We have all heard of scary incidents of people getting their gas pedals stuck and cruising along at super fast speeds and being unable to brake and slow down. Would you know what to do in a situation like that? Most people would like to think that they do but chances are that many would also panic and lose their cool in a critical situation like this. Other critical situations may include hydroplaning or having your tire go flat while you are driving fast. Let’s go over what to do in these instances.

Flat tires are usually not a big deal. Most of us even know how to change them and if not, it’s pretty easy to call roadside assistance and have them take care of it. However, having your tire go flat while you are driving fast is another story. First of all, the noise a flat tire makes can be frightening and secondly, it can be scary to lose control of the car. The best thing to do when in this situation is to take your foot off the gas pedal so that you come to a gradual stop. It’s actually not a good idea to step on the brakes in this situation. You also want to keep steering as straight as possible and try to drive into an open space ahead if possible.

You have a higher chance if hydroplaning if your tires have thin tread and it’s wet outside. In order to avoid hydroplaning to begin with, you will want to make sure that your tires are in good shape. One clue that you’re hydroplaning is when the steering wheel feels on the loose side. If you do hydroplane you will want to not apply pressure to the brakes and not turn the steering wheel. Braking is actually counterproductive and could lead to skidding. Take your foot off the gas until you stop hydroplaning.

Now let’s find out what to do in case the accelerator gets stuck. The best thing to do is to change your gear to the Neutral position and then push the bakes down. If that doesn’t work then you can turn off the engine but be careful because this could cause electronic steering to fail and freeze up. Secondly you hit the brakes but don’t pump; just press. You want to try and pull over to the shoulder or to the side if you can. If you are unable to change the transmission turn the engine off but this should be only used as a last resort because it can lock the steering wheel.

If you have electronic steering and if it fails it will be very difficult to steer; the wheel will feel heavier and will require a lot of force to budge. Do not remove the key from the ignition since this can cause the key to lock up. If your auto comes with the push button start feature then you can press the button to turn the engine off but make sure you don’t just tap it; hold it down for a prolonged period of time.

Author Bio: Written by Quinn Berry – Infiniti of Kansas dealer St Joseph Infiniti offers a large selection of new cars such as the Kansas City Infiniti FX50 at great low prices. We also have a pre-owned selection Used Cars Kansas City with a great selection of used autos at low prices.

Category: Automotive
Keywords: car emergencies, gas pedal stuck, automotive emergencies, what to do car emergency