traction control BUICK SKYLARK 1993 Owners Manual

Cruise Control (Option) When you apply your brakes, the Cruise Control shuts
off.
A CAUTION:
0 Cruise Control can be dangerous where
you can’t drive safely at
a steady speed.
So, don’t use your Cruise Control on
winding roads
or in heavy traffic.
With Cruise Control, you can maintain a speed of about
25 mph (40 km/h) or more without keeping your foot on
the accelerator. This can really help on long trips. Cruise
Control does not work at speeds below about
25 mph
(40 m).
I Cruise Control can be dangerous on
slippery roads. On such roads, fast
changes in tire traction can cause n dless
wheel spinning, and you could lose
control. Don’t use Cruise Control on
slippery roads.
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Braking in Emergencies
Use your anti-lock braking system when you need to.
With anti-lock, you can steer and brake at the same time.
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 the tires against the road surface makes it
possible for the vehicle to change its path when you
turn
the front wheels. If there’s no traction, inertia will keep
the vehicle going in the same direction.
If you’ve ever
tried to steer
a vehicle on wet ice, you’ll understand this. The traction you can get in a curve depends on the
condition of your tires and the road surface, the angle at
which the curve is banked, and your speed. While
you’re in a curve, speed is the one factor you can
control.
Suppose you’re steering through a sharp curve. Then
you suddenly accelerate.
Those two control systems
-- steering and acceleration --
can overwhelm those places where.the tires meet the
road and make you lose control.
What should you do if this ever happens? Let up on the
accelerator pedal, steer the vehicle the way you want it
to
go, and slow down.
Speed limit signs near curves warn that you should
adjust your speed. Of course, the posted speeds are
based on good weather and road conditions. Under less favorable conditions you’ll want to go slower.
If you need to reduce your speed as you approach a
curve, do it before you enter the curve, while your front
wheels are straight ahead.
Try to adjust your speed
so you can “drive” through the
curve. Maintain a reasonable, steady speed. Wait to
accelerate until you are out of the curve, and then
accelerate gently into the straightaway.
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Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on
two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the next
vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake lights are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting to turn.
If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a.little to the right.
Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes, steering and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where the
tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying to steer
and constantly seek an escape route or area of less
danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not
“overdriving” those conditions. But skids are always
possible. The three types
of skids correspond
to your Buick’s
three control systems. In the braking skid your wheels
aren’t rolling.
In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose cornering force. And in the acceleration skid too
much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin.
A cornering skid and an acceleration skid are best
handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide (as when you- turn a corner
on a wet, snow- or ice-covered road), ease your foot
off
the accelerator 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’l\
l
..
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
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The tire has a puncture, cut, or other damage that
can’t be repaired well because of the size or location
of the damage.
Buying New Tires
To find out what kind and size of tires you need, look at
the Tire-Loading Information label.
The tires installed on your vehicle when it was new had
a Tire Performance Criteria Specification (TPC Spec)
number on each tire’s sidewall. When you get new tires, get ones with that same
TPC Spec number. That way,
your vehicle will continue to have tires that are designed
to give proper endurance, handling, speed rating,
traction, ride and other things during normal service on
your vehicle. If your tires have an all-season tread
design, the TPC number will be followed by a
“MS”
(for mud and snow).
If you ever replace your tires with those not having a
TPC Spec number, make sure they are the same size,
load range, speed rating and construction type (bias,
bias-belted or radial) as your original tires.
A CAUTION:
Mixing tires could cause you to lose control
while driving.
If you mix tires of different sizes or
types (radial and bias-belted tires), the vehicle
may not handle properly, and you could have a
crash. Be sure to use the same size and type
tires on all wheels.
It’s all right to drive with your compact spare,
though. It was developed for limited use on your
vehicle.
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Uniform Tire Quality Grading
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance. (This applies only to vehicles sold in the United States.)
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified government test course. For
example, a tire graded
150 would wear one and a half
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(1 112) times as well on the government course as a tire
graded
100. The relative performance of tires depends
upon the actual conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to variations
in driving habits, service practices.and differences in
road characteristics and climate.
’Ikaction - A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest are: A, B,
and C. They represent the tire’s.ability to stop on wet
pavement
as measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces
of asphalt and
concrete. A tire marked
C may have poor traction
performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on braking (straight-ahead) traction tests and does not
include cornering (turning) traction.
Temperature - A, B, C
The temperature grades are A (the highest), B, and C,
representing the tire’s resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat when tested under controlled conditions on a- specified indoor laboratory
test wheel. Sustained high temperature can cause the
material of the tire to degenerate and reduce tire life, and
excessive temperature can lead to sudden tire failure. The
grade
C corresponds to a level of performance
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
No. 109. Grades
B and A represent higher levels of performance on the
laboratory test wheel than the minimum required by law.
Warning: The temperature grade for this tire is
established for a tire that is properly inflated and not
overloaded. Excessive speed, underinflation, or
excessive loading, either separately or in combination,
can cause heat buildup and possible tire failure.
Those grades are molded on the sidewalls of passenger
car tires.
While the tires available as standard or optional
equipment on General Motors vehicles may vary with
respect to these grades, all such tires meet General
Motors performance standards and have been approved
for use on General Motors vehicles. All passenger type
(P Metric) tires must conform to Federal safety
requirements in addition to these grades.
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance
The wheels on your vehicle were aligned and balanced
carefully at the factory to give you the longest tire life
and best overall performance.
. which all passenger car tires must meet under the
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