CHEVROLET S10 1993 2.G Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Some traffic lights also use red arrows to signify that you must stop before
turning on red.
Many city roads and expressways, and even bridges, use reversib\
le-lane
traffic control during rush hours.
A red X light above a lane means no driving
in that lane at that 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.
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Pavement Markings
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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.
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Your Driving and the Road
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 Flasher’’ 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 sig\
ns say.
The next part discusses some of the road conditions you may encounter.
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive defens\
ively.
Please
start with a very important safety device in your vehicle: Buckle up.
(See “Safety Belts” in the Index.)
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 are\
as, 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 m\
ust 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 defens\
ive driving
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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. T\
he 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 ti\
mes 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 part.
Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is a nat\
ional 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:
Judgment
0 Muscular Coordination
Vision
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.
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’’ can be 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 d\
epends 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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your Driving and the Road
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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 142 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 BAC
would be close to 0.12 percent. A person who consumes food
just before or during drinking will have a slightly lower BAC level.
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f

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The law in most US. states sets the legal limit at a BAC of 0.10 percent. In
Canada the limit
is 0.08 percent, and in some other countries it’s lower than
that. The BAC will be over
0.10 percent after three to six drinks (in one
hour).
Of course, as we’ve seen, it d’epends on how much’ alcohol is in the
drinks, and how quickly the person drinks them.
“I’ll be careful’’ isn’t the right. answer. What if there’s an emergency, a need.
to take sudden action, as when a child darts into the street? A \
person with a
higher BAC might not be able to react quickly enough to avoid the collision.
There’s something else about drinking and driving that many \
people don’t know. Medical research shows that alcohol in a person’s system can make
crash injuries worse. That’s .especially true for brain, spin\
al cord. and heart
injuries. That means that
if anyone who has been drinking-driver or
passenger-is in a. crash, the chance of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than
if that person had not been drinking. And we’ve already seen
that the chance of a crash itself is higher for drinking drivers.
1 CAUTION
- Drinking and then driving is very dangerous. Your reflexes, percep-
tions, and judgment will be affected by even a small amount
of alto-
’- - ’. You could have a serious-or even fatal-accident if you drive
aner drinking. Please don’t drink and drive or ride with a \
driver who
has been drinking. Ride home in a cab; or if you’re with a group,
i
I designate a driver who will not drink.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your Driving and the Road
Control of a Vehicle
AM409005
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where you want it to go.
They are the brakes, the steering and the accelerator. All thr\
ee systems have
to do their work at the places where the tires meet the road.
Sometimes, as when you’re driving on snow or ice, it’s e\
asy
to ask more of
those control systems than the tires and road can provide. Tha\
t means you
can lose control
of your vehicle.
Braking
Braking action involves perception time and reaction time.
First, you have
to decide to push on the brake pedal. That’s perception
time. Then you have to bring up your foot and do it. That’\
s reaction time.
Average reaction time is about
314 of a second. But that’s only an average.
It might be less with one driver and as long as two or three seconds or
more with another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordinati\
on, and
eyesight all play a part.
So do alcohol, drugs and frustration. But even in 3/4
of a second, a vehicle moving at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could be a
lot of distance in an emergency, so keeping enough space
between your vehicle and others is important.
And,
of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly with the surface of the
road (whether it’s pavement or gravel); the condition of t\
he road (wet,
dry,
icy); tire tread; and the condition of your brakes.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Most drivers treat their brakes with care. Some, however, overw\
ork the
braking system with poor driving habits.
Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in spurts-heavy
acceleration followed by heavy braking-rather than keeping pace with
traffic. This is a mistake. Your brakes may not have time
to cool
between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much faster
if you do a
lot of heavy braking.
Don’t “ride” the brakes by letting your left foot rest lightly on the brake
pedal while driving.
I
“Riding” your brakes can cause them to overheat to the point that
they won’t work well. You might not be able to stop your vehicle in
time
to avoid an accident. If you “ride” your brakes, they will get so
hot they will require a lot of pedal force to slow you down. Avoid
“riding” the brakes.
NOTICE
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your Driving and the Road
If you keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic followin\
g distances, you
will eliminate a
lot of unnecessary braking. That means better braking and
longer brake life.
a If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake normally but don’t
pump your brakes. If you
do, the pedal may get harder to push down. If
your engine stops, you will still have some power brake assist\
. But you
will use
it when you brake. Once the power assist is used up, it may
take longer
to stop and the brake pedal will be harder to push.
E
Antilock Brakes (ABS)
Your vehicle has an advanced electronic braking sysrem that can help\
you
keep
it under control.
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t AM415003
Here’s how antilock works. Let’s say the road is wet. You’re driving safely.
Suddenly an animal jumps out in front of you.
You slam on the brakes. Here’s what happens with
ABS.
A computer senses that a rear wheel is slowing down. The computer works
the brakes at the rear wheels.
It is programmed to make the most of
available tire and road conditions.
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AM41 5013
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on rear wheel
speed-and controls braking pressure accordingly.
Antilock doesn't change the time
you need to get your foot u8p to the
brake pedal.
If you get too clloise to the vehicle in front of you, you
won? have time to apply your brakes if that vehicle suddenly slows
or stops. Always leave enough room ulp ahead to stop, even thouglh
you have antilock brakes. I
To Use Antilock
Use rear wheel antilock like regular brakes. You may feel the brakes vibrate,
or you may notice some noise outside your vehicle, but this i\
s normal. Let antilock work for you, but remember: Your front wheels can still stop rolling. If
that happens, release enough pressure on the brakes to get the wheels
rolling again
so that you can steer.
With the four-wheel drive option you won't have antilock brakin\
g when you
shift into four-wheel drive. But you will have regular braking.\
When you shift
back into two-wheel drive, you will have antilock again.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your Driving and the Road
Brake System Warning Light
Standard Cluster
Digital Cluster
This light appears on your instrument cluster to warn you if your regular
braking system needs service.
If your vehicle has rear wheel antilock brakes,
this light will
also warn you about trouble in that system. It will also light if
your parking brake is not fully disengaged. See the Index unde\
r “Brake
System Warning Light.”
Disc Brake Wear Indicators
Your vehicle has front disc brakes and rear drum brakes. Disc brake pads
have built-in wear indicators that make a high-pitched warning \
sound when
the brake pads are worn and new pads are needed. The sound m\
ay come
and go or be heard all the time your vehicle is moving (except \
when you are
pushing on the brake pedal firmly).
The brake wear warning sound means that sooner or later your brakes won’t work well. That could lead to an accident. When yo
hear the brake wear warning sound, have your vehicle serviced. \
I NOTICE
>ontinuing ti
epair.
e with worn-out bra1 could sult in lstly brake