ESP GMC SAVANA 1997 Owners Manual

I ..
or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as
the vehicle does.
You get more
time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That’s
why
safety belts make such good sense.
Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Q: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not.
But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance
of
being conscious during and after an accident, so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even if you’re
in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have to buckle up to get the
most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
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Door Locks
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Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
Passengers
-- especially children -- can easily
open the doors and fall out. When a door is
locked, the inside handle won’t open it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an unlocked
door when you slow down
or stop your vehicle.
This may not be
so obvious: You increase the
chance
of being thrown out of the vehicle in a
crash if the doors aren’t locked. Wear safety belts
properly, lock your doors, and you will be far
better
off whenever you drive your vehicle.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
From
the outside, use your key.
To lock the door from the
inside, slide the lever on
your door down.
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Use one Panasonic@ type CR2032 battery:
1. Insert a dime in the slot between the covers of the
transmitter housing near the key ring
hole. Remove
the bottom by twisting the dime.
2. Remove and replace the battery, positive side down.
r
3. Align the covers and snap them together.
4. Check the operation of the transmitter,
Synchronization
Synchronization may be necessary due to the security
method used by this system. The transmitter does
not
send the same signal twice to the receiver. The receiver
will not respond to
a signal it has been sent previously.
This prevents anyone from recording and playing back
the signal from the transmitter.
To resynchronize your transmitter, stand close
to your
vehicle and simultaneously press and hold the
LOCK
and UNLOCK buttons on the transmitter for at least
five seconds. The door locks should cycle
to confirm
synchronization.
If the locks do not cycle, see your
dealer for service.
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Theft Parking at Night
Vehicle theft is big business, especially in some cities.
Although your vehicle has
a number of theft-deterrent
features, we know that nothing we put on it
can make it
impossible to steal. However, there are ways
you can help.
Key in the Ignition
If you leave your vehicle with the keys inside, it’s an
easy target for joy riders or professional thieves -- so
don’t do it.
When you park your vehicle and open the driver’s door,
you’ll hear a tone reminding you to remove your key from
the ignition and take
it with you. Always do this. Your
steering wheel will be locked, and so will your ignition
and transmission. And remember to lock the doors. Park in
a lighted spot, close
all windows and lock your
vehicle. Remember
to keep your valuables out of sight.
Put them
in a storage area, or take them with you.
Parking Lots
If you park in a lot where someone will be watching
your vehicle, it’s best
to lock it up and take your keys.
But what if you have to leave your ignition key? What if
you have
to leave something valuable in your vehicle?
Put your valuables in a storage area, like your glove box.
0 Lock all the doors except the driver’s.
Then take the door key with you.
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Headlamps On Reminder
A tone will sound when your headlamps are turned on
and your ignition is in OFF, LOCK or ACCESSORY.
If you need to use your headlamps when the ignition
switch is in
OFF, LOCK or ACCESSORY, the tone
can be turned off by turning the thumb wheel
next to
the parking lamp/headlamp switch all the way down.
Daytime Running Lamps (If Equipped)
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others
to see the front of your vehicle during the day.
DRL can be helpful in many different driving conditions,
but they can be especially helpful in
the short periods
after dawn and before sunset.
The DRL system will make your headlamps come on at
a reduced brightness when:
0 The ignition is on,
0 The headlamp switch is off, and
0 The parking brake is released.
If your vehicle was first sold, when new,
in Canada,
your headlamps will come on at reduced brightness.
If your vehicle was first sold, when new,
in the United
States, your vehicle may be equipped with DRL. If your
vehicle has DRL,
you will see the the DRL indicator light
on your instrument panel and your low-beam
headlamps will
come on at reduced brightness.
When the DRL are on,
only your headlamps will be on.
The taillamps, sidemarker and other lamps won’t be on.
Your instrument panel won’t be lit up either.
When
it begins to get dark, your DRL indicator light is a
reminder
to turn your headlamp switch on. The other lamps
that come on with your headlamps will also come on.
When you turn off the headlamp switch, the regular
lamps will go off, and your headlamps will change to
the reduced brightness
of DRL.
To idle your vehicle with the engine on and the DRL off,
set the parking brake. The DRL will stay off until you
release the parking brake.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need
it.
Dome Lamps
The dome lamps will come on when you open the doors.
You can also turn the dome lamps on by rotating the
thumb wheel, located next
to the headlamp knob, all
the way up to the second notch. In this position, the
dome lamps will remain on whether the doors are
opened or closed.
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If you enter the wrong code eight times, INOP will
appear on the display. You will have to wait an hour
with the ignition on before you can try again. When you
try again, you will only have three chances to enter the
correct code before INOP appears.
If you lose or forget your code, contact your dealer.
Disabling the Theft-Deterrent Feature
Enter your secret code as follows; pause no more than
15 seconds between steps:
1. Turn the ignition to ACCESSORY or RUN.
2. Turn the radio off.
3. Press the 1 and 4 buttons together. Hold them down
until
SEC shows on the display.
