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Whatever the condition — smooth ice, packed, blowing,
or loose snow — drive with caution.
Traction control improves your ability to accelerate when
driving on a slippery road. Even if your vehicle has
the Traction Control System (TCS) or Enhanced Traction
System (ETS), slow down and adjust your driving to
the road conditions. Under certain conditions, you might
want to turn the TCS or ETS off, such as when driving
through deep snow and loose gravel, to help maintain
vehicle motion at lower speeds or if your vehicle
ever gets stuck in sand, mud, ice, or snow. See Traction
Control System (TCS) on page 4-6, Enhanced Traction
System (ETS) on page 4-9, Electronic Stability
Control (ESC) on page 4-10, and If Your Vehicle is
Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow on page 4-26.
Accelerate gently. Try not to break the fragile traction.
If you accelerate too fast, the drive wheels will spin and
polish the surface under the tires even more.
Unless your vehicle has the Antilock Brake
System (ABS), you will want to brake very gently, too.
If you have ABS, see Antilock Brake System (ABS)
on page 4-5. ABS improves your vehicle’s stability when
you make a hard stop on a slippery road.
Whether your vehicle has ABS or not, begin stopping
sooner than you would on dry pavement. Without ABS, if
you feel your vehicle begin to slide, let up on the
brakes a little. Push the brake pedal down steadily to
get the most traction you can.
Remember, unless your vehicle has ABS, if you brake
so hard that the wheels stop rolling, you will just
slide. Brake so the wheels always keep rolling and you
can still steer.
• Whatever your vehicle’s braking system, allow
greater following distance on any slippery road.
• Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit a spot that is covered with ice. On
an otherwise clear road, ice patches can appear in
shaded areas where the sun cannot reach, such
as around clumps of trees, behind buildings,
or under bridges. Sometimes the surface of a curve
or an overpass can remain icy when the
surrounding roads are clear. If you see a patch of
ice ahead of you, brake before you are on it. Try not
to brake while you are actually on the ice, and
avoid sudden steering maneuvers.
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