03:44
Faizan
Going off-road with front-wheel drive can be deceptively easy. With steering and power in the same wheels and the weight of the engine over them, skidding is almost not an issue. If you do begin to lose traction, your instinct will be to ease off on the accelerator, which should allow the wheels to regain their footing. The key, just like in the winter driving, is that you literally do have "traction"--the wheels are pulling you and the car forward, rather than pushing you from somewhere near the rear. Such practicalities have brought front-wheel driving even to the luxury-car market.
Accelerate gently, even on level ground, so you can be sure the tires have a grip on wet or soft terrain. There's no worry about fish-tailing as with rear-wheel drive, but when you lose front traction, you'll lose both traction and steering.
Downshift for power when climbing slopes, even with an automatic transmission, but don't get carried away with the intoxication of traction. Off-road, conditions can change in an instant, and when a front-wheel-drive car does spin into deep, soft material, its driver will be in the same situation as a rear-wheel-drive car, having to push out, except without steering. Of course, there's also the danger of shooting over a ledge, so your power and steering are out in thin air.
Downshift to use engine braking on the downhill, and use even lower gears on steeper hills. Otherwise, gravity may tend to push the weight of the car faster than the engine is drawing it with the front wheels, and you can begin to fishtail. If at all possible, "tack" like a sailboat in a zig-zag pattern, going farther across the slope in each pass than you go down.
Tips & Warnings
Even with front-wheel drive, road clearance makes a huge difference for off-road driving. Front-wheel-drive small sport-utility vehicles as of model year 2011 include the Nissan Murano, Kia Sorrento and Ford Escape/Mercury Mariner /Mazda Tribute.
If you should get stuck and have to dig out or add traction material for the wheels to grip, don't forget to straighten the wheels and be aware of where the material under the wheels--and the car--will be thrown when something catches hold.
Accelerate gently, even on level ground, so you can be sure the tires have a grip on wet or soft terrain. There's no worry about fish-tailing as with rear-wheel drive, but when you lose front traction, you'll lose both traction and steering.
Downshift for power when climbing slopes, even with an automatic transmission, but don't get carried away with the intoxication of traction. Off-road, conditions can change in an instant, and when a front-wheel-drive car does spin into deep, soft material, its driver will be in the same situation as a rear-wheel-drive car, having to push out, except without steering. Of course, there's also the danger of shooting over a ledge, so your power and steering are out in thin air.
Downshift to use engine braking on the downhill, and use even lower gears on steeper hills. Otherwise, gravity may tend to push the weight of the car faster than the engine is drawing it with the front wheels, and you can begin to fishtail. If at all possible, "tack" like a sailboat in a zig-zag pattern, going farther across the slope in each pass than you go down.
Tips & Warnings
Even with front-wheel drive, road clearance makes a huge difference for off-road driving. Front-wheel-drive small sport-utility vehicles as of model year 2011 include the Nissan Murano, Kia Sorrento and Ford Escape/Mercury Mariner /Mazda Tribute.
If you should get stuck and have to dig out or add traction material for the wheels to grip, don't forget to straighten the wheels and be aware of where the material under the wheels--and the car--will be thrown when something catches hold.
Posted in: Driving Tips
