1996 PONTIAC PONTIAC Owners Manual

Highway Hypnosis Hill and Mountain Roads
Is there actually such a condition as “highway hypnosis”?
Or
is it just @.am falg asleep at the wheel? Call it
highway.hypnosis, lack of awaeqess,
Q]: whatever.
There
is something about an easy stretch of road with
the same scenery,
along with the hum of the tires on the
.road,
the &one of the &&e, and the rush of the wind
against the vehicle that can make you sleepy. Don’t let it
happen to you!
If it does, your vehicle can leave the
road in less than a second, and you could crash and be
injured.
What can you do about highway hypnosis? First, bt
aware that it can happen.
Then here are
some tips:
Make sure your vehicle is well ventilated, with a
comfortably cool interior.
e Keep your eyes moving. Scan the road ahead ad to
the sides. Check your rearview minors and your
instruments frequently.
a If you get sleepy, pull off the mad into a rest, service
or
parking area and take a nap, get some exercise, or
both. For safety, treat drowsiness on the hghway as
an emergency. Driving
on steep hills or
mountains is different from
driving in flat or rolling terrain. I
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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, tires, cooling system
and transaxle. These parts can work hard on
mountain roads.
0 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.
L
If you don’t shift down, your brakes could get
so hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would
then have
poor braking or even none going
down a hill. You could crash. Shift down to let
your engine assist your brakes on
a steep
downhill
slope.
A CAUTION:
0
0
Coasting downhill in NEUTRAL (N) or with. the
ignition
off is dangerous. Your brakes will have to
do all the work of slowing down. They could get so
hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would then
have poor braking or even none going down a
hill.
You could crash. Always have your engine running
and your vehicle in gear when you go downhill.
Know how to go uphill. You may want to shift down
to a lower gear. The lower gears help cool your engine
and transaxle, and you can climb the hill better.
Stay in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in hills or mountains. Don’t swing wide or cut
across the center
of the road. Drive at speeds that let
you stay in your own lane.
As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There
could be something in your lane, like a stalled car
or
an accident.
You may see highway signs on mountains that warn of
special problems. Examples
are long grades, passing or
no-passing zones, a falling rocks area or winding
roads.
Be alert to these and take appropriate action.
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Winter Drivi: -
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your Pontiac in good shape for winter.
YOU may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your trunk. Include
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.
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Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction. What’s the worst time for
this? “Wet ice.” Very cold
snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it may offer the
least traction
of all. You can get wet iCe when it’s about
However, if there
is snow or ice between your tires and freezing (32 OF; OOC) and freezing rain begins to fall.
the road, you can have a very slippery situation. You’ll
Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
have a lot less traction or “grip” and will need to be can get there.
very careful. Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow
-- drive with caution. Accelerate gently.
Try not to break the fragile traction. If you accelerate
too fast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surface
under the tires even more.
Unless you have the anti-lock braking system, you’ll
want to brake very gently, too.
(If you do have anti-lock,
see “Anti-Lock” in the Index. This system improves
your vehicle’s stability when you make a hard stop on a
slippery road.) Whether you have the anti-lock braking
system
or not, you’ll want to begin stopping sooner than
you would on dry pavement. Without anti-lock brakes,
if you feel your vehicle begin to slide, let up on the
brakes a little. Push the brake pedal down steadily
to get
the most traction you can.
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Remember, unless you have anti-lock, if you brake so
hard that your wheels stop rolling, you’ll just slide.
Brake
so your wheels always keep rolling and you can
still steer.
0 Whatever your braking system, allow greater
following distance on
any slippery road.
0 Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit a spot that’s covered with ice. On
an
otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the
sun can’t reach: around
clumps
of trees, behind buildings or under bridges.
Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass may
remain icy when the surrounding roads are clear. If
you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before you
are on it. Try not to brake while you’re actually on
the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers.
If You’re Caught in a Blizzard
If you are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a
serious situation. You should probably stay with your
vehicle
unless you know for sure that you are near help
and
you can hike bough the mow. Here are some
things to do to summon help and keep yourself and your
passengers safe:
Ttim on your hazaid flashers.
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Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you have no blankets or extra clothing, make body
insulators
from newspapers, burlap bags, rags, floor
mats
-- anything you can wrap around yourself or
tuck under your clothing to keep
warm.
You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
A
I
/! CAUTION: -
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.
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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 charged.
You will need a well-charged battery to
restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling later on
with your headlamps. Let the heater
run for awhile.
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.
.
Loading Your Vehicle
TI!RE-LBADING INFORMATION
VEHICLE
CAP. WT.
FRT, CTR. RR TOTAL LBS.
MAX. LOADING & GVWR SAME AS VEHICLE
CAPACITY
WEIGHT XXX COLD TIRE
TIRE SIZE SPEED PRESSURE
RTG ' PSI/KPa
FRT.
RR.
SPA.
IF TIRES ARE HOT, ADD 4PW28KPa
SEE OWNER'S MANUAL FOR ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION k
Two labels on your vehicle show how much weight it
may properly
carry, The Tire-Loading Information label
is
on the inside of the trunk lid. The label tells you the
proper size, speed rating and recommended inflation
pressures for the tires on your vehicle. It also gives you
important
irmformation about the numb'er of people that
can be
in your vehicle and the total weight you can
carry.
This weight is called' the vehicle capacity weight
and includes the weight
of all occupants, cargo and all
nonfactory-installed options.
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F
MFD BY GENERAL MOTORS CORP
DATE GVWR GAWR FRT GAWR RR
THIS VEHICLE CONFORMS TO ALL APPLI- .
CABLE U.S. FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE . .. '-" 1
SAFETY, BUMPER, AND THEFT PREVENTTON-
STAN.DARDS IN EFFECT ON THE DATE OF
MANUFACTURE SHOWN ABOVE.
The other label is the Certification label, found on the rear
edge of the driver's door. It tells you the
gross weight
capacity of your vehicle, called the GVWR (Gross Vehicle
Weight Rating). The
GVWR includes the weight of the
vehicle, all occupants, fuel
and cargo. Never exceed the
GVWR for your vehicle or the Gross Axle Weight Rating
(GAWR) for either the front or rear axle.
If you do have a heavy load, spread
it out. Don't carry
more than 167 lbs. (75 kg) in your trunk.
A CAUTION:
Do not load your vehicle any heavier than the -
GVWR, or either the maximum front or rear
GAWR.
If you do, parts on your vehicle can
break, or it can change the way your vehicle
handles. These could cause you to lose control.
Also, overloading can shorten the life of
your vehicle.
NOTICE:
Your warranty does not cover parts or
components that fail because of overloading.
If you put things inside your vehicle -- like suitcases,
tools, packages
or anything else -- they will go as fast as
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