Safety Tips

Emergency situations always appear unannounced. That's why Avanti Auto Driving School has incorporated the driving safety tips area into our web site.

Would you know what to do if the following situations occurred to you?

You're driving along, and you suddenly see smoke coming from under your hood. What would you do?

1. Ignore it and keep driving.
2. Scream loudly and start panicking.
3. Pull off the side of the road immediately and stop the car.

The answer is #3, Pull off the side of the road immediately and stop the car. The best thing to do is turn your engine off, and carefully raise the car's hood. Be sure to step back to avoid being burned by any hot, discharged liquids. If you should see flames, NEVER spray water on a burning engine because, an oil fire or gas leak is easily spread to other parts of your engine when doused by water. Run immediately to a safe distance and call for help.

Your car suddenly stops. It will not start and you're on a remote road. Someone pulls up behind you. What would you do?

1. Get out of the car and introduce yourself.
2. Crack the window slightly and ask the person to call for help.
3. Immediately call for help on your cell phone, motion to the person that you're fine and help is on the way.

The answer is #2 or #3 depending if you left the house with your cell phone in hand or in your pocketbook. Nowadays, cell phones are easy to get, can be paid for on a monthly basis, and should be a necessary piece of equipment before you get into the car. Never get out of your car or let someone else inside.

You're on I-95, the beginning of morning rush hour. You hit your brakes and nothing happens. What would you do?

1. Start saying your prayers and kiss the world good-bye.
2. Take your foot off the gas, put your emergency flashers on, *honk your horn, and down shift while easing to the side of the road.
3. Gradually pull the emergency brake.

The answer is #2 and then #3. If this ever happens to you -- and chances are slim to none that it won't -- do not panic. There are two goals here. 1) to reduce the speed of your car in a safe manner and 2) to get to the shoulder of the road. First, take your foot off the accelerator and reduce the speed of your car down by down shifting. THEN gradually pull up on the emergency brake. DO NOT pull on the emergency brake without following the first step. The consequences of immediately pulling on the emergency brake are being catapulted through the windshield. (Especially if you're not buckled up.)
 
If you're driving through an intersection, and if your car has the horn located in the center of the steering wheel, lay your forearm -- while steering -- on the horn and keep it there while down shifting. Again, the goal is to get the car to slow down and eventually stopped.

If after trying the above maneuver, and the car is still not responding, immediately call 911 on your cell phone if you have one. They will ask for your exact location and, in order to have your car come to a complete stop, you will need the assistance of another vehicles "braking system". Again, do not panic.

If you do not have a cell phone, and you are in a rural or suburban area, to reduce your speed -- after following the above instructions first -- look for something "soft" that you can run your car into that will assist you with stopping the vehicle. What I mean by "soft" is: shrubs, green overgrowth, or small thin trees that will obviously be knocked down. However, they will assist you with stopping the vehicle. If there are no shrubs, overgrowth or small trees (and only big strong trees) you will have two options. 1) go for a larger tree but hit it on an angle. You DO NOT want to hit the tree head on. or 2) Unbuckle your seat belt, open the car door -- while steering -- and tuck and roll out of the car.

As a driver who may find themselves in an emergency situation as described above, it's clear that only you will have the ability to safely decide which alternative to take. After all, you're the one behind the wheel and driving the car. I can not emphasize enough that it is vital to regularly maintain your car and, in this case, it's the brake system.
Here at Avanti Auto Driving School, we always - as a rule - take our vehicles to our mechanics every 3000 miles for fluid replacement, regular oil changes and an overall car check. It's also important to take your car to your mechanic immediately when you notice your foot has to pump harder or longer than usual before the car stops, or when you hear "strange unfamiliar noises" either when the brakes are applied, starting up the engine or when driving around town.

You feel or notice that someone is following you. OR, It's late at night, you're in a deserted area, an unmarked vehicle has a "flashing blue light" on the dashboard. You pull over and notice that the person getting out of the vehicle is not in a uniform. What would you do?

1. Stop the car, get out and introduce yourself.
2. Drive to the nearest police station or, highly populated lit up store.
3. Try to get away.

This is a frequently asked question that always pop's up in traffic school, and is something that we always go over when training a new driver. The answer is #2. Drive to the nearest police or sub station station or, highly populated lit up store. It is always best to familiarize yourself with the locations of all local area police or sheriff sub stations for your traveled area. The rule here is safety first, and with today's society, there are a lot of crazy people out there and taking life threatening chances is definitely not worth the risk.

If you enjoyed this article, there are plenty more in our exclusive drivers ed course - given to each student FREE with our New Driver Certificate course.