wheel CADILLAC SEVILLE 1993 4.G Owner's Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
When you drive into a curve at night, it’s harder to see the road ahead of
you because
it bends away from the straight beams of your lights. This is
one good reason to drive slower.
Steering in Emergencies
There are times when steering can be more effective than braking. For
example, you come over a
hill and find a truck stopped in your lane, or a
car suddenly pulls out from nowhere,
or a child darts out from between
parked cars and stops right
in front of you. You can avoid these problems
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine by braking -- if you can stop in time. But sometimes you can’t; there isn’t
room. That’s the time for evasive action
-- steering around the problem.
Your Cadillac can perform
very well in emergencies like these. First apply
your brakes. It is better to remove as much speed as
you can from a
possible collision.
Then steer around the problem, to the left or right
depending
on the space available.
An emergency like this requires close attention and a quick decision. If
you are holding the steering wheel at the recommended 9 and 3 o’clock
positions, you can turn
it a full 180 degrees very quickly without removing
either hand. But
you have to act fast, steer quickly, and just as quickly
straighten the wheel once you have avoided the object. You must then be
prepared to steer back to your original lane and then brake to a
controlled stop.
Depending
on your speed, this can be rather violent for an unprepared
driver. This
is one of the reasons driving experts recommend that you use
your safety belts and keep both hands
on the steering wheel.
I
The fact that such emergency situations are always possible is a good
reason to practice defensive driving at all times.
OFF-ROAD RECOKERY
You may find sometime that your right wheels have dropped off the edge
of a road onto the shoulder while you’re driving.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If the level of the shoulder is only slightly below the pavement, recovery
should be fairly easy. Ease
off the accelerator and then, if there is nothing
in the way, steer
so that your vehicle straddles the edge of the pavement.
You can turn the steering wheel up to
1/4 turn until the right front tire
contacts
the pavement edge. Then turn your steering wheel to go straight
down the roadway.
If the shoulder appears to be about four inches (100 mm) or more below
the pavement, this difference can cause problems. If there is not enough
room to pull entirely onto the shoulder and stop,
then follow the same
procedures. But
if the right front tire scrubs against the side of the
pavement,
do NOT steer more sharply. With too much steering angle, the
vehicle may jump back onto the road with
so much steering input that it
crosses over into the oncoming traffic before you can bring it back under
control.
Instead, ease off again on the accelerator and steering input, straddle the
pavement once more, then try again.
PASSING
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a two-lane highway waits
for just the right moment, accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead,
then goes back into the right lane again. A simple maneuver?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane highway is
a
potentially dangerous move, since the passing vehicle occupies the same
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal and move back
into the right lane. (Remember that your right outside mirror is
convex. The vehicle you just passed may seem
to be farther away from
you than it really is.)
0 Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on two-lane roads.
Reconsider before passing
the next vehicle.
0 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 Cadillac’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 to go. If
you start steering quickly enough, your vehicle will straighten out. As it
does, straighten the front wheels.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine time and flash your brake lights (in addition to your turn signal) as extra
warning that you are about to slow down and exit.
The exit ramp can be curved, sometimes quite sharply.
The exit speed is usually posted. Reduce your speed according
to your
speedometer, not to your sense
of motion. After driving for any distance
at higher speeds, you may tend to think you are going slower than you
actually are. For example,
40 mph (65 km/h) might seem like only 20 mph
(30 km/h). Obviously, this could lead to serious trouble on a ramp
designed for
20 mph (30 km/h)!
DMNG A LONG DISTANCE
Although most long trips today are made on freeways, there are still
many made
on regular highways.
Long-distance driving on freeways and regular highways is the same
in
some ways. The trip has to be planned and the vehicle prepared, you
drive at higher-than-city speeds, and there are longer turns behind
the
wheel. You’ll enjoy your trip more if you and your vehicle are in good
shape. Here are some tips for a successful long trip.
BEFORE LEAWNG ONA LONG THP
Make sure you’re ready. Try to be well rested. If you must start when
you’re not fresh
-- such as after a day’s work -- don’t plan to make too
many miles that first part of
the journey. Wear comfortable clothing and
shoes
you can easily drive in.
Is your vehicle ready for a long trip? If you keep it serviced and
maintained, it’s ready to
go. If it needs service, have it done before
starting out. Of course, you’ll find experienced and able service experts
in
Cadillac dealerships all across North America. They’ll be ready and
willing to help
if you need it.
Here are some things
you can check before a trip:
Windshield Washer Fluid: Is the reservoir full? Are all windows clean
inside and outside?
Wiper Blades: Are they in good shape?
0 Fuel. Enpine Oil. Other Fluids: Have you checked all levels?
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 0 Lights: Are they all working? Are the lenses clean?
0 Tires: They are vitally important to a safe, trouble-free trip. Is the
tread good enough for long-distance driving? Are the tires all inflated
to the recommended pressure?
