PARALLEL UNIVERSE: Shift Into Neutral If Your Car is Accelerating Out of Control
By David M. Kinchen
Huntingtonews.net Editor
Finally! Somebody -- namely auto columnist Lauren Fix -- has given motorists the right advice on what to do with a runaway Toyota -- or any other car that's speeding out of control. This is what I've been advocating for years now: Simply shift into Neutral -- that's the "N" on your shift quadrant -- and bring the car under control into the shoulder lane.
I saw Lauren Fix on Fox News Monday, March 15. Under discussion was the 61-year-old Californian whose Prius was going 90 miles an hour and NOBODY told him to shift into neutral.
My qualifications for giving automotive advice: I've been a licensed driver since January 1955. Licensed in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, California, West Virginia and Texas, with motorcycle endorsements in Wisconsin, California, West Virginia and Texas. I've owned so many vehicles I've lost count, including a dozen or so motorcycles. I'm a former member of the Sports Car Club of America, the BMW Motorcycle Owners Club and the Porsche Club of America. I served as auto editor of The Milwaukee Sentinel in the 1970s and have driven many kinds of cars, from exotics like the Maserati Quatroporte and the late, lamented Bitter SC to econo cars like the Ford Focus and the Honda Insight, the first edition of the hybrid, with a manual transmission.
I tried my own advice on a short trip this morning in my 2001 Ford Ranger pickup truck. No problem shifting from D into N. The connection with the drive train was released and the car couldn't get out of control.
I've had the experience of having a motorcycle throttle stick and I immediately pulled the clutch in and shifted to Neutral. Problem solved. Believe me, a runaway motorcycle is no joke.
Lauren Fix, on her website (www.laurenfix.com), says her goal is "To inform, empower, educate and entertain viewers about automotive related subjects". Lauren is a trusted and true car expert; an automotive industry expert; she has grown up in the automotive aftermarket, is ASE certified technician, SAE member and understands first hand. Lauren Fix has worked in the automotive industry all her life. Her third book, Lauren Fix's Guide To Loving Your Car, Everything You Need to Know to Take Charge of Your Car and Get On with Your Life is published by St. Martin's Griffin.
So, if you're looking for a "Fix" for an out-of-control vehicle, take Lauren Fix's advice -- and mine -- and shift into Neutral.
Photo: David M. Kinchen in the mid-1970s, braving the wintry Milwaukee weather with a brand new Porsche 911 SC test car.