VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION General Discussions Ice on Roof

We had ice and sleet, freezing rain and a dusting of snow last weekend. After it thawed up a little and started to melt our local news made a big deal out of people not removing the ice from the hood, roof and trunk of their cars before venturing out on the highways. Give me a break!

Here is the way I see it. The ice blown off is heavy and will slide off the car and then fall at the rate gravity works on it. In other words, it will quickly fall to the surface of the road or highway. Harmless.

The television made it sound as if it was the iced up vehicle owner's fault if this ice was to hit a trailing vehicle. Not so. I say it is the following drivers faultr for tailgating. They should be trailing at a sufficient distance to avoid getting hit by falling ice/snow from the leading vehicle.

I am so tired of people tailgating me that I don't know what to do. They seem to think they will get there faster if they stay right on your rear bumper. Yet they will take their own sweet time going through an intersection and leave signal triggering gaps so that only a few cars can get through at a time.

Anyone agree with me? I'd like to know whatr you folks up north say about
this.
Charlie

OK, Charlie, I'll try to convince you why it's necessary to clean off ice. If you plan to trundle down town 3 blocks at 20 mph to buy a jug of milk (or a new Fulton) chances are the ice will stay on the car, or slide off when you come to a stop at a red light and hurt no one.
But if you trundle through town to the freeway, then head off down that freeway at 65 mph, there is a good chance that the air will get under the leading edge of that ice on your hood or roof and lift it 'way up into the air. There, it acts like a sail and goes wherever the air currents take it - into the car 2 cars back of you, or across the median into the windshield of a vehicle going the opposite direction. Can you picture that?
That's why you should get the ice off the roof and hood.

kaygee, I agree 100%!
This happened to a co-worker/friend of mine a number of years back. She was driving up I-75 and a large ice sheet came off the vehicle ahead of her. Shattered her windshield. Fortunately no injuries. Ever since that incident I have been diligent to clean the tops of our cars, whenever they become snow or ice covered, before venturing out.

DanR

If a small pebble or rock can break a windshield imagine what a 100 lb chunk of ice can do!!

Where I live, buildup of Ice/Snow on a vehicle roof is considered an "Unsecured Load" that can fly off and cause an accident so carries a fine in the $200 range.

Just in case you've never seen it happen......




.....no tailgating there either.

Charlie, Charlie, Charlie! You keep posting stuff like this and we'll take up a collection to buy you the Fulton you always wanted. Just last winter I had to hit the brakes to avoid a slab of ice that blew off the car in front of me. I was every bit of 100 feet behind him but the air caught the front of the ice and it sailed 30 feet into the air, tumbling. It landed right where I would have been had I not seen it and slowed down.

Charlie; Doesn't appear anyone is going to agree with you on this one.

dick

Here you go Charlie. This is what it looks like. Ice blowing off of a car roof.

Yeah Charlie, not living in the great white north, I can see why you wouldn't understand the dangers. If you are following a semi or big RV it is even worse! They can hold huge piles of ice and snow.


P.S. Hope you don't have to put up with the ice too long!

Okay guys,

I'm not buying all those lame excused. In all cases cited so far it seems the following vehicle was following too close for conditions. Those conditions include the notion that the following driver has not been complelety ignorant of the weather previouse to his hittting the road.

There is no excuse for or an alibi for getting hit by some other motoist's ice. It is merely a habit of the following car that they are so inept that they can't reason that ice may come off the car they are tailgating.

In all cases of being hit by ice, surveys indicate a 95% favorible attitude for Fultons. True!

You all know I'm dead on right about this subject. You're just to weak in physics to understand the force of gravity and appropriate adjustments to following distances.

There!

Charlie

BTW: I have carefully studied the videos posted. It is quiet clear that there is no way the ice would have hit the following car it that car was not gaining, speeding and following too close for conditions. Nice try but no cigar. Totally unconvincing. Notice the stripes in the road only one or two between the vehicles when the ice comes off. Fon't tailgate and drive defensively.

