ground clearance INFINITI QX50 2020 Owners Manual

ON-PAVEMENT AND OFF-ROAD
DRIVING PRECAUTIONS
Utility vehicles have a significantly higher
rollover rate than other types of vehicles.
They have higher ground clearance than pas-
senger cars to make them capable of per-
forming in a variety of on-pavement and off-
road applications. This gives them a higher
center of gravity than ordinary vehicles. An
advantage of higher ground clearance is a
better view of the road, allowing you to an-
ticipate problems. However, they are not de-
signed for cornering at the same speeds as
conventional 2-Wheel Drive vehicles any
more than low-slung sports cars are de-
signed to perform satisfactorily under off-
road conditions. If at all possible, avoid sharp
turns at high speeds. As with other vehicles of
this type, failure to operate this vehicle cor-
rectly may result in loss of control or vehicle
rollover. In a rollover crash, an unbelted per-
son is significantly more likely to die than a
person wearing a seat belt.
For additional information, refer to “Driving
safety precautions” in this section.
AVOIDING COLLISION AND
ROLLOVER
WARNING
Failure to operate this vehicle in a safe and
prudent manner may result in loss of con-
trol or an accident.
Be alert and drive defensively at all times.
Obey all traffic regulations. Avoid excessive
speed, high speed cornering, or sudden steer-
ing maneuvers, because these driving prac-
tices could cause you to lose control of your
vehicle.
As with any vehicle, loss of control could re-
sult in a collision with other vehicles or ob-
jects or cause the vehicle to roll over, par-
ticularly if the loss of control causes the
vehicle to slide sideways.
Be attentive at all times, and avoid driving
when tired. Never drive when under the influ-
ence of alcohol or drugs (including prescrip-
tion or over-the-counter drugs which may
cause drowsiness). Always wear your seat
belt as outlined in the “Safety – Seats, seat
belts and supplemental restraint system” sec-
tion of this manual, and also instruct your
passengers to do so. Seat belts help reduce the risk of injury in
collisions and rollovers.
In a rollover crash, an
unbelted or improperly belted person is sig-
nificantly more likely to be injured or killed
than a person properly wearing a seat belt.OFF-ROAD RECOVERY
While driving, the right side or left side wheels
may unintentionally leave the road surface. If
this occurs, maintain control of the vehicle by
following the procedure below. Please note
that this procedure is only a general guide.
The vehicle must be driven as appropriate
based on the conditions of the vehicle, road
and traffic.
1. Remain calm and do not overreact.
2. Do not apply the brakes.
3. Maintain a firm grip on the steering wheel with both hands and try to hold a
straight course.
4. When appropriate, slowly release the accelerator pedal to gradually slow the
vehicle.
5. If there is nothing in the way, steer the vehicle to follow the road while vehicle
speed is reduced. Do not attempt to
drive the vehicle back onto the road sur-
face until vehicle speed is reduced.
Starting and driving5-9

CAUTION
∙ Never install tire chains on a puncturedrun-flat tire, as this could damage your
vehicle.
∙ Avoid diving over any projection or pot- hole, as the clearance between the ve-
hicle and the ground is smaller than
normal.
∙ Do not enter an automated car wash with a punctured run-flat tire.
∙ Have the punctured tire inspected by an INFINITI retailer or other authorized re-
pair shop. Replace the tire as soon as pos-
sible if the tire is seriously damaged. To start your engine with a booster battery,
the instructions and precautions below must
be followed.
WARNING
∙ If done incorrectly, jump starting can lead
to a battery explosion, resulting in severe
injury or death. It could also damage your
vehicle.
∙ Explosive hydrogen gas is always present in the vicinity of the battery. Keep all
sparks and flames away from the
battery.
∙ Do not allow battery fluid to come into contact with eyes, skin, clothing or
painted surfaces. Battery fluid is a corro-
sive sulfuric acid solution which can cause
severe burns. If the fluid should come into
contact with anything, immediately flush
the contacted area with water.
∙ Keep battery out of the reach of children.
∙ The booster battery must be rated at 12 volts. Use of an improperly rated bat-
tery can damage your vehicle. ∙ Whenever working on or near a battery,
always wear suitable eye protectors (for
example, goggles or industrial safety
spectacles) and remove rings, metal
bands, or any other jewelry. Do not lean
over the battery when jump starting.
∙ Do not attempt to jump start a frozen battery. It could explode and cause seri-
ous injury.
∙ The automatic engine cooling fan (if so equipped) may come on at any time with-
out warning, even if the ignition switch is
in the OFF position and the engine is not
running. To avoid injury, keep hands and
other objects away from it.
JUMP STARTING
In case of emergency6-5

