Experience on NorthSouth Highway

[roidan]

Yo bros,

was raining today as i was driving to kranji, out of the blue reminded me of a road accident along the Malaysia North-South highway involving my family not too many years ago. Just want to share with you all especially when the school holidays are near and some of you may be planning to do a trip up north to KL or genting with your loved ones..

What happened was along the way, heavy rain was encountered and after driving for several hours, not long before reaching KL toll gantry, this was what happened.

visibility was only a couple of cars in front...very bad visibility in my opinion

I was driving behind....my uncle was driving in front and suddenly he got into a big deep puddle of water in the center lane of the 3lane carriageway, and he got shocked with the pull of the car towards one side and he tried to correct the steering and brake...but i think the braking made matters worse...and the whole car swerved to the extreme left lane and he over corrected again and instead of going back to the middle lane, the car swerved to the extreme right lane....

all in a matter of seconds...and then a perodua kancil rammed head on, to the rear right of the car....this was the extent of the damage, if it was a heavier car, i dare not say what will be the results....

imagine seeing all these happening in front of me....geee...still get the shivers as i remember the scene....and surprising no other cars got involved in a chain collision behind...

so the cars involved went to the shoulder lane to settle...

the car has been scrapped already, not due to the damage of coz, just end of its useful life...but it's those cars without VSC/ABS and what not....so hope you bros here take note especially when driving up north during bad visibility and onset of fatigue

happy holidays ahead

[roidan]

drive carefully especially when loved ones are onboard,

the extent of damage may not be too severe as seen, but that's coz probably the kancil already tried to slow down but still could not avoid the swerving car...imagine a heavier car with a faster speed ramming into this side of the car, total wreckage i would say

[Siput]

Basically drive safely especially when raining. Even in Singapore sometimes when the puddle is deep enough, even driving at 70-80 kmh the car will swerve. Problem is that when we drive we tend to be overconfident...

[roidan]

agree totally,

after seeing that incident happen in front of me, told myself not to drive fast in the rain....and keep a safe distance

[roidan]

then again to ask experienced drivers here,

what should we do when its raining cats and dogs and before you know it, you got into a deep puddle and its pulling you...should u brake..or should you not brake and just try to ride thru the puddle without tapping the brake or the accelerator..

i personally feel that my uncle made a wrong move by braking , perhaps too hard till the car went on an uncontrolled spin...

any opinions?

[Achilles Tang]

I can imagine all the screaming females in there. I hate to drive with my wife and mother-in-law in the same car. They tend to screech at everything... I always felt that I was in total control.

[Siput]

Worst thing to do is jam brakes...1) will lock brakes in older cars and 2) u are swerving because your tires are gripping the road, so locking the tires also no use. Best is slow down by tapping brakes and try to keep wheel steady. Other than that, suspect very little u can do as the car is already somehwat out of control...just don't worsen situation by any drastic swerving/locking of brakes...

[roidan]

I can imagine all the screaming females in there. I hate to drive with my wife and mother-in-law in the same car. They tend to screech at everything... I always felt that I was in total control.

you are right boss.....every time extended family get together watch horror movies, the movie not frightening..but we guys get shocked from the screams of the women around us instead

but seriously, it dawned upon us that the more important people in the extended family were in the car above and suddenly we realise that if all suay suay really could not live to tell the tale, almost all of that generation of elders in the family gone

so we have learnt to spread people around different cars ....remember the legendary Man U flight accident which wiped out almost the entire team in the past? gee...

and guess what boss? At genting, we went to see the movie screening that weekend....the title?

"DIE ANOTHER DAY" ...spooky or not?

[wedgee]

The situation Roidan described is classic aquaplaning, so i dont tink the tires would be gripping the road...But wat u guys said abt braking hard and suddenly is true. Well, when the situation is too late, light tapping will slow down the car and not lock the wheels (dont just tink yr ABS will save u, wat if it is ineffective during an emergency???), or if its too late, just release the accelerator and hold onto the steering in the proper positions taught during our driving lessons (10'oclock blah blah)

If the puddle is large enuff, it will cause yr car to suddenly slow and maybe swerve abit, the trick is to counter-steer very slightly ONLY IF yr car starts to skid, because large movements will only cause u to lose control of the car faster...for me i just ensure the steering remains straight as possible.

