Alright, so you’re probably thinking, “Front wheel drive donuts? Is this guy serious?” Yeah, I know, I know. It’s not like those perfect, smoky circles you see the rear-wheel-drive monsters pulling off. But hey, I had some time, an empty parking lot, and a bit of a stubborn streak. My buddy, Jim, who’s got this old RWD pickup, kept ribbing me that my FWD hatchback was only good for grocery runs. So, naturally, I had to see if I could prove him, well, slightly less right.
So, Here’s How My Little Experiment Went Down
First off, safety first, people. I’m not trying to be a daredevil or wreck my car, or anyone else’s. I found this massive, absolutely deserted supermarket parking lot late one evening. Checked it a few times, made sure there were no sneaky light poles or curbs waiting to bite me. You gotta be smart about this stuff, seriously.
My weapon of choice? My trusty, if somewhat unexciting, FWD car. The plan wasn’t about raw power – because, well, there isn’t much to begin with for this kind of maneuver. It was all about finesse… or at least, that’s what I told myself.
Here’s the play-by-play of what I actually did:
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I started by putting the car in reverse. Yep, you heard that right. Going forward and yanking the e-brake in a FWD just makes you skid in a straight line, mostly. No fun there.
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Then, I got a little bit of speed going backwards. Not crazy fast, just enough to get some momentum. Maybe like 5-10 mph, something like that. Enough to feel the car moving but not so much that I’d lose complete control if things went sideways, literally.
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Once I was rolling back, I cranked the steering wheel hard to one side. All the way. This is key to getting the back end to even think about swinging out.
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And here’s the magic ingredient: I yanked the handbrake (or e-brake, whatever you call it). Pulled it up hard and quick. The idea is to lock up those rear wheels.
The (Not So) Glorious Results
Now, the first few attempts? Total flops. I’m talking jerky, awkward semi-spins that looked more like I’d forgotten how to park. The car would kind of shudder, the back wheels would skid a bit, but it wasn’t a “donut.” More like a confused flounder.
I kept at it though. I started playing with the timing. A little more reverse speed. A sharper, quicker yank on the handbrake. Trying to coordinate the steering input with the handbrake pull. It’s a bit of a dance, really. You have to feel what the car is doing.
After, I dunno, maybe ten or fifteen tries, something finally clicked. I got a bit more speed, turned the wheel, pulled the e-brake, and the back end actually swung around in a decent arc! It wasn’t a perfect, continuous donut like you’d see in a drift competition. More like a tight, skidding pivot on the front wheels. The car would spin maybe 180, sometimes a bit more, before losing momentum or me needing to correct it.
It felt pretty wild, not gonna lie. Different from any other driving sensation. You’re essentially forcing the car to do something it really doesn’t want to do. There was a lot of tire squeal (sorry, residents a mile away, if you heard that) and the smell of, well, abused rubber.
To stop the spin, I’d just release the handbrake, ease off the (reverse) gas, and straighten the wheel. It all happens pretty quick.
So, what did I learn from this highly scientific endeavor?
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Patience is key. You’re not gonna nail it on the first try. Or the fifth. Keep adjusting.
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It’s all about that handbrake timing. Too early or too late, and it just doesn’t work right.
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A slippery surface would probably help a lot. My attempts were on dry asphalt. Wet ground, or even some trays under the rear wheels (which I didn’t try, seemed like too much effort for my silly experiment) would likely make it easier to get the back end loose.
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It’s probably not great for your handbrake cable or your tires. Just saying. This isn’t something I’d make a habit of.
In the end, did I achieve perfect, Hollywood-style FWD donuts? Nah, not really. But I did manage to get the car to spin around in a somewhat controlled, if slightly clumsy, fashion. And I won that six-pack from Jim, so totally worth it. It was a fun little challenge, a way to understand a bit more about what a car can (and can’t) do. Just make sure if you ever get curious, you do it somewhere super safe and away from everyone and everything. Don’t be that guy.