Wife had a mishap that costs $9400. Ice was on bridge but not the road. She was aware this could happen. She was driving an Excursion with 4wd but had the 4wd off. When she drove on to bridge at 35-40 mph, vehicle skidded out of control. She wasn't accelerating or braking when skid started. No one was hurt thankfully.

My question is, would being in 4wd have prevented the skid? I maintain she did everything right by being in 2wd but some people claim it wouldn't have skidded if she had it in 4wd. I always thought using 4wd in those incidents just got you to the scene of the accident faster by giving you a false sense of security.

Thanks

 

When she felt the ice did she let off the gas? If so, this may have been the problem! Or it would have happened anyway. It could have been just fate. As too the 4x4 question I'm not the one with that answer sorry.

 

First time she new there was trouble, it had already skidded. I am thinking like you that it just wasn't her day.

 

in my experience from driving in michigan,we get alot of freezing rain,it is best to drive smoothly when coming up to an icy patch.if you let off the gas the drive tires will tend to try to stop because there is no friction to the road to keep the tires turning.this will cause a spin.obviously accelerating will cause the tires to spin too.i think 4wd may have helped because all the tires would be driven the same,but on ice it's tricky.

front wheel drive cars,when going around a curve on ice,will tend to have the rear slide out if the driver isn't giving it enough gas to "pull" it around the curve.

i would think an excursion,due to the weight over the rear tires,would be better in the winter than my ext cab.pick-ups don't have much weight in the back.

i don't think she did anything wrong driving in 2wd,i do the majority of the time unless it's really bad,just stuff happens fast on ice and when it gets out of shape there is no traction to help you get it back.just drive smoothly and don't make any sudden changes,gas ,brakes,steering.should be ok.may want to practice on some slippery roads to get more of a "feel" for what the truck will do when you are expecting it,you will be more prepared when you aren't expecting it.

i wish i could type!

 

I think as said before it just wasn't her day. I bet she was releaved to have had the accident in the excursoin instead of some small car, the repair cost might have been the least of your problems. Just thank God!

 

If she hit black-ice (or any type of ice), 4WD would not have helped (unless you're a professional ice racer or rally driver that knows how to spin tires to create friction). The problem is that once she hit the ice, friction (traction) between the road and the tires essentially dropped to zero and the vehicle continued to travel in whatever direction it was heading when it hit the ice. Unfortunately, some roads aren't straight, so she became a passenger in a vehicle that was going to continue to go in a straight line, regardless of which direction the road went. Bottom line: 4WD is only a benefit when the tires have traction. You could have a 100 wheel drive, but if traction is zero, 100x0, still equals zero. Thankfully no one was hurt.

 

That was her exact words. The wack against the guardrail would have severely damaged a small car and possibly the occupants. Then the sapling trees would not have been fun in a small car.

 

What might have helped is reaching up and placing the transmission in neutral. With automatic transmissions, this can make a significant difference in control, particularly while trying to slow down. You have to be quick...in fact, training yourself to do this at the first sign of a slide, or even in anticipation.

 

Glad to hear that no one was hurt... Vehicles can always be fixed. Ice is the true enemy of tires. I run winter tires on my vehicles not so that I can drive through fields of snow but to keep the best possible traction on ice in addition to slicing through the snow/slush. I have seen many folks spin out without really being truly at fault per se although they probably did a minor move which set-off the spin.

If a person has a light gasser vehicle (1/2 ton rating or less) the studless Bridgestone Blizzaks are the best tire IMO on ice due to the soft rubber compound which performs amazingly well. If you have a heavier diesel/gasser (3/4 ton rating or larger) a studded snow tire that has considerable siped design (or siped via machine) work quite well. It sucks having to buy 6 snow tires but I don't have much of a choice being a skier living in an area surrounded by mountains that get 400-500 inches of snow per year.

 

That sure is true. See lots of vehicles with 4wheel drive or all wheel drive, spun out because there was ice under the snow ... or black ice. But the drivers were driving fast thinking they had traction.

Like said above ... no friction on the ice ..... that's that.

If it was patches of ice, maybe 4X4 would have helped a little if the wheels caught.

Glad she is OK...must of scared her.

 

It certainly scared her and hurt her pride as that vehicle is her pride and joy. I told her that standing on the brakes would have made them grab when she got to a firmer surface which might have caused a rollover.

 

Very well said

 

what he said ^^^^^^^

 

When I was 16 years old and as crazy as they come I would look for the slippery spots. But this is how I learned. I went to an empty ski area parking lot late at night where there was no obstacles. I would then drive as wild and crazy as I could. It really taught me how to power-slide. I also learned what my car was capable of. I would highly recommend this for anyone that wants to learn how to drive in snow and ice.

kelro I am glad to here that no one was injured. Accidents are quite scary. Icy conditions can be very helpless fealing.

 

I was thinking that when the pond freezes over, i might have to take my 4 wheeler over there and do some testing. It has a switch to turn 4wd on and off. The only thing it doesn't have is the antilock brakes. I could spill some water on top of ice to duplicate conditions that were there that night.