Well Charlie, in the case I cited, my co-worker was, I believe, two cars back from the vehicle that discharged its potentially lethal load. I'm thankful she's still alive. I agree about not tailgating and defensive driving, but sometimes we also need to take responsibility for our own actions, or in the case of an ice/snow covered vehicle, inaction.

DanR

So how would you explain it if that sheet of ice goes into the oncoming traffic lane?

Here's a little something that businesses use up here...

Charlie, as you can see above you're now trying to change the discussion. You first you poo-poo'd the warning by contending that the ice won't blow off which we've adequately proved is a false assumption, it can and does blow off.

Now you're saying OK the ice will blow off but it's the victim's own fault for tailgating. FWIW in my case I wasn't tailgating. The Fulton is waiting....

Charlie will be away from the computer for a bit. He's seen the light, and is out shovelling now.

So... you guys said that just the snow on the roof is dangerous, right? I think he's finished now...

I really hate to say this but it's a balmy 78 degrees here in central Fla. Only ice I see is in my iced tea. Remember you don't have to shovel rain!!!! Corvaired Dade City,Fl VCCA#47508

I am with you Covaired, it is somewhere near 98 here at the moment and humid to go with it. Never did like the extreme hot or cold weather but at least in cold you throw an extra log on the fire.
Tony

Charlie, if the vehicle ahead of you is driving slow and you need to pass him in the other lane on the freeway, or if he is driving too fast for the conditions and passes you, how can you avoid the possibility that in either case, just as that happens, how do you avoid the ice blowing off his roof???

Folks,

Calm down.

I have given up. I have been convinced by all the squawking that I'm not going to have any support for my take on the instant subject.

Uncle Ed, to avoid the ice in the senerios you mentioned, my advice to you is to pull off the highway at the nearest Mom and Pop's place and grab a Pepsi and a back of square nabs, sit back around the cracker barrel and chew the fat for a spell. The iced car will not be around when you finally come out.

I've got to go out and shovel snow and ice off the old 41 now so's I can drive around some. It's 72 degrees here. I'll leave the windows down.

I wouldn't want to be identified by some tailgater that I have caused them to suffer damage to their windshild. Now a real tragity would be for someone to claim that my ice has damaged their stinkin Fulton. I would adk the police officer to just unload thier firearm into my chest or the block of the 216. His call, but the latter would "kill two birds with one stone." You know.

You all know darn and good and well you are completely wrong about this matter. Do too!

Charlie

BTW: Does everyone up north and in get all the ice off their cars before traveling? Hmmm?

I understand it's a law in Pennsylvania to clear the snow before traveling, another law like seat belts, wipers on in the rain, staying in the right lane except to pass... I know that I do clear the snow and ice from my vehicles before hitting the road and I know I see a lot of vehicles that don't also. These are usually the ones with a peephole through the snow/ice on the windshield for the driver to see where he's going....

While I think that removing snow and ice is wise, there are laws that should not be needed however too many drivers either have no common sense or blatant disregard for safety. Your statement of those viewing thru a peephole is a fine example, as is all the drivers that think they can drive and text or talk on the phone at the same time. The sad part is that often innocent people pay the ultimate price for someone elses lack of responsibility.

Steve
Your comments apply down under as well, if caught down here there are rather hefty penalties. Though I have seen police officers blatantly ignoring the rules.
Tony

Found a video today. Wish we could see the driver better as we might know who it is. Think I saw a bumper sticker on the truck that said "Fultons Suck".

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/c...hen-theres-this/sharevideo/5283417850001

Yep. North Carolina plates.

All the Best, Chip

Tim,

I watched the video. I would bet a heap o' money that once that truck hit the freeway it was tailgated.

Who in their right mind would clear all that ice and snow off that truck when the sun and wind will do the job without the driver having to do anything but cruise down the road?

Ice has never damaged a following vehicle that was not following too close or tailgating. So stay well back. That is the following vehicle drivers responsibility.

Charlie