it, leave the traction control on.

• Learn How Your Vehicle Responds in Different Conditions.  Find an empty parking lot after the next snowfall or sleet event and get to know your car again.  Slam on the brakes while going straight, slam on the brakes while turning, switch to different modes (for example, if your car has summer, sport and winter modes, try the same move in all three modes), and note how  the car responds in each instance.

So now your car is prepared for winter driving, and perhaps in empty parking lots you are too.  But what about you while you’re cruising around on the road with other drivers?  The single most important thing you as a driver can do to be in WDM is to PAY ATTENTION!

In the next installment of our WDM series, we’ll get more specific about what to be aware of when conditions change.  But for the purposes of this blog post, let’s just say that multitasking while driving is unsafe, and especially when you’re driving in hazardous conditions.  When the snow, sleet or freezing rain starts to fall, or when you hit snowy or wet or icy roads, it’s time to turn the cell phone off, turn the radio off, and focus on your surroundings.  Be aware of the conditions – the weather conditions, the road conditions, the external temperature.   Slow down, allow more braking distance, and adjust how you brake.  You can’t be truly tuned in to what is going on around you while driving if you’re chatting away on your phone or even with the person next to you, or singing along to Lady Gaga or Twisted Sister at the top of your lungs (just sayin’…).

Also, another key component to making sure your brain is in WDM is to remember to slow down.  If you’re going all out assuming that you’re ABS and winter tires and AWD are going to keep you safe on slippery roads, think again.  Even the best drivers with the best equipped cars know they need to slow down when conditions call for it.

Stay tuned for our next blog, in which we discuss factors to be on the look-out for when driving in wintery weather.