Chain reaction car crash *Video* (1 Viewer)

[Julian Reville]

It's been 20 years since I lived in Denver, but some things never change. I had a decent looking 240Z when I moved there; 2 years later when I left I was driving a beater that could only be described as bearing a resemblance to a 240Z.

 

[Micheal]

Glad I could help.

Its been a while but the one thing I do remember was that putting the car into neutral before applying the brake was very beneficial. I really don't know the technical reason...

 

[Steve Schaffer]

that clip was run repeatedly on CNN and several other channels. The main thing that I noticed was that the wheels were locked up on every single vehicle shown, even the Mercedes SUV which I am absolutely certain must have had ABS, which is supposed to prevent wheel lockup.

As an aside, I live in an area where one can own an ABS equipped car for years and never have it activate. I work for a Toyota dealership service dept and inevitably we get several frantic customers after a rainstorm come in claiming defective brakes--"They vibrated real loud and the car didn't skid to a stop!!--I'm suing Toyota!!!".

 

[Philip_G]

To be honest I rather dislike them (ABS). But I can turn them off in the audi when it's slick out. I can also lock the rear dif to claw out of snow

 

[Chris Farmer]

For what it's worth, the RealPlayer version worked fine in Mac OS X with Safari. As for the video, that just sucks. Just watching the cars get closer and closer and your car refusing to stop. All you can do is hold on and wait for the inevitable.

Oh, and I think that newer cars take body damage more easily because of physics. Namely, there a x Joules that need to be dispersed, and something has to absorb them. If the car is rigid, inflexible, and hard to damage bodily, the body absorbs little of the force and passes them on to the passengers, or rebounds in a more-elastic collision. However, if the car body crumples readily, the repairs are far more expensive, but you also have the car absorbing the vast majority of the forces involved in the wreck, meaning less is transferred on to the passengers. Therefore, the car's a wreck, but the passengers are more likely to be OK. At leas, that's what I've read, maybe I've just succumbed to the propaganda of the car industry and it's really just a way to cut costs and make us think it's for safety.

 

[Keith Mickunas]

The ABS system can't detect the problem on ice, so the wheels will lock up. It can't detect that the tire is slipping, so the brakes apply normally and the wheel comes to a stop. That's part of what makes ice so dangerous. 4WD, AWD, FWD, or RWD, ice is bad. ABS works great in rain and snow, and ABS can brake better in those conditions than any driver, but it won't provide much help, if any, on ice.

 

[Stacey]

Deffinately the put the car in Nutral trick works for me, also pumping the breaks GENTLY (for thoes without abs) will stop you faster than just standing on the breaks.

I'm puzzled as to why none of the drivers tried to change the lane so as to miss the car in front, just too slippery I guess.

 

[Philip_G]

Once you've lost traction you lose directional control (on the front, anyway) which is the beauty of ABS. The old "stomp, stay, steer" training.

I disagree with the above, ABS can detect a lockup on wet, dry, ice, sand, it doesn't matter, it reacts the same.

 

[John Alvarez]

Like down here in Fl. in 1988 when the town froze over and we had a whooping .10" of snow. Cars were piled all over the place.

 

[BrianW]

Philip, If all four wheels lock up simultaneously, as can happen on ice, then the ABS can be fooled into "thinking" that the vehicle has stopped and allow the wheels to lock, just as they would if you were at a full stop on dry pavement.

Even so, many people think that having ABS shortens your stopping distance (assuming it's working correctly), but it doesn't.

 

[MarkHastings]

But did anyone jump out of their car? They're in a car, not a crashing plane or sinking boat...you don't bail when there's a slight problem.

"What is this white stuff on the road? I'm applying the brakes, but I'm not stopping? It's the DEVIL I say! Get out of the possessed car now!!!"

 

[Randy Tennison]

Once you lock up the wheels, you can't steer. Plain and simple. If you have front wheel drive, try accelrating and turing the wheel. You might grab some traction.

But then again, it may have done no good at all. But slamming on the brakes and turing the steering wheel will get you nowhere . . . except whatever direction you are already skidding.

 

[Philip_G]

not once in all my years of living in MT, ND, and CO has this happened. In fact, I've hit the brakes hard on solid ice, it still does not happen.

 

[Steve Schaffer]

The idea that all 4 wheels stopping simultaneously can fool the ABS sorta makes sense. Perhaps this varies by mfg? As I said before here in Fresburg ABS scares more people than it helps. Most who experience the vibration and noise when it engages reflexively let off the brake pedal which is, I'd assume, exactly the opposite of what should be done.

I don't venture into the nearby mountains during snow season and so have never had abs on any of my cars except when it was standard equipment (98 Camry LE). On the Camry which I drove for 3 years it engaged twice, both times as the front wheels started to lockup on slick crosswalk paint on rainy days, which actually increased stopping distance.

I fully understand that in most other parts of the country ABS may be nearly indispensable, but given my particular circumstances would not pay extra for it.

 

[Steve Kuester]

I've owned a Honda CR-V with ABS for 6 years. On a couple occasions I've had the brakes lock up without the ABS vibration. This only happened on completely smooth ice, not "normal" ice. And I wasn't going very fast at all - I only go fast on "normal" ice.

And yeah, I saw this video the other day - Why in the world would you get out of your car???

 

[Joe Szott]

AH, good old Denver winter weather.

 

[John Alvarez]

Just in case it decides not to stop after hitting the first car so you can watch it go ALL the way down the by itself....

 

[Scott McGillivray]

Well that was a really odd video. I mean, yes, accidents happen and a pure-ice street on a hill is going to be a tough drive (and a sudden stop). But, as many other have said, why are those peoples' brains shutting off? I mean...wow...jumping out of moving car when it is only going to be a minor bump? WTF? Pull that womans license and get her checked out at a medical facility!

Oh, BTW, anyone else get a kind of evil giggle seeing the fancy Jaguar getting banged up?

 

[BrettB]

That was only mildly amusing. For real laughs you would need a dog to be run over or to bounce a homeless person off the hood. Comedy's a bitch.

 

[Kyle Richardson]

I would have released the brakes completely and steered into the curb and hoped I had enough speed to hop the curb and go up on the grass. It would have had enough friction to stop the car at that speed.

Oh yeah, and getting out of the car - brilliant.