Fall '98 Special to Metro Publicity Services

Believe it or not, another holiday season is just around the corner. Besides parties and presents, it comes with seemingly continual outings to stores, malls, and post offices, excursions to Grandma's house for family gatherings, and trips to workplace celebrations. Complicating all this to-and-fro are "holiday traffic" and harsh winter driving conditions. Both can present hazardous situations for any traveler. To help keep you driving safely and relaxed, the ABS Education Alliance has some travel tips that should ease your in-vehicle stress during the winter months.

Winterize your car. One of the smartest things you can do as a driver is to ensure that your vehicle has received proper maintenance before traveling on winter roads. Winter weather conditions can be hard on all vehicles, so help prevent mechanical problems from spoiling your holiday road trips by taking your car to a reliable automotive technician for a checkup. When you take your vehicle in, you will want to make sure the following are in top condition: brakes, tires, radiator, windshield wipers, battery, electrical system, headlights/tail lights, emergency flashers, directional signals, ignition, defroster, and exhaust system. If any of these systems is not in perfect shape, have it repaired before driving this winter.

Once your car has received its winter prep, supply your vehicle with items you might have to use -- such as an ice scraper, snow brush, blanket, flashlight with extra batteries, and jumper cables -- during this winter driving season. A cellular phone may come in handy, too.

To be prepared for the worst, consider stashing the following items in your trunk: first aid kit, tire chains, tire inflator, rope, tool kit, road flares, gloves, hat, boots, matches, candles, nonperishable food items, and a shovel.

When your vehicle is ready for winter weather, and your supplies are in place, the ABS Education Alliance suggests these driving tips to help you arrive safely at all of your holiday engagements:

Know your brakes. Do you know if your car -- or rental car -- is equipped with an anti-lock brake system (ABS)? If you don't, check your dashboard. If the vehicle has anti-lock brakes, a dashboard icon will light immediately after your ignition starts the engine. The vehicle's owner's manual, or your automotive technician, as well, can tell you if you have ABS brakes, too. Vehicles equipped with the ABS technology require different braking techniques in unplanned stops than those equipped with only conventional brakes. Anti-lock brake systems are one of the most essential and recognized safety features on any car. They allow you to safely brake and steer in treacherous winter weather conditions.

There are two types of anti-lock brake systems -- four-wheel and rear-wheel. Passenger cars and some sport utility vehicles and light trucks may have four-wheel ABS, whereas rear-wheel ABS is found only on sport utility vehicles and light trucks.

When properly used, four-wheel ABS improves vehicle steerability, stability, and stopping capability in emergency situations. Rear-wheel ABS is designed to maintain directional stability and prevent the vehicle from skidding sideways in emergencies.

Always "brake and steer" when using four-wheel ABS. As student drivers, most of us were taught to pump our conventional brakes to prevent skidding or sliding when making an emergency stop. Pumping the brakes is not necessary with four-wheel ABS-equipped vehicles. Four-wheel ABS does the pumping for you automatically, at a rate as fast as 18 times per second whenever a sensor detects the start of lockup on one or more of your wheels.

Therefore, to engage four-wheel ABS, keep your foot on the brake pedal until the car comes to a complete stop or has adjusted its speed to fit the driving conditions. Place firm and continuous pressure on the brake while steering clear of any hazards. Do not take your foot off the brake pedal or pump the brakes. Either action will disengage the anti-lock system.

Rear-wheel ABS requires a different braking technique than four-wheel ABS. Rear-wheel anti-lock brake systems prevent the wheel lock of the vehicle's back wheels only. This allows you to maintain directional stability and prevents the rear end of the truck from skidding sideways in hard braking or emergency stopping situations.

The vehicle's front wheels can still lock up on rear-wheel ABS systems, as they can with a conventional braking system. Should this happen, ease up on the brake pedal with just enough pressure to allow the front wheels to roll again, and steer away from hazards.

How you can benefit from ABS? While ABS cannot prevent all winter slides and skids, it can be effective in controlling your stop on wet paved surfaces and icy or snow-covered roads. The speed at which each tire rotates can actually be different when braking on various surfaces. With four-wheel ABS, the system's computer monitors the speed of each of the vehicle's wheels, compares them and adjusts brake pressure to each wheel to ensure that the car stops in the shortest distance possible under most adverse road conditions.

Even though vehicles with anti-lock brake systems can stop more quickly than those with only conventional brakes on wet paved surfaces and on icy or packed snow-covered roads, stopping distances for vehicles with ABS can be longer on loose gravel or freshly fallen snow. However, the ABS system provides the driver with the ability to steer and control the direction of the vehicle.

The true advantage of ABS technology is its ability to let drivers effectively steer around obstacles and hazards.

Practice using your ABS. Do you recall learning to drive a car with a manual transmission? If so, you can probably attest to hours of practice before you finally mastered the simultaneous actions of positioning the clutch and switching gears to prevent a stall in a major intersection. Similarly, the best way to learn how to use ABS is to practice before you encounter an emergency stopping situation.

With practice, you will become familiar with the feedback you get from your car's ABS system. You may notice that, when ABS is activated, you hear mechanical noises and feel some pedal pulsation, indicating that your anti-lock brake system is working. Do not take your foot off the brake pedal during this feedback; instead, continue to press down hard on the pedal and steer to avoid any obstacles.

Become familiar with your ABS in all weather conditions. As a driver, you should not only practice using your ABS in a non-emergency situation, such as in an open parking lot, but practice ABS techniques on a variety of road conditions.

For example, braking with ABS on a snow-covered road will feel different than braking on a normal surface. Be sure to set aside time for anyone driving your ABS-equipped vehicle to practice using ABS at the beginning of each season or during a significant change in driving conditions.

Whether driving with ABS or conventional brakes, keep these winter driving tips top of mind for safe holiday driving to the mall, grandma's house, or around the town.

• Always slow down and increase following distances when driving in bad weather.
• Always clean snow and ice off your entire vehicle before driving it anywhere.
• Be observant, especially during periods of low visibility.
• If your vehicle breaks down, don't panic. Pull as far off the road as possible and use common sense.
• If possible, do not travel alone.
• Try to travel during daylight hours.
• Don't drink and drive.
• Always check weather conditions on your travel route.
• If the winter road conditions prove to be tough, don't feel bad about "staying in" and rescheduling your trip for a time when the weather permits safe driving conditions.