Your Guide to Getting Your Car Out of Snow
A car is a great thing when you live in a cold and snowy place : inside the car you are hot and warm, and you only need to face the weather for a few minutes after parking. As someone who left their car, not the snow, behind when driving cross-country, I miss luxury sorely. What I don’t miss is having to haul the car out of the ice and snow when it gets trapped. You probably know how to sand or dig tires to help you get out, but here are a few other, less common ways to get out of a rut.
Use a car mat
Sure, you can put cardboard in front of your tires to give them enough grip to get out of an icy or snowy place, but do you always have cardboard with you? And you want to walk through the snow to find? No. What you have are floor mats under the front seats. Dig out as much snow as you can, then put a mat in front of whichever wheel is spinning so it can get the traction and freedom it needs.
Take off the gear
Patience is everything when you’re trying to get out of a rut – according to Bob Veal , you’re more likely to get out of a cold rut if you downshift and accelerate slowly to gain a little traction. Don’t forget to disable traction control as well, because, ironically, the feature will kick in if your wheels start to spin – but you need them to slip right now. Just turn it back on when you’re free. Finally, try spinning the wheel in the process so your tires can find some fresh snow for traction. Crank it one way or the other when you’re slowly accelerating in low gear without traction control, and remember to drive slowly so you don’t pitch forward or dig deeper.
Let some air out of your tires
According to Lee Schwab Tires , you can take the drastic step to free your car: bleed some air out of the tires, but just enough to make them look noticeably lower. Only do this if you are sure that you can fill them up somewhere nearby so that it is not dangerous to drive on under-inflated tires; but in case of emergency, it should help you at least get out of the snow trap you’re trapped in.
Avoid repeating this
The best defense is, of course, an attack. First, do not use cruise control when it is slippery or snowing outside, as your vehicle may automatically attempt to return to its set speed after hydroplaning or spinning, which can lead to unpredictable movements.
Second, make sure your car is winterized . Yes, winter is here , but we still have a few potentially frustrating weeks left, so it doesn’t hurt to pick up snow chains, level the car, and pack a safety kit. Here’s what you need to know .