4. Press MN and 000 will appear on the display.
5. Press MN again to make the last two digits agree
6. Press HR
to make the first one or two digits agree
with your code.
with your
code.
code matches the secret code you have written down.
The display will show
---, indicating that the radio
is
no longer secured.
7. Press AM-FM after you have confirmed that the If
the code entered is incorrect,
SEC will appear on the
display. The radio will remain secured until the correct
code
is entered.
When battery power is removed and later applied
to
a secured radio, the radio won’t turn on and LOC will
appear on the display.
To unlock a secured radio, see “Unlocking the
Theft-Deterrent Feature After
a Power Loss” earlier
in this section.
Understanding Radio Reception
FM Stereo
FM stereo will give you the best sound. But FM signals
will reach only about 10 to
40 miles (16 to 65 km). Tall
buildings or hills can interfere with FM signals, causing
the sound to come and go.
AM
The range for most AM stations is greater than for FM,
especially at night. The longer range, however, can
cause stations to interfere with each other. AM can pick
up noise from things like storms and power lines.
Try
reducing the treble to reduce this noise if you ever get it.
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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 even a moderate 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, especially injuries
to the brain, spinal cord or
heart. This means that when anyone who has been
drinking
-- driver or passenger -- is in a crash, that
person’s chance
of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than if the person had not been drinking.
I
A CAUTION:
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgment can be affected by even a small amount
of alcohol. You can have a serious
-- or even
fatal
-- collision 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.
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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 lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds.
A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger can
suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents
-- the head-on collision.
So here are some tips for passing:
“Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides and to
crossroads for situations that might affect your passing
patterns.
If you have any doubt whatsoever about
making a successful pass, wait for a better time.
Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and lines.
If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a
turn or
an intersection, delay your pass. A broken
center line usually indicates it’s
all right to pass
(providing the road ahead is clear). Never cross
a solid
line on your side of the lane or a double solid line,
even
if the road seems empty of approaching trafEc.
Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to pass
while you’re awaiting
an opportunity. For one thing,
following too closely reduces your area
of vision,
especially if you’re following a larger vehicle.
Also, you won’t have adequate space if the vehicle
ahead suddenly slows or stops. Keep back a
reasonable distance.
When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start to accelerate but stay
in the right lane and don’t
get too close. Time your move
so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes to move into the
other lane. If the way is clear to pass, you will have a
“running start” that more than makes up for the
distance you would lose by dropping back. And if
something happens to cause you to cancel your pass,
you need only slow down and drop back again and
wait for another opportunity.
If other cars are lined up to pass a slow vehicle, wait
your turn.
But take care that someone isn’t trying to
pass you
as you pull out to pass the slow vehicle.
Remember to glance over your shoulder and check
the blind spot.
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0 Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder and
start your left lane change signal before moving
out
of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough
ahead
of the passed vehicle to see its front in your
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.)
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 lamps are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting
to turn.
following driver to get ahead
of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little
to the right.
0 If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
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 vehicle’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.
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Here are some tips on night driving.
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Drive defensively.
Don’t drink and drive.
Adjust your inside rearview mirror to reduce the
glare from headlamps behind you.
Since you can’t see as well, you may need to
slow down and keep more space between you and
other vehicles.
Slow down, especially on higher speed roads. Your
headlamps can light up only
so much road ahead.
In remote areas, watch for animals.
If you’re tired, pull off the road
in a safe place and
rest.
Night Vision
No one can see as well at night as in the daytime. But as
we get older these differences increase. A 50-year-old
driver may require at least twice as much light to see the
same thing at night as
a 20-year-old.
What you do in the daytime can also affect your night
vision. For example, if you spend the day in bright
sunshine you are wise to wear sunglasses. Your eyes will have
less trouble adjusting to night.
But if you’re
driving, don’t wear sunglasses at night. They may cut
down on glare from headlamps, but they also make a lot
of things invisible.
You can be temporarily blinded by approaching
headlamps. It can take
a second or two, or even several
seconds, for your eyes
to readjust to the dark. When
you are faced with severe glare (as from a driver who
doesn’t lower the high beams, or a vehicle with
misaimed headlamps), slow down a little. Avoid staring
directly into the approaching headlamps.
Keep your windshield and all the glass on your vehicle
clean
-- inside and out. Glare at night is made much
worse by dirt on
the glass. Even the inside of the glass
can build up a film caused by dust. Dirty glass makes
lights dazzle and flash more than clean glass would,
making the pupils of your eyes contract repeatedly.
Remember that your headlamps light up far less
of a
roadway when you are in a turn or curve. Keep your
eyes moving; that way, it’s easier to pick out dimly
lighted objects. Just as your headlamps should be
checked regularly for proper aim,
so should your eyes
be examined regularly. Some drivers suffer from night
blindness
-- the inability to see in dim light -- and
aren’t even aware of it.
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