Myth: You might as well wait until spring to wash your carIt can be frustrating to spend $15, $20, or even more at a car wash only to have your vehicle covered with salt again within a couple of days. Yet there are good reasons to wash your car at least once a month during the winter. The salt itself is the biggest reason since it can corrode your car's mechanical components, obscure its exterior lights and turn signals, and block the sensors that modern cars use for everything from backup cameras to emergency braking systems. Even though your vehicle is likely to get dirty over and over again until the spring rains wash the salt from the roads, it's still worthwhile to keep the salt and other grime from building up.An undercarriage wash may make your trip through the car wash tunnel even more expensive, but it can help clear salt from the brakes, steering components, and other mechanical bits. Don't feel that you need to hand-wash your car. If you don't fancy the idea of spinning brushes rubbing salt against your car's sheet metal, a touchless wash is a perfectly acceptable alternative and may offer the option of an undercarriage wash.Myth: Use your parking brake to stop on ice or snowSome drivers recommend using your parking brake if you start to slide on ice or snow to boost your braking. However, this is an ill-advised maneuver since it can cause your rear wheels to lock up and leave you with even less control. Some rally car drivers will indeed use the hand brake to distribute braking force between the front and rear wheels on loose surfaces, including snow. However, unless your car has a racing roll cage and a number on the side, it's unlikely that you'll be in situations where using the hand brake will improve matters.In fact, it's generally a good idea to avoid engaging the parking brake in very cold temperatures at all if you can avoid it. If it's engaged for a long time, the brake cable can become frozen and fail to release when you're ready to drive again. If there's a strong safety-related reason to use it, such as parking on a steep hill, go ahead and do so. Otherwise, it's best to leave the parking brake disengaged during the winter.Myth: Anti-lock Braking Systems (ABS) will stop you in timeAnti-lock brakes (ABS) are designed to increase steering control when braking on slippery surfaces, but they won't necessarily shorten your stopping distance. Nearly every car built in the past couple of decades has ABS, which works by sensing whether the wheels are turning while the brakes are engaged. If the wheels are locked up, ABS reduces brake pressure until the wheels are turning again, and then it reapplies the brakes up to several times per second. It produces a characteristic stuttering sensation, which the driver can feel through the brake pedal. Its primary purpose is to allow you to steer while stopping rather than to stop sooner.Therefore, simply stomping on the brake pedal in a panic stop won't necessarily stop the car any faster than if it didn't have ABS. Instead, the best way to brake in the snow is to modulate your braking to a point just short of engaging the ABS. Obviously, this will require leaving long enough following distances at low enough speeds to leave room for a longer stop — both of which are excellent practices for driving in the snow anyway.
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