engine CHEVROLET TRACKER 1993 Owner's Manual

Comfort Controls & Audio Systems
106
rmw-rirmuflh Ventilation System
Your Geo's flow-through ventilation
system supplies outside air into the
vehicle when it is moving. Outside air
will
also enter the car when the heater
or the air conditioning fan is running.
Ventilation Tips
Keep the hood and front air inlet free
of ice, snow, or any other obstruction
(such as leaves). The heater and
defroster will work far better,
reducing the chance of fogging the
inside of your windows.
When you enter a car in cold weather,
move the fan lever toward
# for a
few moments before driving off. This
helps clear the intake ducts of snow
and moisture, and reduces 'the chance
of fogging the inside of your
windows.
Keep the air path under the front seats
clear of objects. This helps air to
circulate throughout your car.
H Audio Systems
Your Delco@ audio system has been
designed to operate easily and give years
of listening pleasure. But you will get
the most enjoyment out of it if you
acquaint yourself with it first. Find out
what your Delco@ audio system can do
and how to operate all its controls, to be
sure you're getting the most out of the
advanced engineering that went into it.
ProCarManuals.com

CAUTION
A
Hearing damage from loud
noise is almost undetectable
until
it is too late. Your hearing
can. adapt to higher volumes of
sound. Sound that seems normal
can be loud and harmful to your
hearing. Take precautions by
adjusting the volume control on
your radio to a safe sound level
before your hearing adapts to
it.
To help avoid hearing loss or
damage:
Adjust the volume control to the
lowest setting.
Increase volume slowly until
you hear comfortably and
clearly.
NU I IL-t
Before you add any sound
equipment to
your vehicle - like a
tape player,
CB radio, mobile
telephone or two-way radio
- be
sure you can add what you want.
If you can, it’s very important to
do it properly. Added sound
equipment may interfere with the
operation
of your vehicle’s engine,
Delco@ radio or other systems, and
even damage them. And, your
vehicle’s systems may interfere
with the operation of sound
equipment that has been added
improperly.
So, before adding sound
equipment, check with your dealer
and be sure to check Federal rules
covering mobile
rA:o and
telephone units
~~~ ~ ~ ~~ ~~ ~
AMiFM Stereo
1. Press and hold RCL (TIME SET).
At the same time press and hold
TUNE 4 (HR) until the correct hour
appears.
2. Press and hold RCL (TIME SET).
At the same time press and hold
TUNE b (MIN) until the correct
minute appears.
107 =
ProCarManuals.com

Your Driving
GAU I IUN
... 128
A
“Riding” your brakes can
cause them to overheat to the
I
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.
NU 1 /Ut
“Riding” the brakes wears them
)ut much faster. You would n
:ostly brake replacement mucl
iooner than normal, and it
-educes
fuel econo----
If you keep pace with the traffic and
allow realistic following distances, you
will eliminate a lot
of unnecessary
braking. That means better braking and
longer brake life.
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 as you brake. Once the power
assist
is used up, it may take longer to
stop and the brake pedal will be
harder
to push.
ProCarManuals.com

Your Driving and the Road
II. 132
Braking in Emergencies
At some time, nearly every driver gets
into a situation that requires hard
braking.
You have the rear wheel
anti-lock braking system. Your front
wheels can stop rolling when you brake
very hard. Once they do, the vehicle
can’t respond to your steering.
Momentum will carry it in whatever
direction it was headed when
the wheels
stopped rolling. That could be off the
road, into the very thing you
were
trying to avoid, or into traffic.
So, use a “squeeze” braking technique.
This
will give you maximum braking
while maintaining steering control. You
do this by pushing on the brake pedal
with steadily increasing pressure. When
you do, you can maintain steering
control. In many emergencies, steering
can help you more than even the very
best braking.
Steering
Power Steering
If you lose power steering assist because
the engine stops or the system fails to
function, you can steer but
it will take
much more effort.
Steering Tips
Driving on Curves
It’s important to take curves at a
reasonable speed.
A lot of the ‘‘driver lost control”
accidents mentioned on the news happen
on curves. Here’s why:
Experienced driver or beginner, each of
us
is subject to the same laws of physics
when driving on curves. The traction
of
ProCarManuals.com

pedal as soon as you feel the vehicle
start to slide. Quickly steer the way you
want the vehicle to go. If you start
steering quickly enough, your vehicle
will straighten out. As
it does, straighten
the front wheels.
Of course, traction is reduced when
water, snow, ice, gravel, or other
material is
on the road. For safety,
you’ll want to slow down and adjust
your driving to these conditions. It is
important to slow down
on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance
will
be longer and vehicle control more
limited. While
driving on a surface with reduced
traction,
try your best to avoid sudden
steering, acceleration, or braking
(including engine braking by shifting to
a lower gear). Any sudden changes
could cause the tires to slide.
You may
not realize the surface
is slippery until
your vehicle is skidding. Learn to
recognize warning clues
- such as
enough water, ice
or packed snow on
the. road to make a “mirrored surface’’
- and slow down when you have any
doubt. Remember: the
rear wheel anti-lock
braking system (RWAL) helps avoid
only a rear braking skid. In a braking
skid (where the front wheels are no
longer rolling), release enough pressure
on the brakes to get the front wheels
rolling again. This restores steering
control. Push the brake pedal down
steadily when you have to stop
suddenly. As long as the front wheels
are rolling, you will have steering
control. Steer the way you want to go.
ProCarManuals.com

Getting Familiar with Off-Road
Driving
It’s a good idea to practice in an area
that’s safe and close
to home before you
go into the wilderness. Off-road driving
does require some new and different
driving skills. Here’s what we mean.