Weather Forecasts: What’s the weather outlook along your route?
Should you delay your trip a short time to avoid a major storm
system?
0 Maps: Do you have up-to-date maps?
ON THE ROAD
Unless you are the only driver, it is good to share the driving task with
others. Limit turns behind the wheel
to about 100 miles (160 km) or two
hours at
a sitting. Then, either change drivers or stop for some
refreshment like coffee, tea or soft drinks and some limbering up. But
do
stop and move around. Eat lightly along the way. Heavier meals tend to
make some people sleepy.
On two-lane highways or
undivided multilane highways that do not have
controlled access, you’ll want to watch for some situations not usually
found
on freeways. Examples are: stop signs and signals, shopping centers
with direct access
to the highway, no passing zones and school zones,
vehicles turning left and right off the road, pedestrians, cyclists, parked
vehicles, and
even animals.
I
HIGWAY HypNosIS
Is there actually such a condition as “highway hypnosis”? Or is it just
plain falling asleep at the wheel? Call it highway hypnosis, lack of
awareness, or whatever.
There is something about an easy stretch
of road with the same scenery,
along with the hum
of the tires on the road, the drone of the engine, and
the rush
of the wind against the vehicle that can make you sleepy. Don’t
let it happen
to you! If it does, your vehicle can leave the road in less than
a second. and you could crash and be injured.
What can you do about highway hypnosis? First, be aware that it can
happen.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Another part of this manual tells how to use your parking brake (see
"Parking
Brake" in the Index). But on a mountain or steep hill, you can
do one more thing. You can turn your front wheels to keep your vehicle
from rolling downhill or out into traffic.
Here's
how:
Parking Downhill
Parking Uphill
Turn your wheels to
the
right.
You don't have to jam
your tires against the
curb,
if there is a curb.
A gentle contact is all
you need.
If there is
a curb, turn
your wheels to the left
if the curb is
at the
right side
of your
vehicle.
-4
a-
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine F
P
r
I 1
P
c
c
c
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If you’re going uphill
on a one-way street
and you’re parking on
the left side, your
wheels should point to
the right.
.. , . -.
If there is no curb
when you’re parking
uphill, turn the wheels
to the right.
If there is no,curb when you’re parking uphill on the left side
of a
one-way street, your wheels should
be turned to the left.
Torque Lock (Automatic Transaxle)
If you are parking on a hill and you don’t shift your transaxle into “P”
(Park) properly, the weight
of the vehicle may put too much force on the
parking pawl in the transaxle. You may find it difficult to
pull the shift
lever out
of “P” (Park). This is called “torque lock.” To prevent torque
lock, always
be sure to shift into “P” (Park) properly before you leave the
driver’s seat.
To find out how, see “ Shifting Into ’P’ (Park)” in the Index.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine ----
.
What’s the worst time for this? “Wet ice.” Very cold snow or ice can be
slick and hard to drive on. But wet ice can be
even more trouble because
it may offer the least traction
of all. You can get “wet ice” when it’s about
freezing
(32°F; O’C) and freezing rain begins to fall. Try to avoid driving
on wet ice until salt and sand crews can get there.
Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing or loose snow --
drive with caution. Accelerate gently. Try not to break the fragile traction.
If you accelerate too fast, the drive wheels
will spin and polish the surface
under the tires even more.
Your anti-lock brakes improve your ability to make a hard stop on a
slippery road. Even though you have the anti-lock braking system, you’ll
want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry pavement. See
“Anti-lock” in the Index.
Allow greater following distance on any slippery road.
0 Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine until you hit a spot
that’s covered with ice.
On an otherwise clear road, ice patches may
appear
in shaded areas where the sun can’t reach: around clumps of
trees,
behind buildings, or under bridges. Sometimes the surface of a
curve or an overpass may remain icy when the surrounding roads are
clear. If you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before
you are on
it. Try not to brake while you’re actually on the ice, and avoid sudden
steering maneuvers.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine TOWNG A TRAlrLER
A CAUTION:
If you don’t use the correct equipment and drive properly, you
can lose control when you pull
a trailer. For example, if the
trailer is too heavy, the brakes may not work well
-- or even at
all. You and your passengers could be seriously injured. Pull a
trailer only if you have followed all the steps in this section.
Load-pulling components such as the engine, transaxle, wheel assemblies,
and tires are forced
to work harder against the drag of the added weight.
The engine is required to operate at relatively higher speeds and under
greater loads, generating extra heat. What’s more, the trailer adds
considerably to wind resistance, increasing the pulling requirements.
All
of that means changes in:
e Handling
Durability
Fuel economy
If You Do Decide To Pull A Trailer
If you do, here are some important points.
There are many different laws having to do with trailering. Make sure
your rig
will be legal, not only where you live but also where you’ll be
driving. A good source for this information can be state or provincial
police.
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