Driving Myths: Driving in Cold Weather

Here in South Texas, our winters are mild compared to other places in the United States. However, we still do experience a drop in temperature and at times, even freezing conditions. Although these weather patterns may be rare, we must all evaluate our actions if the situation occurs.

Driving Myth #1

The first piece of advice you may hear about driving in cold weather is to “let your vehicle warm up.” Now while it may be nice to get into a warm car as opposed to one that’s icy cold, it really provides no benefit to your vehicle. Some believe a cold start or driving with the car still cold may damage the engine and moving parts. There is simply no evidence to back up this theory. You’re simply burning more fuel and costing yourself more out of pocket expenses. However, you may deem those negatives actually worth it depending on how cold it actually is outside.

Driving Myth #2

The second driving myth in cold weather is that your parking brake should be used to help your vehicle stop. This is a lesser-known myth and that’s a good thing. By using your parking brake in icy conditions you’re actually negating your anti-lock braking system and that could be dangerous. Most vehicles on today’s roads are equipped with anti-lock brakes and for good reason. Anti-lock brakes are a much safer alternative to the old brakes that used to come on our vehicles. By using the parking brake you’re canceling out the anti-lock brake mechanism.  Also, the parking brake is more likely to freeze in the event of very cold weather. So if you need to suddenly make an emergency stop and use the parking brake, there is a chance it will fail and you will not be able to stop your vehicle in time.

Again, extremely cold weather is very uncommon in Texas. However, if you’re traveling up north for the holidays and have to do any driving at all, it’s good to keep in mind there are a few myths out there about driving in cold weather.

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