If the low tire pressure warning light illumi-
nates continuously and the “Flat Tire – Visit
dealer" warning appears in the vehicle infor-
mation display:∙ Do not exceed 50 mph (80 km/h).
∙ Increase your following distance to allow for increased stopping distances.
∙ Avoid sudden maneuvers, hard cornering and hard braking.
WARNING
∙ Although you can continue driving with apunctured run-flat tire, remember that
vehicle handling stability is reduced,
which could lead to an accident and per-
sonal injury. Also, driving a long distance
at high speeds may damage the tire.
∙ Do not drive at speeds above 50 mph (80 km/h) and do not drive more than
approximately 93 miles (150 km) with a
punctured run-flat tire. The actual dis-
tance the vehicle can be driven on a flat
tire depends on outside temperature, ve-
hicle load, read conditions and other
factors.
∙ Drive safely at reduced speeds. Avoid hard cornering or braking, which may
cause you to lose control of the vehicle. ∙ If you detect any unusual sounds or vi-
brations while driving with a punctured
run-flat tire, pull off the road to a safe
location and stop the vehicle as soon as
possible. The tire may be seriously dam-
aged and need to be replaced.
CAUTION
∙ Never install tire chains on a puncturedrun-flat tire, as this could damage your
vehicle.
∙ Avoid driving over any projection or pot- hole, as the clearance between the ve-
hicle and the ground is smaller than
normal.
∙ Do not enter an automated car wash with a punctured run-flat tire.
∙ Have the punctured tire inspected by an INFINITI retailer or other authorized re-
pair shop. Replace the tire as soon as pos-
sible if the tire is seriously damaged. ∙ Always use tires of the same type, size,
brand, construction (bias, bias-belted or
radial), and tread pattern on all four
wheels. Failure to do so may result in a
circumference difference between tires
on the front and rear axles which will
cause excessive tire wear and may dam-
age the transmission, transfer case and
differential gears (AWD models).
∙ ONLY use spare tires specified for the AWD model.
∙ If excessive tire wear is found, it is recom- mended that all four tires be replaced
with tires of the same size, brand, con-
struction and tread pattern. The tire
pressure and wheel alignment should also
be checked and corrected as necessary. It
is recommended that you visit an
INFINITI retailer for this service.
Do-it-yourself8-33

Replacing wheels and tires
When replacing a tire, use the same size,
tread design, speed rating and load carrying
capacity as originally equipped. For addi-
tional information, refer to “Wheels and tires”
in the “Technical and consumer information”
section of this manual.
WARNING
∙ The use of tires other than those recom-mended or the mixed use of tires of dif-
ferent brands, construction (bias, bias-
belted or radial), or tread patterns can
adversely affect the ride, braking, han-
dling, VDC system, ground clearance,
body-to-tire clearance, tire chain clear-
ance, speedometer calibration, headlight
aim and bumper height. Some of these
effects may lead to accidents and could
result in serious personal injury.
∙ For 2WD models, if your vehicle was originally equipped with four tires that
were the same size and you are only re-
placing two of the four tires, install the
new tires on the rear axle. Placing new
tires on the front axle may cause loss of
vehicle control in some driving conditions
and cause an accident and personal
injury. ∙ If the wheels are changed for any reason,
always replace with wheels which have
the same off-set dimension. Wheels of a
different off-set could cause premature
tire wear, degrade vehicle handling char-
acteristics, affect the VDC system
and/or interference with the brake discs.
Such interference can lead to decreased
braking efficiency and/or early brake
pad wear. For additional information on
wheel off-set dimensions, refer to
“Wheels and tires” in the “Technical and
consumer information” section of this
manual.
∙ When replacing a wheel without the TPMS, such as the spare tire, the TPMS
will not function and the low tire pressure
warning light will flash for approximately
1 minute. The light will remain on after
1 minute. Have your tires replaced
and/or TPMS system reset as soon as
possible. It is recommended that you visit
an INFINITI retailer for this service.
∙ Replacing tires with those not originally specified by INFINITI could affect the
proper operation of the TPMS.
∙ The TPMS sensor may be damaged if it is not handled correctly. Be careful when
handling the TPMS sensor. ∙ When replacing the TPMS sensor, the ID
registration may be required. It is recom-
mended that you visit an INFINITI re-
tailer for ID registration.
∙ Do not use a valve stem cap that is not specified by INFINITI. The valve stem cap
may become stuck.
∙ Be sure that the valve stem caps are cor- rectly fitted. Otherwise the valve may be
clogged up with dirt and cause a malfunc-
tion or loss of pressure.
∙ Do not install a damaged or deformed wheel or tire even if it has been repaired.
Such wheels or tires could have structural
damage and could fail without warning.
∙ The use of retread tires is not recommended.
∙ For additional information regarding tires, refer to “Important Tire Safety In-
formation” (US) or “Tire Safety Informa-
tion” (Canada) in the Warranty Informa-
tion Booklet.
Wheel balance
Unbalanced wheels may affect vehicle han-
dling and tire life. Even with regular use,
wheels can get out of balance. Therefore,
they should be balanced as required.
8-36Do-it-yourself