Top 5 Safe Driving Habits

Sometimes the best way to stay safe on the road is to practice proper safe driving habits. No matter how many years you’ve been driving, it’s always good to review some of the best habits. Before you hit the road for your next trip, make sure you’re familiar with these top safe driving practices.

Know the Weather Forecast

Weather can have one of the biggest impacts on road conditions. It can also severely affect your visibility. Before you head out on the road, make sure you know if the forecast is calling for rain, fog, ice, snow, or any other hazardous conditions. If you have the possibility of facing severe weather, it’s always better to postpone your plans and stay off the road than risk driving through dangerous conditions.

Maintain Your Vehicle

Even if you’re a safe driver and you always pay attention to what’s going on around you, it won’t do you any good if you have an accident because a tire blew out or your brakes failed. Routine maintenance not only keeps your vehicle running smoothly and efficiently, but it also improves your safety. At least once a month you should go through your vehicle and check the battery, tire pressure, oil level, windshield wipers, wiper fluid, air filter, belts, hoses, brake fluid, power steering fluid, and coolant.

Stay Focused

Changing the radio station, checking directions, talking to passengers, looking at a text message, and taking a phone call can all take your eyes off the road and your hands off the wheel. These dangerous distractions also cause you to lose focus. Fortunately, vehicles like the Dodge Charger come with features to help keep your focus on the road. This includes an infotainment system that comes standard with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to get directions, make calls, and send and receive texts while still keeping your eyes on the road.

Look Past the Car Ahead of You

While it’s always good to watch what the car in front of you is doing, you should also scan multiple car lengths ahead of that car. By looking to the right and left of the car ahead of you, you’ll be able to quickly process upcoming road conditions, stoplights, pedestrians, bicyclists, and other important information. Plus, it’s possible you might see a dangerous situation before the vehicle ahead of you, which means you’ll have more time to slow down.

Watch Your Speed

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speed was a contributing factor in 27 percent of accidents in 2016. When you speed, you have less time to react to situations happening on the road in front of you. If you often find yourself driving above the speed limit, leave earlier to allow yourself more time to get to your destination, use cruise control whenever possible, and make sure you always pay attention to how fast you’re actually going.

No matter what type of car you drive, safe driving is always important. Keep these safe driving tips in mind the next time you get behind the wheel, so you can avoid costly and dangerous accidents or breakdowns and enjoy the adventures of the open road.

Image via Flickr by State Farm/Under use by CC BY 2.0

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