Most everyone is familiar with that annoying house guest who comes to stay for a few days then ends up staying for months.
To us drivers, those unwanted visitors are the potholes that appear at the end of each winter and never seem to leave until the temperatures routinely reach the upper 80's. Not only are these potholes so ugly they make our streets look like some undiscovered planet from a science fiction movie, they are also very dangerous to commuters. So dangerous, in fact, that drivers appear as if they are playing a real life version of Frogger when avoiding these craters.
Potholes are caused by relentless freezing and thawing of water under pavement. Those continuous actions weakens our roads. Combine the freezing and thawing with the weight of the vehicles driving over the streets and the age of those streets and you have a recipe for driving disaster. Making matters even worse is that potholes come in more sizes than a pie from your favorite local pizza joint. There are tiny, small, medium, large, extra large, double extra large and some that are so big you expect them to have their own zip code. Unfortunately, these potholes don't discriminate either so it doesn't matter if you are driving a clunker or a $75,000 luxury auto......if you nail one of these holes your car is in big trouble. Potholes have been known to
cause structural damage to your tire(s), alignment problems, tire blowout and axle problems. Amazingly a pothole can cause as much damage to a car as a car crash at 35mph. Sometimes the impact can be so great it triggers the release of the car's airbags.
If you recently nailed one of these pains in the road and think that nothing has happened to your vehicle, don't be fooled. Your car may act normally the rest of that drive, but the next time you need to hit the road, the residual affect of the pothole damage may hit you back. If your car pulls (indicating alignment problems), if you have uneven tire wear, if the tire pressure is consistently low, if your tires bulge or blister, if you find dents in the wheel rims, if your car sways when making turns or if you feel excessive bouncing on clean roads, a pothole may have attacked your car.
Although it may seem as if there is no hope once you've been bitten by one of these monsters, there are steps you can take before you take to the road that may act as protection for your vehicle. The most important safety tip is to keep your car's tires properly inflated. That will help your rubber friends make enemies of the potholes. Look inside your front car door or refer to your owner's manual for proper inflation weight for your tires. Slowing down when approaching a huge hole is another helpful tip and when you are over the hole do not break because that can only lead to more damage. Make sure to hold your steering wheel firmly when hitting a pothole so you don't lose control of your car. Another sage piece of advice is to not be fooled by a puddle of water. Many times, those puddles are just masking those pesky potholes acting as Sirens luring your car to a rocky shipwreck. Finally, make sure to leave proper distance between you and the car in front of you so, just in case that car suddenly stops at the sight of a pothole, you don't end up with front end damage and an insurance claim to add to your troubles.
Speaking of the insurance companies, they usually do all they can to help you if your car has been hurt by a hole. Read over the fine print in your coverage documentation to see how much if any you need to pay and how much damage is covered. As far as recovering the cost of repairs from the city, county or state in which these potholes preside.....good luck! It is not a sure thing that any aid will be afforded to you. It all depends on where you live. Before filing a complaint, be positive what governing branch is in charge of the road where you hit the hole so you don't waste time complaining to the state when it's the county's jurisdiction for example. By the way, don't assume that if you drive on the opposite side of the road to avoid a pothole and a police officer stops you you'll escape without getting a ticket. In most circumstances, riding on the wrong side of the street is still a driving offense so you better find a very compassionate cop that will let you go free of a fine.
Thankfully, many of these holes are starting to be filled so flip a tip of your cap to the local city/county/state worker who is out there sweating behind a truck full of very hot patch. Meanwhile, to the potholes that still linger and await to cause headaches to both you and your beloved vehicle, flip those beasts something else.
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