How to Safely Avoid Potholes and What To Do If You Hit One

Jan 15, 2025

We’ve all been there: You’re driving along on your merry way, when all of a sudden cars ahead of you start to swerve slightly; you try to follow their lead but your reflexes aren’t quite quick enough and unfortunately you’ve driven directly into the dreaded pothole. Chances are your vehicle came out unscathed, but if not, you may be in need of a tire patch and repair, a wheel alignment, or other related tuneup. These roadside hazards are not only frustrating to encounter, but also unfortunately cost American drivers millions of dollars annually.

When moisture collects in crumbling or cracked pavement, it can cause heaves or divots in roadways. As temperatures fluctuate, the pavement expands and contracts due to freezing and thawing. The damage from the elements combined with the weight of cars driving over it, eventually leads to a pothole. These confounded potholes can puncture tires, bend or crack wheels, damage a tire’s sidewalls, knock your wheels out of alignment, damage your shocks or struts, and even impact your suspension.

Since today is National Pothole Day, we’ll be covering some ways you can avoid potholes, as well as what to do if you can’t avoid them, because hey, sometimes life just happens.

What To Do If You Can’t Avoid a Pothole on the Roadway

Potholes can puncture tires, bend or crack wheels, damage a tire’s sidewalls, knock your wheels out of alignment, damage your shocks or struts, and even impact your suspension.

Here are some helpful tricks to saving your vehicle from costly repairs if an unavoidable pothole arises:

🟢 Try to slow your speeds. If you continue to drive at a higher speed into the pothole, you can risk quite a lot of damage to your vehicle, so it’s best to slow down as much as you safely are able.

🟢 If you have to drive directly through it, drive straight and don’t brake while inside the pothole. If you turn your wheels or brake too late, it can place additional stresses on your vehicle and cause more damage.

If you have already driven into it, and notice any of the following symptoms:

🛑 feeling as if your car is pulling to one side or the other while driving

🛑 the car is bottoming out or bouncing

🛑 you experience shaking or tremors while driving

You should bring your car in for maintenance ASAP to ensure that your vehicle remains safe to drive. Worn tires, bent rims, alignment and steering issues can not only cause improper wear on your tires, but also cause accidents, decrease your fuel efficiency, and cause further damage to the car overall. Additionally, poor wheel alignment and tire functionality can decrease your ability to stop in time, especially during winter inclement weather.

Tips for Avoiding Pothole Damage While Driving

The good news is, there are plenty of ways to decrease your odds of pothole encounters exponentially.

If you spot the pothole in time, provided the roadway around you is clear of other drivers/pedestrians/obstacles, you may be able to safely swerve around it or at least avoid driving fully into it.
Don’t intentionally drive through puddles, while they may appear innocuous, they may actually be deceivingly deep potholes.
Maintain a safe distance of a minimum 1 car length for every 10mph of speed, or a minimum of 2 to 3 seconds of space between you and the vehicle in front of you. Do not tailgate other vehicles.
Drive more slowly in the dark, especially if you’re on unfamiliar or unpaved roads.
Monitor your tire pressure on a consistent basis and keep them at recommended PSI to greatly reduce damage to your wheels and tires.
Keep two hands on the wheel at 9 o’clock and 3 o’clock position for optimal steering control.
Ensure you have your tires balanced and rotated at appropriate intervals during regular maintenance appointments.