4-27Driving in Mud, Sand, Snow or IceWhen you drive in mud, snow or sand, your wheelswon’t get good traction. You can’t accelerate asquickly, turning is more difficult, and you’ll needlonger braking distances.It’s best to use a low gear when you’re in mud -- thedeeper the mud, the lower the gear. In really deep mud,the idea is to keep your vehicle moving so you don’tget stuck.When you drive on sand, you’ll sense a change inwheel traction. But it will depend upon how looselypacked the sand is. On loosely packed sand (as onbeaches or sand dunes) your tires will tend to sink intothe sand. This has an effect on steering, acceleratingand braking. You may want to reduce the air pressurein your tires slightly when driving on sand. This willimprove traction.Hard packed snow and ice offer the worst tire traction.On these surfaces, it’s very easy to lose control. On wetice, for example, the traction is so poor that you willhave difficulty accelerating. And if you do get moving,poor steering and difficult braking can cause you to slideout of control.CAUTION:Driving on frozen lakes, ponds or rivers can bedangerous. Underwater springs, currents underthe ice, or sudden thaws can weaken the ice.Your vehicle could fall through the ice and youand your passengers could drown. Drive yourvehicle on safe surfaces only.
