1997 GMC SAVANA lock

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.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel or other material is on the road. For safety, you’ll
want to slow down and adjust your driving to these
conditions. It is important to slow down on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and
vehicle control more limited.
While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try
your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration or
braking (including engine braking by shifting to a lower
gear). Any sudden changes could cause the tires to slide.
You may not realize the surface is slippery until your
vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning
clues
-- such as enough water, ice or packed snow on
the road to make
a “mirrored surface’’ -- and slow
down when you have any doubt.
Remember: Any anti-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.
Driving at Night
Night driving is more dangerous than day driving.
One reason is that some drivers are likely to be
impaired
-- by alcohol or drugs, with night vision
problems,
or by fatigue.
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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.
Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle’s stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road. Even
though you have an anti-lock braking system, you’ll
want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry
pavement. See “Anti-Lock‘’
in the Index.
Allow greater following distance on any slippery road.
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 through the snow. Here are some
things to
do to summon help and keep yourself and your
passengers safe:
Turn on your hazard 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.
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You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
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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9. Make your last connection away from the battery, to
the engine block, frame or other unpainted metal
parts of your vehicle.
A ground location has been
provided through a
stud attached to the body surface.
10. Please remove the cap before using.
11. Now start the vehicle with the good battery and run
the engine for a while.
12. Try to start the vehicle with the dead battery. If it
13. Remove the cables in reverse order to prevent
won’t start after
a few tries,
it probably needs service.
electrical shorting. Take care that
they don’t touch
each other or any other metal.
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A. Engine Block, Frame, Unpainted Metal Engine Part
or Body Surface
B. Good Battery
C. Dead Battery
Towing Your Vehicle
Try to have your GM dealer or a professional towing
service tow your vehicle. They can provide the right
equipment and know-how to tow it without damage.
See “Roadside Assistance’’ in your Index.
If your vehicle has been changed since it was
factory-new, by adding things like fog lamps, aero
skirting, or special tires and wheels, these things could
be damaged during towing.
Before you do anything, turn on the hazard
warning flashers.
When you call, tell the towing service:
0 That your vehicle has rear wheel drive.
The make, model and year of your vehicle.
Whether you can move the shift lever for
the transmission.
If there was an accident, what was damaged.
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A CAUTION:
I
To help avoid injury to you or others:
0 Never let passengers ride in a vehicle that is
0 Never tow faster than safe or posted speeds.
0 Never tow with damaged parts not
0 Never get under your vehicle after .it has
0 Always use separate safety chains on each
being towed.
fully secured.
been lifted by the tow truck.
side when towing a vehicle.
When your vehicle is being towed, have the ignition
key
off. The steering wheel should be clamped in a
straight-ahead position, with a clamping device designed
for towing service.
Do not use the vehicle’s
steering column lock for this. The transmission should
be in
NEUTRAL (N) and the parking brake should
be released.
A CAUTION:
A vehicle can fall from a car carrier if it isn’t
adequately secured. This can cause
a collision,
serious personal injury and vehicle damage.
The vehicle should be tightly secured with
chains
or steel cables before it is transported.
Don’t use substitutes (ropes, leather straps,
canvas webbing, etc.) that can be cut by sharp
edges underneath the towed vehicle.
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How to Add Coolant to the Radiator
1. You can remove the radiator pressure cap when the
cooling system, including the radiator pressure cap and upper radiator hose,
is no longer hot. Turn
the pressure cap slowly counterclockwise until
it
first stops. (Don't press down while turning the
pressure cap.)
If you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop.
A hiss means
there is still some pressure left.
2. Then keep turning the pressure cap, but now push
down as
you turn it. Remove the pressure cap.
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Changing a Flat Tire
If a tire goes flat, avoid further tire and wheel damage
by driving slowly to a level place. Turn on
your hazard
warning flashers.
A
/! CAUTION:
Changing a tire can cause an injury. The vehicle
can slip
off the jack and roll over you or other
people. You and they could be badly injured.
Find
a level place to change your tire. To help
prevent the vehicle from moving:
1. Set the parking brake firmly.
2. Put the shift lever in PARK (P).
3. Turn off the engine.
To be even more certain the vehicle won’t move,
you can put blocks at the front and rear of the
tire farthest away from the one being changed.
That would be the tire
on the other side of the
vehicle, at the opposite end.
The following steps will tell you how to use the jack and
change a tire.
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