1997 GMC SIERRA steering wheel

Controlling your vehicle is the key to successful
off-road driving. One of the best ways to control your
vehicle is to control
your speed. Here are some things to
keep in mind.
At higher speeds:
0 you approach things faster and you have less time to
scan the terrain for obstacles.
0 you have less time to react.
0 you have more vehicle bounce when you drive
you’ll need more distance for braking, especially
over
obstacles.
since you’re on an unpaved surface.
When you’re driving off-road, bouncing and
quick changes in direction can
-1 easily throw you
Scanning the Terrain
Off-road driving can take you over many different kinds
of terrain. You need to be familiar with the terrain and
its many different features. Here are some things
to consider.
Su@ace Conditions. Off-roading can take you over
hard-packed dirt, gravel, rocks, grass, sand, mud, snow
or ice. Each of these surfaces affects the steering,
acceleration
and braking of your vehicle in different
ways. Depending upon the kind of surface
you are on,
you may experience slipping, sliding, wheel spinning,
delayed acceleration, poor traction and longer
braking distances.
Surjiuce Obstucles. Unseen or hidden obstacles can be
hazardous.
A rock, log, hole, rut or bump can startle you
if you’re not prepared for them. Often these obstacles are
hidden by grass, bushes, snow or even the rise and fall of
the terrain itself. Here are some things to consider:
out of position. This could cause you to lose
control and crash.
So, whether you’re driving on
or off the road, you and your passengers should
wear safety belts.
0 Does the travel take you uphill or downhill? (There’s
0 Is the path ahead clear?
0 Will the surface texture change abruptly up ahead?
L more discussion of these subjects later.)
0 Will you have to stop suddenly or change
direction quickly?
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When you drive over obstacles or rough terrain, keep a
firm grip
on the steering wheel. Ruts, troughs or other
surface features can jerk the wheel
out of your hands if
you’re not prepared.
When you drive over bumps, rocks, or other obstacles,
your wheels can leave the ground. If this happens, even
with one or two wheels, you can’t control
the vehicle as
well or at all.
Because you will be
on an unpaved surface, it’s
especially important to avoid sudden acceleration,
sudden turns or sudden braking.
Driving on Off-Road Hills
Off-road driving often takes you up, down or across a
hill. Driving safely on hills requires good judgment and
an understanding
of what your vehicle can and can’t do.
There are some hills that simply can’t be driven, no
matter how well built the vehicle.
In
a way, off-road driving requires a different kind of
alertness from driving on paved roads and highways.
There are no road signs, posted speed limits or signal
lights.
You have to use your own good judgment about
what
is safe and what isn’t.
Drinking and driving can be very dangerous on any
road. And this is certainly true for off-road driving. At
the very time you need special alertness and driving
skills, your reflexes, perceptions and judgment can be
affected by even a small amount
of alcohol. You could
have a serious
-- or even fatal -- accident if you drink
and drive or ride with
a driver who has been drinking.
See “Drunken Driving” in the Index.
1
Many hills are simply too steep for any vehicle.
If you drive up them, you will stall. If you drive
down them,
you can’t control your speed. If you
drive across them, you will roll over. You could be
seriously injured or killed. If you have any doubt
about the steepness, don’t drive the hill.
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Approaching a Hill
When you approach a hill, you need to decide if it’s one of
those hills that’s just too steep
to climb, descend or cross.
Steepness can be hard to judge. On a very small hill, for
example, there may be a smooth, constant incline with only a small change in elevation where
you can easily see all the
way to the top. On
a large hill, the incline may get steeper as
you near
the top, but you may not see this because the crest of
the hill is hidden by bushes, grass or shrubs.
Here are some other things to consider as you approach a hill\
.
0
0
0
0
0
Is there a constant incline, or does the hill get sharply
steeper in places?
Is there good traction on the hillside, or will the
surface cause tire slipping?
Is there a straight path up or down the hill so you
won’t have to make turning maneuvers?
Are there obstructions
on the hill that can block your
path (boulders, trees, logs or ruts)?
What’s beyond the hill?
Is there a cliff, an
embankment, a drop-off, a fence? Get out and walk the
hill if
you don’t know. It’s the smart way to find out.
Is the hill simply too rough? Steep hills often have
ruts, gullies, troughs and exposed rocks because they
are more susceptible
to the effects of erosion.
Driving Uphill
Once you decide you can safely drive up the hill, you
need to take some special steps.
0
0
0
Use a low gear and get a firm grip on the
steering wheel.
Get a smooth start up the hill and try to maintain
your speed. Don’t use more power than you need,
because
you don’t want your wheels to start spinning
or sliding.
Try
to drive straight up the hill if at all possible. If
the path twists and turns, you might want to find
another route.
A CAUTION:
lhrning or driving across steep hills can be
dangerous. You could lose traction, slide
sideways, and possibly roll over.
You could be
seriously injured or killed. When driving up hills,
always try to go straight up.
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0 As you are backing down the hill, put your left hand
on the steering wheel at the 12 o’clock position. This
way, you’ll be able to
tell if your wheels are straight
and maneuver as you back down. It’s best that you
back down the
hill with your wheels straight rather
than
in the left or right direction. Turning the wheel
too far to the left or right will increase the possibility
of a rollover.
