7 unexpected car emergencies and how to deal with them

By: Vanessa Pogorelic

Here are seven car emergencies you may never have considered, and how to give yourself and others on board the best chance of surviving each of them.

Car submersion

Vehicle submersions into water account for up to 10 per cent of all drownings in high-income countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and USA.

While the incidence of vehicles crashing directly into deep water is uncommon, flood waters can also cause a car to become dangerously submerged.

In Australia, around 49 per cent of flood fatalities involve vehicles driving in flood waters.

In a fast-moving river or in flood waters, a four-wheel drive vehicle can lose stability and risk being washed away in just 30cm of water and for small cars it can be as little as 15cm of water.

Dr. Gordon Giesbrecht from the University of Manitoba in Canada is an authority in vehicle submersion and on how to escape from a vehicle in water.

His team have conducted extensive tests, submerging more than 80 vehicles with occupants inside within a controlled environment to establish the best way to escape.

From the time a vehicle hits deep water it may take several minutes for it to become completely submerged, that is for water to cover the roof.

A car that has crashed into or been washed into deeper water will initially float then increasingly tilt forward due to the weight of the engine (which in most cars, is in the front). As the car sinks, water will gradually rise creating pressure on the doors.

Although most people would instinctively think to open a door, according to Dr Giesbrecht, doors should never be opened once a car is in deeper water as it causes water to flood in and sink the car more quickly.

Water pressure against the outside of the car will also make doors virtually impossible to open as the water rises.

To have the best chance of surviving you must escape through a window.

You have about one minute to exit through the side window of a car before water starts reaching window level and prevents windows from being opened.

Here’s what you need to do as quickly as possible within that one minute:

• Do not look for or even touch your phone. It wastes time.
• Unclip and get out of your seatbelt.
• Try to lower a front side window. Electric windows will still work for 15 to 60 seconds.
• If it doesn't open, move to a rear seat. The rear of the vehicle will be higher in the water due to the forward tilt caused by engine weight.
• Press your feet against a rear side window, placing your heels on the side of the window closest to the door hinges (toward the front of the vehicle) and punch hard until it breaks.
• Once the window is broken, release children from seatbelts and child restraints and pull any children towards you.
• Push them through the broken window first then follow them.

A tool called a glass hammer can break a car’s window glass in this kind of emergency. They are small, inexpensive and can be purchased online and kept within easy reach inside a car.

The car rolls over

Car rollovers are one of the most dangerous vehicle incidents.

With impacts coming from many directions as a car rolls and flips, occupants are thrown around the cabin resulting in multiple injuries.

The most common injuries are to the head, spine and thorax, although the abdomen and upper and lower limbs are also vulnerable to severe injury. Essentially, almost no part of your body is safe in this type of crash.

Vehicle safety technology, such as Electronic Stability Control (ESC), is helping reduce the incidence of rollovers, while a more advanced form of ESC known as a Roll Stability system is taking this protection even further, detecting when a car is about to roll and automatically taking preventative action.

Passive safety features also help reduce the severity of injuries in the event that a car does roll, and one of the oldest safety systems in a car, the seatbelt, is still one of the most important in this situation. Side curtain airbags that are activated in a rollover also help prevent injuries once a car has begun to roll.

What to do if your car starts to roll over

Vehicle rollovers happen so suddenly that unless the driver is well trained in handling the situation, it is unlikely they will react appropriately at the time. However, there is a way of dealing with a rollover that could keep the car from flipping.

If you feel the wheels of your car lift from the road on one side, don’t try to correct it by steering in the opposite direction – this will exacerbate the problem. You actually need to turn the steering wheel in the direction you’re titling in order to stay stable.

Turning the steering wheel in the opposite direction transfers force to the side that’s still in contact with the road which creates a rocking effect that’s more likely to result in the car overbalancing and flipping.

If you can’t correct the tilt and you can feel the car is going to flip, immediately fold your arms across your chest, holding the opposite shoulder with each hand, and tilt your head down.

