Three-letter words that could save your life on the road

This week you may have used few four-letter-words with abundant glee depending on whether you sent, received or totally missed out on the flowers and chocolates that come with a that naked boy with a bow.

With Valentine’s Day well out of the way I would like to introduce you to a few safer and less dramatic three-letter-words that could be of more use to your life than celebrating one day of love.
Last week as I drove around the country testing exciting pickups I did not realise how many incompetent drivers we have on our roads. As I made quick progress in a two-wheel drive luggage carrier I noticed a similar vehicle in my rear view mirror.

Minding my own business I proceeded cautiously but with relative haste. I soon realised that the larger pick-up truck turned an innocent afternoon cruise into a race of sorts.

I am not one to shy away when behind the wheel of an impressive performer so I stayed ahead for as long as I could.

On reaching the junction, I slowed down but the other vehicle drive must have been upset at the outcome of this 20- kilometre dash. He overtook me and miscalculated the bend at the junction.

What happened next was quite unfortunate as the driver lost control and flipped several times before ramming into a stationary public service vehicle.  
To my knowledge there were no fatalities by the time I left the scene but this unfortunate incident shocked me to the core. While many drivers may not know what to do in such a situation, this accident would have been avoided if the vehicle had ESP (Electronic Stability Control).

No vehicle should be allowed on our road without electronic safety features of the kind I am explaining below.

If you are about to buy a vehicle, insist that it comes with at least an Antilock Braking System (ABS). If your current vehicle does not have this as standard do not drive more than 60kph. 
How ESP works: In a nutshell, Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) is a software that is designed intervene before an accident occurs and assist you to bring your vehicle under control through braking, engine and in some cases, your suspension components.

Did you know that skidding is one of the main causes of road accidents. International studies indicate that at least 40 per cent of all fatal traffic accidents are caused by skidding. ESP could prevent up to 80 per cent of such accidents.

ESP recognises if skidding is imminent and intervenes at lightning speed.

The driver stays in control of the vehicle and does not get into a skid provided that the physical limits are not exceeded.
If your basic vehicle has ESP on board, it also provides you with two further active safety systems: the Antilock Braking System (ABS) and the Traction Control System TCS.
ABS prevents the wheels from locking during braking; TCS prevents the wheels from spinning when starting off and accelerating.

While ABS and TCS intervene on a vehicle’s longitudinal dynamics, ESP additionally improves the lateral dynamics, thus ensuring stable driving in all directions.Eighty per cent of vehicle manufacturers in Europe use the acronym ESP for the Electronic Stability Programme.

The functionality and operation of the ESP, as well as the gain it provides in driving safety, is the same.
Have you ever driven down a wet road or one with a loose surface and needed to brake urgently? What happened must have scared you out of your skin if your vehicle does not have ABS.

Slamming on the brakes locks the wheels and your steering inputs become meaningless.

The Antilock Braking System prevents the locking of one or more wheels during braking and ensuring that the vehicle remains steerable.  
It requires for your wheels to have speed sensors to detect the speed of rotation of each wheel. These sensors pass the electrical signals to a control unit.