I just bought my Mazda 3 recently and when asked about the ABS option I turned it down mostly for price rather than for my hate for it, matter of fact I think it's better to have ABS. my question is the dealer and the official Mazda website said I will be fine without the ABS system living in New England where snow and rain is the norm....supposedly the new braking system installed in the car is reliable enough to drive with and not need ABS in particular. is this true? Also, am I able to install an ABS system on the car when I get some extra cash? if yes how much do they usually cost along with the labor cost?

 

I drive in the snow all the time without ABS with no problems.

Drive slow, leave enough room to stop, pump your brakes as you are stopping and you'll be fine. People drove for decades before ABS brakes were invented and they did just fine.

 

by "pump your brakes" do you mean that if I skid I should not slam on it? sorry more clarifacation would be appreciated.

 

Ithink SST means that any sudden movement, steering or brakes, is not a good idea in the snowy/icy weather. The idea is to use your brakes carefully and physically pump them, rather than to stay on them for too long. That will only facilitate a spin out, or a lack of steering control.
I lived in Pa. for 38 yrs and that's been my experience too. BTW: None of my cars then had ABS. ABS hadn't been invented back then. But I sure did have a few nice spins in the snowy weather too.
My old Honda Civic was so lightweight (<2000lbs.)that the only way to steer it in bad weather was to use the hand brake. I drove that car for eight years before the rust got too bad. Needless to say, I got very good at it.

 

thanks virgin for clarifying that! now can you tell me what do you usually do when you skid or lose traction?

 

Steer into the skid (rear end going right, steer right) and get out of the gas.

The idea on pumping the brakes is to gradually slow the car down with small braking inputs. i.e. press brake lightly, then lift, do this again and again until you are at a complete stop. Increase your following distances between vehicles and allow yourself extra distance to stop at intersections, especially at the bottoms of hills. If you can allow the vehicle to decelerate without using the brakes, that helps as well (just get off gas and let it coast down in speed.)

If you're really concerned about it, get a second set of rims with snow tires (I have them on my wife's car...Dunlop Wintersport M3's, very good on the road, not noisy and absolutely incredible in the snow/ice.)

 

Pray!

No really, what SST said is correct... minus all the typos (sorry SST. 'Couldn't help myself. And yes, I know we all do it @ some point in time, 'just not used to seeing you have that problem. I know you to be a good speller.)
As far as once you get into s skid, it very much depends on the situation and type of skid.
I once could not keep my car from skidding and I was only going 15MPH. I did a 180 and when I got the car stopped it looked like I had intended to park the car in front of this house it ended up at.'Course, I didn't know anyone that lived there.
Sometimes even the best laid plans don't pan out. Causing a controlled skid (i.e. using the hand brake) is one thing. Having an unintended/uncontrolled one is anotherthing entirely. That's when you think fast, try everything and thenpray.

BTW: A FWD is different from an RWD car. It is more likely that you will lose traction @ the front wheels, which of course control nearly everything (forward momentum, steering and 70+% braking) in an FWD. Sometimes, applying (or "modulating) the gas pedal can help regain control. It goes against the grain I know, but it can help under certain circumstances.

 

ha with my old old car that i had for say 6 months right was a 1992 honda accord EX-R and i did exactly what virgin did. use the handbrake why because i wouldnt stop. and i almost got into a few accidents (not to mention hit a couple of stop signs. but i used the hand brake and found with any honda works magic. however cop pulled me over for careless driving and i explained to him what he did. but now with ABS i should be able to stop. i mean i did with my EL right.... well tried to stop anyway using the hand brake is fun

 

Ididn't use the hand brake to stop.That would've been nearly as useless as the foot brake. I used it to steer through turns the car would have otherwise not negotiated in slippery conditions.
It goes like this:
1. Begin your turn using the wheel. Just "touch" the wheel in the direction you want the car to turn in.
2. Pull up the hand brake holding the ratchet button in. The back end will kick out, if you will.
3. Apply a little gas.
4. Release the hand brake and apply LOTSA' gas and GO!! (Just kidding about the lotsa' gas.)
Boom! 90* turn (or more) negotiated in the space ofthe car's length itself.

Dude!! You live in Canada... SNOW country. Haven't you ever done "donuts" in an empty parking lot?? It's GREAT practice.

 

Man...I did murder the spelling in that one...can you tell I was dealing with my 3 year old while I was typing?