There are sharp turns that we are familiar with and there are those that we are not.  For those that we are familiar with and often pass, you would already know how to approach and take that curve.  We take extra care in negotiating those bends when the weather is bad or road conditions are poor.  That’s the basic of it.

Before tackling those sharp bends, we must first recognize the cars’ characteristics.  Normally, rear-wheel drive cars tend to over steer.  This means the rear wheels push the car towards the inner side of the bend.  It is like a person running up a road bend where the body leans forward and the feet are a little bit at the back.  The feet push the body towards the inner side of the curve.  On the other hand, front-wheel drive cars tend to under steer, meaning it sort of takes the car towards the outer limits of a curve.  We can compare this to a person running down the road on a curve.  The body is leant back and the feet are in front.  While doing the curve, the body leant backwards pushes away the feet to the outer side of the bend.  That is under steering.

So as not to confuse mishandling of a car to mishandling by the driver, the car should be roadworthy and in top shape.  No matter how good a driver is, a car poorly maintained could take the driver and passengers to the shortest route to a hospital or even funeral parlor.  The parts of a car that need to be in top shape are:

• Steering assembly must be in good condition.  From steering wheel play, steering box or rack-and-pinion, and power-steering, if so equipped.
• Tires must be properly inflated and have good treads for proper road grip.
• Front wheel bearings must be well maintained and tightened to specifications.  No tire wobble or car wanders being felt.
• Tie-rods and tie-rod ends must be in top condition along with the springs, anti-sway bars and brake reaction rods.  Bushings of these parts should not be worn out or damaged.
• Ball-joints are must to be in top shape for this is where the wheels pivot to make a turn.
• Last but not least, brakes.  A good braking system will, most of the time, save you from a badly negotiated curve.
• Shock Absorbers in good condition.

With a good car, a good driver will take sharp turns with ease and comfort not struggling to keep the car on the road.  We will tackle the unknown rather than known curves that we frequently drive on.  The following should be observed when taking those unfamiliar sharp turns:

•  
  1. Be focused on driving and do not be distracted.  Stay alert.
  2. Decelerate by light braking first then downshift to a comfortable speed.
  3. I find it wise to blow the horn if the road is narrow and I am in unfamiliar territory.  This could alert another vehicle coming from the opposite direction especially large trucks or buses.
  4. Always keep your eyes attending frequently to the farthest point of the curve that you can see.  This gives a clue if there is oncoming traffic.
  5. Be on the alert for oncoming speedsters as most of the time they take your side of the road.  If this happens, stop the car immediately.
  6. When conditions are good, take the curb at a reasonable slow speed so as not to experience g-forces pulling you and having to lean your body towards the direction of the curve.
  7. Coming out of the curve accelerate slowly to allow the front tires to correct itself towards the direction you are heading.

Please take note of some of these pointers.  Take extra care when negotiating blind curves.  This means that your view of the other end of the curve is obstructed.  Wide roads on sharp turns do not assure easier or safer negotiating of the bend.  It is where you would frequently encounter speedsters or those overtaking on curves.  When driving at night, lights of oncoming traffic are a forewarning, make sure to dim your lights before taking the curve.  In bad weather conditions, it is better to let your car crawl in negotiating a curve rather than going astray or falling off a cliff.  One last important thing, a few hundred meters before the curve, check on your rear view mirrors if there is a nut in a hurry.  Give way and signal the nut to pass.