A car out of control is a stage nightmare for any driver.
is the bane of every driver. You try to slow down, but you realize that the pedal got stuck. The removal of millions of Toyota cars worldwide due to a fault in the accelerator pedal puts us in a horrific potential scenario: what if we can not stop the car?
recording an emergency call from a family of four members who died aboard a Lexus model in California, United States, paints a frightening picture.
"We're in a Lexus ... and headed north on highway 125 and our accelerator is stuck ... we are in trouble ... no brakes ... we are approaching the intersection ... wait .. . wait and pray ... pray. "
seems almost a film sequence.
Toyota insists that it is very rare occurrence, but it's raised a practical question: how would you react if your accelerator gets stuck?
Step by step
most important thing is to stay calm and not do anything drastic, says Andrew Howard, a British expert on road safety.
"The brakes still work, the clutch is still working. The biggest problem is staying calm."
How to stop a car
Use the accelerator pedal, not the brake.
Press the clutch.
Find an escape route, and turn carefully.
only turn off the engine if the clutch can not be used.
If the brakes failed, you can use to gently brake.
Source: Stephen Mead "When the accelerator is stuck, the immediate answer to many people would try to unclog the pedal, when the appropriate reaction is, in fact, trying to stop the car," says Howard .
is easier said than done, but experts insist that by following a few simple steps can stop the car quickly to save his life and that of others.
If the throttle is stuck, first must step on the brake pedal firmly, no parking brake, which can burn the pads of the brakes and make the car turn.
Then, the driver needs to press the clutch, thus preventing the feed motor in the car. The equivalent in an automatic car is to put the shifter in neutral.
Continue slowing and attention to the road, to and fro, seeking an "escape route." Do not attempt to swerve, because this could be dangerous and destabilizing the vehicle at that speed.
In a short time-perhaps 10 seconds, you can stop the car.
But what if the gas is not the only flaw?
is highly unlikely that these days the brakes fail, because modern cars have dual brakes. There are usually two pistons that control the brakes, if one fails, one can still stop the car.
But if the brakes fail completely, it still has the clutch.
When all else fails
Toyota is the largest automaker in the world.
Vanessa Guyll, technical specialist management in the United Kingdom, says it's more easy to use the clutch to release the fly, turn the key to turn off the engine.
may be difficult at high speeds to put the car into a lower gear. So others suggest a mild use handbrake to slow down.
What about the clutch fails, along with the brakes and accelerator?
"Turn off the engine starts, but it is vital that you leave the key in place," said the expert Stephen Mead.
"If you take the ignition key, it will lock the wheel and that's the last thing you want."
And if in addition to all the key getting stuck, "then everything is against you," says Mead.
There is no ideal solution for everything is going to hurt, he warns. You can try calling the police or steer the car towards the shore with grass, or an escape.
The last two are dangerous ways of trying to slow a car. Go to the escape route, designed for heavy trucks and destroy the front suspension would be like hitting a brick wall, he warns.
If all else fails and there is something in front of you that need to avoid, this might be the only option.
But all this assumes you're on a highway. Howard said that many of these tips could be applied in the city streets or rural roads.
"I would prefer this to happen in the highway," says Howard. "Not that it matters much to go to more or less miles per hour. Estarme I would not approach a crosswalk with the car well."
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