The above is my personal experience on some of the highways of Sgp during super downpours and large floods on the RIGHT lane...I am sure the one dat Roidan's uncle encountered in M'sia was much deeper, so best is to go slow during a storm i guess (I myself went thru a HUGE pothole once, when driving on a small road towards my relative's house in M'sia, cause the car speed was too fast and i wasnt driving defensively)

[roidan]

great advice siput and wedgee ..thanks...

[bwilly]

its called aqua-plan sometik sometik..

can't recall. so get better tyres.. they got chio grooves

to pull away the water.. best for IMO is yokohama AVS Sports..

then follow by the lower range EV series.. (Aqua C???)

I am using Falken ST115, one of the better performance/comfort tyres.. so I felt quite safe. but in heavy rain the tyre ability to pull water away is veri important. if not prepare to fly..!!

IMO dun save on tyres.. n indulge in high performance upgrades..

the basis still applies.

if got money n time, go for different set of tyres depend on weather..

I know some do.. seow car ppl..

ah.. some tip..

when it rains I go center lane..

roads are build in such a way, rain can sip to one side..

n the side if not done proper got all puddle of water..

I almost kenna once a huge puddle when I was rushing for a flight around 4am when it was raining.. can't see a damn thing in the rain.

slow down when I saw a taxi n another involve kenna accident.

[roidan]

yeah lor...raining very dangerous...always must be alert..

actually the accident caused the metal wheel arch to flush with the rear right tyre, and after the accident...the tyre was literally rubbing on the metal arch....so all cars went slow and then faster look for exit and asked the locals where is the nearest workshop and luckily there was one nearby and all the cars parked there, went to have a nervous lunch..and let the workshop knock the arch back up so the tyre do not rub against the arch..proceeded to genting slowly..came back to singapore than repair fully...

i decided to post this because i think some bros here will bring families up to genting or KL during the school holidays and just want them to take note....

and happy holidays...hehe

[nutx]

beside having good tyres at all times, do regular maintanence and check on the suppose to have safety features such as ABS, etc.....is functioning properly.

Many of us have never use the ABS in the normal course of driving, and did not check whether it is actually functioning. It will be good to regularly check whetehr the ABS is working.

ALso, another features that can be faulty is that the car was not suppose to 'START' when the gear is not in 'Neutral' or 'Park' position. My friend son start his car when the gear was engaged in the 'D' position, and the whole car clashed into his landed property! luckily no one injured, and this is the branded car!

and recently there is a similar brand car get clashed into a drain, when the driver claimed she engaged into the wrong gear, dunno is it due to the same faulty item.

[JustinK]

then again to ask experienced drivers here,

what should we do when its raining cats and dogs and before you know it, you got into a deep puddle and its pulling you...should u brake..or should you not brake and just try to ride thru the puddle without tapping the brake or the accelerator..

i personally feel that my uncle made a wrong move by braking , perhaps too hard till the car went on an uncontrolled spin...

any opinions?

Personally feel its better to try to steer through the puddle... experienced it a couple of times even on singapore roads... but guess its the initial shock that causes the driver to brake, kinda a reflex action... but the smartest thing to do is really jus to steer through the puddle. Guess its worse for the older cars if they dun have ABS, my old car didn't have, and when i drove it in rainy conditions last time, always had to watch out clearer for puddles... if not... good traction tyres will help alot in such conditions...

[bwilly]

Personally feel its better to try to steer through the puddle... experienced it a couple of times even on singapore roads... but guess its the initial shock that causes the driver to brake, kinda a reflex action... but the smartest thing to do is really jus to steer through the puddle. Guess its worse for the older cars if they dun have ABS, my old car didn't have, and when i drove it in rainy conditions last time, always had to watch out clearer for puddles... if not... good traction tyres will help alot in such conditions...

ya.. I usually steer right thru them..

but I go like 60-70 if its down pour.. maximum 90.

there's no two way.. one tyre good in dry ground is never good in wet.. wet one is never a good grip in dry. its all in the grooves..

(n of course make of the material)

[terryansimon]

use better tyres and bigger rims. 16inch profiles will definitely give you better grip compared to 14inches.

