Re: when to shut off ABS??

[I6941tb@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-12-09 12:24:22 EST, STEADI RIC writes:

My quote:

> >On pure ice, Bob. You'll brake better than a dumb komooter. 

Eric's:
  
>  Skip Barber Instructor mode on:
>  
>  For 99.9% of the general public this is a BAD call....  They just don't 
>  have a brake foot that is sensitve enough to what's going on at the 
>  wheels

Alas, that's true. Most of them think that a proper collision avoidance
maneuvre is when both feet are on their wide, Detroit made, brake pedal and
that the harder they press, the sooner the car stops.

However, an experienced, properly trained driver is likely to control a car
on ice better without ABS. 
I've spent most of my driving life in a climate, in comparison to which most
of Canada would seem like a Mediterranian resort. I drove manual RWD
econoboxes with no ABS or power anything on snow and ice for 6mos out of a
year. Good diving skill was often not even about avoiding a fender bender but
a survival itself (I lived to see my brake fluid freezing up at -52°C!). And
man, did they train us how to drive! I've written a rather lengthy post on
this subject to a lister in a private mail (at his request) @4.00 in the
morning today, so I'll just summarize my personal experience here:

I *do* stop a car quicker without ABS on. Always turn it off on ice. Always
off on a race track (and that is what a marshall would always suggest
anyhow). For other people MMV.
And, yes, like Scott said, train yourself, not a computer!

BTW, I once avoived a certain collision on pure ice by locking up the wheels
and shifting into reverse @60 km/h. (On the other side of the Atlantic I
always had 4 good snow tyres, w/6 rows of carbide studs). They bit in ice
(nice rooster tails from under the rear wheels, shooting backwards, i.e.
forward in this particular case, what a view!). That let me keep the car
intact. Now try *that* with ABS on! The damn computer won't even alow the
wheels to stop, It would have kept them rolling up until I would've been into
a moron's ass in front of me, who was still picking his nose at a deep green
light standing (naturally for all of them) in a dead centre of a 2 lane road,
that shone and sparkled like a mirror. If it were summer time -no problem,
but in January with snow banks coupla meters tall on either side of the road
I had about 5cm worth of clearance to pass him on either side and only prayed
heaven not to let him see me, coz he would get scared and do something (coz
whatever he was likely to do would've been dumb, no doubt here).

No ABS can substitute a driving skill. Most people automaticaly assume that
ABS=trouble free reckless driving, the next thing I learn from my insurance
renewal is that ABS discount has been taken away 'coz ABS failed to reduce
the amount of collisions/claims/injuries. No sh*t, for crying out loud!

I keep saying it over and over again : institute mandatory driver's training,
Euro style! By selected, trained, authorized and well equipped driver's
schools.
Less casualties + an enormous revenue potential in terms of taxes on tuition.

For now the least an average person can do to himself is to enroll in one of
those winter schools.
Eric, Scott - I did not know that you instruct snow driving. I'd love to get
along for a ride some day.
I always look forward to learning a few new driving tricks.

Igor Kessel