check out the new remote control Jockey Wheel SmartBar Topargee products Enginesaver Low Water Alarms
Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Post Info TOPIC: Good Driving in a Downpour!!!


Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 70
Date:
Good Driving in a Downpour!!!


Just read this in an email and I thought I would share.

Anyone tried it and does it reallywork???

How to achieve  good vision while driving during a  heavy
downpour.
We are not sure why  it is so effective; just try this
method when it  rains heavily.  This method was told by a  Police friend who had experienced and confirmed  it.
It is useful...even driving  at night.  Most of the
motorists would turn on HIGH or FASTEST  SPEED of the wipers during heavy downpour, yet the visibility  in front of the windshield is still  bad........
In the event you face such a  situation, just try your SUN GLASSES (any model will do), and  miracle!   All of a sudden, your visibility in front of  your windshield is perfectly  clear, as if there  is no rain.
Make sure you always have a pair  of SUN GLASSES in your car, as you are not only helping  yourself to drive safely with good vision, but also  might save your friend's life by
giving him  this idea..
Try it yourself and share it  with your friends!???
Amazing, you still  see the drops on the windshield, but not the sheet of rain falling.?
You can see where the rain  bounces off the road.?  It
works to eliminate the  "blindness" from passing semi's spraying  you too.?
Or the "kickup" if you are  following a semi or car in the rain.?   They ought  to teach that little tip in driver's training..   It really does work.
This warning is  a good one!    I wonder how many people know about this!!!

Cruise Control!!
A 36 year old female had  an accident several weeks ago and totalled  her car.  A resident of Kilgore ,Texas she  was  travelling between Gladewater & Kilgore. It was   raining, though not excessively, when her car suddenly  began to hydro-plane and literally flew through the air.   She was not seriously injured but very stunned at the  sudden occurrence!
When she explained  to the highway patrolman what had happened he told her  something that every driver should know -
NEVER DRIVE
IN THE RAIN  WITH YOUR CRUISE CONTROL ON. 
She thought  she  was being
cautious by setting the cruise control and  maintaining a safe consistent speed in the rain..
But  the highway patrolman told her that if the cruise
control is on  when your car begins to hydro-plane and your tires lose contact with the pavement, your car will accelerate to a  higher rate of speed making you take off like an airplane.  She told the patrolman that was exactly what had  occurred.
The patrolman said this warning should  be listed, on the driver's seat sun-visor -
NEVER USE THE CRUISE  CONTROL WHEN THE  PAVEMENT IS
WET OR ICY,
along with the airbag warning.  We tell our teenagers to set the
cruise control and drive a  safe speed - but  we don't tell them to use the cruise control only when the pavement is  dry.
The only person the accident victim found, who  knew this (besides the patrolman), was a man who had  a similar accident, totalled his car and sustained severe  injuries.
NOTE: Some vehicles (like the Toyota  Sienna Limited XLE) will not allow you to set the cruise  control when the windshield wipers are on.

confuseconfuseconfuseconfuseconfuse


__________________
Hope to catch you on the road somewhere,sometime!!!!


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 535
Date:

The cruise control one is a falacy , because if the wheels speed up the vehicle will decelerate sensing incorrectly that the car has increased speed. This was proved by the myth busters.
Any vehicle that aquaplanes will increase speed to some extent and all braking and control is extremely limited. As a matter of fact a quick dab on the brakes will disengage cruise control also.
I will however give the sunglasses a go as I always carry them.

__________________

I was tired yesterday and I'm tired today betcha I'm retired tomorrow. he he.

Cheers Dodg.



Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 554
Date:

I'll try the Sunglasses thing too

Cheers,
xina.

__________________
xina


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 588
Date:

I have heard the story re cruise control before, and it had me baffled how it could cause a problem, in itself. I did though come up with one senario where it is possible, but highly unlikely.

I believe we should think more about the body of the message, which is, when road conditions are less than good, leave it off and take full control of the vehicle.

The sunnies is right, but I use the yellow tinted ones, much better.

__________________
The devil made me do it - to hell with the Devil


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 10
Date:

I like the sunglasses trick too........DUCKS look sooooo cool in sunglasses. !!




Who cares about the rain.....we don't get any in South Australia.



__________________
JRH


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 2951
Date:

twobob wrote:

I have heard the story re cruise control before, and it had me baffled how it could cause a problem, in itself. I did though come up with one senario where it is possible, but highly unlikely.

I believe we should think more about the body of the message, which is, when road conditions are less than good, leave it off and take full control of the vehicle.

The sunnies is right, but I use the yellow tinted ones, much better.



Welcome back twobob, haven't seen much of you around lately, where you been hiding??????????

