According to the manual, what should you do as soon as the road becomes wet?
-
A.
Slow down and increase the following distance Correct
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B.
Keep the same following distance and grip the wheel tighter
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C.
Shift into a lower gear for more control
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D.
Turn on the hazard flashers to warn other drivers
The answer is "Slow down and increase the following distance"
Page 45 tells drivers to slow down and increase the following distance the moment a road turns wet, because a small amount of rain makes cars much harder to control. Drivers who trust their tires reach for gripping the wheel tighter, an instinct that improves steering feel but does nothing about the shorter traction margin the manual is warning about.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. Keep the same following distance and grip the wheel tighter
The manual asks you to change the distance, not just your grip. This answer trusts a firmer grip to make up for lost traction, an instinct that improves feel but not stopping distance.
C. Shift into a lower gear for more control
Downshifting is a steep-grade technique, not the wet-road instruction the manual gives. This answer carries the steep-grade downshift rule from the manual's Chapter 9 across to a wet-road situation where the manual asks for time and distance.
D. Turn on the hazard flashers to warn other drivers
Hazards are for disabled or unusually slow vehicles, not for a wet road at speed. This answer applies the disabled-vehicle warning signal to a routine weather change the manual treats with space, not flashers.
This question tests your knowledge of Defensive Driving in Texas. Source: Texas Driver Manual, "Approximate Stopping Distances," p.45..
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