1995 Pontiac Grand Am Owner's Manual - Page 166

Driving on Snow or Ice Most of thetime, those places where your tires meet the road probably have good traction. However, if there is snow or between your tires and the ice road, you can have a very slippery situation. You'll have a lot less traction or"grip" and will need to be very careful. least traction of all. You can get "wet ice" when it's about freezing (32 O F ; 0 O C) and freezing rain begins to fall. Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews can get there. Whatever the condition -- smooth ice,packed, blowing or loose snow -- drive with caution. Accelerate gently. Try not to break the fragile traction. If you accelerate too fast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surface under thetires even more. Your anti-lock brakes improve your ability to make a hard stop on a slippery road. Eventhough you have the anti-lock braking system, you'll want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry pavement. See "Anti-Lock" in the Index. Allow greater following distance on any slippery road. Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine until you hit a spot that's covered withice. On an otherwise clear road, ice patches mayappear in shaded areas where the sun can't reach:around clumps of trees, behind buildings,or under bridges. Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass may remain icy whenthe surrounding roads are clear. If you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before you are on it. Try not to brake while you're actually on the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers. What's the worst time for this? "Wet ice." Very cold snow or ice can be slick hard to drive on. But wet and ice can be even more trouble because it may the offer 4-23