Here are some things you
must not do if you stall, or are
about to stall, when going up a hill.
0 Never attempt to prevent a stall by shifting into
NEUTRAL
(N) (or depressing the clutch, if you
have a manual transmission) to “rev-up” the engine
and regain forward momentum. This won’t work.
Your vehicle will roll backwards very quickly and
you could
go out of control.
Instead, apply the regular brake to stop the
vehicle. Then apply
the parking brake. Shift to
REVERSE (R), release the parking brake, and
slowly back straight down.
0 Never attempt to turn around if you are about to stall
when going up a hill. If the hill is steep enough
to
stall your vehicle, it’s steep enough to cause you to
roll over if you turn around.
If you can’t make it up
the hill, you must back straight down the hill.
@ Suppose, after stalling, I try to back down the hill
and decide
I just can’t do it. What should I do?
A: Set the parking brake, put your transmission in
PARK (P) (or the manual transmission in FIRST (1))
and turn off the engine. Leave the vehicle and go get
some help. Exit on the uphill side and stay clear
of
the path the vehicle would take if it rolled downhill.
Do not shift the transfer case to NEUTRAL (N)
when you leave the vehicle. Leave it in I ne gel
Shifting the transfer case to NEUTR
I (N) can
cause your vehicle to roll even if the transmission
is in PARK (P) (or, if you have the manual
transmission, even if you’re in gear). This is
because the
NEUTRAL (N) position on the
transfer case overrides the transmission.
If you
are going to leave your vehicle, set the parking
brake and shift the transmission to
PARK (P)
(or, put your manual transmission in FIRST (1)).
But do not shift the transfer case to the
NEUTRAL
(N) position. Leave the transfer case
in the
2 Wheel, 4 High or 4 Low position.
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Driving in Mud, Sand, Snow or Ice
When you drive in mud, snow or sand, your wheels
won’t get good traction.
You can’t accelerate as quickly,
turning is more difficult, and you’ll need longer
braking distances.
It’s best
to use a low gear when you’re in mud -- the
deeper the mud, the lower the gear.
In really deep mud,
the idea is to keep your vehicle moving
so you don’t
get stuck.
When you drive
on sand, you’ll sense a change in wheel
traction. But it will depend upon how loosely packed the
sand is.
On loosely packed sand (as on beaches or sand
dunes) your tires will tend
to sink into the sand. This has
an effect on steering, accelerating and braking. You may
want to reduce the air pressure in your tires slightly
when driving on sand. This will improve traction.
Hard packed snow and ice offer the worst tire traction.
On these surfaces, it’s very easy to lose control. On wet
ice, for example, the traction is
so poor that you will
have difficulty accelerating. And
if you do get moving,
poor steering and difficult braking can cause you to slide
out of control.
Driving on frozen lakes, ponds or rivers can be
~ dangerous. Underwater springs, currents under
the ice, or sudden thaws can weaken the ice. Your
vehicle could fall through the ice and you and
your passengers could drown. Drive your vehicle
on safe surfaces only.
Driving in Water
Light rain causes no special off-road driving problems.
But heavy rain can mean flash flooding, and flood
waters demand extreme caution.
Find out how deep
the water is before you drive through
it.
If it’s deep enough to cover your wheel hubs, axles or
exhaust pipe, don’t try it
-- you probably won’t get
through. Also, water that deep can damage your axle
and other vehicle parts.
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If the water isn’t too deep, then drive through it slowly.
At fast speeds, water splashes on your ignition system
and your vehicle can stall. Stalling can also occur
if you
get your tailpipe under water. And, as long as your
tailpipe is under water, you’ll never be able
to start your
engine. When you go through water, remember that when
your brakes get wet, it may
take you longer to stop.
ki CAU IN:
Driving through rushing water can be dangerous.
Deep water can sweep your vehicle downstream
and you and your passengers could drown.
If it’s
only shallow water, it can still wash away the
ground from under your tires, and
you could lose
traction and roll the vehicle
over. Don’t drive
through rushing water.
After Off-Road Driving
Remove any brush or debris that has collected on
the underbody, chassis or under the hood. These
accumulations can be
a fire hazard.
After operation
in mud or sand, have the brake linings
cleaned and checked. These substances can cause
glazing and
uneven braking. Check the body structure,
steering, suspension, wheels, tires and exhaust system
for damage. Also, check
the fuel lines and cooling
system for any leakage.
Your vehicle will require more frequent service due to
off-road use. Refer to the Maintenance Schedule for
additional information.
See “Driving Through Water”
in the Index for more
information on driving through water.
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.............. .............
I
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
freezing
(32°F; 0°C) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.
.,
..
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.
Mow 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.
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Following Distance Making Tt----- -
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.
NOTICE:
Making very sharp turns while trailering could
cause the trailer to come in contact with the
vehicle. Your vehicle could be damaged. Avoid
making very sharp turns while trailering.
When you’re turning with a trailer, make wider turns
than normal.
Do this so your trailer won’t strike
soft shoulders, curbs, road signs, trees or other
objects. Avoid jerky or sudden maneuvers. Signal
well in advance.
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