1994 CHEVROLET BLAZER Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine According to the American Medical Association, a 180-pound (82 kg)
person who drinks three 12-ounce
(355 ml) bottles of beer in an hour will
end up with a BAC
of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the same
BAC by drinking three &ounce (120
ml) glasses of wine or three mixed
drinks if each had 1-1/2 ounces
(45 ml) of a liquor like whiskey, gin or
vodka.
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 slightly lower
BAC level.
OF DRINKS NUMBER
(as in picture) 1 HOUR
The law in most U.S. states sets the legal limit at a BAC of 0.10 percent. In
Canada the limit is 0.08 percent, and in some other countries it’s lower than
that. 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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine But it’s very important to keep in mind that 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 an accident increases
sharply for drivers who have a BAC
of 0.05 percent or above. A driver with
a BAC level of
0.06 percent (three beers in one hour for a 180-pound or 82
kg person) has doubled his or her chance of having an accident. At a BAC
level
of 0.10 percent, the chance of that driver having an accident is six
times greater;
at a level of 0.15 percent, the chances are twenty-five times
greater! And, 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 a
higher 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. That’s especially true for brain, spinal cord and heart
injuries. That means that
if anyone who has been drinking - driver or
passenger
- is in a crash, the chance of being killed or permanently
disabled is higher than if that person had
not been drinking. And we’ve
already seen that the chance of a crash itself is higher for drinking drivers.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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 more of
those control systems than the tires and road can provide. That means you
can lose control of your vehicle.
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 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 gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry,
icy); tire tread; and the condition
of your brakes.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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 (ABS)
Your vehicle has an advanced electronic braking system that can help you
keep it under control. When you start your vehicle and begin to drive away,
you may hear
a momentary motor or clicking noise. This is the ABS system
testing
itself.
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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on wheel speed and
controls braking pressure accordingly.
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 or
stops. Always leave enough room up ahead
to stop, even though you have
anti-lock brakes.
To Use Four-wheel Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down and let anti-lock
work for
you. You may feel the brakes vibrate, or you may notice some
noise, but this is normal.
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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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Power Steering
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.
Steering Tips
Driving on Curves
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:
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. 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.
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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
1. Edge of Road
Surface
2. Slow Down
3. Left Approx.
Quarter Turn
4. Recover
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.
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