1996 GMC SIERRA light

Here are some tips on night driving.
0 Drive defensively.
0 Don’t drink and drive.
0 Adjust your inside rearview mirror to reduce the
glare from he.adlamps behind
you.
0 Since you can’t see as well, you may need to
slow down and keep more space between you
and other vehicles.
Slow down, especially on higher speed roads. Your
headlamps can light
up only so much road ahead.
0 In remote areas, watch for animals.
0 If you’re tired, pull off the road in a safe place
and rest.
ght Vis- -
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 in 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 headlamps, but they also make a lot
of things invisible.
You can be temporarily blinded by approaching
headlamps. 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 headlamps), slow down
a little. Avoid staring
directly
into the approaching headlamps.
Keep your windshield and all the glass on your vehicle
clean
-- inside and out. Glare at night is made much
worse by dirt on the glass. Even
the inside of the glass
can build up
a film caused by dust. Dirty glass makes
lights dazzle and flash more than clean glass would,
making the pupils
of your eyes contract repeatedly.
Remember that your headlamps light
up far less of a
roadway when
you are in a turn or curve. Keep your
eyes moving; that way, it’s easier
to pick out dimly
lighted objects. Just as your headlamps should
be
checked regularly for proper aim, so should your eyes
be examined regularly. Some drivers suffer from night
blindness
-- the inability to see in dim light -- and aren’t
even aware
of it.
4-29
ProCarManuals.com

Driving too fast through large water puddles or even
going through some vehicle washes can
cause problems,
too. The water may affect your brakes. Try to avoid
puddles. But
if you can’t, try to slow down before you
hit them.
I
Wet brakes can cause accidents. They won’t work
well in a quick stop and may cause pulling to one
side. You could lose control
of the vehicle.
After driving through a large puddle
of water or
a vehicle wash, apply your brake pedal lightly until your brakes work normally.
ProCarManuals.com

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
going fast enough. When your vehicle is hydroplaning,
it has little
or no contact with the road.
Hydroplaning doesn’t happen often. But
it can if your
tires haven’t much tread or
if the pressure in one or
more
is low. It can happen if a lot of water is standing on
the road. If you can see reflections from trees, telephone
poles or other vehicles, and raindrops “dimple” the
water’s surface, there could be hydroplaning.
Hydroplaning usually happens at higher speeds. There
just isn’t a hard and fast rule about hydroplaning. The
best advice is to slow down when it is raining.
Driving Through Deep Standing Water
NOTICE:
If you drive too quickly through deep puddles or
standing water, water can come in through your
engine’s air intake and badly damage your
engine. Never drive through water that
is slightly
lower than the underbody of your vehicle. If
you
can’t avoid deep puddles or standing water, drive
through them very slowly.
Some Other Rainy Weather Tips
Besides slowing down, allow some extra following
distance. And be especially careful when you pass
another vehicle. Allow yourself more clear room
ahead, and be prepared
to have your view restricted
by road spray.
“Tires” in the Index.)
Have good tires with proper tread depth. (See
--
ProCarManuals.com

City Driv---,
One of the biggest problems with city streets is the
amount
of traffic on them. You’ll want to watch out for
what the other drivers are doing and
pay attention to
traffic signals. Here are ways
to increase your safety
in city driving:
0
0
0
Know the best way to get to where you are
going. Get
a city map and plan your trip into an
unknown part of the city just as you would for a
cross-country trip.
Try
to use the freeways that rim and crisscross most
large cities. You’ll save time and energy. (See
the
next part, “Freeway Driving.”)
Treat
a green light as a warning signal. A traffic
light
is there because the corner is busy enough to
need it. When a light turns green, and just before
you start to move, check both ways for vehicles that
have
not cleared the intersection or may be running
the red light.
4-33
ProCarManuals.com

