Alabama driving lesson · Adjust to Driving Conditions
Skids and hydroplaning
A 3-minute lesson from the Alabama course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
When your tires lose their grip, the engine can't pull, the brakes don't work well and steering feels dead. Knowing what to do and what not to do helps you recover.
Skid
When a vehicle's tires lose their grip on the roadway. The engine loses its pulling effect and the brakes and steering seem ineffective.
Don't brake during a skid. Braking increases the skid and, if the front wheels lock, you lose steering control. Once you've regained control of your direction, brake carefully if needed.
Many safety experts hesitate to recommend shifting into neutral, because a panicked driver may look away from the road or shift past neutral into reverse.
If you hydroplane, take your foot off the accelerator and let the car slow. Partially hydroplaning, you can usually correct the skid; totally hydroplaning, release the gas and ride it out.
Driving 60 mph in a heavy rainstorm, your steering suddenly feels light. You may be hydroplaning. Don't brake or jerk the wheel. Take your foot off the gas and let the car slow down until the tires grip again.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
In a rear-wheel-drive vehicle, what should you do to correct a skid?
Brake hard immediately
Accelerate to regain traction
Ease off the gas so the engine slows the rear wheels
Shift into reverse
Answer: Ease off the gas so the engine slows the rear wheels
Easing off the gas in a rear-wheel-drive vehicle lets the engine act as a brake, slowing the rear wheels and helping correct the skid.