[poll] How fast do you drive on the freeway when it's raining?

[natto fire]

The faster you go the better the Rain-X works. One of the few products out today the truly lives up to every claim it makes.

 

[Insane3D]

Originally posted by: thomsbrain

Originally posted by: Insane3D
Usually about 80-85MPH, but my tires move a lot of water...I've got about a 10.5" contact patch. It also depends on how much standing water is on the road surface. Around here, the highways drain real well, so I don't need to slow down much. Also, I don't even use my wipers in the rain, and I actually didn't bother to fix them for about 4 years when they were broken. Rain-X works best the heavier the rain is...I can be in a blinding rain behind a 18 wheeler and I can see fine.

Rain-X > * wipers.

🙂

bigger tires = bad in the rain, not good. you're "moving a lot of water" because you're spreading your weight out over more water, which makes you MORE likely to hydroplane. in the rain, where tire heat and sidewall roll are moot points, the best tires are actually the skinniest, because they "slice" through the water better.

i commute over a "mountain" pass that goes up and down 2000 feet in 20 miles, and it's pretty twisty and gets HEAVY rain, so everyone has to slow down to around 40-50 MPH to avoid sliding into the wall and flipping, like the guy in the honda accord i saw the other day. but on the freeway in resonable traffic, i'll do 70 until visibilty or traction makes me slow down.

I sort of disagree there. I think the design of the tread, and how much water they can move can offset this. I'll buy that in snow, but I would take fatter tires in the rain over little skinny ones with a generic tread design.

Most of the higher end Z-rated and above have designs that can really move a lot of water away from the contact patch. I personally like the Dunlop SP8000's. They have really wide tread channels, and are setup to move a lot of water away. The only HP tires I've used that were better in the rain were the Firehawk SZ50's...

 

[thermalpaste]

i have done a 140 at times with out any assists/traction control and on a car with a stick shift.......

 

[eydolic]

2003 lowered ZX3, Pirelli P6 All Weather Street Performance (Low-profile, 17" Enkeis) CAI, no bypass valve = 45MPH in rain... I don't trust bypass valves so I now have custom RAM-Air, and go around 85-95 in the rain on roads that I know.

 

[thermalpaste]

you can actually feel the tires aquaplaning at times, the car apparently floats over the water.....of course this was done on a track with heavy rains......the car had a rollcage and I had a 4 point harness also.....

 

[eydolic]

Wow. I need a new car. I've only gone 140 on dry land, and that was pushing it. I want my old 240SX back. It is now becoming a KA24-T (My friend bought it from me) Estimated output is going to be around 300hp, and it handles perfectly. My prelude was nice, but I would never go that fast in the rain with it. I need to sell my car and go back to imports. (Even though this is modeled for the JDM and EDM market)

 

[brxndxn]

I drive a Camaro and have RainX on the windshield.. I don't have a problem seeing at all - and I drive in some crazy Florida rain. I limit my speed to about 80-90mph, though, because I want to be able to slow down for stopped cars or cars going 40mph in the left lane in the rain..

 

[eydolic]

Yep yep. I need a faster car, though, seriously. I'm only pushing ~170-175 flywheel hp, and ::shrug i'm too lazy to calculate dt loss atm:: whp. Umm... That's with intake, exhaust, header, and the head off of an SVT w/ ignition and origional GOVERNED POS ECU.

 

[yhelothar]

I hate the puddles on the freeway. The rain doesn't really throw me off, but the puddles cause my car to lose speed very fast.

 

[Amused]

It depends on visibility and traction. If I can see and I am not hydroplaning, I will do my normal speed. If my tires start getting light or I cannot see, I slow down to a safe speed.

 

[Freejack2]

Good tires make all the difference. When I had the crappy stock tires on this car it didn't handle so well in the rain. With these tires (BF Goodrich Traction T/A) and my last tires (Bridgestone Potenza RE950) it's been very rare for me to run into rain that would require me to drive more slowly than normal.

Get some decent tires. If the people are whizzing by you at 70+ you are a danger on the highway as speed differences like that will cause an accident.

 

[cjgallen]

I match my speed to everyone else, keeping a good distance of course.

 

[psiu]

Obviously, depends on the conditions and the vehicle I'm in. Might drop it back down to the speed limit (which in Michigan is usually 70).

Agree on the cruise thing. I don't use it unless the pavements dry.

 

[CraigRT]

It all just depends on the rainfall... a lot of the time there is no need to slow down... but sometimes you have to cut your speed down a good 1/3 at least when it's UBER pouring. I sometimes see cars pulled to the side of the road when it's REALLY raining... that doesn't happen very often!

 

[BW86]

50-60 in the rain.

 

[Dedpuhl]

the speed limit

 

[Jpark]

I drive a 95 jeep wrangler so I usually maintain my normal speed of 60-65, unless its realling raining hard then I slow down a little. Jeeps' steering gets interesting when you hit puddles of water.

 

[PingSpike]

It really depends on the conditions. I used to largely ignore rain, but there was a big accident on the freeway about a year ago and I came up on it going like 70. I thought my car wasn't going to stop, I was about to try and ditch it when it stopped hydroplaning and slowed down. I wouldn't have run over fire fighters or anything, I was just going to rearend one of the cars stopped on the road.

After that, I take serious rain seriously. Light rain I slow down like maybe 5mph. I've driven in absolute downpours before where I felt like I was going to fast at 45 though.

It really just depends on the conditions.

 

[mcvickj]

Usually 10 to 15 under the posted speed limit with at least 2 car lengths in front of me.

 

[CtK]

if its just a sprinkle the same as always
but if its really coming down the speed limit

ppl here in Miami drive like 30mph if the highways are wet!!

 

[CVSiN]

I ride a bike rain dont bother me whatsoever..
rainex my sheild every week and i can see better than most cars ive had...

it dont slow me down much at all..
too bad every other smack tard in Houston thinks they have to go 15 when it rains...

 

[ragazzo]

i was driving at 80+ from vancouver to seattle on a wet and stormy night :S

i wouldn't do that again heh

 

[rh71]

A lot of you people don't realize... it's not a huge deal with traction going forward in the rain... it's when you need to stop that's a problem. Same with snow. Don't be overly bold.

I think everyone needs to experience a hydroplane to really get the message. I did while attempting to get onto an exit ramp. I was damn lucky there was a sand/rock platform instead of some metal barrier or sand barriers otherwise my car would've been wrecked. 50mph hydroplaning with little room kinda straightens you out afterward. That and the brick wall that I also stopped short of.

 

[eplebnista]

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