 



__________________
If I don't get there today, I'll get there tomorrow or the day after.

John & Irona..........Rockingham Western Australia
JRH


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 2951
Date:

Disco Duck wrote:

I like the sunglasses trick too........DUCKS look sooooo cool in sunglasses. !!






Anything is an improvement I suppose:):):):)

 



__________________
If I don't get there today, I'll get there tomorrow or the day after.

John & Irona..........Rockingham Western Australia


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 6882
Date:

I think the sunglasses work best if they are Polaroid.
I don't know if it works without it.
Next time it rains in Cairns I'll try my brand new multi-focal sunnies which I know aren't polarised.
I'm very wary of cruise control, and Rosy doesn't have it. She's the plain Jane of the '95 Landcruisers. No bells, no whistles, no cruise control.

__________________

20ft Roma caravan - Mercedes Benz Sprinter - SA-based at the moment.
Transport has no borders.

Management makes the decisions, but is not affected by the decisions it makes.



Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 554
Date:

Never used to use CC when I did have it. I still think it's the cause of a lot of road deaths.
If you don't use it, you have to concentrate more on your driving. Put it on, you don't have to worry about speed, and you can relax too much, and go to sleep easily on long trips.

Cheers,
xina.

__________________
xina


Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 34
Date:

Cruise control? I'm in agreement with others in not liking it under any circumstances. It's 'lazy driving' IMO.


Sunglasses in heavy rain?

Darn poor advice, far as I'm concerned. Polarised glasses might well give some vision benefit in rain, but bottom line is that if the rain is so heavy that you have difficulty seeing even with the wipers then the only really 'safe' thing to do is to pull over and stop.

__________________


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 3917
Date:

I'm inclined to believe the cruise control advice and not the sunglasses story. I'll try the sunglasses next time I'm driving in heavy rain, I may not have too long to wait as I'm currently in Swan Hill. Ambient light levels are often quite low in heavy rain, an environment not suitable for sunnies.

Several years ago a close relative of mine had a nasty accident on a slippery road when he lost control as he engaged the cruise control.

__________________

Merda tauris scientia vincit



Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 1059
Date:

Hmm .. I simply drive to conditions .. atmospheric and my own ..

Jon (currently in Blayney, NSW)

__________________

  <<   living life  >>



Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 14
Date:


http://www.hoax-slayer.com/cruise-control-warning.html



__________________


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 535
Date:

Thanks Bush n Beach I also was looking for that site.

And I too agree with the others IE. if the conditions are bad then use manual control and concentrate as any water can be dangerous.



__________________

I was tired yesterday and I'm tired today betcha I'm retired tomorrow. he he.

Cheers Dodg.



Veteran Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 36
Date:

find somewhere safe and stop and wait for the rain to stop
my life is worth a hell of a lot more than 5 mins or even 1 hr

__________________


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 144
Date:

Catweazle wrote:

Cruise control? I'm in agreement with others in not liking it under any circumstances. It's 'lazy driving' IMO.


Sunglasses in heavy rain?

Darn poor advice, far as I'm concerned. Polarised glasses might well give some vision benefit in rain, but bottom line is that if the rain is so heavy that you have difficulty seeing even with the wipers then the only really 'safe' thing to do is to pull over and stop.



reading.gif Now that's pretty sound advice 'Cats' good onya mate.  handshake.gif

__________________

A person with experience is never at the mercy of a person with an argument.



Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 6882
Date:

Pulling off carefully is my preferred option, and I had to use it a lot in the Kimberleys, and in particular in Broome during one of those spectacular, ferocious thunder storms, when visibility is all but zero, the roads become the storm drains, and the force of the water run-off even pulls on the Landcruiser wheels.
Meanwhile the hoons in their lowered cars with low-profile tyres spray their way up the streets, throwing water all over other cars and pedestrians, as well as increasing the chance of a crash, especially at roundabouts.
I know the sunglasses help, but don't make it any safer - just improve visibility a little.
However in Qld it's almost impossible to pull off the black top. There are no verges or fog lanes to even pull off and out of the way of other traffic.
To attempt pulling off the road could mean going down a steep, deep ravine or culvert.
No wonder the road toll is so high in this state. There's no where to take evasive action.

__________________

20ft Roma caravan - Mercedes Benz Sprinter - SA-based at the moment.
Transport has no borders.

Management makes the decisions, but is not affected by the decisions it makes.

Page 1 of 1  sorted by
 
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.

Tweet this page Post to Digg Post to Del.icio.us
Purchase Grey Nomad bumper stickers Read our daily column, the Nomad News The Grey Nomad's Guidebook