Tune your senses to different kinds of
signals. Your eyes, for example, need to
constantly sweep the terrain for
unexpected obstacles. Your ears need
to
listen for unusual tire or engine sounds.
With your arms, hands, feet, and body
you’ll need to respond to vibrations and
vehicle bounce.
I.
best ways to control your vehicle is to
control your speed. Here are some
things to keep in mind. At higher
speeds:
You approach things faster and you
have less time
to scan the terrain for
obstacles.
You have less time to react.
You have more vehicle bounce when
you drive over obstacles.
You’ll need more distance for
braking, especially since you’re on an
unpaved surface.
CAUTION Controlling your vehicle is the key to
successful off-road driving. One of the When you’re driving
off road,
c L bouncing and quick changes
in direction can easily throw you
out
of position. This could cause
you to lose control and crash.
So,
whether you’re driving on or off
the road, you and your passengers
should wear safety belts.
r
143- -
ProCarManuals.com

Your Driving and the Road
Ease up on your speed as you
approach the top
of the hill.
Attach a flag to the vehicle to make
you more visible to approaching
traffic on trails or hills.
Sound the horn as you approach the
top of the hill to let opposing traffic
know you’re there.
Use your headlights even during the
day. They make you more visible to
oncoming traffic.
CAUTION
A Driving to the top (crest) of a
hill at full speed can cause an
accident. There could be a
drop-off, embankment, cliff, or
even another vehicle. You could
be seriously injured or killed. As
you near the top of a hill, slow
down and stay alert.
I
Q: What should I do if my vehicle
stalls,
or is about to stall, and I
can’t make it up the hill?
A: If this happens, there are some
things you-should do, and there are
some things you must not do. First,
here’s what you
should do:
Push the brake pedal to stop
the
vehicle and keep it from rolling
backwards. Also, apply the parking
brake.
If your engine is still running, shift
the transmission into reverse, release
the parking brake, and slowly back
down the hill in reverse.
ProCarManuals.com

If your engine has stopped running,
you’ll need to restart
it. With the
brake pedal depressed and the
parking brake still applied, shift the
transmission
to P (Park) (or, shift to
Neutral if your vehicle has a
manual transmission) and restart the
engine. Then, shift to reverse,
release the parking brake, and
slowly back down the hill in
reverse.
As you are backing down the hill,
put your
left hand on the steering
wheel at the
12 o’clock position.
This way, you’ll be able
to tell if
your wheels are straight or turned to
the left or right as you back down. Here
are some things you
must not do
if you stall, or are about to stall, when
going up
a hill.
Never attempt to prevent a stall by
shifting into
N (Neutral) (or
depressing the clutch, if you have a
manual transmission)
to “rev-up” the
engine and regain forward
momentum. This won’t work. Your
vehicle will roll backwards very
quickly and you could go out of
control.
Instead, apply the regular brake to stop
the vehicle. Then apply the parking
brake. Shift into reverse, release the
parking brake, and slowly back down.
Never attempt to turn around if you
are about to stall when going up a
hill.
If the hill is steep enough to
stall your vehicle, it’s steep enough
to cause you to roll over if you turn
around. If you can’t make it up the
hill, you must back down the hill.
Q: Suppose, after stalling, I try to
back down the hill and decide
I
just can’t do it. What should I do?
A: Set the parking brake, put your
transmission
in P (Park) (or the
ProCarManuals.com

Your Driving and the Road
manual transmission in first gear),
and turn off the engine. Leave the
vehicle and
go get some help. Exit
on the uphill side and stay clear of
the path the vehicle would take if it
rolled downhill.
Do not shift the
transfer case to
N (Neutral) when
you leave the vehicle. Leave it in
some gear.
A
Shifting the transfer case to
N (Neutral) can cause your
vehicle to roll even if the
transmission is in
P (Park) (or, if
you have the manual transmission,
even if you’re in gear). This is
because the
N (Neutral) position
on the transfer case overrides the
transmission.
If you are going to
leave your vehicle, set the parking
brake and shift the transmission to
P (Park) (or, put your manual
transmission in first gear). But
do I
not shift the transfer case to the N
(Neutral) position. Leave the
transfer case
in the 2H, 4H, or 4L I position.
Driving Downhill
When off-roading takes you downhill,
you’ll want to consider
a number of
things:
How steep is the downhill? Will I b
able to maintain vehicle control?
What’s the surface like? Smooth?
Rough? Slippery? Hard-packed dirt?
Gravel?
Are there hidden surface obstacles?
Ruts? Logs? Boulders?
What’s at the bottom of the hill? Is
there a hidden creek bank or even a
river bottom with large rocks?
ProCarManuals.com

If you decide you can go down a hill
safely, then try to keep your vehicle
headed straight down, and use a low
gear. This way, engine drag can help
your brakes and they won’t have to do
all the work. Descend slowly, keeping
your vehicle under control at all times.
A
Heavy braking when going
down a hill can cause your
brakes to overheat and fade. This
could cause loss of control and a
serious accident. Apply the brakes
lightly when descending a hill and
use
a low gear to keep vehicle
speed under control.
Q:
A:
0
0
Are there some things I should not
do when driving down a hill?
Yes! These are important because if
you ignore them you could lose
control and have a serious accident.
When driving downhill, avoid turns
that take you across the incline
of
the hill. A hill that’s not too steep to
drive down may be too steep to
drive across. You could roll over if
you don’t drive straight down.
Never go downhill with the
transmission in
Neutral, or with the
clutch pedal depressed in a manual
shift. This is called
ProCarManuals.com