Winter DrivingDriving on Snow or IceDrive carefully when there is snow or ice between thetires and the road, creating less traction or grip. Wet icecan occur at about 32°F (0°C) when freezing rain beginsto fall, resulting in even less traction. Avoid driving on wetice or in freezing rain until roads can be treated with saltor sand.Drive with caution, whatever the condition. Accelerategently so traction is not lost. Accelerating too quicklycauses the wheels to spin and makes the surface underthe tires slick, so there is even less traction.Try not to break the fragile traction. If you accelerate toofast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surfaceunder the tires even more.The StabiliTrak® System on page 5-6 improves the abilityto accelerate on slippery roads, but slow down and adjustyour driving to the road conditions. When driving throughdeep snow, turn off the traction control part of theStabiliTrak® System to help maintain vehicle motion atlower speeds.The Antilock Brake System (ABS) on page 5-5 improvesvehicle stability during hard stops on a slippery roads,but apply the brakes sooner than when on drypavement.Allow greater following distance on any slippery roadand watch for slippery spots. Icy patches can occur onotherwise clear roads in shaded areas. The surfaceof a curve or an overpass can remain icy when thesurrounding roads are clear. Avoid sudden steeringmaneuvers and braking while on ice.Turn off cruise control, if equipped, on slippery surfaces.5-29
