I do not know if any of you 2WD folks like myself come across this problem before but this happened to me yesterday. The roads were slick and wet, and the rain was pouring. I came across a left turn island to turn into work. I came to a nice and complete stop. When the opposing traffic passed by, I made my left turn into the company driveway entrance. As I was making my turn, my rear wheels lost traction and my Xterra started to slide and almost made a half revolution around. Trying not to freak out, I did let go of the gas and somehow by instinct, I franticly turned my wheel right in the direction of the skid. My vehicle almost did another 180 in the other direction and I quickly turned the wheel left the other way in the direction of the skid.

The car finally stopped on the right hand side of the curb inside the company entrance driveway. When all was done, my SUV did face the correct direction of traffic, but I was just in a state of shock or aftershock. Looking around, I was amazed that I was still alive, my new Xterra is still in one piece and no one around me got hit or hurt. Call it luck?

I imagine if I did have the 4WD model, this may not have happened at all. However, as a word of advice from one 2WD owner to another, take it really easy on the corners when you turn on wet and slippery roads. By the way, thus far, it is true what they told me in Driver's Ed. When you lose control, turning your car in the direction of the skid does WORK!

Driver and car still in one piece
(Thank the lord!),
YellowX
2001 SE 2WD Auto.

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[This message has been edited by yellowX (edited 03-28-2001).]

Glad to know you're ok. Austin streets have always been particularly slick when it rains, and most drivers don't seem to know what to do in those situations. Most wrecks in the area seem to happen when there's any precipitation. I guess we're still not all that used to having water falling from the sky.

I'm not sure if it's the limited slip on the 2wd models, but I've noticed mine likes to "walk" on wet surfaces if I give it too much gas. Just know the limits of you vehicle and drive safely.

Good luck!



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-jason
'00 black 4x2
3-pack
SWXC #25 - Texas Hill Country chapter
TMTC #943
...and all around nice guy.

Driver error, too much acceleration.

A 4WD wouldn't have made any difference because it would have been in 2WD in just rain.

If you turned into the skid, and it reversed on you, then you turned into it too far.

If your last vehicle was a front wheel drive car, then welcome to the world of rear wheel drive.
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Regards,
Ian

[This message has been edited by xoc (edited 03-29-2001).]

Welcome to Driving 101...

Seriously, it sounds like you have a lot to learn. This is how people smash up their first car or truck.

Perhaps a specialized wet-weather weekend driving school so you don't have to learn this on the street?

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Yep, you just have to be careful. I've wound up completely turned around in my CJ before. The X does seem to lack traction under certain conditions but its just something you have to get used to. Besides, under controlled conditions (i.e. wet parking lot) that fishtailing feeling can be pretty cool Thats what I do anytime I get a new vehicle is find an empty lot and get used to the way it handles under all sorts of conditions like slamming on the brakes (more people need to do that one! Too many people freak out when they feel ABS kick in for the first time), turing under acceleration, fishtailing etc... You'd be surprised how much better you will understand how your vehicle drives plus it may save you from an accident in the future, I know its kept me out of several just because I knew how to react to the situation.

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-Shortbus-

'00 XE 4x2
Solar Yell:)w

"If you are having a bad day and it seems like people are just trying to piss you off. Just remember it takes 42 muscles to frown and only 2 to pull the trigger of a decent sniper rifle."

your X acted absolutely corretcly...
you on the other hand made a mistake

no harm, live and learn, but dont blame the poor x when you mis-drove in a skid...

driving through a skid takes practice(not something most even want to learn) but once you learn proper technique most skids are manageable.

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Undisputed Mercedes Killing Champion Of The Board
(Damn Those Trailer Hitches are handy)

I agree with everyone else here. It sounds to me like you were too heavy on the gas pedal into the turn, then way over compensated in the resultant skid. Is this your first rear wheel drive vehicle? They all do that, it's not the Xterra. Actually pick up trucks are worse because there's no weight in the back end. Definitely go out and practice in a wet parking lot. You'll find with experience you can easily avoid that fish tailing, and if it does kick out it can be brought back around easily too. Up north here we rear wheel drive people get to deal with that frequently in the snow!

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Al

[This message has been edited by Al_in_NY (edited 03-29-2001).]

i didn't go out with the intent of practicing but when i was younger i had plenty of opportunity to learn as i was a little heavy on the gas inb my Toyota Pickup... pickups are hrible for this, especially if you remove the tail gate and replace body panels with fiber-glass...

i got quite good at controlling a truck/suv in a skid

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Undisputed Mercedes Killing Champion Of The Board
(Damn Those Trailer Hitches are handy)

Glad to see you weren't in an accident.

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There are only three sports-Mountain climbing, bullfighting, and motor racing-all the others being games. --Ernest "Papa" Hemingway

[This message has been edited by DeFibVT (edited 03-29-2001).]

It almost sounds like you hit a patch of oil.

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yellowX,

what tire pressure are you running? it occured to me that many dealers are sending xterras out with unusually high tire pressure. if your tires are running 40psi or thereabouts, it could go a long way in explaining the 'slippery' behaviour of your xterra. tire pressure has alot to do with handling in every vehicle, so check it out.
i think the normal range is 28-32psi?

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Roads are the slipperiest right after it first starts raining. This is because the water forces oil from the road to the surface. After it has been raining a while, the oil washes away and it is not as slippery.
Drive safe.

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Gary
'00 green xtreme
4x4 auto
Manik brushguard
KC daylighters
Taillight guards
What next?

With an open diff, you'll simply start spinning your inside wheel. With LSD, it's possible that you'll spin both wheels and your ass end will swing out like you experienced. As has been said, sounds like too much throttle followed by over-correction.

I've intentionally gotten the rear end of mine to slide around wet corners in much the way you described. I find it mildly entertaining. Around these same corners in my open-diffed pickup, I just spin the inside tire without sliding.

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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." -- Benjamin Franklin, 1759

Neil,
My tires are the 16 inch size (P255/65R16) since I have the SE model. When I last checked prior to that rainy week, all the tires were at about 34-35psi. Even though it's a different size from the normal 15", will the 28-32psi still work for mine?

By the way, as the others in the thread have mentioned, I admit it. I did put toooo much gas when I did that turn, and yes, I did over turned the wheel that led me to do some wide skids. For all that replied, thanks for the advice and lesson. As a newbie in rear-wheel SUVs, I'm still learning how to handle "her" properly!

yellowX
2001 SE 2WD Auto.

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Al_in_NY,
Yes, this is my first rear wheel drive that's an SUV. No, this is not my first rear wheel drive because my previous car was a Volvo, which was also rear wheel drive. Somehow, I never had that traction or fishtail problem with the Volvo before. I can't explain why!

The reason I let the Volvo go was not because of her performance. It is true what they say, "Volvos are safe." However, keeping it safe and up-keep was costing me $$$$ and more $$$$.

yellowX
2001 SE 2WD Auto.

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