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Tilt WheeI (Option)
A tilt steering wheel allows you to adjust the steering
wheel before you drive.
You can also raise it ,to the highest level to give your
legs more room when you exit and enter the vehicle.
To tilt the wheel, hold the steering wheel and pull the
lever. Move the steering wheel to a comfortable level,
then release the lever to lock the wheel in place. The lever on the left side
of the
steering column
includes your:
Turn Signal and Lane Change Indicator
Headlight Operation
Headlight High-Low Beam & Passing Signal
Flash-To-Pass Feature
0 Cruise Control (Option)
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Ihrn Signal tCONSS Chime
A chime will sound if your turn signal is left on after
having gone
3/4 of a mile, to remind you to turn your
signal
off.
Operation of Lights
Although your vehicle’s lighting system (headlights,
parking lights, fog lamps, side.marker lights and
taillights) meet all applicable federal lighting
requirements, certain states and provinces may apply their own lighting regulations that may require special
attention before you operate these lights. For example,
some jurisdictions may require that you operate your
lower beam lights with fog lamps at all times, or that
headlights be turned on whenever you must use your
windshield wipers. In addition, most jurisdictions
prohibit driving solely with parking lights, especially at
dawn or dusk. It
is recommended that you check with
you own state or provincial highway authority for
applicable lighting regulations.
Headlight High-Low Beam
To change the headlights
from low beam to high or
high to low, pull the turn
signal lever all the way
toward you. Then release it.
When the high beams are
on, this blue light on the
instrument panel also will
be on.
Flash-To-Pass Feature
It lets you use your high beam headlights to signal a driver in front of you that you want to pass. It works
even
if your headlights are off.
To use it, pull the multifunction lever toward you a little
(but not
so far that you hear a click).
If your headlights are off Your high beam headlights
will
turn on. They’ll stay on as long as you hold the
lever there. Release the lever to turn them
off.
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If your headlights are on, but on low beam: The
system works normally. Just pull the lever until it clicks.
Your headlights will shift to high beam and stay there.
To return to low beam, just pull the lever toward you.
Windshield Wipers
You control the windshield wipers by moving the lever
marked
“WIPER.”
For a single wiping cycle, move the lever down to
“MIST.” Hold it down until the wipers start, then let go.
The wipers will stop after one cycle. If you want more
cycles, hold the lever down to “MIST” longer.
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For steady wiping at low speed, move the lever to the
“LOW’ position. For high speed wiping, move the lever
further, up to “HIGH” To stop the wipers, move the
lever to “OFF.”
Low Speed Delay Wipers (Option)
You can set the wiper speed for a long or short delay
between wipes. This can be very useful in light rain or
snow. Move the lever to DELAY then, turn the band to
choose the amount of delay.
I A CAUTION:
Damaged wiper blades may prevent you from
seeing well enough
in a storm to drive safely. To
avoid damage, be sure to clear ice and snow
from the wiper blades before using them.
If
they’re frozen to the windshield, carefully loosen
or thaw them.
If your blades do become
damaged, get new blades or blade inserts.
When you drive into a curve at night, it's harder to see
the road ahead
of you because it bends away from the
straight beams
of your lights. This is one good reason to
drive slower.
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
Qf 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 Buick 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
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. You must then be prepared to steer
back to your original lane and then brake to a controlled
stop.
Depending
on your speed, this can be rather violent for
an unprepared driver. This is one of the reasons driving
experts recommend that you use your safety belts and
keep both hands on the steering wheel.
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3'
The fact that such emergency situations are always
possible is a good
reason to practice defensive driving at
all times.
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Avoid staring directly into the approaching lights. If
there is a line of opposing traffic, make occasional
glances over the line of headlights to make certain that
one of the vehicles isn’t starting to move into your lane.
Once you are past the bright lights, give your eyes time
to readjust before resuming speed.
High Beams
If the vehicle approaching you has its high beams on,
signal by flicking yours to high and then back to low
beam. This is the usual signal to lower the headlight
beams. If the other driver still doesn’t lower the beams,
resist the temptation to put your high beams on. This
only makes two half-blinded drivers.
On
a freeway, use your high beams only in remote areas
where you won’t impair approaching drivers. In some
places, like cities, using high beams is illegal.
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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 @ 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 headlights, but they
also make a lot of things invisible that should remain
visible
- such as parked cars, obstacles, pedestrians, or
even trains blocking railway crossings. You may want to
put on your sunglasses after
you have pulled into a
brightly-lighted service or refreshment area. Eyes
shielded from that glare may adjust more quickly to
darkness back on the road: But be sure to remove your
sunglasses before you leave the service area.
You can be temporarily blinded by approaching lights.
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 headlights),
slow down a little.
..
When you follow another vehicle on a freeway or
highway, use low beams. True, most vehicles now have
day-night mirrors that enable the driver to reduce glare. But outside mirrors are not
of this type and. rh beams
from behind can bother the driver ahead.
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Driving in Fog, Mist and Haze
Fog can occur with high humidity or heavy frost. It can
be
so mild that you can see through it for several
hundred feet (meters). Or it might be
so thick that you
can see only a few feet (meters) ahead. It may come
suddenly to an otherwise clear road. And it can be a
major hazard.
When you drive into a fog patch, your visibility will be
reduced quickly. The biggest dangers are striking the vehicle ahead or being struck by the one behind. Try
to
“read” the fog density down the road. If the vehicle
ahead starts to become less clear or, at night,
if the
taillights are harder to see, the fog is probably
thickening. Slow down to give traffic behind you a chance to slow down. Everybody then has a better
chance to avoid hitting the vehicle ahead.
A patch of dense fog may extend only for a few feet
(meters) or for miles (kilometers); you can’tyeally tell
while you’re in it. You can only treat the situation with
extreme care.
One common fog condition
-- sometimes called mist or
ground fog
-- can happen in weather that seems perfect,
especially at night or in the early morning in valley and
low, marshy areas. You can be suddenly enveloped
in
thick, wet haze that may even coat your windshield. You
can often spot these fog patches or mist layers with your
headlights. But sometimes they can be waiting for you
as you come over a hill or dip into a shallow valley.
Start your windshield wipers and washer, to help clear
accumulated road dirt. Slow down carefully.
Tips on Driving in Fog
If you get caught in fog, turn your headlights on low
beam, even in daytime. You’ll see
-- and be seen --
better. Use your fog lights if your vehicle has them.