I choose c) make use of the grenade launcher installed in the back of
my car.

[impending rear end collision]

If it were possible, I'd drive into one of the adjacent lanes.

If it were not, then I would choose a.  The problem with option b is
that you may not be able to press the brake due to the effect the force
of impact may have on you.

I don't think you could slam the brakes on quickly enough to avoid hitting the
car in front of you even if it would actually stop your car before hitting
him.  If you had that much room, pulling around the guy in front of you and
letting HIM take the hit might be sensible.

Can't you take out your own physics book?

Neither one...  if you've stopped with enough space you ought to be able
to get onto the shoulder, unless you're in the middle lane of three or more.

nate

A.  Pull out of line if possible.

Option b is a no show. Your reaction time won't allow it and in the
scenario you posit you are going to wind up impacting the car in front.

Your choice really comes down to jamming the brake on and taking all or
most of the impact or allowing yourself to be shoved into the next car
which will lessen your impact by some amount.

Harry K

I say do what they teach in Driver's Ed, which is to let off the brake
and relax. Yes, you'll hit the car in front of you, but you'll have a
softer impact with the car behind you, which will cause less damage to
your car and yourself.

Why not, aside from insurance reasons, an option C

c) pull up so your front bumper is pushed as hard as possible against
the car ahead's bumper.  That will double the mass of the first object
the fast approaching car is going to hit (now it will hit a car that's
twice as big with 8 wheels).  It means your car will move forward
after the hit at a lower speed then it otherwise would (till it hit
the car ahead).  It might also reduce the number and/or severity of
secondary bounce-back collisions that occur in these kinds of
accidents.  After pushing bumpers together I would keep my foot on the
brake to minimize the bounce back effects.  The more damping forces
you can introduce, i.e. brakes, and bumper touching to double the
mass, the more you reduce the peak acceleration your body has to
experience.  Your bodies damage is likely to be closely related to the
peak acceleration you have to endure.
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If it's the Sloth Coaster in a car without any lights on in the rain, in
the left lane which I was trying to use to pass a line of vehicles that
were being held up by another Sloth Coaster also with no lights on, you
should slam on the brakes with three car lengths in front of you and
yell at your rearview mirror.  What is it they don't get about the need
to have headlights and taillights on in the rain?  Unless I drive with
high-beams on or use a TIC, they're very hard to see in the dark.

You could put the transmission into neutral and let the car be pushed
into the vehicle in front.  Unfortunately, you'll be forced backward and
then forward again, so the risk of injury increases and you'll have two
areas of vehicle damage, one of which is to the engine.  It's unlikely
that without an electronic braking system you would be able to reapply
enough brake force in time to stop your car from hitting the one in
front.  A better method is to move forward so that you're
bumper-to-fender with the vehicle in front of you.  When the vehicle
behind you hits, the secondary forward impact will be minimised.

Personally I'd choose option C...

Pull out to the right and up onto the curb, or pull out to the left onto the
'wrong' side of the road/do a U-turn if possible/go up the curb on the other
side of the road if necessary to avoid being in teh way of oncoming traffic.
If both sides were blocked and no other options existed I would hit the
brake as hard as I could, lay across the seat and brace myself into it so as
to have proper neck/head support. For a slower speed impact I would not
bother with that as I wouldn't be concerned with whiplash or neck injury.
Even if hitting the car in front of me would reduce possible injury to me I
would not do that if I could prevent it. NJ insurance is ludicrous and NJ
police are extremely oppressive. I do not want to deal with getting tickets,
fines and poitns on my license from the police adn insurance increasing out
teh wazoo from being involved in an accident and hitting another vehicle
plus wahtever points would go on my license from the police. Here in NJ
everyone is guilty, at least according to the police officers and judges.

In aay case, the best course of action in all cases is to avoid an accident
if at all possible.

I doubt B would work because when you get hit from behind, you may not have
full control of your legs to hit the brakes.  I would move up as close as
possible to the car in front and hope the extra couple of feet allow the
car in back to stop.
-------------
Alex

Assuming the car behind is not a large SUV and chances are I am not going to
get hurt, I would brake as soon as possible leaving as much space as
possible ahead of me. Carefully watching the action behind me, I would go
forward to allow more space for braking vehicle behind me if possible. I
therefore don't get cited for hitting the car ahead of me and ALL the fault
is that of the car behind me for eventually hitting me. Moreover, rear end
damage is not bad as front end damage to my car. The car behind may swerve
to avoid hitting me but that's his/her prerorgative. I am not swerving
unless I am certain I can do so without hitting anything.

Pull up as close to the car in front...perhaps even touch.  The impact will
be slightly less since that will give the maximum stopping distance.

I was rear ended years ago while stopped at a stop light by a Pontiac T-1000
(basically a Chevy Chevette).  I was in my Dodge truck.  The T-100 was
totaled.  The truck needed only a new bumper and the tailgate re-painted
because the battery acid ate the paint off of it.  I was on the brake hard
when I heard the T-1000 skidding and that little tiny car pushed my big
truck 40+ feet into the intersection.  You can't hold the car in pace with
the brake.