what do you do when...

metrovelvet · 08-08-2009 9:12pm #1

I know how to drive but I dont know where else to put this question.

When the brakes fail on an automatic is the best thing to do switch into neutral and use the handbrake?

dsane1 · 08-08-2009 9:20pm

Personally i'd put it into 1 or 2 and use the engine to slow it down plus the handbrake . Not a great scenario though ,may it never happen to you !

metrovelvet · 08-08-2009 9:23pm

dsane1 wrote: »

Personally i'd put it into 1 or 2 and use the engine to slow it down plus the handbrake . Not a great scenario though ,may it never happen to you !

Lol. It did! In another country on the other side of the road approaching a roundabout and two minutes later the steering went.

trad · 08-08-2009 9:25pm

Lost my brakes once on the Connor Pass coming down to Dingle in a ford escort maual. Came down the gears used the handbrake and was about to run it along the ditch coming into Dingle / An Daingean when she finally lost speed and ground to a halt. Interesting few minutes though.

metrovelvet · 08-08-2009 9:29pm

I panicked and instinctively went onto the rounabout from the left rather than the right and lucky for me there was no one on the road, I turned off the engine and managed to get into the hard shoulder and waited for the car to slow down a bit before applying the handbrake.

Yeah, life flashed before my eyes.

Wishbone Ash · 08-08-2009 9:33pm

My mechanical knowledge is fairly limited but don't most cars have dual circuit brakes - i.e. both would have to fail before losing brakes which I imagine would be very rare.

dsane1 wrote:

Personally i'd put it into 1 or 2

Not all autos have that option.

katiemaloe · 08-08-2009 9:34pm

Hi, my car is automatic and I reckon if it happened to me (which I hope it doesnt!) that you should go into 2nd and come off the accelerator and then handbrake when its almost stopped.

How do you slow down in an automatic when the roads are mad icy? In a manual, I always come down the gears and not use the brakes but Ive never drivin an automatic on a mad icy road.... often wondered what the best way to stop is to avoid skidding?

metrovelvet · 08-08-2009 9:38pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

My mechanical knowledge is fairly limited but don't most cars have dual circuit brakes - i.e. both would have to fail before losing brakes which I imagine would be very rare.

Not all autos have that option.

It was some crazy citroen where everything is connected and when one thing fails everything else does. Basically what had caused it was a tremendous leak in the brake/suspension fluids that made everything collapse.

How do you slow down in an automatic when the roads are mad icy? In a manual, I always come down the gears and not use the brakes but Ive never drivin an automatic on a mad icy road.... often wondered what the best way to stop is to avoid skidding?

I would normally stay off the roads but you should switch into 1st.

katiemaloe · 08-08-2009 9:53pm

Cheers metro- yeah I try not to drive when its icy, way too scary!!! Just wondered... thanks for clearing that up

Esel · 08-08-2009 9:58pm

metrovelvet wrote: »

I would normally stay off the roads but you should switch into 1st.

I can't see dropping to 1st gear as a good means of slowing an auto on ice!

andr3w103 · 12-08-2009 12:31pm

the problem is with usin the handbrake is some older automatic cars handbrakes dont work cause there never used ......

EPM · 12-08-2009 2:50pm

andr3w103 wrote: »

the problem is with usin the handbrake is some older automatic cars handbrakes dont work cause there never used ......

Em...yes they are. Just because it's an auto doesn't mean that it's not a good idea to park up with it on. Or in traffic...

andr3w103 · 12-08-2009 3:32pm

EPM wrote: »

Em...yes they are. Just because it's an auto doesn't mean that it's not a good idea to park up with it on. Or in traffic...

park locks the drive so it isint really neccasary ive had 3 automatic cars before and on 2 of dem d handbrake would stick on if u used it and u couldnt do handbrake turns even after putting new brake pads on it

Alanstrainor · 12-08-2009 5:14pm

andr3w103 wrote: »

the problem is with usin the handbrake is some older automatic cars handbrakes dont work cause there never used ......

If your handbrake/parking break doesn't work i'd suggest you get it fixed. Parking on a hill must have been great fun in your car!

metrovelvet · 12-08-2009 7:18pm

esel wrote: »

I can't see dropping to 1st gear as a good means of slowing an auto on ice!

WHy not? They are there to take the stress off your brakes.

Wishbone Ash · 12-08-2009 9:19pm

andr3w103 wrote: »

the problem is with usin the handbrake is some older automatic cars handbrakes dont work cause there never used ......

EPM wrote: »

Em...yes they are. Just because it's an auto doesn't mean that it's not a good idea to park up with it on. Or in traffic...

andr3w103 wrote: »

park locks the drive so it isint really neccasary ive had 3 automatic cars before and on 2 of dem d handbrake would stick on if u used it and u couldnt do handbrake turns even after putting new brake pads on it

Alanstrainor wrote: »

If your handbrake/parking break doesn't work i'd suggest you get it fixed. Parking on a hill must have been great fun in your car!

