Wet Weather Stopping Distances
Bradley Jando | Tuesday 14th September 2021 3:00pm
Knowing your stopping distances is critical for vehicle safety. Many factors influence stopping distance including the weather, temperature and the tyres themselves. These all play a part in the time and distance it takes to come to a safe stop.
What is 'stopping distance?'
Many drivers often believe stopping distance is the distance a vehicle travels after the brake has been applied. However, this is actually only the braking distance. Although this is a large part of stopping distance, thinking distance also makes up stopping distances. Thinking distance refers to the time it takes you to decide that you need to brake.
Your thinking distance is influenced by factors both within your vehicle
and externally. If you are alert, you will have quicker reaction times
than someone who is tired or distracted. Similarly, if you are driving in rainyconditions where visibility may be poor, your thinking distance will be negatively
affected. Another important factor in determining your stopping distance is your speed as demonstrated by the graph below.
The condition of your tyres also significantly influences your ability to brake quickly. Factors including tyre damage and lack of tread depth will reduce your vehicle’s ability to brake efficiently.
The condition of your tyres also significantly influences your ability to brake quickly. Factors including tyre damage and lack of tread depth will reduce your vehicle’s ability to brake efficiently.
The difference between summer and winter tyres?
In the UK, most drivers use summer tyres such as Continental’s PremiumContact™ 6. However, in Europe, most drivers switch to winter tyres towards the end of each year. People often mistakenly believe that winter tyres are only appropriate for snowy conditions.
Because we don’t often experience snow in the UK, many drivers decide not to make the change to winter tyres.
However, snow is not the only reason to use winter tyres. The main factor is temperature.
It's all a matter of degrees
As soon as the temperature gets down to 7°C and below, stopping distances are significantly shortened for vehicles fitted with winter tyres compared to those with summer tyres.
Winter tyres are made from differentcompounds to summer tyres as they are designed to perform better at lower temperatures. The compounds used for summer tyres become too hard at 7°C and below. As a result of this, they have less grip than winter tyres.
Likewise, winter tyres are made of softer compounds and aren’t designed to cope with temperatures above 7°C.
The best of both worlds?
All season tyres aim to offer an alternative to summer and winter tyres by combining their characteristics to make a tyre suitable for all weather conditions. However, as they are not specifically designed for a particular weather type, they will not perform as well as winter and summer tyres in their respective seasons. Nonetheless, all season tyres can provide good performance all year round, especially in countries such as the UK with a moderate climate.
Any facts, figures and prices shown in our blog articles are correct at time of publication.
Featured Articles
The 5 Most Scenic Roads in Europe to Drive
Thursday 2nd May 2024
For those who love exploring by car, Europe provides some truly breathtaking driving routes that showcase its stunning scenery. Find out 5 of our favourites.
Fun & Games - How to Use Summer Journeys for Family Bonding
Friday 4th August 2023
Kwik Fit launches games guide to help families play together on summer car journeys.
Safe Summer Driving Tips You Should Know
Monday 8th August 2022
With the summer holidays beginning, you may be planning on using your car often. However, before setting off in your car, follow these five useful tips for safer and more comfortable summer driving.