Suspension Maintenance: Your Guide To Surviving Potholes This Winter

Picture this: You’re driving down the highway, listening to your favorite song on the radio and keeping an eye on the car in front of you when BAM!, your car hits a pothole hard! And it must have been a big pothole because you felt the car take the brunt of the hit and you still jolted forward in your seat. Now you’re worrying about your vehicle and what kind of damage may have been caused.

Potholes can be your truck or car’s worst nightmare, especially this time of year. So what causes these nasty holes to develop in the road? Potholes are caused when water seeps under asphalt through cracks and wear in the road. Once the water has made its way to the soil underneath, the more wear and tear the road experiences, the better chance for a pothole to emerge as the asphalt breaks under pressure.

Besides alerting your local municipality to the location of potholes, there isn’t much you can do to prevent them from occurring. There are however, steps you can take to minimize damage to your vehicle. But first, let’s look at some of the areas of a vehicle that are most affected by potholes.

• Steering system
• Tires and rims
• Shocks, struts, and overall vehicle suspension
• Exhaust system
• Engine
• Undercarriage

Notice that out of the areas mentioned above, the only area that you can check visually for damage is your tires. If you have had a rough ride lately and are worried there may be something wrong with any of these systems in your vehicle, it’s best to have a trained mechanic do a full suspension inspection.

Now that you know how and where potholes can damage your vehicle, let’s talk about what you CAN do to prevent damage from happening.

1. Slow down– If the road is a bumpy one with many visible potholes, it’s best to take it slow. The speed you pass over potholes can impact the amount of damage on your car, so make sure you’re not barreling over potholes like a mad man or woman. Just take it slow and navigate a rough road to the best of your ability.
2. Keep a safe distance– Make sure you leave plenty of room between yourself and your fellow drivers. Potholes can sometimes seem to appear out of thin air and you need to give yourself plenty of time and space to react. If a pothole does appear out of nowhere, slow down as much as possible before making impact. And if the pothole can’t be avoided completely, it’s best to drive straight into the pothole instead of swerving to the side. Driving straight into the pothole reduces the risk of damage to your tire sidewall.
3. Keep an eye on your tire pressure– Your tires pressure should be kept at the optimum level at all times to provide you with the best buffer against potholes. Most vehicles have auto sensing systems that will notify you of unsatisfactory tire pressure. If your vehicle doesn’t do this, use a tire pressure gauge to manually check your tire pressure and fill your tires to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Remember, not all damage caused by potholes can be seen with the eye. In fact, suspension and misalignment are the most common issues from traveling a rough road. Luckily, we’re experts on suspension maintenance. If you need a suspension inspection or alignment, call us today to get scheduled. We’ll have you back on the road in no time!