- Use lights correctly
Before driving a semi-trailer in foggy weather, remember to check the lighting installation of your car thoroughly. When driving, abide by the lighting rules: turn on the fog lights, tail lights, width lights and low beam lights, and make full use of the lights to improve visibility and see the dynamics of vehicles and pedestrians. It is particularly important to note that you should not use high beam lights when driving in foggy weather. This is because the high beam axis is biased upward, and the emitted light is diffusely reflected by the fog, which will form a white area in front of the car, and you can’t see anything when driving.
Clean your vision When encountering heavy fog, the water vapor condensed on the windshield will impair the driver’s vision, and will also make the lights emitted by the oncoming vehicles appear particularly dazzling. Therefore, you should use the wipers frequently to wipe away the water vapor while driving to improve the clarity of your vision. - Use the horn frequently
The vision is not good in foggy weather. Frequent honking of the horn can help you warn pedestrians and semi-trailers. When you hear the horn of other cars, you should immediately honk in response to indicate the position of your car. - Other tips
Be extra careful when driving in foggy weather. When passing other vehicles, honk the horn to alert the oncoming vehicles. At the same time, turn off the fog lights to avoid dazzling the other party. If the other vehicle is driving faster, you should slow down and give way. If necessary, pull over. When there is an obstacle on the roadside ahead, leave a lead time and safe distance.
Many people have to drive low-bed semi-trailers in rainy days and at night due to work reasons. So what should we pay attention to to prevent accidents?
When driving low-bed semi-trailers on rainy nights, you should pay attention to safety. Rainy days are also a high-incidence period for accidents. When driving heavy semi-trailers on heavy rainy days, you must also pay attention to skills. Because the water mist rolled up by the wheels of the semi-trailer will be very large, following behind or on the side will make your front windshield blurry. Therefore, when overtaking, in addition to honking and flashing lights, the wiper state should also be in a continuous working state. It is best to increase one or two gears under normal conditions.
Vehicle driving preparation:
- Check the semi-trailer engine compartment oil, antifreeze, brake fluid, power pump oil, oil pipe, bolt torque, etc.;
- Check the semi-trailer tire pressure. When the tire pattern is shallow, the adhesion performance is reduced during driving, and the tire should be replaced if necessary;
- Focus on the chassis to check the steering system, oil pipe, bolt torque, etc.;
- Use the designated special glass cleaning fluid, and it is strictly forbidden to use water as a glass cleaning fluid. Because the special glass liquid contains ingredients that dissolve oil and improve the glass wetting interface, its freezing point is also far below zero degrees Celsius.
It is not allowed to slide on ice and snow roads. Predictive braking measures must be taken, and the engine drag effect must be used as much as possible to slow down. Special attention should be paid to driving at night. Semi-trailers are often in poor condition due to inadequate maintenance. It is common for the lights to be uneven or black smoke. Therefore, the taillights of semi-trailers driving at high speeds at night are very small, and even the taillights cannot be seen. In addition, the exhaust gas and black smoke are billowing, which will seriously affect the field of vision. It is easy to give people the illusion of fog. Therefore, when driving at night, it is best to choose to drive in the overtaking lane.
In addition, you must slow down when entering and exiting the tunnel, especially when following a heavy-loaded semi-trailer. Due to the strong light outside the tunnel, the moment you enter the tunnel, your eyes will have a short-term dark adaptation and you can hardly see anything; and when you exit the tunnel, because you are used to the darkness, you will be dizzy when you see the sun, and you will also have a short-term light adaptation and can’t see clearly. So if some trailers are parked or repaired near the entrance of the tunnel, or the trailer driver loses control of the semi-trailer due to light and dark adaptation. If you speed too fast or follow too closely, there will inevitably be danger.
Special reminder: If you encounter sudden thick smoke when driving a low-bed semi-trailer, you should slow down immediately to avoid the risk of rear-end collision.