Once the car has come to a standstill turn off the ignition if you can. It’s likely no doors will open after a rollover so you may have to carefully get out through a window. Help anyone else out and get clear of the car before calling for help.

The driver loses consciousness

Experiencing a sudden loss of consciousness is distressing no matter when or where it occurs. But when it happens to the driver of a moving vehicle, the consequences can be even more devastating.

Some of the more common causes of blackouts while driving include diabetes, epilepsy, heart attack or stroke, hot weather and alcohol or substance abuse.

If your driver seems unwell, ask them not to drive and, if you’re capable of driving safely, put yourself in the driver’s seat instead. If they seem unwell while driving, insist they pull over and stop the car as soon as it’s safe to do so.

In the event that you are a passenger in a car with a driver who has lost consciousness, stay calm and take the following actions:

It’s important to keep your seatbelt on. You should also leave the driver’s seatbelt on and don’t try to move them out of your way.

Grab the steering wheel and manoeuvre the car to the side of the road and shift the car into neutral – in an automatic car you would shift the gear stick to the N position and in a manual car simply pull the gear stick so it’s out of gear. This is to ensure the car doesn’t increase speed if the driver still has a foot on the accelerator.

Putting the transmission into neutral while the unconscious driver's foot is still on the accelerator will cause revs to rise, potentially to an uncomfortably high level, but remember, bringing the car to a stop is your priority. Once this is done, switch the hazard lights on.

Do not reach over and switch off the ignition as this will shut off power steering and make the brakes ineffective.

Once the vehicle has come to a complete stop, it’s then safe to switch off the ignition and call emergency services.

The car's brakes fail

The braking system in a car is its most important safety feature and, fortunately, in most modern vehicles, the braking system is very reliable. But there are instances when things can go horribly wrong.

Brakes can fail as the result of a brake fluid leak, air and/or water in the brake lines, very worn brake pads and rotors, excessive heat or any combination of the above. They can also fail from lack of regular use. If you drive through water and your brakes become wet this can also temporarily impact their performance.

If you attempt to apply the brakes and nothing happens, press down on the brake pedal again as hard as you can. If the car still fails to slow down, don’t panic and very importantly, don’t switch off the ignition or put the car into neutral or you’ll have no control at all.

Switch on your hazard lights to alert other traffic that you’re in an emergency situation.

The best course of action is to shift the transmission into a lower gear and use engine braking to slow down.

This may be done with a manual or automatic transmission, however some modern vehicles may prevent you from selecting an extra low gear until the vehicle is going slow enough to engage the gear without over-revving the engine.

Be aware that engaging the handbrake may cause the car to spin out of control and if your car has an electric handbrake, attempting to apply it at speed will most often result in the handbrake automatically disengaging.

Once you’ve slowed down through engine-braking try to move over to the shoulder of the road when it’s safe to do so and out of the way of other traffic and call for assistance.

Never underestimate the importance of getting your car regularly serviced so that vital safety components, such as the brakes, can be checked and repaired as necessary.

The car starts aquaplaning

When the roads are wet, the grooves on your car’s tyres work as an escape route to get water away from the tyres’ surface so they can keep a grip on the road.

When the grooves on your tyres are too worn or there is simply too much water on the road and you’re travelling too fast, your tyres can’t clear water as effectively to maintain grip. And that’s where you can come unstuck on a wet road.

Your car’s tyres can begin skimming across the water, which is why this is referred to as aquaplaning or hydroplaning.

While this is happening, your car will be out of control.

The most important thing you can do to help prevent aquaplaning is to keep your speed down in the wet and make sure your tyres have enough tread. In Australia the minimum tread depth is 1.5mm but it’s highly recommended that you don’t allow them to wear any lower than 3mm. You should also maintain the correct pressure in your tyres.

If you do find your car aquaplaning, avoid braking too hard as this will make the situation worse. Ease your foot off the accelerator and keep steering in the direction you were already heading.

Most cars now have antilock brakes (ABS) which enable you to slowly apply pressure to reduce speed safely in this situation. Remember don’t brake suddenly – do it gradually.

As your cars slows down, your tyres will once again slowly regain their grip on the road.

