This year in Oklahoma we’ve been very fortunate to receive more than our share of rain. The grass is green and the landscape looks pretty good and healthy. That’s a big blessing. Many of us however were not prepared to drive in this kind of rainy weather. For some, the challenge was driving vehicles that were not quite well maintained which led many to be stuck on the road. As we’re heading into even more bad driving weather this fall, here are things you should pay attention to in order to stay safe when driving in the rain.

The danger of driving in the rain

A number of factors make driving in the rain more risky than any other dry days.One factor is the roads you’re driving on. We’ve seen some city roads flood this rainy season making it hard for many people to travel through those roads. Sometimes it’s hard to determine how flooded roads are until you’re navigating through them. That’s why it’s important to have your radio tuned to the weather channel during heavy downpour so you can get important alerts. The other challenge is other drivers on the road who may be in a hurry to get to where they’re going and in the process affect other drivers on the road.

Tips for driving in the rain

  1. Ensure your car is conditioned for bad weather. Is your car in good condition? Before the next rains, bring your car to an auto repair shop and have it checked out for you and this will save you a lot of frustrations in the storm. At Davis Paint & Collision we do this everyday, along with other automotive services and we’ll get your car in great shape. Brakes and tires are usually a big point of failure in this kinds of situations, along with the starter system and car lights. Do yourself a favor and get these checked.
  2. Taking your time when driving in the rain. Like I mentioned before, city roads tend to flood quickly and many times you may not even realize it. You also want to slow down and take your time to reduce the chance of your tires slipping because there isn’t much traction on a wet road as is on dry road.
  3. Keep farther distance with other cars on the road. While your car may be well conditioned for wet roads, the car ahead of you may not be and so protect yourself by keeping a good distance in case you need to break suddenly because of the car ahead of you.
  4. Turn on the headlights. It might not be that dark but go ahead and turn on the headlights because it increases the chance of being seen even when it’s foggy.
  5. How about not driving? Well, if you don’t really need to drive during the rain, then maybe you can work around that by scheduling your trips for another time. As the wise sage said, the safest trips are the ones not taken.

Hopefully you’ve gathered something from this article and if you have please share this article on social media so that your friends and family can learn something as well.

Davis Paint & Collision offers a Lifetime Limited Warranty & complete customer satisfaction with our repairs. You should always get repairs done from a reputable auto body shop that you trust and can count on to do the right thing. Davis Paint & Collision Auto Center has been servicing Oklahoma City, Midwest City and surrounding areas since 1990 and will take care of you so you don’t fall for  “traveling” PDR companies. Give us a call today at our Oklahoma City location (405) 733-9797 or Midwest City location (405) 732-0762!