How to Get a Car Unstuck in Snow
The winters can be a stressful time for those who still have to wake up in the mornings and drag themselves out of bed for work. Going to work is only made worse by your car getting stuck due to the heavy snowfall that happened last night. Here is how to get a car unstuck from snow to help you have a pleasant winter morning.
Clear the snow around your car
One common way to get your car out of the storm is to clear away any snowfall accumulated around your vehicle. To do so, an individual can use an ice scraper or a shovel to dig up all the snow around the car.
Please make sure to pay close attention to the snow present around the tires; it is crucial to clear away all the snow around the tires. Make sure to remove at least a foot of snow present in front and behind the tires to give the car space to move. You can use a screwdriver to break up any hardened snow.
Add traction
If clearing away the snow doesn’t work, then you can go ahead and try adding friction to free your car. An individual can use sand, kitty litter, or rock salt by placing them strategically in front of the tires to help them gain traction.
Apart from salt and sand, we can also use cardboard or plywood. If you find yourself stuck in a place with no accessibility to the products mentioned above, then you can also use branches, weeds, or even the mats from the car to add traction.
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Rock the car
Known as the rocking technique, the individual has to rock the vehicle free of the snow. Rocking the car-free is done by putting the car in reverse and accelerating slowly. Doing so can help dislodge the car from the snow accumulated around it.
Keep in mind to be careful while carrying this method out as we may lose control of the car or wreck the ignition. Do not under any circumstance floor the gas as it may cause the tires to spin uncontrollably, which will only drive the car further into the snow.
Put some muscle into it
An easy way to get your car out of snow is to ask others to help push your car out. While using this method, one individual shall sit in the car and gently apply gas as the people helping out will push from the back. Make sure to lay down the rule of pushing at the count of three for maximum effect. It is essential to make sure to take all precautions to keep the pushers safe from any harm that could occur to them.
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Use snow chains.
Apart from always keeping an ice scraper in the car during the winters, it could also be helpful to keep your car equipped with snow chains. Snow chains are chains made particularly for the function of being wrapped around the tires during stormy winter times.
Snow chains work to provide grip to the car while traveling on icy roads. The snow chains increase the traction that the car possesses. Thus, reducing any chances of the car skidding over ice or getting stuck in the snow.
Let some air out
Letting the air out of the tires of your car is a more desperate try at getting your car unstuck from the snow. The individual should let the air out of the tires until they look visibly smaller than before. Doing so will give you the traction required to get out of the snow.
But if this method is applied, it is recommended to get the tires refilled immediately as driving this way can be unsafe. Driving with an inadequate amount of air in the tires of your car can make driving even trickier than it can already be in the stormy winters. Thus, take extreme care if this method is applied to get the car out of the snow.
The forward and backward movement
One way to get your car unstuck from snow is to move your car in a forward and backward movement. To apply this technique, always make sure to keep an eye out for the progress of the tires. Apply a minimum amount of gas and move the car forward and backward as possible by the amount of space available to the individual.
If the tires start spinning out of control, immediately stop to avoid any disasters. Also, make sure never to rev the car but instead maintain a steady movement.
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Apple the brake
In this method, the individual should apply the brakes but also give the car some gas at the same time. Using the brakes should only be done for a few seconds as it might put the brakes at risk of malfunction.
Final Words
Everyone must observe extreme road safety must during the winter times as the risks of accidents increase considerably due to the unstable weather. Hence, we have put together a list of ways how to get a car unstuck in the snow to help you make your way safely and with minimum effort.
