[Healeys] Driving in the Rain

[Mark Goodman]

>From Sandy Voight:

 

Checked at www.snopes.com <http://www.snopes.com/> 

 

Subject: Driving in Rain! 


This happened East of Tucson on the interstate this summer. The driver 
was killed. I wonder how many people know about this? 


A 36 year old female had an accident several weeks ago and totaled her car. 
A resident of Kilgore, Texas , she was traveling between Gladewater & 
Kilgore. It was raining, though not excessively, when her 
car suddenly began to hydro-plane and literally flew through the 
air. She was not seriously injured but very stunned at the sudden 
occurrence! 

When she explained to the highway patrolman what had happened he told 
her something that every driver should know - NEVER 
DRIVE IN THE RAIN WITH YOUR CRUISE CONTROL ON. She had thought she 
was being cautious by setting the cruise control and maintaining a 
safe consistent speed in the rain. But the highway 
patrolman told he r that if the cruise control is on and your car 
begins to hydro-plane when your tires lose contact with the pavement, 
your car will accelerate to a higher rate of speed and you
take off like an airplane. She told the patrolman that was exactly 
what had occurred.

The patrolman said this warning should be listed, on the driver's seat 
sun-visor - NEVER USE THE CRUISE CONTROL WHEN THE PAVEMENT 
IS WET OR ICY, along with the airbag warning. We tell our 
teenagers to set the cruise control and drive a safe speed - but we 
don't tell them to use the cruise control only when the pavement is 
dry. 

The only person the accident victim found, who knew this (besides the 
patrolman), was a man who had had a similar 
accident, totaled his car and sustained severe injuries. 

If you send this to 15 people and only one of them doesn't know about 
this, then it was all worth it. You might have saved a 
life. 

NOTE: Some vehic les when the windshield wipers are on, you can not set 
the cruise control. Like the Toyota Sienna Limited XLE is 
one of them.