What is the proper course of action, during ANY type of loss of directional control in a vehicle in snow(ice)?

Well, first, you shouldn't stomp down on the brake, that'll just keep you sliding. Manuever into the skid/slide, you don't want to brake your axel pulling the opp. direction.


If possible, what i've done, from experience, is try to find a patch of street that doesn't have snow/ice, to slow you down, and give you more control.


If all that fails, its better to hit the curb then someone elses car.What is the proper course of action, during ANY type of loss of directional control in a vehicle in snow(ice)?
If you have front-wheel drive, steer gently in the direction you want to go. Don't use the brakes. If you have rear-wheel drive, steer in the direction of the skid. Don't use the brakes.





This subject was covered not too long ago. Search the archives. That's what they are for.





Ignore the obligatory thumbs-down that some stalker has been giving me on every answer I give.What is the proper course of action, during ANY type of loss of directional control in a vehicle in snow(ice)?
Not to panic is the only thing to do in ANY situation. No other action will always work for every loss of control, and experience is the only other thing that will let you know what to do.





For example, one time a car hit it's brakes on an icy downhill right in front of me. The car immediately started spinning, and I was headed right for him on the same patch of ice he lost control in.





Nothing happens instantly, and in bad weather you often have several seconds to relax, assess the situation, and start taking action.





I'm in a much heavier vehicle, and knew I wouldn't be using my brakes in that situation. His front tires, locked up in his panic, touched the snow in between lanes and turned him backwards and to the right of me. In my Jeep, I had the clearance I needed and gave a little gas to pull my vehicle into the 12'; snowbank on the side of the road.





The ';sand effect'; of the snow slowed me down considerably, even though I had to fight the wheel to keep from plowing completely into the median. The other car spun off across the other lane and hit the curb backwards, but he was out of my lane and I was able to turn right back onto the road and continue.





This type of situation happens to me at least a dozen times every year, and you have to understand what's happening before you can do something. Know your vehicle's abilities and limitations, and understand that all the electronic ';help you drive'; stuff is worthless unless your tires are actually contacting pavement.
Steer in the direction you want the car to go. See the following instructions. Stay off brakes unless you have ABS.


Professional driving instructors advise a new way of teaching skid recovery, instead of the old rule, which was, ';Turn into the skid.'; They say this ';new'; way is more understandable to non-professionals, but either way, they adamantly say the result is the same. This change was made because many folks didn't clearly understand what ';turn into the skid'; means.





If you find yourself in an over-steer skid, first thing to do is get off the gas, keep your foot off the brakes, or smoothly release brake pressure if already applied, and if you are driving a standard shift vehicle, disengage the clutch. Quickly turn the steering wheel in the direction you want the front of the car to go (down the road). Specifically, this means align your tires with the direction of your intended travel. As your vehicle turns back in the correct direction, you must then counter steer in time to stop the turning and stay on your desired path. If you do not do this promptly, the vehicle will continue to turn past your intended direction, and you may then skid in that direction. You may have to counter-steer more than once to get things under control.
If the back end of your car is sliding, then which ever direction it is going, turn into it, and no matter what don't hit the brakes, that will end you up in a ditch or into the side of another car. The best thing to prevent sliding is just knowing how your car reacts. Go slow on icey roads and don't listen to load music at the time, just make sure to stay aware to the road conditions around you and be carefull. my sister has gotten into bad car accidents because she didn't know how to drive on the icey roads, and if you need to, ask someone you know to visually show you how to correct the car when it is sliding.
steer in slide direction
Let off the gas turn the wheel the way the car is slidding. Then put on the brakes very easy and when you feel the car is going straight try to get back to where you want to be.Most new cars now have anti locking brakes which means you can steer while appling brakes.One thing to remember is always go slower when there is snow or ice on the road, even if you have a 4 wheel drive it does not mean you can go when other people can't. They are a lot harder to control on a icy road the two wheel drive cars.
THE CURB, AIM TOWARD THE CURB!!! Turn into the direction of the skid, slide, drift.
Steer in the direction of the skid. Get off the accellerator. Don't hit the brakes! Sounds weird in words but find an empty parking lot when its slippery and practice...whee, fun!


p.s if collision is imminent...try to drive ';steer'; straight into the snowbank, shoulder, field, curb, etc. rather than collide with another vehicle or pedestrian...cheaper and safer in the end.
turn into the slide so you don't spin.