Surf Wiki
Save to docs
general/driving-techniques

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

J-turn

Driving maneuver

J-turn

Driving maneuver

Note
Animation of a J-turn

A J-turn is a driving maneuver in which a reversing vehicle is spun 180 degrees and continues, facing forward, without changing direction of travel. The J-turn is also called a "moonshiner's turn" (from the evasive driving tactics used by bootleggers), a "reverse 180", a reverse flick, a "Rockford Turn", a "Rockford Spin", or simply a "Rockford" popularized by the 1970s TV show The Rockford Files. A J-turn differs from a bootleg turn in that the vehicle begins in reverse gear. It is often performed by stunt drivers in film and television shows. It can be performed both on dry and snowy surfaces; the latter is preferable while learning the skill.

Technique

The turn is achieved by transferring the momentum of the car by reversing quickly in a straight line then turning the wheel sharply while using a brake to lock the front wheels. The driver changes into a forward gear—typically first—as the nose comes about.

World record

The narrowest J-turn was performed in a Renault Twingo, between barriers set 3.78 m apart. The diagonal length of the car, 3.70 m, meant stunt driver Terry Grant had a gap of 4 cm on each side. This happened at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, UK, at the PistonHeads show on 11–13 January 2008.

References

References

  1. Spinelli, Mike. (20 January 2011). "How to Do a J-Turn in the Snow".
  2. WIRED. "How to do a J-turn".
  3. (16 January 2008). "World Record at PH show: Terry Grant Completes Record J-turn". pistonheads.com.
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

driving-techniques
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about J-turn — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report