OLDSMOBILE AURORA 1996 Owners Manual

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
somewhat lower BAC level.
There is a gender difference, too. Women generally have
a lower relative percentage of body water than men. Since
alcohol is carried in body water, this means that
a
woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a
man
of her same body weight when each has the same
number
of drinks.
The law in many
U.S. states sets the legal limit at a BAC
of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of
U.S. states, and
throughout Canada, the limit is
0.08 percent. In some
other countries, it’s even lower. The BAC limit for all
commercial drivers in the United States is
0.04 percent.
The BAC 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 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 a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC
of
0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision. At a BAC level of
0.10 percent, the chance of
this driver having
a collision is 12 times greater; at a
level of
0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
ProCarManuals.com

The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol
in one drmk.
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 lulled or permanently disabled
is higher than if the person had not been drinking.
I Drinking and then driving is very dangerous. I
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.
ProCarManuals.com

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.
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 h/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.
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.
4-5
ProCarManuals.com

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. 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
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent
a braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti-lock brake system will check itself. You may
hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test
is going on, and you may even notice that your brake
pedal moves a little. This is normal.
LOCK
ANT‘- (e)
If there’s a problem with the
anti-lock brake system, this warning light will stay on.
See “Anti-Lock Brake
System Warning Light” in
the Index.
4-6
ProCarManuals.com

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.
4-7
ProCarManuals.com

Remember: Anti-lock doesn’t change the time you need
to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease
stopping distance.
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 or stops. Always leave
enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have
anti-lock brakes.
Using 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 to limit wheel spin.
TRACTION
ACTIVE
This 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 or hear the system working, but this is
normal.
If your 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.)
ProCarManuals.com

When the system is on, this
warning light will come on
to let you know if there’s a
problem with your traction
control system.
TRACTION
OFF
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.
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.) To turn the system off,
press the
TRACTION
CONTROL button on
the center console.
The traction control system warning light will come on and stay on.
If the system is limiting wheel spin when you
press the button, the warning light will come on -- but
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 control system warning
light should go off.
ProCarManuals.com

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 cm help you more
than even the very best braking.
Steerin
If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops
or the system is not functioning, you can steer but
it will take much more effort.
:agnasteer
Your vehicle is equipped with GM Magnasteer TM , a
steering system that continuously adjusts the effort you
feel when steering at all vehicle speeds. It provides ease
when parking yet a firm, solid feel at highway speeds.
Steering Tars
Dr ng on Curl
It’s important to take curves at a reasonable speed.
A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on
the news happen on curves. Here’s why:
A
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. Both control systems
-- steering and
acceleration
-- have to do their work where the tires meet
the road. Unless your traction control system
is on,
adding the sudden acceleration can demand too much of
those places. You can lose control.
What should you do if this ever happens? Ease 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.
ProCarManuals.com

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.
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. (See “Braking in
Emergencies” earlier in this section.) 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.
4-11
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.
The fact that such emergency situations are always
possible is a good reason to practice defensive driving at
all times and wear safety belts properly.
ProCarManuals.com

You may find sometime that your right wheels have
dropped off the edge of a road onto the shoulder while
you’re driving.
QUARTER TURN
edge of paved surface
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 one-quarter turn until the
right front tire contacts the pavement edge. Then
turn your
steering wheel to go straight down the roadway.
0
Pa --:- -
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:
0 “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 traffic.
ProCarManuals.com