Chevrolet Spark Owners Manual: Driving on Wet Roads
Rain and wet roads can reduce vehicle traction and affect your ability to stop and accelerate.
Always drive slower in these types of driving conditions and avoid driving through large puddles and deep-standing or flowing water.
Warning
Wet brakes can cause crashes.
They might not work as well in a quick stop and could cause pulling to one side. You could lose control of the vehicle.
After driving through a large puddle of water or a car/vehicle wash, lightly apply the brake pedal until the brakes work normally.
Flowing or rushing water creates strong forces. Driving through flowing water could cause the vehicle to be carried away. If this happens, you and other vehicle occupants could drown. Do not ignore police warnings and be very cautious about trying to drive through flowing water.
Hydroplaning
Hydroplaning is dangerous. Water can build up under the vehicle's tires so they actually ride on the water. This can happen if the road is wet enough and you are going fast enough. When the vehicle is hydroplaning, it has little or no contact with the road.
There is no hard and fast rule about hydroplaning. The best advice is to slow down when the road is wet.
Other Rainy Weather Tips
Besides slowing down, other wet weather driving tips include:
- Allow extra following distance.
- Pass with caution.
- Keep windshield wiping equipment in good shape.
- Keep the windshield washer fluid reservoir filled.
- Have good tires with proper tread depth. See Tires on page 10-36.
- Turn off cruise control.
Loss of Control
Skidding
There are three types of skids that correspond to the vehicle's three control
systems:
Braking Skid - wheels are not rolling.
Steering or Cornering Skid - too much speed or steer ...
Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or through mountains is different than driving on flat
or rolling terrain. Tips for driving in these conditions include:
Keep the vehicle serviced and in good shape.
Che ...
Other materials:
Event Data Recorders
This vehicle is equipped with an event data recorder (EDR). The main purpose
of an EDR is to record, in certain crash or near crash-like situations, such as
an air bag deployment or hitting a road obstacle, data that will assist in understanding
how a vehicle’s systems performed. The EDR is de ...
Windshield and Wiper Blades
Clean the outside of the windshield with glass cleaner.
Clean rubber blades using a lint-free cloth or paper towel soaked with windshield
washer fluid or a mild detergent. Wash the windshield thoroughly when cleaning the
blades. Bugs, road grime, sap, and a buildup of vehicle wash/wax treatment ...
Airbag Readiness Light
This light shows if there is an electrical problem with the airbag system. The
system check includes the airbag sensor(s), passenger sensing system, the pretensioners
(if equipped), the airbag modules, the wiring, and the crash sensing and diagnostic
module. For more information on the airbag ...
