# How do I make one of those cool "J" turns the secret service and such make? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 9, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715 "2006-03-09T18:49:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2006, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/21 "2006-03-10T14:20:30Z")
And [here](http://www.modernracer.com/tips/handbraketurn.html) is how to learn to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2006, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/22 "2006-03-10T14:27:46Z")
Anyone notice that the respondents, AFAICT, are all dudes? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2006, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/23 "2006-03-10T14:34:06Z")
**Princhester** has a little less dudosity than you think. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/24 "2006-03-11T00:51:37Z")
Also, not a dude here. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/25 "2006-03-11T05:46:46Z")
> [@don't ask](#): > > **Princhester** has a little less dudosity than you think. How so? ---
**Author:** ![Dog80](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6bbea6/32.png) [@Dog80](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dog80)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/26 "2006-03-11T09:30:40Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > You need a car with reinforced tires, especially strong glue holding said tires to the rims… The tire is held in place on the rim solely by the air pressure. There’s no glue involved. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/27 "2006-03-11T12:23:33Z")
> [@](#): > > The tire is held in place on the rim solely by the air pressure. There’s no glue involved. Seconded, you can take actually classes for this and other ‘capture avoidance methods’, which is meant for people traveling in dangerous countries, the maneuvers in practice are often in rental cars. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/28 "2006-03-11T15:59:33Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Seconded, you can take actually classes for this and other ‘capture avoidance methods’, which is meant for people traveling in dangerous countries, the maneuvers in practice are often in rental cars. And here I thought I was the only one who shifted their rented Pontiac from forward to reverse with the gas floored… ---
**Author:** ![Caractacus\_Pott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@Caractacus\_Pott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caractacus_Pott)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/29 "2006-03-11T16:19:37Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > You know the the turn, I’m sure you have seen it a thousand times in the movies. Where the car is racing backwards down the road and suddenly whips around and straightens out and moves in the opposite direction going forward… > > \ > > Anyone done it and want to share? Phlosphr, Visit Alaska in the winter. Especially after the temperature surpasses freezing for a day then returns to sub-freezing weather. I slowed early before making a turn at an intersection that’s usually tricky. As I eased the steering wheel to the left to go into the turn lane the car suddenly lost traction. A frightening few seconds later I was in the other lane seeing where I came from. Surprisingly I didn’t bounce off a road sign, berm of hardened snow, or another car. ---
**Author:** ![glilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/48db29/32.png) [@glilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glilly)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/30 "2006-03-11T17:09:28Z")
If you watch car commercials showing a spin in slow motion, you’ll often see the back wheel in a locked position due to the stunt driver using the parking brake to initiate the spin. Sometimes when doing the backwards-to-forwards spin, the engine would stall on my Honda Civic. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/31 "2006-03-11T17:29:02Z")
I’ve seen this demonstrated on TV by (IIRC) police responsible for escorting the Royal Family and politicians on UK TV. The car used was a bog standard Rover 75, so its possible to do it in any old car I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2006, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715/32 "2006-03-11T23:21:06Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > Anyone done it and want to share? I’ll second (or third or whatever) the idea that ice and snow make this much easier. I’m convinced I couldn’t pull any Hollywood moves in the summer (for skill, safety, and having-paid-off-my-car-myself reasons), but since the roads and parking lots are icy here almost every day around now, I can do drifts out of the office parking lot at 15kph, or go down my street and perform a one-point turn to end up more-or-less by the curb (like **Caractacus Pott** , except I mean to do it. :D) Personally I echew the handbrake when backing up - gunning the engine a bit to cause the front wheels to slip does the job for me. All stunts performed by unprofessional driver on not-closed course, but always way late with no people or cars around, so it’s just me and my wheel alignment in danger. 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-make-one-of-those-cool-j-turns-the-secret-service-and-such-make/347715.md?page=1)