RELATED: Driving in a storm »

Your car tyre suddenly blows-out

Unlike a puncture, which generally deflates a tyre more gently and causes a gradual pulling or drag to one side, experiencing a tyre blow-out is closer to having a small explosion hit you while you’re driving.

When one of your front tyres blows out it will cause the car to suddenly pull towards the side where the tyre has blown. With a rear-tyre blow-out, the car will sway uncontrollably from side to side.

Stay calm and get a grip

Although instinct will tell you to brake suddenly, you need to avoid doing this at all costs. Braking suddenly with a blown-out tyre will cause you to lose control of your car.

To keep it under control you need to slow down by easing your foot off the accelerator and then gradually applying the brake. You also need to keep a firm grip on the steering wheel and keep the car heading straight ahead.

When you’ve reached a low speed, switch on your hazard lights and look for somewhere safe to pull over.

Once you’ve safely stopped, don’t attempt to drive the car any further. Call for assistance if you need help getting the spare tyre on, or if you’re changing it yourself, make sure you’re well clear of any passing traffic.

What causes tyres to suddenly blow?

If your tyres are underinflated, it can cause excessive flexing in the sidewalls due to the lack of pressure keeping the tyre in shape. This constant flexing creates excessive friction and heat, causing it to become weaker.

Heat build-up inside a tyre can also be exacerbated in hot weather. But even at a low air temperature, underinflated tyres are a big risk on the road.

The chance of a blow-out from underinflated tyres also increases if your car is under a heavier load than normal and you’re travelling at a higher speed. This is why you should always check the pressure and inspect the condition of your tyres before you head off on a road trip carrying an extra load.

Look for cracks and bulges and make sure there is a good amount of tread on all tyres.

Hitting a curb at relatively high speed or hitting a pothole in the road can also result in an instant blow-out or could cause damage which may catch up with you later down the track.

Even if your tyres appear to be in good shape, are inflated to the correct pressure and have adequate tread on them, as tyres age, the rubber deteriorates and weakens which is dangerous.

Regardless of how much you drive on them, tyres do have a use-by date and should be changed approximately every five to seven years, even where there is still a good amount of tread left.

RELATED: Check the condition of your tyres »

Remember, that relatively thin bit of rubber is all that’s keeping you and around 3.5 tons of car connected to the road so treat them kindly.

Car collides with an animal

The force exerted by an animal colliding with a car can be immense, especially at higher speeds on country roads. When a large animal is involved, the consequences for vehicle occupants can be devastating.

Collisions with wild animals, especially kangaroos, are common across WA. Collisions with livestock in the State’s pastoral regions, such as the Kimberley, Mid West Gascoyne, and Goldfields-Esperance, are also a danger.

To help avoid animal collisions, look out for the yellow signs warning that animals might be crossing roads in the area, and take extra care when driving around dawn and dusk when some animals become more active, or near roadside areas which may collect water and attract animals.

Have your headlights on high beam when there are no other cars around and watch out for reflections from animals’ eyes illuminated by the headlights.

What to do if a collision is unavoidable

If you see an animal on or by the side of the road, don’t swerve to avoid it. Brake gradually instead.

If it’s too late to avoid colliding with it, it’s critical that you don’t try to swerve around it. Swerving could cause your car to rollover or crash into another vehicle or object such as a tree.

Apply the brakes firmly but in a way that allows you to stay in control of the vehicle.

If you stay on course, there’s a chance the animal will move out of your way before you hit it.

All animals on or near roads will act unpredictably, whether they are wild animals or livestock so don’t attempt to guess what they might do once you spot one.

After you’ve slowed down to a safe speed, put your hazard lights on and pull over, well out of the way of any other vehicles.

Check on others in the car, assess the damage to the car and call for help.

Don’t stand on or cross a road to check on an animal. Doing this will put you at risk of being hit by another vehicle. An injured animal in a distressed state can also be a danger. To get help for the injured animal, call the Wildcare Helpline on 9474 9055.

RELATED: What to do if you find a sick or injured animal at the roadside »

Last updated: April 2021