PS try not to use high end sports tyres. wet grip isn't as fantastic as people think. unless you're talking about PNero... (=

but of course, using the best tyres in the world wouldn't necessarily mean it'll save you from bad accidents.

[roidan]

i agree that tyres are very important....in fact i remember a saying that goes something like a car is only as good as its tyres...

meaning no matter how prestigious or simple the car, what holds the car on the road well are the wheels, not the brand of the car..hehe

something like that lah...cant remember the full quote...dunno who quote also...hehe

[terryansimon]

the only thing that holds the car to the ground are four pieces of rubber.

the mark of a true car is not in its engine, but its road holding abilities.

a car is only as good as the rubber it has.

what more you want. (=

[bwilly]

use better tyres and bigger rims. 16inch profiles will definitely give you better grip compared to 14inches.

PS try not to use high end sports tyres. wet grip isn't as fantastic as people think. unless you're talking about PNero... (=

but of course, using the best tyres in the world wouldn't necessarily mean it'll save you from bad accidents.

bigger tyres is good..

but tyres veri funni got compromise..

u want grip, compromise on comfort n money (petrol)

bigger tyres need more petrol. your litre of petrol per mileage is not good. grip is better, but tyre profile has to go lower, every minor hump n pebbles are intensify X times.

wheels magazine gives all rounder to AVS Sports.... that one is 15" n above tyres..

I think someone or magazine..

cause you are driving n depending on four surface area of your tyres.. so its how important it is to a car..

usually overlook when ppl upgrade cars, bigger exhaust system, hifi, but never upgrade accordingly their brake system n tyres.

(got upgrade tyres, but is to get bigger rims n lower profile)

[weileong]

use better tyres and bigger rims. 16inch profiles will definitely give you better grip compared to 14inches.

PS try not to use high end sports tyres. wet grip isn't as fantastic as people think. unless you're talking about PNero... (=

but of course, using the best tyres in the world wouldn't necessarily mean it'll save you from bad accidents.

wider tyre will aquaplane more easily as it need to push thru a bigger volume of water compared to a thinner one. Of course the design of the threads plays a very big part here.

Wider is good for dry grip.

Oh yes try not to go for those super quiet tyre, the wet grip are terrible, you never know when you need those grip

I still trust the SO3 but a bit on the noisy side.

[bwilly]

oh yes.. wider tyres..

the point of force for area contact for small tyres bigger..

wider tyres spread of force so poorer grip ..

pushing of water did not read anything on tat..

I used to be yokohama fan.. using DB series..

comfort one. then go for ST115.. compromise half half

of performance n comfort..

[BFG]

Aquaplane . This occur when the tyre somehow floats above water. It can occur when a vehicle is driving fast enough during wet weather as the road could not divert the water. No matter how much you believe in your tyre, if you're driving fast in the rain, this will occur. That's why it is recommended that you drive slowly during rainy days. Even when driving fast and you jam the brake, it doesn't mean the car will stop moving. Instead that tyre will continue to be floating above that water until the momentum of the car is slow enough that the weight of the car is pressing down on the four tyres until the tyres actually touches the road surface. The height of the water is just a few mm only but because it is spread evenly, your tyres just aquaplane above this few mm of water.

You may not feel it when driving in a straight road but when that road turns into a curve and you turn your steering wheel, your car might still be heading straight. The momentum of the car is making it to go straight a the tyres is aquaplaning.

So Drive Slowly In Wet Weather!

[bwilly]

4WD is good..!!

[Marineman]

I can imagine all the screaming females in there. I hate to drive with my wife and mother-in-law in the same car. They tend to screech at everything... I always felt that I was in total control.

AT, with all these ladies around, you don't need any faulty brakes or flood to have an accident!

When you guys are using the NS highway, when it rains heavily or the roads are very wet, drive in the midde lane at a slow pace. Don't drive in the fast lane especially under the bridge because there are always a pool of water on this lane and when you drive through, your car will get out of control easily, that's where accidents happen.

Also there are always motorbikers sheltering in the right and left lane, you may hit them. Do not stop on the hard shoulder as well, you get rammed from behind, always go to the rest area if you want to stop or take a brake.

[weileong]

Marineman, thanks for the tips, will keep them in mind when I go up north. I've been guily of driving too fast up there. Better wake up man