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Improper Steering Endangers Drivers with Antilock Brakes
Improper steering in vehicles equipped with antilock
brakes (ABS) can send the vehicle veering dramatically out of control, the
AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has found. "When drivers are about to
hit something, they often panic, jam on the brakes, and jerk the wheel,"
says David K. Willis, president of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.
"If the car has antilock brakes it will respond to the extreme steering
and run off the road."
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety tested cars with
and without antilock brakes. At 35 mph, a panic stop combined with a
violent jerk of the steering wheel caused an ABS-equipped car to dart
across two lane widths, enough to send the vehicle into oncoming traffic
or off the roadway. The same action in a car without antilock brakes
locked the wheels so the car skidded forward in the lane but hit the
obstruction.
"In a study of crash records the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that ABS cars had more
single-vehicle, run-off-the-road crashes than cars without ABS," Willis
says. "The cars without ABS had more crashes with other vehicles,
pedestrians, and cyclists."
The Foundation's tests, conducted on August 26, 1997
at the Transportation Research Center in East Liberty, Ohio, apparently
confirm the theory that while ABS allows drivers to steer around an
obstacle in an emergency, too much steering -- such as from jerking the
wheel while braking -- sends the vehicle out of control.
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety urges all
drivers who have antilock brakes to practice using them before they get
into an emergency. "ABS brakes can be a real lifesaver," Willis says. "But
they're not like regular brakes. The only way to understand how the brakes
work is to practice sudden stops in a safe situation, on both wet and dry
pavement," Willis says. Drivers should take their vehicles to a parking
lot with no obstructions, bear down on the brakes, and practice steering.
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety is a
not-for-profit charitable organization funded by donations from AAA and
CAA clubs and members. It is devoted to preventing crashes and saving
lives through research and education in the field of traffic safety.
Click Here for a Question & Answer Sheet on Antilock
Brakes
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