brake OLDSMOBILE AURORA 1995 Owner's Manual

Control 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 n~ore
of those control systems than the tires
and road can provide. That means
~OLI can lose control
of your vehicle.
Braking
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
rem-tion time.
Average remtio/1 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
lnph ( 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
tread; and the condition
of your brakes.
e (mvel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy): tire
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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 fdster if you
do a lot of heavy braking. 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 when you brake. Once the power assist is
used up,
it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder to push.
Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)
Your Aurora has an advanced electronic braking system
that
will help prevent a braking skid.
ANT’- (I)
LOCK
This light on the
instrument panel
will
come on briefly when
you start your vehicle.
When you start your vehicle and begin to drive away,
you may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise. And
you may even notice that your brake pedal moves
a little
while this is going on. This is the ABS system testing
itself.
If there’s a problem with the anti-lock brake
system, the anti-lock brake system warning light will
stay
on.
See “Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light“ in the
Index.
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Here’s how anti-lock works. Let’s say the road is wet.
You’re driving safely. Suddenly an animal jumps out in
front
of you.
You slam on the brakes. Here’s what happens with ABS.
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at the
rear wheels. The
anti-lock system can change the brake pressure
faster than any driver could. The computer
is
programmed to make the most of available tire and road
conditions.
You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.
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Remember: Anti-lock doesn't change the time you need
to get your
foot up to the brake pedal. If you get too
close to the vehicle in front of you, you won't have time
to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows 01-
stops. Always leave enough 1-0om up ahead to stop. even
though you have anti-lock brakes.
To Use Anti-Lock
Don't pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down
and let anti-lock work for you. You may hear
a motor or
clicking noise during a hard stop. but this is normal.
Traction Control System
Your vehicle has a traction control system that limits
wheel spin. This is especially useful
in slippery road
conditions. The system operates only
if it senses that one
or both of the front wheels are spinning or beginning to
lose traction. When this happens, the system works the
front brakes and reduces engine power (by shutting off
fuel injectors and managing engine spark) to
limit wheel
spin.
The TRACTION ACTIVE light will come on when
your traction control system
is limiting wheel spin. See
"Traction Control System Active Light"
in the Index.
You may feel the system working, or you may notice
some noise, but this is normal.
If yo~~r vehicle is in
cruise control when the traction control system begins to
limit wheel spin, the cruise control will automatically
disengage. When road conditions allow you to safely
use
it again, you may re-engage the cruise control. (See
"Cruise Control"
in the Index.)
TRACTION
OFF
When the system is on, the TRACTION OFF warning
light
will come on to let you know if there's a problem
with your traction control system. See "Traction Control
System Warning Light"
in the Index. When this warning
light is on, the system
will not limit wheel spin. Adjust
your driving accordingly.
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The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever
you start your vehicle. To limit wheel spin,
especially
in slippery road conditions, you should
always leave the system on. But you can turn the
traction control system off
if you ever need to. (You
should
turn the system off if your vehicle ever gets stuck
in sand, mud, ice or snow. See “Rocking Your Vehicle”
in the Index.)
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To turn the system off,
press the TRACTION
CONTROL button on
the center console. The
TRACTION
OFF warning light will come on and
stay on.
If the system is limiting wheel spin when you
press the button,
the system won’t turn off right away. It
will wait until there’s no longer a current need to limit
wheel spin.
You can
turn the system back on at any time by pressing
the button again. The TRACTION
OFF warning light
should go
off.
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.
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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 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 Aurora 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 I80 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.
The fact that s11ch emergency situations are always
possible
is a good reason to practice defensive driving at
all times and wear safety belts properly.
Off-Road Recovery
You may find sometime that your right wheels have
dropped off the edge
of a road onto the shoulder while
you're driving.
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.
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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.)
0 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.
0 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 Aurora‘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 is best handled by easing your foot off
the accelerator pedal.
Remember:
Any traction control system helps avoid
only the acceleration skid.
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If your traction control system is off, then an
acceleration skid is also best handled by easing your
foot
off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot
off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to
go. If yo11 start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for a
second skid
if it occurs.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel, or other material is on the road. For safety, you’ll
want to
slow down and adjust your driving to these
conditions.
It is important to slow down on slippery
surfices 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
vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning clues
--
such as enough water, ice or packed snow on the road to
make a “mirrored surface”
-- and slow down when you
have any doubt.
Remember:
Any anti-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.
Driving at Night
m
Night driving is more dangerous than day driving. One
reason is that some drivers are likely to be impaired
--
by alcohol or drugs, with night vision problems, or by
fatigue.
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The heavier the rain. the harder it is to see. Even if your
windshield wiper blades are
in good shape, a heavy rain
can make
it harder to see road signs and traffic signals,
pavement markings,
the edge of the road, and even
people walking.
It’s wise
to keep your wiping equipment in good shape
and keep your windshield washer tank filled. Replace
your windshield wiper inserts when they show signs
of
streaking or missing areas on the windshield, or when
strips
of rubber start to separate from the inserts. Driving too
fast through large water puddles or even
The water may affect your brakes. Try
to avoid puddles.
But if you can‘t, try to slow down before you hit them.
c wing through some car washes can cause problems, too.
Hydroplaning
Hydroplaning is dangerous. So much water can build up
under your tires that they can actually ride on the water.
This can happen if the road is wet enough and you’re
it has little or no contact with the road.
i= wing fast enough. When your vehicle is hydroplaning,
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Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or mountains is different from
driving
in flat or rolling terrain.
If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you’re
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can make
your trips safer and more enjoyable.
Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all fluid
levels and
also the brakes, tire.s, cooling system and
transaxle. These parts can work hard on mountain
roads.
Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing to know
is this: let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift to
a lower gear when you go
down a steep or long hill.
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