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SafeSpeedv2
PostPosted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 14:27 
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These driving tips were received into a company and verified by the IAM ....
OEF - (Bradwell) wrote:
Safe Driving Tips when it is Raining !
Just-In-Time Feedback Created by OEF (Bradwell Site) January 2013

This information was received from Peter Roach, Strategic Programmes Director at Daresbury and has been verified with the Institute of Advanced Motorist http://www.iam.org.uk

A good tip:
A 36 year old female had an accident several weeks ago. It was raining, though not excessively when her car suddenly began to hydro-plane and literally flew through the air. She was not seriously injured but very stunned at the sudden occurrence! When she explained to the Police Officer what had happened, he told her something that every driver should know -

NEVER DRIVE IN THE RAIN WITH YOUR CRUISE CONTROL ON.

She thought she was being cautious by setting the cruise control and maintaining a safe consistent speed in the rain...
But the Police Officer told her that if the cruise control is on, your car will begin to hydro-plane when the tyres lose contact with the road, and your car will accelerate to a higher rate of speed making you take off like an aeroplane. She told the Officer that was exactly what had occurred. The Officer said this warning should be listed, on the driver's seat sun-visor - NEVER USE THE CRUISE CONTROL WHEN THE
ROAD IS WET OR ICY, along with the airbag warning. We tell our teenagers to set the cruise control and drive a safe speed - but what we don't tell them is to use the cruise control only when the road is dry.

The only person the accident victim found who knew this, (besides the Officer), was a man who'd had a similar accident, totalled his car and sustained severe injuries.
NOTE: Some vehicles (like the Toyota Sienna Limited XLE) will not allow you to set the cruise control when the windshield wipers are on.
Even if you send this to 15 people and only one of them doesn't know about it, it's still worth it. You may have saved a life.

I find it amazing that anyone would NOT want to feel the car wheels feedback when the road is wet, icy etc !
I think it strange that anyone should tell anyone else to set the cruise control and then drive safely !
It's not that you can't drive safely with a cruise control it is that the impression left it select a speed and that will somehow match the environment for a large stretch of the journey !
Perhaps it is that I only met cruise controls on vehicles a while after I was experienced at driving and so only used them on long stretches just now and again.
Perhaps no young inexperienced driver should use them at all until they have had at least 3 years driving experience or so many hours etc .... (another issue).
To think that you will get all the feedback while it is on IMHO is staggering. That massive lack of driving understanding is really worrying.

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Toltec
PostPosted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 18:46 
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I have not experienced this personally, however a couple of people I know believe the CC on their cars disengages if any discrepancy on wheel speeds is detected. Mole will hopefully be able to confirm this, on a modern car with fbw throttle the CC probably switches off if there is any activation of TC or stability control, why would you design it any other way.

Not that using it in icy conditions is a good idea, however I very much doubt the 'taking off' part of the story is anything other than gross exaggeration at best.

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Mole
PostPosted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 19:38 
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Quite! It's not something I'd worry about on a modern car to be honest - and for exactly the reasons Toltec suggests. If Ed_m is still around he'd probably be able to expand on it, but I think it's confined to older cars with semi-mechanical cruise controls and automatic transmission.

I must admit I'm struggling a bit to piece together what might be happening. I think that maybe, as the car starts to aqua-plane, the non-driven wheels might start to slow down. If the car is one where the speedo drive is from a non-driven wheel, it will think the car is slowing down and will open the throttle more to try and get the speed back up. Another possibility is that if the speedo drive is from the driven wheels, they might start to speed up and the car will think it's going to fast and shut the throttle abruptly, perhaps causing it to spin. I don't know to be honest. Certainly, I wouldn't expect it to become airborne - unless it hit something that caused it to flip!

Clearly, sensible advice not to use it at speeds, under road conditions, (or with tyre tread depths) where aquaplaning is likely, but I think the electronics on a modern car would sort it out of it happened.

More here:

http://www.snopes.com/autos/techno/wetroad.asp
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botach
PostPosted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 21:24 
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I can't find any reference to the amount of rain/water, but years ago I remember hearing that as low as 60 mph tyres started to plane. I also remember that on minis it was a lot less than that . I remember hearing the front end snatch in the rain at a lot lower than that .( But the factory fits were almost on the limit ,1mm in those days ) .

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boomer
PostPosted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 22:20 
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SafeSpeedv2 wrote:
These driving tips were received into a company and verified by the IAM ....
OEF - (Bradwell) wrote:
...Even if you send this to 15 people and only one of them doesn't know about it, it's still worth it. You may have saved a life.

A classic chain letter/hoax indicator! :roll:

mb
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malcolmw
PostPosted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 09:14 
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Yes, I must admit I thought hard about why the CC would speed up the car in wet conditions. This seems counterintuitive as (per Mole) above if the wheels spin and increase their speed of rotation, the CC will back off the throttle.

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Big Tone
PostPosted: Tue Mar 19, 2013 17:53 
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This effectively happens on a motorbike in the dry, what’s known as a ‘high side’ though. The back wheel slips, (because of too much power), and then when it grips again it launches you in whatever direction.

But the key difference, as has been said, is that you only have the human brain to counter it, not a whole bunch of electronics and sensors on board like you would/should in a car.

:?

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The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.
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Mole
PostPosted: Wed Mar 20, 2013 00:41 
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botach wrote:
I can't find any reference to the amount of rain/water, but years ago I remember hearing that as low as 60 mph tyres started to plane. I also remember that on minis it was a lot less than that . I remember hearing the front end snatch in the rain at a lot lower than that .( But the factory fits were almost on the limit ,1mm in those days ) .


Depends on a fair few factors - tread depth, tyre width and weight of car being among them. Years ago, I can remember plodding along the motorway in heavy rain in a TVR with unfeasibly wide tyres on, in mortal terror for my life, while a 2CV when charging past (probably wondering why I was going so slow)!
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malcolmw
PostPosted: Wed Mar 20, 2013 10:14 
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Mind you, this is the usual state of mind when driving a TVR!

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Mole
PostPosted: Thu Mar 21, 2013 13:08 
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:D happy days! It was also the case when "giving it plenty" on a nice day with the roof off (but for different reasons)!
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TripleS
PostPosted: Thu Mar 21, 2013 19:19 
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"NEVER DRIVE IN THE RAIN WITH YOUR CRUISE CONTROL ON."

"....the Police Officer told her that if the cruise control is on, your car will begin to hydro-plane when the tyres lose contact with the road, and your car will accelerate to a higher rate of speed making you take off like an aeroplane."

That is just wild and alarmist claptrap.

It would be perfectly sensible to make drivers aware of the dangers of using the cruise control in conditions where there is a risk of aqua-planing, but to claim that the facility should not be used at all while driving in the rain is nonsense.

I do wish police officers would not come out with these wild statements. They often take the same line with regard to speeding, i.e. seriously exaggerating the added risks. When they do that sort of thing they merely diminish their own credibility, and it is not helpful to anybody.

Best wishes all,
Dave.
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weepej
PostPosted: Thu Mar 21, 2013 21:16 
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I can half believe older USA cars with crap cruise control systems could have an issue with a slippy surface sometimes maybe, but modern european/asian cars with electronic stability control too? Nah.
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Toltec
PostPosted: Fri Mar 22, 2013 23:07 
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malcolmw wrote:
Mind you, this is the usual state of mind when driving a TVR!


Which is a big element of the fun of driving one, the rest being the noise.



I may be slightly odd though...

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