zero_to60

the smart arse answer is to avoid getting in the situation in the first place.....but that would be stating the obvious.......things happen and misjudgments are made.......fact


on track it's so different because you've got the space to gather it...on the road you haven't

if you feel the car is getting away from you hit the brakes and get rid of as much speed as possible

Everyone's experience level is different so no one bit of advice can be applicable to all........

I know what works best for me but I am not able to translate into words........

Ric

I kept my foot completely constant on the gas pedal. Letting off the accelerator gently might have been better, but to be honest it wasn't a conscious thing - I think my foot just froze!! I did hear someone say once that whilst aquaplaning you should keep the accelerator pedal constant - don't accelerate, don't brake - and I guess the same principle may apply here.

I'm pretty sure that hitting the brakes would have made the end slide out even further, with the weight transferring to the front as GSi says, and I'd be on Carpers list for certain.

Trousers in the washing machine as we speak.

euan

I was taught to stick the clutch in and steer into it at the same time, but we only practiced it at slow speeds while deliberately trying to get the back out.

You instinctively steer into a slide anyway, but I guess you need a fair bit of experience not to overcorrect - I imagine the more time you can spend sliding around on a snowy carpark or skidpan the better for getting you used it.

I am happy enough with slow speed slides now, but not at anything above 30 mph - I'd probably just freeze and not react properly, so aim not to get into that situation in the first place.

LTB

Theres a formula for aquaplaining too Ric, but I'm sure you can all come up with much better suggestions.

So here's the science---> 9 x square root of tyre pressure = aquaplane speed.

Gets calculator..............50.9 Mph. Hardly worth getting out of bed for really.

gaddafi

Glad you (probably) got away with it. Don't like the sound of hitting the verge though - as others have said, that can easily knock things out of alignment without visible signs. The suspension certainly isn't designed to take that sort of sideways impact.

I don't usually get into the discussions about sliding the car and the like. Fun it might be, but it's slower than driving.

I just wanted to enquire why you thought about using the gears to scrub speed, in preference to the brakes? In my experience, this is one way to seriously unbalance the car and throw an awful lot of weight forwards. Not as progressive as braking and maybe not too good for the mechanicals either. Not a criticism - I'm just interested.

cheshire_carper

my Golf had a `slight knock` on the rear wheel. It resulted in nearly four K of damage and a car I STILL don`t have.

euan

I suppose if all the engineering is focussed on making the car handle properly in a straight line at 150mph, there's not much left to cope with a sideways knock .

douglasr

gaddafi

BTW - have you checked your tyre pressures?

Moggy

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gaddafi

I just wanted to enquire why you thought about using the gears to scrub speed, in preference to the brakes?