Photo: Screenshot from YouTube video by TeamOneilRally
Driving in the winter is harder than operating a vehicle in the summer, and this is visible in the number of accidents of all kinds that occur in treacherous weather conditions.
Before blaming snow for crashing your car, look no further than yourself, as the driver is often to blame for most accidents. Human error is a factor in most of the car accidents that happen on public roads, while weather conditions account for a minor percentage when the main cause is concerned.
Do not get us wrong here. Natural disasters can still be the main reason for an accident, but a few inches of snow and ice during the cold season do not account for a “disaster.”
Instead, most accidents happen because people do not understand how their vehicles work. Even those that do have a grasp of things tend to think that the electronic driver aids that are fitted on their vehicles will be there to save the day if things go haywire. While being able to provide a bit of assistance, the anti-lock braking system (ABS) cannot enhance the grip of your vehicle’s tires on snow or ice.
The O’Neil rally school has made a video that shows just how much of an improvement can be obtained if the driver has enough skill and patience not to press the brake hard while driving on snow. Instead, a careful application of the pedal will slow the car down more efficiently than a panic maneuver that will trigger ABS.
The reason why this happens is that ABS will allow cars to drive further while it is active, because it operates by briefly cutting brake pressure per wheel when it detects the said wheel is “locked.”
On a given road without snow or ice, ABS will help you stop faster when the brake pedal is pressed firmly to the floor. The situation goes the other way ‘round if panic gets over your right foot, and the car will take longer to stop than with careful application.
Evidently, this works in an emergency, but do not “feather” the brake pedal just because of what you read online. Instead, you need to train yourself to become a more careful driver, and that includes not stopping on the brake whenever you panic. Think fast, act carefully.
Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland. Full profile
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