Gave myself something of a 'brown trouser moment' today.
Going round a largish, well-used roundabout, the back end started drifting out of its own accord. Armfuls of opposite-lock (just) brought it under control, and after a quick look in the mirror (at a gape-jawed van driver) I pulled it into the side.
I expected to see a flat rear nearside, but it looked OK, and I couldn't see anything else untoward. I filled up a couple of miles down the road, and checked all the tyre pressures, with my own gauge. They were all OK.
All the tyres have at least 4mm of tread left. The temperature was above 4 centigrade, so I don't think it was ice.
I do tend to corner fairly hard, but I had a passenger with me (my daughter, who's getting married tomorrow) so I like to think I was taking it fairly easy.
I would've thought a modern, front engined, FWD would understeer to eternity.
It hasn't got anything tricky, like stability control, just ABS, but I didn't touch the brakes.
Can BRs suggest what I should be checking? I've given the car a good looking over, and pulling around. I've even taken it out on my own and 'chucked it around a bit', but can't get it to do it again.
Funnily enough, I recall the exact same sort of thing happening twenty-odd years ago, in a recent (don't laugh) Austin Ambassador!
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Diesel on the road ? Buy a BMW switch off the DSC and ASC and get a brown trouser moment regularly !
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I did the same years ago and put it down to diesel on the road.
I was going round a wet roundabout in Sheffield in a Peugeot, IIRC was only doing about 20mph and the back end flew out and I drove about 30 yards sideways with opposite lock on; managed to straigten up with more luck than judgement I think. Must have looked like a right hooligan to the several cars waiting to join the roundabout, but I was only pootling along.
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Didn't you know ? That's why brown was such a popular fashion colour in the late '70s and early '80s ! All those lairy RWD Granadas, Carltons, Capris, SD1s, Cortinas and the like. Drifting on roundabouts was a recognized and required technique ;-)
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I saw a lorry turning from the embankment onto one of the bridges once with gallons, and I mean gallons, of fuel pouring out of the tank onto the road as it did so. You wouldn't have wanted to be on a big bike there for the next hour or two (or even a small one I guess). Lethal stuff.
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Dont assume it wasnt ice, there was a lot of black ice round my way and the temp readout on the Altea was +3* (* being the snowflake)
It was actually quite fun, never quite seen it quite like that before - the road reflected no light at all.
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< Ulla>
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temp readout on the Altea was +3* (* being the snowflake)
Is there special meaning of * symbol? My Suzuki Ignis manual says if temp is below +4C, it will always add the * symbol to display!
Yesterday at around +3*C my ABS got activated when I braked (gently) on a non-gritted road.
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* is risk of ice
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< Ulla>
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I'm afraid you're all barking up the wrong tree!
At temperatures barely above freezing moisture that has settled on the road overnight will not evaporate. This will combine with all or some of the following: road salt, grit, tyre rubber, spilt fuel, dust. It will act like marbles on the road surface. Over time, again because the water moisture does not evaporate (which would allow the accumulated dirt to become airborne particulates and drift away from the road surface) this only gets worse. There is never enough moisture or water to wash away the debris either. These conditions will persist for the next 3 or 4 days if the BBC weather forecast is anything to go by.
I have traction control on my car, but almost feel safer without it, as if I break into a slide I then cannot pull myself out of it if the traction control fires up.
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I did exactly the same thing about 2 weeks ago. Going straight over a roundabout I use quite often. Lost control turning the wheel left to get off the r/about. Mines a Golf, FWD, only doing in the region of 25. No other cars around me thankfully. Not raining, but road was a little damp. I put it down to my newish cheap tyres or oil on the road.
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