Bit of a random post but wanted to make it anyway.

Driving home with my family in the car today, we went through some appallingly bad weather. The M9 was like a pond. I wasn't speeding and was driving at a similar speed to most of the other drivers. However, I was caught off guard when the car aquaglided and scared the out of me.

Now, I have to add, I have only been driving for 4 years and so haven't got a huge amount of experience in driving in such horrible conditions. I realised that had the car continued on its trajectory, I wouldn't have known how to deal with it.

To compound things, I naievely thought that a Freelancer would be a bit more stable in such conditions, yet I didn't see anyone else have any wobbles on the road. I guess if all 4 wheels lose grip on the road it doesn't matter how many are getting power.

So that's it really. No questions or anything. Just got a bit of a fright and realised I have a lot to learn still and shouldn't assume a 4x4 will cope just because it is a 4x4.

Anything can aquaplane, more so a car with fairly wide tyres, you a little more than a passenger, it's scary but if you keep your wits about you, steer straight and keep your foot down, don't brake you'll likely lose it. Once the puddle has slowed the car it will break through the water, grip the road and drive out.

Next time it's bad like that stick it in GGS mode, it is designed to prevent wheel slip and heightens the cars reaction to slip, I always do this in really heavy rain

Glad your still here and the experience will only serve to make you a better driver, never stop learning.

Never considered changing any mode - that's a good idea. But slowing down also stopped it from happening again.

So in the last few weeks my car has gone sideways (at ,5mph) in snow and aquaplaned in heavy rain. Can totally see why new drivers can get themselves into trouble if they're not careful.

Chuckalicious wrote:

I have only been driving for 4 years and so haven't got a huge amount of experience in driving in such horrible conditions..

I agree with Taz about the aquaplaning-the car actually loses contact with the road and "floats" on a film of water. It doesn't really matter if you have a 4x4 in this scenario because none of the tyres are offering any grip. Losing it at 5mph on snow is a little more unusual (although not impossible). How old are your tyres and how much tread is left on them? Tyres harden with age and the recommended maximum lifespan is 6 years. In terms of tread depth, I personally wouldn't run them below 4mm for a car as heavy as the FL2.

Michelin recommends changing tyres after 10 years. Also, just because a car is 'heavy' doesn't necessarily mean you need more tread depth. In fact (speaking as a MOT tester), heavier vehicles such as mini buses have a LOWER tread depth requirement than passenger cars - 1.0mm instead of 1.6mm. I would imagine it's because of the increased weight making them less likely to aquaplane.

It's not the weight that is significant, it's the ability to shift water away from the tread blocks, a rotating tyre whether loaded or not can only shift as much water as its tread will allow, the water cannot be compressed so it must flow through the tread and away. The resulting contact with the road though will be affected by the weight.

One thing I have noticed with the Nokian winter tyres I have fitted, is the spray behind me on a wet road is very noticeable, the tyres obviously doing their job.

As others have said, I won't let tyres get down to a minimum if possible, they need changing long before the limit is reached.

The amount of friction between the car and the road does depend on both its ability to shed water and its weight (mass).

I have been saved at the very least twice with better tyres. One example, I was on the Spit S bends (Sydney NB drivers know it), a car had broken down & I just ran out of room by centimetres, just touching the back of the car, a Jenson, no damage done!

A few days earlier I had new tyres put on the car & paid out of my own pocket a bit extra for better tyres for the company car. It was less than $100 extra. The standard tyres that came with the car or that were required to be renewed were a joke. In this situation it would have been an expensive mess with cheap tyres. Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

Interesting thread however, there is a reasonable argument that vehicles with a higher centre of gravity will tend to lose stability (both directional and transverse) sooner than a car with a lower centre of gravity. The longer the wheelbase the greater the directional stability, generally speaking. That also applies for transverse stability, and is why double decker buses don't fall over very often. All else being equal, a vehicle with a higher centre of gravity will flip sooner than that with a lower CoG. Although this is far removed from the thread here....

I think though that the extra elevation means less water on the screen, and seems to me I have much better vis in the FL2 than in my old 'normal' cars.

Anyway, glad you're still here and it's happened to everyone at some point so don't beat yourself up

Yep, doesn't matter if you have a 10 wheel drive, you cannot ignore the basic principle of physics.

Lesson learned! Foraging near Gaydon....
——————————————
MY13 HSE Lux SD4, Baltic Blue - current, 30,000> miles without fault
MY12 HSE 2.2 SD4, Sumatra Black - gone after 10 months/43,000 fault-free miles

Lightwater wrote:

I have been saved at the very least twice with better tyres. One example, I was on the Spit S bends (Sydney NB drivers know it)

I think I know where you mean, was taken on an insane drive in a bright yellow BMW M Coupe, hellish speed down the Cahill expressway which Sydneysiders seemed to revel in, over the bridge and up to Manly, I think it was up there just before the crossing where you have these crazy off camber bends. Arrived in Manly and didn't feel like much lunch

i wouldnt be driving here?
http://www.johnharveyphoto.com/Kayaking2/S..._1000W.jpg

Click image to enlarge

That' it!

In my younger days I used to whip down there in the old 504 with fairly good Pirelli tyres with the body rolling from one side to the other.

Too many cars these days & too many mobile speed cameras! Never the less the Freelander has a magnitude more stability and poise. Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

Aquaplaning happens at nine times the square root of the tyre pressure, with tyres in reasonable condition, about 60 mph on an FL2, your tyre pressure is set to keep the whole tread on the road and the tread not to close at the bottom as the weight comes on it, it is well known in racing circles to increase tyre pressures when it rains. you will need about 5mm of water to induce aquaplaning, when it occurs keep the wheel straight and float the throttle, hitting a large puddle is slightly different as initially one or more wheels will be braked by the water thus it can cause the steering to pull. Flooring the throttle won't help as all that happens is that wheels will all spin and when grip is re-established you can loose control should one wheel initially grip it can tend to try and spin the car my PC is slightly to the right of Genghis
2012 HSE SD4 In Orkney Grey now gone, best car ever.