Driving in Adverse Conditions Flashcards

What should you do if your vehicle's windscreen starts to ice up from the inside while driving?

Answer: Use the heater with A/C on full, directed at the screen, and pull over if visibility becomes too restricted

Interior icing is caused by high moisture inside the car. Use the heater with A/C (which dehumidifies) directed at the windscreen. If visibility is dangerously impaired, pull over safely.

What is the benefit of winter tyres in cold and icy conditions?

Answer: Their rubber compound remains pliable below 7°C, improving grip significantly compared to summer tyres

Winter tyres use a rubber compound that stays flexible at low temperatures (below 7°C), providing better grip, shorter stopping distances, and improved handling — even on cold, dry roads without snow.

At night on a rural road, why is it important to dip your headlights at the crest of a hill?

Answer: Your full beam will dazzle drivers coming the other way before they become visible to you

At a hill crest, full beam projects forward and upward, dazzling approaching drivers before you can see them. Dip early so you don't momentarily blind an oncoming driver.

How does driving in heavy rain affect your visibility and what should you do?

Answer: Visibility is severely reduced — use dipped headlights, slow down, and increase following distance

Heavy rain significantly reduces forward visibility and increases spray from other vehicles. Use dipped headlights, slow down, increase following distance, and keep wipers at full speed.

If you need to drive through an area where there may be animals on the road (near farm gates), what should you do?

Answer: Reduce speed, be prepared to stop, and scan the road and verges for animals

Reduce speed significantly near farm gates, open fields, and agricultural areas. Animals can appear suddenly on the road and move unpredictably. A collision with a large animal can be fatal.

What is the correct procedure if your brakes fail completely while driving?

Answer: Apply the handbrake gradually, change down through gears for engine braking, alert others with the horn, and aim for a soft impact to stop

Total brake failure is rare but serious. Pump the footbrake (may restore pressure in hydraulic systems), apply handbrake gradually to avoid spin, use engine braking, warn others, and steer toward a soft or uphill surface to stop.