Car Questions, Answered

Driving Tips

Road block: The streets are wet, your tires lose their grip on the road, and your car starts hydroplaning, or sliding or spinning.

Best route: "The key is not to panic," says Michael Waltrip, a NASCAR driver and a two-time winner of the Daytona 500. "Because if you jam on the brakes or jerk the wheel, you can cause a bigger loss of control."

In many cases, simply letting up on the gas is all it takes to reengage the tires. If not, you may need to steer out of trouble, just as if you were sliding on ice. "If the front end is moving left, turn the wheel a bit to the right," says Chris Thomas, the chief engineer of vehicle research for Honda Research & Development Americas. "But don't overcompensate or you may start to fishtail."

The best way to avoid hydroplaning is to slow down on wet roads. "And don't use cruise control in a rainstorm," says Thomas. "If you start to hydroplane, you can't just ease off the accelerator to regain control."

Road block: You notice an aggressive driver who might cause an accident.

Best route: Dial 911 and give the operator as much identifying information as you can, such as the license-plate number, the type of car and its color, a description of the driver, and the direction of travel. The operator will alert the nearest police patrol.

Road block: A tire blows out while you're driving on the interstate.

Best route: Unless you hear the tire burst, the first sign of a blowout will be that your car suddenly pulls hard to one side. Your instinct will be to slam on the brakes, but don't. That will only exacerbate the problem, and it could cause a total loss of control. Instead, slowly lift your foot from the gas while steering with both hands to stay in your lane, says Thomas. Then, using your turn signal, maneuver one lane at a time toward the shoulder. You're better off continuing to drive, at below 30 miles an hour, with the blown tire flapping away than stopping before you're clear of the traffic. (Don't worry about damaging the tire―it's ruined.)

Road block: You get pulled over. Is there any possibility of talking your way out of a ticket?

Best route: Your best chance of avoiding a ticket is to immediately own up to that illegal U-turn. "Courtesy goes a long way," says Michael Wright, an officer with the California Highway Patrol. "If you say, 'I'm sorry. I realize I was speeding. I'm late for work and wasn't thinking,' you're going to get a lot further than if you play dumb or deny what you did."

So what shouldn't you say? Three things, says Wright, are guaranteed to put any officer in a bad mood: mentioning that your taxes pay his salary; saying, "Don't you have some real criminals to go after"; and so much as uttering the word doughnut.