[mooza]

What happened to me yesterday happened to me for the third time in my life. A car (Wagon R, in this case) which had stopped ahead of me at a traffic signal, started rolling back towards my Scorpio (I was a couple of metres behind), as we were on a slope.
I sat on my horn, to alert him, but to no avail. To my horror, he kept rolling back until I heard the dreaded "Crrrunch !! The visibly shaken driver got down to check the damage, fortunately for us there was not much. He did apologise, though.

What do you do when the vehicle ahead of you begins to roll back (apart from sitting on your horn, that is).

a. Start reversing your car too.
b. Move your car ahead to stop his (yet gentle) rollback in time.
c. Shout at your loudest.
d. Carry small pebbles in your car to throw at his car to alert him!

Expert opinion solicited!

[condor]

Tricky situation. But moving your car ahead to stop him is not an option becuase the impact will be more than what will be if he rolls back to hit your car. And when he hits you, the slope can work in your favor.

Reversing your car may not be possible if you have other vehicles behind you.

Stones ? No. You dont want to damage his car & get the blame.

Shouting ? What if your windows are rolled up ? Who's going to hear you ?

[amitoj]

Interesting thread. While there may not be enough time to reverse your car, you may quickly check your rvm, slot your car into neutral and don't stand on the brakes. Since your car will move back slightly when the car in front hits you, there will be lesser damage than if you were to stand on your brakes.

[vigsom]

Only three chances

1. honk like wild
2. move a shade forward and brake - the more the car in front moves backward,the stronger the impact.
3. Pray,"Oh God,let my buggy be safe"

[shankar.balan]

since the car that rolled back was a wagon R and you were in a Scorpio -my suggestion is that you consider fitting a bull bar or nudge guard to the front of the scorp.
the only other thing one can do is to SIT on the HORN and FLASH LIGHTS like MAD!
not much other scope.
Always stay STILL at such moments with handbrake full on, so that your car acts as a block to the other guy. Dont move forward since the force of impact will un-necessarily increase. Just HONK like the blazes!!
if the back-roller is otherwise occupied and thus does not hear or see your signs, frankly there is not much one can do!

[quickdraw]

Audibly and visually alert him by using the lights and horn. The reversing/stones/going into him option isnt really viable all the time .

[revtech]

HORN and flash your lights is the only logical thing to do in this situation.reversing is not always possible.


rev

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by quickdraw

reversing/stones/going into him option isnt really viable all the time .

true - easy to write here,but when it actually happens,hawa nikal jaat hai

[deepclutch]

I have My own experiences with Heart in My Mouth watching the vehicle(cars mostly) in front rolling back and stops by inches of distance.

I believe ,Horning like Mad also with Lights Blinking and possibly Shout at your loudest are the only options.but still ,if the lousy car driver in front cannot be alerted-Sorry ,it is Luck whether Your Vehicle will be saved.

Isn't people aware of using handbrakes in hilly roads when traffic blocks are faced?I think this is pretty easy with any car drivers(including new drivers).

though ,many will follow the tested method of pushing the vehicle in clutch(may be it's bad?) to have the vehicle move up.

In Hilly sections(Especially in some cities with huge traffic blocks like in over bridges,flyovers,gradients etc) ,government can make sure putting boards reading use hand brake/park brake in Hilly Roads in traffic halt.

[xingamazon]

As many mentioned by everyone, guess other than honking much and shouting there is not much choices left.

But on a funny note, I liked the option that you had mentioned i.e.
d. Carry small pebbles in your car to throw at his car to alert him!
I would suggest instead of a pebble, carry a small brick and the moment you see it rolling back, get down from your car, and place it behind his wheels, to stop it from rolling, but you need reflexes like Spiderman to do this.

[McLaren Rulez]

Here's what you can do.

To prevent it from happening, leave a big gap between you and the guy ahead at all signals. Make it a habit. It should be big but not enough for a scooterist to get in between you two or else the car ahead will hit the scooter and then the scooter will hit you.

After this if the car rolls, do as follows. Check behind for how far the car behind you is and if there is a gap, depress the clutch and get off the brakes and let your car roll till you can reach without hitting the guy behind. Its easy enough and normally there's sufficient time to do it. If there is no gap, don't do that.

Now, your next priority is to honk your butt off. Do it immediately and the guy ahead might react in time. If he's still rolling back, hit the brakes and brace. Why the brakes? Because if you don't, he'll hit you and you'll roll back due to the impact and hit the guy behind. Thus, you have damage at the front and the back.

Last thing, don't pick a fight with the newbie. Helps no one. Try and make him pay you a small sum for damages if you think he should pay but beyond that don't bother escalating it too much.

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by vigsom

Only three chances....honk like wild

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

the only other thing one can do is to SIT on the HORN and FLASH LIGHTS like MAD!

Originally Posted by quickdraw

Audibly and visually alert him by using the lights and horn. .

Originally Posted by revtech

HORN and flash your lights is the only logical thing to do in this situation.

Originally Posted by xingamazon

As many mentioned by everyone, guess other than honking much and shouting there is not much choices left.

All this is OK, BUT what is the guy ahead is a Poor "L" Board and hasnt mastered the Art of not free rolling backwards on a incline. Nothing is going to stop the Crunnnch.. Pray God you are in a bigger/Stronger car.

[sreevasudevan]

I leave a large gap between me and a big veh in front.. Especially a lorry. It does'nt matter if get out of the light late, but I will not allow some novice to ruin my car.

[Count]

Follow the "Tyre and Tarmac" rule to set the gap between the car ahead of you, especially on inclines.

Say what if the vehicle rolling back isnt a car but a truck or a bus? Abandon ship at the earliest I guess

[prince_pervez]

Originally Posted by mooza

b. Move your car ahead to stop his (yet gentle) rollback in time.
Expert opinion solicited!

Originally Posted by vigsom

1. move a shade forward and brake - the more the car in front moves backward,the stronger the impact.

Not a good idea to move a little ahead. For all you know the bugger in front is a nut case filing you for rear ending him.
In most cases there is too little you can do than pray for minimal impact and damage. Call up the insurance. If there is brake failure on a heavy vehicle thats rolling back then, like someone said, abandon ship.