Since the start of winter is almost upon us we thought it might be time for a little winter driving recap. For those in warmer climates you might want to skip this one. This is only for those hardy souls that can do snow induced hand-brake donuts in their sleep. The Tirerack has a series of winter driving articles for those that would like to know more about the wonderful world of oversteer and understeer. Here's an excerpt of one of the better ones:

To most effectively control your car on a slippery road, you should always use only one control at a time. While cornering, for instance, you should be off the brake and off the accelerator, coasting through the turn and using all available grip for steering. The proper way to negotiate any curve or corner is to brake on the straightway before the curve to adjust your speed; then coast and steer through the turn. When you start to straighten the steering wheel as you exit the curve, gently accelerate out of the turn.

Okay, so you didn't adjust your speed properly, and your car is understeering. What now?

First, there are several things you should NOT do. Don't increase your steering angle, because the tires have already lost grip and increasing the steering will only make it worse. Don't hit the brakes because the front tires are already skidding, and more brake pressure will only make it still worse.

You can read the entire article here. And afterwards when you're ready to buy snow-tires you can go here. We'll have more on snow tires, winter driving, and donuts in the days and weeks ahead.