Pro tip: That split second of panic when your work van's brake line snapped on a hill in Pittsburgh

I was driving down a steep street in Pittsburgh last Tuesday with a full load of pest control equipment when I hit the brakes and the pedal went STRAIGHT to the floor. I had to crank the wheel and use the emergency brake to slide into a parked car's bumper to stop, which dented my fender but saved me from rolling into an intersection. Has anyone else had to ditch their routine plan in a sudden emergency like that, and what did you learn from it?

3 comments

3 Comments

dakota_patel9815d ago

...and that's why I always keep my parking brake hand loose now. I had a similar thing happen in a rental car on a mountain road in Colorado, except my emergency brake cable snapped too and I had to steer into a snowbank to stop. Learned the hard way that having an exit route planned in your head at all times can save you those precious seconds.

jessica_robinson2315d ago

Did you ever get a chance to try downshifting before you hit the snowbank? I had a brake failure once in a similar spot and dropping into a lower gear slowed me down just enough to steer into a safer ditch. @dakota_patel98 that mental exit plan thing is huge, I always scanned the sides of mountain roads after that.

wadem8915d ago

I read that some folks keep a small bag of sand in the trunk for icy spots, though that might not help much if the cable snaps.