Police records show that almost half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most cases,
these deaths are the result of someone who was drinking
and driving. In recent years, some
17,000 annual motor
vehicle-related deaths have been associated with the use
of alcohol, with more than
300,000 people injured.
Many adults
-- by some estimates, nearly half the adult
population
-- choose never to drink alcohol, so they
never drive after drinking. For persons under 21, it’s
against the law in every
U.S. state to drink alcohol.
There are good medical, psychological and
developmental reasons for these laws.
The obvious way to solve this highway safety problem
is for people never to drink alcohol and then drive. But
what if people do? How much is “too much” if the
driver plans to drive? It’s a lot less than many might
think. Although it depends on each person and situation,
here is some general information on
the problem. The
Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of someone
who
is drinking depends upon four things:
0 The amount of alcohol consumed
The drinker’s body weight
The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the alcohol.
According to the American Medical Association, a
180-lb. (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 4-ounce
(1 20 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.
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0 Unless you have anti-lock: Avoid braking so hard that
you lock the wheels when going downhill. If your
wheels are locked, you can't steer your vehicle.
If your
wheels lock up during downhill braking,
you may feel
the vehicle starting to slide sideways. To regain your
direction, just ease
off the brakes and steer to keep the
front
of the vehicle pointing straight downhill.
e." Am I likely to stall when going downhill?
A: It's much more likely to happen going uphill. But if
0
0
0
0
it happens going downhill, here's what to do.
Stop your vehicle by applying the regular brakes.
Apply the parking brake.
Shift
to PARK (P) (or to NEUTRAL (N) with the
manual transmission) and, while still braking, restart
the engine.
Shift back to a low gear, release the parking brake,
and drive straight down.
If the engine won't start, get
out and get help.
Driving Across an Incline
Sooner or later, an off-road trail will probably go across
the incline of a hill. If this happens, you have
to decide
whether
to try to drive across the incline. Here are some
things to consider:
0
0
A hill that can be driven straight up or down may be
too steep to drive across. When you go straight up
or down a hill, the length of the wheel base (the
distance from the front wheels to the rear wheels)
reduces the likelihood the vehicle will tumble end
over end. But when you drive across an incline, the
much more narrow track width (the distance between
the left and right wheels) may not prevent the vehicle
from tilting and rolling over. Also, driving across an
incline puts more weight on the downhill wheels.
This could cause a downhill slide
or a rollover.
Surface conditions can be a problem when you drive
across a hill. Loose gravel, muddy spots, or even wet
grass can cause your tires to slip sideways, downhill.
If the vehicle slips sideways,
it can hit something
that will trip
it (a rock, a rut, etc.) and roll over.
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Wheel Nuts
Wheel Nut Torque ............. 60 lb-ft (80 N-m)
Vehicle Dimensions
Wheelbase
Two-Door Convertible
... 86.6 inches (2 200 mm)
Four-Door Hardtop
...... 97.6 inches (2 480 mm)
Front
................. 54.9 inches (1 395 mm)
Rear
.................. 55.1 inches (1 400 mm)
Two-Door Convertible
. . 143.7 inches (3 650 mm)
Four-Door Hardtop
..... 158.7 inches (4 030 mm)
Tread
Length
Width Two-Door Convertible
... 64.2 inches (1 630 mm)
Four-Door Hardtop ...... 64.4 inches (1 635 mm)
Two-Door Convertible
Height
Two-Wheel Drive
..... 64.3 inches (I 633 mm)
Four-wheel Drive ..... 65.1 inches (1 654 mm)
Two-Wheel Drive ..... 65.7 inches (1 669 mm)
Four-wheel Drive
..... 66.5 inches (1 689 mm)
Four-Door Hardtop
Air Conditioning Refrigerants
Not all air conditioning refrigerants
are the same.
If the air conditioning system in your vehicle needs
refrigerant, be sure the proper refrigerant
is used. If
you’re not sure, ask your Geo dealer.
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