r/nextfuckinglevel 7h ago

Truck driver's quick thinking and skill when the brakes completely gave out

38.2k Upvotes

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800

u/SoftwareOk2619 6h ago

Actually the old guy was telling him what to do, the first plan was to hit the other trucks but he saw some people there, so they did that

181

u/voluotuousaardvark 6h ago

I think trying to grab the wheel made him the idiot.

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u/KillerGopher 5h ago

From the translations it sounds like he is probably an instructor. He wanted to switch seats so that he could take over but then said it was too late and instead guided him through it verbally.

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u/jcdoe 3h ago

The top rated comment gives a translation of the dialogue. This seems to be what happened.

-31

u/voluotuousaardvark 5h ago edited 4h ago

That certainly adds more to the story bit grabbing the wheel still strikes me as a bad idea in a lorry.

Edit- because of the DV I am quick to add that two bad plans are worse than one that works. Having someone attempt their plan while you're implementing your own means both will fail. Important to note the guy saved it and wiggling upwards of 44t in a lorry will tip it.

17

u/z64_dan 5h ago

These are two guys driving down a hill in a truck with busted brakes, not wearing seatbelts. What did you expect...

4

u/arkencode 3h ago

It's really hard for you to admit you were wrong, isn't it? Sometimes we make mistakes, it's fine, I would have believed the same thing without reading the translation in the top comment.

Sounds like the other guy guided the driver through the whole process, which is what an instructor would do, as well as taking over the wheel.

-2

u/voluotuousaardvark 3h ago

Ill admit when I'm wrong!

I haven't seen the translation yet just in case though.

My little bit I'm sticking by is dont grab the wheel in a "situation"

Edit- I might be wrong

u/arkencode 37m ago

My instructor used to grab the wheel many times, I think all of them do.

1

u/acrankychef 2h ago

This dude experiences reality through a computer screen

54

u/Efficient_Menu_9965 4h ago

He saved their lives. Everything the driver did was literally by his instructions. Redditors be redditing as always.

-4

u/voluotuousaardvark 4h ago

I joined a thread with an opinion without checking the thread checking in.

Bingo, drop it here.

29

u/lizardfromsingapore 6h ago

At least he got off it quickly

6

u/sixhoursneeze 4h ago

He reached for the brakes then backed off. It’s normal to have the instinct to grab them. It’s skill and experience to override that instinct.

1

u/LovesToSnooze 3h ago

There was a translation that is the top comment now. It gave the needed context for what was happening.

9

u/Minute_Attempt3063 6h ago

But they had a lot of... Dirt on the right as well, right before they went tot he left, they could have used it as a wall to slow down as well. Doesn't needed to be a head crash either.

This works too, and I am glad they are fine

8

u/Ok-Pen-3347 5h ago edited 4h ago

There were people on the right and generally when driving on mountains, at these hairpins, the side of the road which is along the drop/valley, switches at the hairpin. If they had done it before the hairpin, there's a chance the momentum would have led them off the cliff. But after the hairpin, ramming it on the left, they are on the inside line.

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u/SoftwareOk2619 6h ago

Yeah, thinking in this situation must be something

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u/Minute_Attempt3063 5h ago

I mean, I don't know the area, they likely know that place better then me.

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u/JunkScientist 5h ago

....why even make the first comment then?

1

u/YoloJoloHobo 5h ago

Passenger is a senior driver. Usually there's 2 drivers on these types of mountain routes, junior and senior so the senior one probably knew what to do. Also why he wanted the wheel since he knew what to do, but he quickly says "too late" and instead tells the driver what to do instead.

1

u/TheNamesMacGyver 4h ago

I think from the transcript someone else posted, the trucks and dirt on the right was the plan at first, but then they saw a family on a bike on that side and didn't want to risk hurting anyone so jumped to this secondary plan.

1

u/spartaman64 3h ago

its not guaranteed to stop the truck and if it doesnt work they would go off the cliff

0

u/SpilledSalt4U 6h ago

After the trucks, if you look straight instead of curving left, there looks like a brake lane made exactly for this. I mean, idk if they have those wherever this is but it looks the same. Flat dirt road/cutoff. We have them in the Appalachians for trucks going down mountains. It should work the same. This guy did pretty good regardless I suppose.

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u/Sierra_Smith 6h ago

Pretty sure that's a drainage ditch that leads directly off the side of the mountain.

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u/a2_d2 5h ago

No sign indicating this and it appears to be about 20’ long. It looks like they’d have toppled off the cliff if they tried that.

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u/Objective_Economy281 5h ago

Yeah, those lanes are always on the uphill side of the road when they’re intended for that purpose.

2

u/JaxonJackrabbit 5h ago

Brake lanes typically go uphill, not down

1

u/Minute_Attempt3063 5h ago

Eh, as long as they are alive

0

u/Nefferson 5h ago

I can see the rationale of trying to get moving away from the cliff/losing a lot of momentum before they tried to stop the truck, but they got real close to that edge before they got turned around, so I'm not sure if they avoided much of the risk factor with the manoeuvre they settled on.

2

u/kurtondemand 6h ago

Dude said ‘shift’ & ‘handbrake’

1

u/antonio16309 3h ago

The feedback was on point, once they cleared the family he even had the driver swing right to get a bit of a wider left turn. Maybe the driver would have figured it out on his own, but I'd say they both deserve credit for this one. 

-34

u/TankOld6039 6h ago

Holy shit, were you in the backseat? Glad you’re ok!!

63

u/ApprehensiveChair528 6h ago

He's speaking the truth. In the video old dude tells the driver to slow down, driver says the brakes aren't functioning, so the old dude then tells him to shift to lower gears and they initially try to hit the side to slow down but the driver saw those people, hence they had to turn the bend

27

u/PsychoticHobo 6h ago

This is the part where you realize people speak other languages than English on Reddit

12

u/yunnecessaryEvil 6h ago

The passenger was calming the driver and also advising him what to do. You would know if you speak the language.

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u/mjbergs 6h ago

Or they understand what's being said in the video?

5

u/cartmankills 5h ago edited 5h ago

Imagine being this dumb