Driving tips from the Bridgestone Winter Driving School in Colorado

[msirach]

Hazardous conditions bring caution

Eric Fodor - DAILYREGISTER - January 06, 2010

I'm not sure I agree with one of the recommendations. Guess which one? Comments? --Ed.

Driving on ice and snow can be treacherous, especially in areas like Southern Illinois where motorists don’t deal with adverse conditions all winter.

Mark Cox, director of the Bridgestone Winter Driving School in Colorado, offered several tips for getting around on the ice and snow during winter.


“One of the main things is when you have a low-traction surface it takes longer to stop,” Cox said.
Motorists should think ahead before stopping and take it slow.

Think ahead

“A study a couple years ago showed 80 percent of all accidents could have been prevented if the driver had one more second to react,” Cox said.

In winter driving conditions, motorists should try to give themselves that extra second by taking it slow, planning out a route and thinking about what could be ahead, Cox said. ... [Read More]

[brick]

I'm shocked that commentary from the Bridgestone Winter Driving School would not include a single mention about tire choice and condition. One of my key observations during my holiday trip in the storm was that tires had a big impact on who kept driving and who became stranded. Starting in VA there were vehicles that couldn't make it up even shallow grades, and more often than not they were sporting large 'blingy' rims and low-profile summer tires. The same goes for the vehicles that were able to move but couldn't hold a straight path to save their lives (literally).

Even if you have sensible all-season or winter tires, they must have enough tread on them to work in the snow. In the past I have had noticeable winter performance drop-offs with tires that still had as much as 5 or 6 32nds of tread left. (The wear bars are set at 2/32nds, which is almost nothing left.) If you live in the Great Frozen North then it's probably worth it to spring for a set of dedicated winter tires on their own wheels. They can make all the difference in the world when you need it most.

And a final note on equipment: If you drive in winter weather, install a set of winter windshield wipers! Regular wipers have a strong tendency to ice-up and start skipping over the windshield, impairing your visibility. The winter blades (typically identified by red tips) have a much wider and more flexible section of rubber (and probably different types of rubber) that can shed ice rather than capture it. No driving tip in the world will help you avoid a hazard if you can't see it.

[lightfoot]

TWO of the recommendations seem sketchy to me:
(1)

There are two kinds of skids, rear-wheel skids and front-wheel skids. If the rear wheels skid, calmly steer into the skid – point the wheel in the direction you would rather be going – and accelerate smoothly, Cox said.

The part between the dashes seems wrong: if I'm trying to turn left, my rear wheels slide as I do that, and the car continues straight, I should steer back to the right to regain traction, NOT in the direction I would rather be going (left).
(2)

Vehicles bunching up on the highway creates more chances for accidents.
“If there is a line of traffic behind you, you need to make way,” Cox said.

Cars bunch up in snowy conditions because people pick a reasonably-driven car and pace off it, figuring that car is doing OK so they won't go any faster. As long as they are in the right lane while doing this, it's fine. Bunching up is not a problem, and people shouldn't drive faster than they feel safe in an effort to un-bunch.

And one recommendation was omitted:
If it's snowing, evaluate whether you really MUST drive. If the trip can be postponed (e.g., if you can work from home that day or go shopping tomorrow instead), just STAY HOME. I grew up in the snow belt in Ithaca, NY and then moved to Pittsburgh, PA, another snowy area. Even though we were experienced snow drivers, we frequently stayed home in snowstorms.

[Taliesin]

Originally Posted by lightfoot

TWO of the recommendations seem sketchy to me:
(1)
The part between the dashes seems wrong: if I'm trying to turn left, my rear wheels slide as I do that, and the car continues straight, I should steer back to the right to regain traction, NOT in the direction I would rather be going (left)...

It's not wrong at all, but they are assuming a rear wheel skid that isn't caused by an attempt to turn.

Your car is still heading in the general direction of where you want to go. It's just doing it sideways because your rear wheels have lost all traction. Turning your front wheels in the direction you want to go will allow them to gain traction again.

The wrong part of it is that they say to accelerate while doing this.


The part that is REALLY wrong is when they say you can drive too slow.

[w4wfm]

Drivers in Atlanta always think speeds less the 10 mph ABOVE the speed limit is too slow. Even this morning with our rare snow and ice. That is why we had 29 cars in one pile up at the I-85 and I-285 intersection.

This is a very agressive driving area.

I have cars bunch up behind me on almost all trips. I drive approximately the speed limit.

Frank

[Shiba3420]

The wrong part of it is that they say to accelerate while doing this.

I disagree. You should accelerate. However this assumes you have a front wheel drive car. You need to get the nose of your vehicle at the front of the movement. There are two ways to do this, slow the rear (which isn't normally possible) and speed the front.

However, in a rear wheel drive, it would be just the opposite. You have no method to speed the front, but you can slow the rear by just letting off the gas and letting engine braking do its thing.

[Taliesin]

Originally Posted by Shiba3420

I disagree. You should accelerate. However this assumes you have a front wheel drive car. You need to get the nose of your vehicle at the front of the movement. There are two ways to do this, slow the rear (which isn't normally possible) and speed the front.

However, in a rear wheel drive, it would be just the opposite. You have no method to speed the front, but you can slow the rear by just letting off the gas and letting engine braking do its thing.

Ahh... you might be right about that front wheel drive thing.

It's something I tend to forget about since I have only driven one or two of them, and none in the last 7 years.

[warthog1984]

Originally Posted by Taliesin

It's not wrong at all, but they are assuming a rear wheel skid that isn't caused by an attempt to turn.

Your car is still heading in the general direction of where you want to go. It's just doing it sideways because your rear wheels have lost all traction. Turning your front wheels in the direction you want to go will allow them to gain traction again.

The wrong part of it is that they say to accelerate while doing this.


The part that is REALLY wrong is when they say you can drive too slow.

Actually, they aren't wrong at all. In a skid (FWD, RWD, or AWD), pointing the wheels the direction you want to go and adding power to the drive wheels will use whatever traction is available and pull (FWD/AWD) or push (RWD) the nose and thus the car, where you want to go. Try it.

The only time you shouldn't do this is if you are spinning (break 90 degrees to travel), in which case- "In a spin, both feet in. If in doubt, both feet out".

And yes, I have skidded, spun, and skidded and recovered FWD and RWD vehicles on ice, snow, wet and dry conditions both at low speeds and also in excess of 70mph.

[brick]

For RWD I think it depends on what you are doing. In my RWD car, recovering from a fishtail involved steering into it and backing off of the throttle. It's been a while but I very clearly remember being able to back off a bit and have the rear end drop right back in line where I wanted it. Adding throttle would just continue to push the back of the car around, making a "no-nevermind" fishtail into a real skid.

Cornering is different. Your first problem is keeping control of the car. Your second problem is keeping the car on the road. If you start to lose the rear wheels in that situation then, as with the straight-line skid, you just steer into it to stop the rear end from trying to pass the front end. Once you have control back, **then** you can add throttle and use the rear end to push the car through the turn rather than sliding off the road. In other words, you hold a controlled drift.