CHEVROLET TRACKER 1993 Owners Manual

HOSPITAL INF(
BLUE signs with white letters show
motorists' services.
CANOEING SWIMMING
BROWN signs point out recreation
areas or points
of historic or cultural
interest.
A
P V
YIELD
Shape of Road Signs
The shape of the sign will tell you
something, too.
An OCTAGONAL (eight-sided)
sign
means STOP. It is always red with
white letters.
w'
END DIVIDED HIGHWAY
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.
119.
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Your Driving and
KEEP
RIGHT THROUGH LEFT OR RIGHT TURN
ONLY
RECTANGULAR (square or oblong)
signs show speed limits, parking
regulations, give directions and such
information as distances to cities.
. 120
FOOD NO RIGHT TURN
Symbols on Road Signs
There are many international road signs
in use today.
NO U NO
TURN BICYCLES PARKING NO
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.
Traffic Lights
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.
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Y
REVERSIBLE
LANE ON ROADWAY
MULTI-LANE
Many
city roads and expressways, and
zven bridges,
use reversible-lane traffic
:ontrol 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.
NO PASSING ZONE
Pavement Markings
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
xoss. ”
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.
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Your Driving and the Road
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.
Trafilc 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.
.122
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about
driving
is: Drive defensively.
Please
start with a very important safety
device
in your Geo: 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.
[f you’re driving through a shopping
center parking lot where there are
well-marked lanes, directional arrows,
and designated parking areas, expect
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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:
Judgment
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
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Your Driving and the Road
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”? It
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 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 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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DRINKING THAT WILL
IN THE TIME SHOWN
RESULT IN A BAC OF .05%
i
I
I
-1
4 IVJ 120 140 160 180 Mo 220 240
I =
1 2 HOURS
i noUR
aoov WEIGHT IN POUNDS
The law in most U.S. 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 RAC
will be over 0.10 percent
after three to six drinks (in one hour).
Of course, as we’ve seen, it depends on
how much alcohol is in the drinks, and
how quickly the person drinks them.
But it’s very important to keep in mind
that the ability to drive is affected well
below a BAC of 0.10 percent. Research
shows that
the driving skills of many
people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent,
and that the
effects are worse at night. All drivers
are impaired at BAC levels above
0.05
percent. Statistics show that the chance
of being in an accident increases sharply
for drivers who have a BAC of
0.05
percent or above. A driver with a BAC
level of
0.06 percent (three beers in one
hour for a 180-pound or
82 kg person)
has doubled his or her chance of having
an accident. At a BAC level of 0.10
percent, the chance of that driver having
an accident is six times greater; at a
level
of 0.15 percent, the chances are
twenty-five times greater! And, the body
takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol in one
drink.
No amount of
coffee or number of cold showers will
speed that up.
“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.
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Your Driving and the Road
- 9 126
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, spinal 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.
A
Drinking and then driving is
very dangerous. Your
reflexes, perceptions, and
I
judgment will be affected by even
a small amount of alcohol. You
could have a serious
- or even
fatal
- accident if you drive after
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,
designate a driver who
will not
drink.
I Conboi of a Vehicle
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 three 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 easy to ask more of
those control systems than the tires and
road can provide. That means you can
lose control of your vehicle.
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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 3/4 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, coordination, 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 the road (wet,
dry, icy); tire tread; and the condition of
your brakes.
Most drivers treat their brakes with
care. Some, however, overwork 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.
your left foot rest lightly on the brake
pedal
while driving.
Don’t “ride” the brakes by letting
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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.
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