Been having great weather in the Toronto Area this year, yesterday its snows 5" here, i leave to go to work at 5:30 AM before the snow plows and salt trucks get on the road...so im in the fast lane goin about 70 km/h (40 mph) cruisin, when this stupida$$ mustang in front of me begins to fishtail...so i see this and lightly hit the brakes, and swerving to the right a little bit to avoid him if he spins...but then i hit the patch of snow that accumulates in between the lanes, i feel it start to slip on me...do a 180 across 3 lanes of hwy....all i see is this Integra comin at me head on....he hits me....i now go back across 3 lanes going backwards, and i look at my right passenger side, and i see a minivan comin at me sideways in one lane, then an 18 wheel trucks headlights lookin straight at me (i was like a deer in headlights), they both miss me barely, i spin why steering wheel to avoid the guardrail, and come to rest in the left shoulder facing the wrong way.....and no VSA lights came on at all! wtf??

In short...the integra that hit me head on got the worst of the damage....his whole bumper and hood were crumpled....while my only damage was my lower lip...maybe it was the angle i got hit or just plain lucky, but no major damage... after assessing the damage, im like, dang i can just pay for the bumper and insurance wont find out...but the other dude is gonna claim so my insurance will find out anyway...i got a hookup with a body shop and im planning on gettin 2003 headlights/grill/bumper out of all this since im claiming anyway.......also, i was planning on getting snow tires in the afternoon....what a way to start a new year...but im kinda happy im alive right now, so its not that bad....l.

pics...

 

Sorry about the accident man……..

How many miles on your tires ?
Stock tires at 40MPH in 5" of snow with heavy braking and maneuvering is not a great situation to be in.
If they’re fairly worn down that’s even worse.

I can’t explain why the VSA didn’t come on, but I think the only way you may have maintained control would have been with four dedicated snow tires.

Shawn S

 

they were brand new goodyear all seasons, maybe 2 months old...ya, i was planning on getting dedicated snows yesterday too...f me...hey...at least i can still breathe....

 

My VSA comes on when changing lanes all the time in the snow. Probably not as much as 5" but I know 3" for sure and I've felt really safe doign it. And when I say changing lanes, I mean I do it very slowly but decisively (no "oh shit" and start to turn back) with both hands on the wheel, reading the feedback from the car.

I think there's a threshold where the VSA says "fuck it, I can't help you" because about a few months ago on wet pavement I was taking a sharp turn and hit a hole or a twig or something and the rear end broke loose. I ended up drifting onthe 2 lane road to complete the turn but the back end wouldn't grip so I ended up sideways with my rear on the incoming traffic lane Luckily the incoming traffic saw my taking the corner and stopped way back to give me room to recover.
Not once did the VSA go on But who cares, I didn't hit anything and nothing hit me

 

No tire is going to save you during hard braking while your encountering areas of snow and ice. It may HELP, but it probably wouldn't have prevented something like this from happening.

Sorry to hear about the accident. Glad to hear you're OK. That's the most important thing!

 

thx guys

 

Yea, I know what you’re saying, but I still feel that dedicated snows make a TON of difference when it comes to steering control.
Usually the first snowfall after I get my snow tires on I like to “play” a little bit to test out the control and get the feel of the handling limits.
Sometimes the Blizzak’s stick so good it’s no fun at all.

And just for the record, I think FWD or RWD makes no difference at all in the scenario of the original accident.
Once you’re spinning out of control you’re just along for the ride.

Shawn S

 

Agreed. But like you said... Once you lock em' up and start to slide, game over.

 

1. VSA only kicks in during hard accelleration when your wheels are spinning.

2. Snow tires may not have helped you but you will never know. The bottom line is, all season tires = no season tires. I'd rather drive H rated snow tires in the summer than all season tires in the winter.

 

Sorry to hear about this man.

Maybe a 4wd option is better for the area you live in.

 

used to have a Infinity QX4...i think it was just badluck...
Toronto weather is same s NY, might even be worse in the western NY area....

 

sorry about that, hope everything works out ok....

 

FWD-RWD-AWD-4WD…. Doesn’t really matter when you’re braking & sliding.
I still say TIRE GRIP is most important in the above example.
All the electronic gadgets & computers can still only work with what traction is available.

 

No…. It’s a little more sophisticated then just that.
Time to read up on your Acura marketing material.

 

VSA requires wheels turning at different rates. i.e. if you're on the brake with locked wheels there isn't any difference.

 

dude, sorry to hear about your crash!

but man, there was no 5" of snow, be honest here!

there as at most, a fresh 2.5cms, or 1" at MAX!

 

 

the damage doesnt look that bad.. i am sure they will fix it quick

 

"FWD-RWD-AWD-4WD…. Doesn’t really matter when you’re braking & sliding.
I still say TIRE GRIP is most important in the above example.
All the electronic gadgets & computers can still only work with what traction is available"

Ding ding ding.

I'd rather have RWD with snow tires than FWD with all seasons.

 

There's at least a couple of people who are misinformed about the VSA.

Yes, it does regulate wheel slippage off the line. Not necessarily only under hard acceleration, because you could be feathering the gas pedal, and still spin due to snow or something.

Yes, it does monitor the speed of all 4 wheels individually. If there's a mismatch, then it cuts throttle and applies each brake individually to set the car back on the correct course... ah, but what IS the correct path? VSA doesn't stop at just monitoring wheel speed. It also monitors your steering input and yaw rate. For example, if you're turning right and your ass end swings out to the left, the computer knows, by your steering input, then you want to go to the right. And it decides how much regulation to use depending on the yaw rate, which is the propensity of your vehicle to spin around an axis through the center of your vehicle.

It's quite a marvelous piece of equipment, really. Or in this case, has great potential. It's just too bad that Acura didn't spend nearly enough time, effort, and money to engineer a unit as great as, say, the Active Handling. That thing kicks ass. Our VSA sucks ass. I don't trust the damn thing one bit, hence the reason why I must put up with the damn orange light on the dash all the time.

 

Sorry to hear about the accident hope all works out well

 

Interesting...

It rains here in San Jose.. no snow
but my VSA come on all the time if i tap the accelorator leaving a stop light it always comes on... maybe i should have mine checked out

on a side note, doesnt look like much damage considering
always sad to see a car in an accident.

 

hmm worng way of towing a fwd car? there goes ur tranny

 

Good catch. According to the owner's manual, that method is unacceptable. It could potentially damage your transmission and the front axle. ALWAYS flatbed.

 

y cant we tow our cars like that??

sorry about the accident bro

 

Darrin -- read the owner's manual.


It puts way too much stress on the front axle, I guess. But if I remember right, it also stated that if you must do it that way, make sure you go from Park to Drive, then to Neutral. As long as it was done that way, I guess it's not a big deal.