tire skidding problems - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

DieselGrrl · #1 05-16-2008, 07:59 PM

this should probably go under the tire section, but its regarding a 300D, so anyway...

im a fairly new driver, grew up i NYC, never needed a car. got my first car ('85 300D) in January. Made it through the snow no problem, i can drive in manhattan like a pro, i think im an ok driver.. however, i was driving in the rain about a month ago and i had to stop short (because the guy in front of me did) and i skidded right into him, needless to say, im fixing that car back up now.

so i bought another 300D (81)to hold me over, and it drives MUCh better than the first one...so my braking paranoia was sort of relieved..UNTIL TODAY. Drving down a street, green light in the rain going about 27mph, when 2 stupid kids decide to walk directly in front of my car. I slammed on the brakes in reflex and skidded about 2 yards.

are there any precautions i can take to avoid this?? special tires, etc??

BoomInTheTrunk · #2 05-16-2008, 08:28 PM

yah, hit the kids or pay more attention. also just dont press so hard on the pedal to lock them up. All it sound like is that you are a little inexperienced and you might panic, pressing on the brakes to hard.

DieselGrrl · #3 05-16-2008, 08:34 PM

so i should trade in my lead foot for an aluminum one?

its as easy as that??

BoomInTheTrunk · #4 05-16-2008, 08:36 PM

it sounds like that is the problem. you just need to learn to slow down some in the rain and face the truth that some stuff will happen when it rains out.

pawoSD · #5 05-16-2008, 09:05 PM

What kind of tires are on the car and how good is the tread depth? Some tires do much better in the wet/snow than others. If the tires are junk you may want to consider some good HydroEdge Tires or something, they will do much much better in the wet.

blackestate · #6 05-16-2008, 09:27 PM

Get a good rain tire, some people say siping helps.
But you need to find a place when it is wet and learn to apply the breaks up to the point of just before locking up the tires. It does not have to be all or nothing, and it needs to become the reaction, instead of the hard stomp.
When the tires lock up, it turns the car into a 2 ton ski, with no control. That is why the now install ABS breaks on most things. They do this for you (keeping the tire from locking up)

BoomInTheTrunk · #7 05-16-2008, 09:32 PM

if you really want to have fun take like a lot of water and put it in a parking lot, like 3 feet wide about and 10 to 15 feet long. Then what you wanna do is drive half that car in that water and then lock the breaks up. After doing this you will have the back end of the car come around you, put it in neutral though because the car cant go in reverse in drive.

TMAllison · #8 05-16-2008, 09:57 PM

It sounds like you would benefit from a car with ABS.

My 99 also has BAS (brake assist) which measures the amount of time it took your foot to come off the gas and get onto the brake. When a certain threshold is passed, BAS delivers 100% braking power as in a panic stop most peoples tendency is to get on the brake hard and then let off some before realizing they will hit something and getting back on the brake hard. Sucker REALLY works.

Course there is no substitute for good pads, rotors and tires too.

Bio300TDTdriver · #9 05-16-2008, 10:20 PM

Like Terry said, you need ABS. Why not make your next MB one of those modern 124s with ABS?

DieselGrrl · #10 05-17-2008, 11:35 PM

eh, im a vintage kinda grrl, my MBs need to be pre 1985. plus, the new bodies are UGLY.

Bio300TDTdriver · #11 05-17-2008, 11:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselGrrl

eh, im a vintage kinda grrl, my MBs need to be pre 1985. plus, the new bodies are UGLY.

Hey, if you say that again, were fighting.

At least they don't look like Volvos.

dieseldiehard · #12 05-17-2008, 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselGrrl

so i should trade in my lead foot for an aluminum one?

its as easy as that??

You could also buy a newer model with Anti Skid Brakes and make it look ugly like the old models (no not really! please dont do that!)

My wife learned the hard way how the brakes should be applied on a curved wet road. I'm glad no one was hurt in your "close call"
Better keep in tube with the road conditions and around other cars expect anything (Defensive Driving).

minimike1 · #13 05-17-2008, 11:51 PM

you can buy soft composition tires that really grip the road well, but the tradeoff is they will wear out much faster. A long life tire has a hard composition, and is easier to break loose. Also a light rain will bring the oils up in the road, so it's the most dangerous driving. Heavy rains will wash the oils off the road. Oils are from the asphalt, and also the fluids that the vehicles all leak. when you hit an oil patch, you'll skid in wet weather, no matter what tire you have. And you can slow down, and look far down the road when you drive, scan side to side to always be aware of what's happening around you.
A panic stop is just that, and hard to avoid, but driving for the road conditions, and surroundings will ease your braking woes.

Actros617 · #14 05-18-2008, 12:02 AM

if you want to slow down fast i would suggest to pull down your gear form D to S and/or to L gear sector, and use your brakes at moderate pressure at the same time, this will make you slow down faster...

i hope this help

herring · #15 05-18-2008, 12:18 AM

Seriously, there is a huge difference in how tires grip on wet and snow. Before I buy any tire I'd go to tirerack.com and look at their user ratings of tires. When I got my Rodeo the front tires were the same cheap model of Goodyears they were putting on Ford Explorers. They hydroplaned relatively easily and got poor snow traction. I drove it for a few years that way, thinking that was just the vehicle I'd bought. When they wore out I got another type that was highly-rated on tirerack and it's completely changed how the thing performs in water and snow.