Driving While Raining and Through Flood

As now is rainy season, more attention should be given for you, who drive car, to the component of the car. There is a standard operation procedure before you drive in rainy season. This important SOP is called General Check Up for car. The things you have to check before driving in rainy season are :

• Lightning

 This is important, because in rainy season the visibility is poor, especially when the rain is quite hard. The lamps that you must check are clearance lamp, Fog lamp, Head Lamp (low beam and high beam) turning signal lamp, braking lamp, parking lamp, and hazard lamp). Make sure the lamps are all lit and shine well. As a standard and to increase safety, the certain lamps should shine in these particular color. Head lamp should shine either in white, yellow, or blue in color. Fog lamp should shine either white or yellow in color. These particular colors will give you more light than the standard one, so your visibility can increase while driving in a poor visibility. 

• Wheels

Wheels play an important role. Make sure your wheels are in a very good condition. Worn-out wheel will increase the risk of slipping while driving in wet road. If you want to make sure your wheels are in a good condition, check the pattern/line in every of your wheel. If that pattern/line starting to dissolve, it's better for you to change it, because worn-out wheels will not give the best grip while driving in either wet or dry road. Also check the pressure. If your wheels are flat, you've to add the pressure so that your car won't lose control while driving, especially in wet road. The good wheels will give you more grip and stability while driving in wet road.

• Brakes

As a good driver, do not ignore this system, or you'll be in a critical situation. This component is where your safety starts and ends. Before driving, check your braking system. First check the brake calipers; if you see many scratches, do consider to change the calipers, because the scratches calipers will not give the optimum braking distance, even it will increase your stopping distance. This is dangerous. Another case, if you brake calipers is wet, do dry it before driving. Wet brake calipers won't work well, also if you see stain, clean it too. Don't forget to check the brake oil in machine room. Don't drive when the oil is in the minimum line. If it's, add more braking oil, based on your car's manual book. Just make sure your brake calipers are in a very good condition to drive. 

• Wipers and Defogger

Wipers play a significant role in your visibility, beside the lightning system. Make sure your wipers are in a good condition. When the wipers leave the scratch in your window, it's the time to change the rubbers. The bad rubbers in wipers won't clean the water cleanly, as it will leave the scratch, so change it if it's so. Ignoring this, also will damage your window, so the cost will greatly multiply. Do not forget to check the water sprays reservoir in machine room. Make sure it's not empty, if it's low, fill it with clean water which has been mixed up with shampoo. Check also the defogger, make sure it's working well. The good defogger will dry up your rear window as soon as it's turned on. If it's not working, do consider to repair it. These two things help you much in getting the good visibility beside the lightning system.

Driving in rainy season isn't the same as you're driving in a good weather. In rainy season, you must give extra attention while driving, not only to your car, but also to your surrounding. If you're not careful, your safety is at risk. This is the Standard Operating Procedure while driving in raining and through the flood. 

1. If the sky is very dark, do turn on your position/clearance lamp. This is will help other car, position either in your front or your rear to know where your car is. If it's again starting to drizzle, turn on your fog lamp to help you see the road. This is also increase your visibility and helps other cars. When the rain starting to be very heavy, turn on your head lamp (the low beam one). This lamp will help you to see the road and the surrounding cars better, beside helping other cars to see yours. Don't try at any circumstances, to turn on your high beam. This is dangerous, because the glare is very bright. Instead of helping you and others, this may give you and others trouble because it distracts the visibility, as in reflects all water. If the situation still continue to the worst, do turn on you hazard lamp. You must be very aware about using hazard lamps. First, just turn it on when your driving in toll road/highway, don't turn it when your driving in a normal road, as you will change line more often. Turning on the hazard lamp in normal road will confuse other driver when you want to change line. Second, if you have turn it on, stay on your line, do not even change your line. Just change your line when you're approaching your exit. When changing line, turn off your hazard, and turn on your turning signal lamp, so other driver will not be confused with your manoeuvrings. 
2. Keep your safe distance while driving. It's a rule of thumb. The closer you get to the front car, the more dangerous you are actually, especially while driving in a wet road. Your car and other cars in front of and in your rear need a stopping distance. It's impossible to stop your car at once, as it needs a distance. If you are too close to the car in front of you, as the front car brakes, it'll decrease the distance and your car also do the same thing but, the distance isn't enough, it'll be a accident then as your car will rear-end the car ahead you, and so will the other car in your rear.  To avoid this, make sure you have enough safe distance to brake, especially while driving in wet road. If in dry condition you spare around 2-4 seconds, in wet road spare more, at least 3-5 seconds behind as your car needs more distance to brake in wet road to avoid slipping. So, when the car in front of you brakes, you have enough safety distance to do the same and avoid the rear-end accident. 
3. Maintain your speed. It's important as this will avoid accident. In a wet road condition, don't drive in excessive speed. Doing this will give you more trouble, especially in keeping your car in stable condition. In a toll road/highway, the normal speed allowed is around 60 km/h up to 100 km/h and in normal road is 40 km/h up to 60 km/h. It doesn't come into effect if the condition is raining and road is wet. Driving and that rate will give you trouble in keeping the stability of your car. So, in wet condition, the rate of speed in toll road/highway is around 60 km/h up to the highest 80 km/h and 30 km/h up to 50 km/h in normal road. This rate of speed will make you safe if you have to do a manoeuvrings and to brake.
4. If you have to pass the flood, make sure you follow this guidelines to avoid being stuck in the middle of the flood. First, know your car, especially the position of the air intake and the exhaust pipe, as these components mustn't be under water. This is the prime case of being stuck in the middle of the flood. Second, make sure the depth of the flood. If the flood is to deep, especially over the height of those two components, don't pass through it, your car might be stuck. Third, if the flood isn't too deep and safe to across, don't cross it in a high speed, as you'll have an aquaplaning (the condition where the wheels lose contact with the road surface and the car loss the grip). Cross it with a steady speed. For both manual and automatic cars, use the lower gear (M/T first or second gear, A/T 2(S) or 1(L) gear) as these gears give more power in low speed. when the flood is nearly as high as your exhaust pipe, don't even change gear for manual cars, as you will hit the clutch in which it will sucks the water through the exhaust pipe, also don't drive by hanging your left food it clutch for the same reason. After passing through the flood, check your braking system as it's wet after being underwater. If you keep driving while the brakes are wet, your stopping distance will increase. To dry it, try to hit the brakes several times while driving in low speed, as it will heat the brake booster and will dry the brake calipers. Last, check other components that may get wet after crossing the flood.

That's the important things you've to concern while driving in rainy season and driving through the flood. Hope it'll help you. Remember, drive safe, respect other drivers. 

Pandu DN