If the rear of your vehicle is skidding to the left, you should:
- Not turn your steering wheel.
- Turn your steering wheel to the left to correct the skid. ✓
- Turn your steering wheel to the right to correct the skid.
Answer: B. Turn your steering wheel to the left to correct the skid.
When the rear of your vehicle skids to the left, turn the steering wheel to the left to correct the skid.
Why this is the answer
The handbook describes a skid as tires losing traction so the vehicle slips. When you start to skid, it lists steps: ease off the accelerator, do not use the brakes, and turn the steering wheel in the direction of the skid. If the rear is sliding left, the direction of the skid is left, so the wheel goes left. That is the correction the handbook gives, rather than holding the wheel straight or steering the opposite way.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Not turn your steering wheel. — Holding the steering wheel straight does not correct a skid; the handbook says to steer in the direction of the skid.
- C. Turn your steering wheel to the right to correct the skid. — Turning the steering wheel right is opposite the direction the rear is sliding, so it does not follow the handbook's instruction.
Remember it
Steer toward the skid, not away from it.
Official handbook: California Driver Handbook (DL 600), Section 8: Safe Driving, p. 60