BUICK PARK AVENUE 1993 Owners Manual

@ Part 4 Your Driving and the Road
~ . ~~~~~ ~~~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~
Here you’ll find information about driving on different kinds of roads and in varying weather conditions . We’ve also
included many other useful tips on driving
.
Part 4 includes:
RoadSigns
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DefensiveDriving .................................................................
DrunkenDriving ................................................................
Control of a Vehicle ......................... ...................................
Braking .....................................................................
Steering .....................................................................
Passing .....................................................................
LossofControl ...............................................................
DrivingatNight ...................................................................
DrivingintheRain .................................................................
Driving in Fog, Mist and Haze ........................................................
CityDriving ......................................................................
FreewayDriving ...................................................................
DrivingonaLongTrip .............................................................
HillandMountainRoads ............................................................
ParkingonHills ...................................................................
TowingaTrailer ...................................................................
WinterDriving ....................................................................
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Color of Road Signs
B n
RED means STOP. It may also indicate that some
movement is not allowed. Examples are
DO NOT
ENTER and WRONG WAY.
Road Signs
The road signs you see everywhere are coded by color,
shape and symbols.
It’s a good idea to know these
codes
so that you can quickly grasp the basic meaning
or intent
of the sign even before you have a chance to
read
it.
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RAILROAD ADVANCE
I CROSSING
W
NARROW
BRIDGE
h
LOW WORKERS
SHOULDER FLAGGER AHEAD
AHEAD
YELLOW indicates a general warning. Slow down and
be careful when you see a yellow sign. It may signal a
railroad crossing ahead, a no passing zone, or some
other potentially dangerous situation. Likewise, a yellow
solid line painted on the road means “Don’t Cross.’’ ORANGE indicates road construction or maintenance.
You’ll want to slow down when you see an orange sign,
as part of the road may be closed
off or tom up. And
there may be workers and maintenance vehicles around,
too.
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WI
-
EXIT
Is
1 MILE
YT UN
HOSPITAL INFORMATION
BLUE signs with white letters show motorists’
services.
GREEN is used to guide the driver. Green signs may
indicate upcoming freeway exits or show the direction
you should turn to reach a particular place.
-,:: 1
II
CANOEING SWIMMING
BROWN signs point out recreation areas or points of
historic or cultural interest.
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Shape of Road Signs
The shape of the sign will tell you something, too.
v 7
v
ST0 P
$&
An OCTAGONAL
(eight-sided) sign
means STOP. It is
always red with white
letters.
/
A DIAMOND-shaped
sign is a warning of
something ahead
- for
example, a curve, steep
hill, soft shoulder, or a
narrow bridge. A TRIANGLE, pointed
downward, indicates YIELD. It assigns the
right-of-way
to traffic
on certain approaches
to an intersection.
A TRIANGULAR sign
also is used on
two-lane roads to
indicate a
NO
PASSING ZONE. This
sign will
be on the left
side of the roadway.
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KEEP RIGHT
IIoNLV! ,
LEFT OR RIGHT TURN THROUGH ONLY
RECTANGULAR (square or oblong) signs show speed
limits, parking regulations, give directions, and such
information as distances to cities.
Symbols on Road Signs
x
There are many international road signs in use today.
The basic message
of many of these signs is in pictures
or graphic symbols.
A picture within a circle with a
diagonal line across it shows what
not to do.
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Traffic Lights
Lm
We’re all familiar with traffic lights or stop lights. Often
green arrows are being used in the lights for improved
traffic control. On some multilane roads, green arrows
light up, indicating that traffic in one or more lanes
can
move or make a turn. Green arrows don’t mean “go no
matter what.” You’ll still need to proceed with caution,
yielding the right of way to pedestrians and sometimes
to other vehicles.
Some traffic lights also use red arrows to signify that
you must stop before turning on red.
x
REVERSIBLE
LANE
ON
LANE
ROADWAY MULTI-
U
Many
city roads and expressways, and even bridges, use
reversible-lane traffic control during rush hours.
A red X
light above a lane means no driving in that lane at that
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time. A green arrow means you may drive in that lane.