Alan - in fairness to andr3w103, he's correct about parking an auto. The key cannot be removed unless the gear selector in in Park. This locks the drivetrain and unless the drive wheel are lifted off the ground, the car won't move. That's why many auto drivers never use the parking brake. It makes no difference whether it on the level or on a hill.

Sometimes you'll see cars being towed back to front. That's because they are RWD autos and the drive wheels must be raised off the ground to enable towing.

It should though be used when stopped at lights in the dark to avoid inconvienience to the driver behind. It would also need to be used if the car was left in neutral with the engine running and without a driver (e.g. in a garage workshop).

andr3w103 · 12-08-2009 11:04pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Alan - in fairness to andr3w103, he's correct about parking an auto. The key cannot be removed unless the gear selector in in Park. This locks the drivetrain and unless the drive wheel are lifted off the ground, the car won't move. That's why many auto drivers never use the parking brake. It makes no difference whether it on the level or on a hill.

Sometimes you'll see cars being towed back to front. That's because they are RWD autos and the drive wheels must be raised off the ground to enable towing.

It should though be used when stopped at lights in the dark to avoid inconvienience to the driver behind. It would also need to be used if the car was left in neutral with the engine running and without a driver (e.g. in a garage workshop).

it wont be a problem anyway cas my 2 automatic cars are rallied around a field cas um 14 and the rsa are wan***s and wont let me do a driving test .............i sent dem 2 emails a pg long each givin out 2 dem lol

Gary ITR · 13-08-2009 2:52am

andr3w103 wrote: »

it wont be a problem anyway cas my 2 automatic cars are rallied around a field cas um 14 and the rsa are wan***s and wont let me do a driving test .............i sent dem 2 emails a pg long each givin out 2 dem lol

Maybe they couldn't understand all the txtspk

andr3w103 · 13-08-2009 3:06am

Onkle wrote: »

Maybe they couldn't understand all the txtspk

no i wrote properly in that usin comas and full stops .............it was very fancy altogether it even had d rite format:p

Gary ITR · 13-08-2009 3:27am

andr3w103 wrote: »

no i wrote properly in that usin comas and full stops .............it was very fancy altogether it even had d rite format:p

And if you don't start writing like that here I am going to ban you from motoring and all of it's sub forums. Your posts are making my eyes bleed

andr3w103 · 13-08-2009 2:15pm

Onkle wrote: »

And if you don't start writing like that here I am going to ban you from motoring and all of it's sub forums. Your posts are making my eyes bleed

kk sorry:cool:

Esel · 13-08-2009 7:01pm

katiemaloe wrote: »

How do you slow down in an automatic when the roads are mad icy?

metrovelvet wrote: »

I would normally stay off the roads but you should switch into 1st.

esel wrote: »

I can't see dropping to 1st gear as a good means of slowing an auto on ice!

metrovelvet wrote: »

WHy not? They are there to take the stress off your brakes.

1st gear??? That would almost certainly lock the driving wheels, causing probable loss of control, which is the last thing you want on ice! I could see dropping down one gear from a high gear (if the engine revs were low enough), but tbh I don't think dropping to 1st gear even from 2nd, is a good idea. Most manufacturers recommend not even using first gear for driving on ice, never mind for slowing down.

ABS brakes, if your car has them, will allow controlled braking on ice. If you don't have ABS, then cadence braking is the way to go.

Wishbone Ash · 13-08-2009 7:21pm

esel wrote: »

ABS brakes, if your car has them, will allow controlled braking on ice

ABS won't really make any difference in ice. For ABS to work, the tyre must be able to grip the surface during the milli-seconds when the brakes are 'on'.

metrovelvet · 13-08-2009 9:36pm

So whats the best thing to do on ice? neutral?

Esel · 14-08-2009 12:16am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

ABS won't really make any difference in ice. For ABS to work, the tyre must be able to grip the surface during the milli-seconds when the brakes are 'on'.

Fair point, but at least the wheels won't lock and cause a loss of control...

metrovelvet wrote: »

So whats the best thing to do on ice? neutral?

Not being facetious, but the best thing is to drive in such a way that you need as little braking as possible. I don't think neutral is advised. So, as little throttle as possible at all times. As I said, you could drop to the next lowest gear (apart from 1st!

), provided that your engine revs are such that you won't lock the wheels if you do.

So, do everything to avoid a skid in the first place. If you do skid, then the action you should take depends on the road/car direction. First, you should stay off the brakes. If you are skidding in a straight line, then lift off the brakes (presumably that is why you are skidding) and consider cadence braking (ABS proviso from Wishbone Ash above refers). If you are skidding on a bend, or if the car is turning sideways, you have to steer in the direction of the skid until the steering recovers. This is very counter-intuitive, as your instinctive reaction is to turn the front wheels the other way! When/if the car re-aligns with the intended direction of travel, steer as normal. Basically, if the front wheels are not locked, the rest of the car will follow their direction of travel. The main thing is to try to keep control of the steering, as while you may not be able to avoid a collision by braking, you could be able to avoid it by steering around/away from the obstacle.

If I am wrong/unclear in the above paragraph, hopefully someone will either correct or clarify.

what do you do when...

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