1997 CHEVROLET MALIBU ESP

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 0 Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder, and start your left lane change signal before moving out
of the right lane to pass. When you
are far enough
ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front in your
inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal
and move back into the right lane. (Remember that
your right outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you
just passed may seem to be farther away from you
than it really is.)
0 Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time
on two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the
next vehicle.
0 Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake lamps are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting to
turn.
following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little to the right.
0 If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes, steering and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where the
tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trymg to steer and
constantly seek an escape route or area of less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care
suited to existing conditions, and by not “overdriving”
those conditions. But skids are always possible.
The three types of skids correspond to your Chevrolet’s
three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels aren’t rolling.
In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose cornering force. And in
the acceleration skid, too
much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to go.
If you start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for a
second skid if it occurs.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Here are some tips on night driving.
0 Drive defensively.
0 Don’t dnnk and drive.
Adjust your inside rearview mirror to reduce the
Since you can’t see as well, you may need to slow
glare from
headlamps behind you.
down and keep more space between you and
other vehicles.
0 Slow down, especially on higher speed roads. Your
headlamps can light up only
so much road ahead.
In remote areas, watch for animals.
0 If you’re tired, pull off the road in a safe place
and rest.
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
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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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 do not have 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.
1 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
0 Turn on your low-beam headlamps -- not just your
parking lamps
-- to help make you more visible
to others.
0
0
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.
Have good tires with proper tread depth. (See
“Tires” in the Index.)
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 0 Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
0 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 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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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Driving with a nailer
Towing a trailer requires a certain amount of experience.
Before setting out for the open road, you’ll want to get
to know your rig. Acquaint yourself with the feel
of
handling and braking with the added weight of the
trailer. And always keep in mind that the vehicle you are
driving is now a good deal longer and not nearly as
responsive as your vehicle is by itself.
Before you start, check the trailer hitch and platform (and attachments), safety chains, electrical connector,
lamps, tires and mirror adjustment. If the trailer has
electric brakes, start your vehicle and trailer moving and
then apply the trailer brake controller by hand to be sure
the brakes are working. This lets you check your
electrical connection at the same time.
During your trip, check occasionally to be sure that the
load is secure, and that the lamps and any trailer brakes
are still working.
Following Distance
Stay at least twice as far behind the vehicle ahead as you
would when driving your vehicle without a trailer. This
can help you avoid situations that require heavy braking
and sudden turns.
Passing
You’ll need more passing distance up ahead when you’re towing a trailer. And, because you’re a good deal \
longer, you’ll need to go much farther beyond the
passed vehicle before you can return to your lane.
Backing Up
Hold the bottom of the steering wheel with one hand.
Then, to move the trailer to the left, just move that hand
to the left. To move the trailer to the right, move your
hand to the right. Always back up slowly and,
if
possible, have someone guide you.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When You Are Ready to Leave After
Parking on
a Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold the pedal down
while you:
Start your engine;
Shift into a gear; and
Release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until the trailer is clear of the chocks.
4. Stop and have someone pick up and store the chocks.
Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more often when you’re
pulling a trailer. See the Maintenance Schedule for more
on this. Things that are especially important in trailer
operation are automatic transaxle fluid (don’t overfill),
engine oil, belt, cooling system and brake adjustment.
Each
of these is covered in this manual, and the Index
will help you find them quickly.
If you’re trailering, it’s
a good idea to review these sections before you start
your trip.
Check periodically to see that all hitch nuts and bolts
are tight.
Towing A Trailer
(Except
3100 V6 Engine)
Your vehicle is neither designed nor intended to
tow a trailer.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine -.
5. Then replace the pressure cap. Be sure the pressure
cap is tight.
If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving,
especially if you maintain your tires properly. If
air goes
out
of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But
if you should ever have a “blowout,” here are a few
tips about what to expect and what to do:
If a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot
off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel
firmly.
Steer to maintain lane position, and then gently brake to
a stop well out of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve, acts much like a
skid and may require the same correction you’d use
in a
skid. In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake to a stop
-- well off the road if possible.
If a tire goes flat, the next part shows how to use your
jacking equipment
to change a flat tire safely.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If you ever replace your tires with those not having a
TPC Spec number, make sure they are the same size,
load range, speed rating and construction type (bias,
bias-belted or radial) as your original tires.
I
Mixing tires could cause you to lose control while
driving.
If you mix tires of different sizes or types
(radial and bias-belted tires), the vehicle may not
handle properly, and you could have
a crash.
Using tires
of different sizes may also cause
damage to your vehicle. Be sure to use the same
size and type tires on all wheels.
It’s all right to drive with your compact spare,
though.
It was developed for use on your vehicle.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance. (This applies only to vehicles sold in the United States.) The
grades are molded on the sidewalls
of most passenger
car tires. The Uniform Tire Quality Grading system does
not apply to deep tread, winter-type snow tires, space-saver or temporary use spare tires, tires with
nominal rim diameters
of 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm),
or to some limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these
grades, they must also conform to Federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
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