Freeway Driving
Mile for mile, freeways (also called thruways, parkways,
expressways, turnpikes or superhighways) are the safest
of all roads. But they have their own special rules.
The most important advice
on freeway driving is: Keep
up with traffic and keep
to the right. Drive at the same
speed most
of the other drivers are driving. Too-fast or
too-slow driving breaks
a smooth traffic flow. Treat the
left lane
on a freeway as a passing lane. At
the entrance, there is usually
a ramp that leads to the
freeway.
If you have a clear view of the freeway as you
drive along the entrance ramp, you should begin to
check traffic. Try to determine where you expect to
blend
with the flow. Try to merge into the gap at close to
the prevailing speed. Switch on your turn signal, check
your mirrors and glance over your shoulder as often
as
necessary. Try to blend smoothly with the traffic flow.
Once
you are on the freeway, adjust your speed to the
posted limit or to the prevailing rate
if it’s slower. Stay
in the right lane unless
you want to pass.
Before changing lanes, check your mirrors. Then use
your turn signal.
Just before you leave the lane, glance quickly over your
shoulder
to make sure there isn’t another vehicle in your
“blind” spot.
Once you are moving
on the freeway, make certain you
allow a reasonable following distance. Expect to move
slightly slower
at night.
When
you want to leave the freeway, move to the proper
lane well
in advance. If you miss your exit, do not,
under any circumstances, stop and back up. Drive
on to
the next exit.
The exit ramp can be curved, sometimes quite sharply.
4-34
ProCarManuals.com

Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
0 Have your vehicle in good shape for winter.
0 You may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your vehicle. 1nclude.an ice
scraper, a small brush
or broom, a supply
of windshield washer fluid, a rag, some winter outer
clothing, a small shovel, a flashlight, a red cloth and a
,
couple of reflective warning triangles. And, if you will
be driving under severe conditions, include
a small bag
of sand, a piece of old carpet or a couple of burlap bags
to help provide traction. Be sure you properly secure
these items in your vehicle.
Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction.
However,
if there is snow or ice between your tires
and the road,
you can have a very slippery situation.
You’ll have a lot less traction or “grip” and will need
to be very careful.
4-3s
ProCarManuals.com

I /1 CAJTION:
Snow can trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside. CO could overcome you and kill
you. You can’t see it or smell it,
so you might not
know it is
in your vehicle. Clear away snow from
around the base
of your vehicle, especially any
that is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to time to be sure snow doesn’t collect there.
Open a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This will help
keep
CO out.
Run your engine only as long as you must. This saves
fuel. When you run the engine, make it go a little faster
than just idle. That is, push the accelerator slightly. This
uses less fuel for the heat that you get and it keeps the
battery (or batteries) charged.
You will need a
well-charged battery (or batteries) to restart the vehicle,
and possibly for signaling later
on with your headlamps.
Let the heater run for awhile.
If
you have a diesel engine, you may have to run it at a
higher speed to get enough heat. Then, shut the engine
off and close the window almost all the way to preserve
the heat. Start the engine again and repeat this
only
when you feel really uncomfortable from the cold. But
do it as little
as possible. Preserve the fuel as long as you
can. To help keep warm, you can get out of the vehicle
and do some fairly vigorous exercises every half hour or
so until help comes.
4-41
~.
ProCarManuals.com

2. Get the vehicles close enough so the jumper cables
can reach, but be sure the ve.hicles aren’t touching
each other.
If they are, it could cause a ground
connection you don’t want. You wouldn’t be able to
start
your vehicle, and the bad grounding could
damage the electrical systems.
To avoid the possibility
of the vehicles rolling,
set the parking brake firmly on both vehicles
involved
in the jump start procedure. Put an
automatic transmission
in PARK (P) or a manual
transmission
in NEUTRAL (N). If you have a
four-wheel-drive vehicle, be sure the transfer
case is not in NEUTRAL
(N).
3. Turn off the ignition on both vehicles. Unplug
unnecessary accessories plugged into the cigarette
lighter or accessory power outlets,
if you have this
option. Turn
off all lamps that aren’t needed as well
as radios. This will avoid sparks and help save both
batteries.
In addition, it could save your radio!
NOTICE:
I
~~~ ~
If you leave your radio on, it could be badly
damaged. The repairs wouldn’t be covered by
your warranty.
4. Open the hoods and locate the batteries. Find
the positive
(+) and negative (-) terminals 011
each battery.
A CAUTION:
If your vehicle has air conditioning, the auxiliary
electric fan under the hood can start up even
when the engine
is not running and can injure
you. Keep hands, clothing and tools
away from
any underhood electric fan.
5-3
ProCarManuals.com