Look for the signs posted to warn drivers what hours
and days these systems are in effect.
Pavement Markings
NO
PASSING
ZONE
Pavement markings add to traffic signs and signals.
They give information to drivers without taking
attention from the roadway. A solid yellow line
on your
side of the road
or lane means “don’t cross.”
Your Own Signals
Drivers signal to others, too. It’s not only more polite,
it’s safer to let other drivers know what you are doing.
And in some places the law requires driver signals.
Turn and lane change signals. Always signal when you
plan to turn or change lanes.
If necessary, you can use hand signals out the window:
Left arm straight
out for a left turn, down for slow or
about-to-stop, and up for a right turn.
Slowing down. If time allows, tap the brake pedal once
or twice in advance of slowing or stopping. This warns
the driver behind you.
Disabled. Your four-way flashers signal that your
vehicle
is disabled or is a hazard. See “Hazard Warning
Flashers” in the Index.
Traffic Officer
The traffic police officer is also a source of important
information. The officer’s signals govern, no matter
what the traffic lights or other signs say.
The next section discusses some of the road conditions
you may encounter.
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive
defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device in your
Buick: Buckle up. (See “Safety Belts” in the Index.)
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Defensive driving really means “be ready for anything.”
On city streets, rural roads, or freeways, it means
“always expect the unexpected.”
Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going to be
careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what they might
do. Be ready for their mistakes.
Expect children to dash out from behind parked cars,
often followed by other children. Expect occupants in
parked cars to open doors into traffic. Watch for
movement in parked cars
-- someone may be about to
open a door.
Expect other drivers to run stop signs when you are on
a
through street. Be ready to brake if necessary as you go
through intersections. You may not have to use the
brake, but if
you do, you will be ready.
If you’re driving through a shopping center parking lot
where there are well-marked lanes, directional arrows,
and designated parking areas, expect some drivers to
ignore all these markings and dash straight toward one
part of the
lot.
Pedestrians can be careless. Watch for them. In general,
you must give way to pedestrians even if you know you
have the right of way.
Rear-end collisions are about
the most preventable of
accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough following
distance. It’s the best defensive driving
maneuver, in both city and rural driving. You never
know when the vehicle in front
of you is going to brake
or
turn suddenly.
Here’s a final bit
of information about defensive driving.
The most dangerous time for driving in the
U.S. is very
early on Sunday morning. In fact,
GM Research studies
show that the most and the least dangerous times for
driving, every week, fall on the same day. That day is
Sunday. The most dangerous time
is Sunday from 3 a.m.
to
4 a.m. The safest time is Sunday from 10 a.m. to 11
a.m. Driving the same distance on a Sunday at 3 a.m.
isn’t just a little more dangerous than it is at
10 a.m. It’s
about
134 times more dangerous!
That leads
to the next section.
Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is
a national tragedy. It’s the number one contributor to the
highway death
toll, claiming thousands of victims every
year. Alcohol takes away three things that anyone needs
to drive a vehicle:
0 Judgment
0 Muscular Coordination
0 Vision
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Police records show that half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol
- a driver, a
passenger or someone else, such as a pedestrian, had
been drinking. In most cases, these deaths are the result
of someone who was drinking and driving. Over 25,000
motor vehicle-related deaths occur each year because of
alcohol, and thousands of people are injured.
I
Just how much alcohol is too much if a person plans
to drive? Ideally, no one should drink alcohol and then
drive. But
if one does, then what’s “too much”? It can be 1
a lot less than many might think. Although it depends on
each person and situation, here is some general.
information on the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Content (BAC)
of someone who is
drinking depends upon four things:
How much alcohol is in the drink.
The drinker’s body weight.
The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking.
The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the alcohol. According
to the American Medical Association, a
180-pound (82 kg) person who drinks three 12-ounce
(355 ml) bottles
of beer in an hour will end up with a
BAC
of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the
same BAC by drinking three 4-ounce
(120 ml) glasses
of wine or three mixed drinks if each had 1-1/2 ounces
(45 ml)
of a liquor like whiskey, gin or vodka.
It’s the amount
of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces
or
90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s
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