Driving in rain and fog, step by step
Change the journey, the car setup and the way you drive when visibility or grip is reduced.
Decide whether to travel
Check the forecast and warnings before severe conditions. In snow or ice, consider whether the trip is essential. Clear windows, mirrors, lights and snow that could fall from the car. Do not start through a small cleared patch of windscreen.
Increase the space before needing it
In wet weather, leave at least twice the normal following gap. On ice, stopping distances can be ten times those on dry roads. Slow down, allow much more space and operate steering, accelerator and brakes gently. ABS and traction control cannot create missing grip.
Match lights and speed to visibility
Use headlights when visibility is seriously reduced, generally when you cannot see beyond 100 metres. Use fog lights only when needed and switch them off as visibility improves. In fog or spray, do not chase the tail lights ahead or exceed what your own view supports.
Anticipate changes in grip and wind
Steering that becomes unusually light in heavy water can indicate aquaplaning: ease off and avoid abrupt controls. Wind may buffet the car as you pass a gap or leave a large vehicle’s shelter. Give riders and high-sided vehicles extra room. Avoid entering floodwater whose depth or safety you cannot establish.
Good tyres and vehicle aids help, but your speed and space still have to change.
What would you do in these situations?
Read the situation, decide on an action, then compare it with the explanation.
Fog clears, but your rear fog lights are still on.
What to do
Switch them off when they are no longer needed.
Why it matters
They can dazzle following drivers and make the brake lights harder to distinguish.
You emerge from behind a lorry on an exposed, windy road.
What to do
Allow for a sudden gust and keep smooth, controlled steering.
Why it matters
The shelter can end abruptly. Both your car and the lorry may be affected.
Compare rain and fog one at a time
Use the rain scene to focus on following space. Ask what would happen if the vehicle ahead stopped sooner than expected. Then use the fog scene to focus on the visible road. These are different problems: extra space helps, but it does not let you ignore a view that has become too short.
Before a real drive, find the wipers, demister and fog-light controls while parked. If conditions become difficult, say so to your instructor or supervisor. A lesson is a chance to build judgement with support, not a reason to continue into conditions you cannot manage.
Should I follow the rear lights ahead through fog?
Do not use another vehicle’s lights as a reason to drive faster than your own view allows. Keep enough space to stop safely and use wipers and demisters to maintain your view. The vehicle ahead may be following another driver, missing a hazard or travelling too fast itself.
Watch the decisions in 3D
Choose the situation you want to understand. In the learning area, you can replay the steps, change the view and answer the lesson questions. The demonstrations are slowed teaching sequences, not real-time speed or pedal-pressure guides.
Use this before or after a driving lesson
Work through the explanation away from the road. In the car, practise with your instructor or a suitable supervising driver. Reading a guide or completing a quiz records understanding, not a practical driving assessment.
Your quizzes and study progress stay in the learning area. For the wider sequence, return to the practical driving curriculum.