Be first to use your lights.  As twilight approaches or the slightest precipitation begins to fall, be among the first to turn on your headlights (not parking lights, not fog lights, headlights.)  This is not to help you see, but rather to help you be seen.

Adjust your mirrors.  Sounds simple enough, right:  Bust most drivers don't optimize the advantage of properly positioned mirrors.  Your rear and side-view mirrors should form one panoramic picture of the road behind, like three photographs laid side by side.  If you can see the side of your car in the outside mirrors, you're not getting the full benefit.  With properly adjusted mirrors, you should never have to look more than 50 degrees from straight ahead when checking to change lanes, a must in heavy traffic.

Sit closer to the steering wheel.  Sit close enough so that, with shoulders pressed firmly against the seatback, you can place your wrists at 12 o'clock on the steering wheel.  This allows full control of the wheel in emergency situations; there are no make-up tests in car control.  Hands should be placed at 3 and 9 o'clock on the wheel at all times.

Look up.  Every few seconds, scan down the road to the limits of your vision.  One study noted that the vast majority of accidents could be avoided if drivers reacted one second earlier.  Look far ahead and that second, and more, will be yours.

Look through. In heavy traffic, emulate stock-car drivers and look through the windshield of the car in front of you to keep track of the situation ahead.

Know your size.  Learn how small a hole your car can fit through.  For example if you instinctively know your car's width, you'll be able to tell if you can squeeze by on the shoulder to avoid an impeding collision.

Let the computer work.  Every driver should learn maximum braking skills before a crisis.  Go out in an empty parking lot and practice.  Emergency braking is easy with anti-lock braking systems; just nail the pedal and the let the computer do the work while you try to steer around an obstacle.

Pay attention.  Even if you need a reference manual to know which way to turn in a skid, by paying attention and looking far ahead, you can avoid a wreck that a daydreaming Indy car wouldn't.  Watch other driver's eyes at intersections to predict their intentions, or whether they guy sitting a the side street is more intent on closing a deal on his cellular than what' coming down the road.

Never give up.  If you get into a bad situation, never quiet driving.  Like a test pilot, if A doesn't work, try B, C and D.  If braking doesn't improve a situation, try steering around or accelerating.  Since most accidents occur well below the car's limit, they can be avoided if the driver simply steps on the brakes or turns the wheel more ( or, most likely, both.)

Accept responsibility.  Before you buckle the seat belt, embrace the attitude that you'll never be a "victim" of an auto accident.  Accept that it's your job to avoid the unavoidable, to determine if the other guy is going to run the red light or turn left from the right lane.  Know that if through inaccurate, inappropriate, or incompetent application of these tips you wind up smiting the concrete a mighty blow, it's your fault, despite all those lawyers' ads on daytime TV.