The following useful tips may help if you are driving on roads with potholes:
1. Keep your eyes peeled - Protect yourself and your car by keeping an eye out for potholes and watching your speed, particularly in wet weather when deep potholes may be hidden beneath puddles and there is an abundance of leaves on the roads.
2. Maintain your distance - Leave plenty of distance between your car and the vehicle in front so you can hopefully see potholes and road surface damage in advance.
3. Stay alert - Be aware of other traffic or possibly pedestrians and bike riders on the road before changing course to avoid that dreaded pothole.
4. Watch your speed - Striking potholes at higher speeds can cause a lot more damage to your vehicle than striking one if you were going at a lower speed.
5. Avoid unnecessary braking – Try not to apply your brakes when driving over the pothole. Why? Well when you apply your brakes your vehicle tilts forward placing a lot more stress on the front suspension.
6. Drive over potholes with care - If you have to drive over a pothole, allow the wheel to roll freely into the hole.
7. Hold the steering wheel correctly - Make sure you are holding the steering wheel properly – ‘10 to 2’ hands position – when driving on a road with potholes – if you are not holding your steering wheel correctly you may lose control of your vehicle due to the sudden impact, potentially leading to an accident.
8. Recovering lost parts - If your vehicle sustains damage whilst travelling, such as a lost hubcap, ensure you stop your vehicle in a safe location before attempting to recover it, pay attention to the other road users, sudden stopping could result in an unnecessary accident.
9. Safety first - If you wish to inspect any damage to your car, ensure that you stop in a safe place without causing problems to other road users.
10. Get checked out - If you have hit a pothole and suspect your car has sustained damage, we recommend you get the vehicle checked out by your local independent garage. Ask them to verify if there could be any other issues such as problems with tracking and wheel alignment, tyres or suspension. If your tracking and wheel alignment is out it will cause substantial wear and tear on your tyres and reduce the handling of the vehicle
11. Check tyre pressure regularly –checking your tyre pressure regularly to ensure safety as a line of defence against potholes. Correctly inflated tyres can reduce other damage from occurring when driving over a pothole. Recommended tyre pressures can be found in your vehicle's handbook and on the label located inside the driver’s side door frame or doorpost.
