1993 Chevrolet Lumina Owner's Manual - Page 143

Hydroplaning Hydroplaning is dangerous. So much water can build under your tires up that they can actually ride the water. This on can happen if the road is wet enough and you're going fast enough. When your vehicle is hydroplaning, has little it or no contact with the road. You might not be awareof hydroplaning. You could drive along for some time without realizing your tires aren't in constant contact withthe road. You could find out thehard way: when you have to slow, turn, move out to pass--or if you get hitby a gust of wind. You could suddenly find yourself out of control. Hydroplaning doesn't happen often. But it can if your tires haven't much tread or if the pressure in one or more is low. It can happen if a lotof water is standing on theroad. If you can see reflections from trees, telephone poles, or other vehicles, and raindrops "dimple" the water's surface,there could be hydroplaning. Hydroplaning usually happens higher at speeds. There just isn't a hard and fast rule about hydroplaning. The best is advice isto slow down when it raining, and be careful. Some Other Rainy Weather Tips Turn on your headlights-not just your parking lights-to help make you more visibleto others. Look for hard-to-see vehicles coming from behind. You may want to use your headlights even daytime if it's in raining hard. Besides slowing down, allow some extra following distance. And be especially careful when you pass another vehicle. Allow yourself more clear roomahead, and be preparedto have your view restricted road by spray. If the road spray is so heavy you are actually blinded, drop back. Don't pass until conditions improve. Going moreslowly is betterthan having an accident. Use your defoggerif it helps. Have good tires with proper tread depth. (See the Index under Tires.)