1997 PONTIAC PONTIAC weight

Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine Running
It can be dangerous to leave your vehicle with
the engine running. Your vehicle could move
suddenly if the shift lever is not fully in PARK
(P)
with the parking brake firmly set. And, if you
leave the vehicle with the engine running, it could
overheat and even catch fire. You or others could
be injured. Don’t leave your vehicle with the
engine running unless you have to.
If you have to leave your vehicle with the engine
running, be sure your vehicle is in PARK (P) and your
parking brake is firmly set before you leave it. After
you’ve moved the shift lever into
the PARK (P)
position, hold the regular brake pedal down. Then, see if
you can move the shift lever away from PARK (P)
without first pulling it toward you (or, if you have a
console
shift lever, without first pushing the button). If
you can, it means that the shift lever wasn’t fully locked
into PARK (P).
Torque Lock
If you are parlung on a hill and you don’t shift your
transaxle into PARK (P) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl in
the transaxle. You may find it difficult to pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P). This is called “torque lock.” To
prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then shift
into PARK (P) properly before you leave the driver’s
seat.
To find out how, see “Shifting Into PARK (P)” in
the Index.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out
of
PARK (P) before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need to have another
vehicle push yours a little uphill to take some of the
pressure from the parking pawl in the transaxle,
so you
can pull the shift lever out of PARK (P).
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Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is
a national tragedy. It’s the number one contributor to
the highway death toll, claiming thousands of victims
every year.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to drive
a vehicle:
Judgment
0 Muscular Coordination
Vision
0 Attentiveness.
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 2 1, it’s
against the law in every US. 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:
The amount of alcohol consumed
The drinker’s body weight
The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
0 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
( 120 ml) glasses
of wine or three mixed drinks if each had 1-112 ounces
(45 ml) of a liquor like whiskey, gin or vodka.
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It’s the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces
or
90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s
BAC would be close to 0.12 percent.
A person who
consumes
food just before or during drinking will have a
somewhat lower
BAC level,
There
is a gender difference, too. Women generally have
a lower relative percentage of body water than
men.
Since alcohol is carried in body water, this means that a
woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a
man of her same body weight when each has the same
number of drinks.
The law in many
U.S. states sets the legal limit at a BAC
of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of US. states, and
throughout Canada, the limit
is 0.08 percent. In some
other countries, it’s even lower. The BAC limit for all
commercial drivers in the United States is 0.04 percent.
The B’AC will be over
0.10 percent after three to six
drinks (in one
hour). Of course, as we’ve seen, it
depends on
how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC
of
0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills
of many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent, and that the effects are worse at night. All
drivers are impaired at
BAC levels above 0.05 percent.
Statistics
show that the chance of being in a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have
a BAC of
0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision.
At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of
this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at a
level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
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Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where
you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering and
the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work
at the places where
the tires meet the road.
Sometimes,
as when you’re driving on snow or ice, it’s
easy to ask more
of those control systems than the tires
and road can provide. That means
you can lose control
of your vehicle.
Braking
Braking action involves perception time and
reaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That’s
perception time. Then you have to bring up your
foot and
do it. That’s reaction time.
Average reaction time is about 3/4 of a second. But
that’s only an average.
It might be less with one driver
and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in 3/4 of a second, a vehicle
moving at
60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could
be a lot of distance in an emergency, so
keeping enough space between your vehicle and
others
is important.
And,
of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface
of the road (whether it’s pavement or
gravel); the condition
of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; the condition of your brakes; the weight of the
vehicle and the amount of brake force applied.
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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 a while.
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
/@ OCCUPANTS
VEHICLE CAP. WT.
TIRE-LOADING INFORMATION
FRT. CTR.
RR. TOTAL LBS. KG
~-
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 4PS1/28KPa
SEE OWNER'S MANUAL FOR ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION
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 information about the number 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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MFD BY GENERAL MOTORS CORP
DATE GVWR GAWR FRT GAWR RR
THIS VEHICLE CONFORMS TO ALL APPLI-
CABLE U.S. FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE
SAFETY, BUMPER, AND THEFT PREVENTION
STANDARDS 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 pounds (75 kg) in your trunk.
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 vehi’cle
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
the vehicle goes. If you hav’e to stop or turn quickly, or
if there is a crash, they’ll keep going.
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I
Towing a Trailer
Things you put inside your vehicle can strike
and injure people
in a sudden stop or turn, or
in
a crash.
Put things in the trunk of your vehicle. In a
1 trunk, put them as far forward as you can.
Never stack heavier things, like suitcases,
Try to spread the weight evenly.
inside the vehicle
so that some of them are
above the tops
of the seats.
Don’t leave an unsecured child restraint in
your vehicle.
When you carry something inside the
’ vehicle, secure it whenever you can.
Don’t leave a seat folded down unless you
need to.
If you don’t use the correct equipment and drive
properly, you can lose control when you pull
a
trailer. For example, if the trailer is too heavy, the
brakes may not work well
-- or even at all. You
and your passenger passengers could be seriously
injured. Pull
a trailer only if you have followed
all the steps in this section. Ask your Pontiac
dealer
for advice and information about towing a
trailer
with your vehicle.
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?‘hat’s me reason for this part. In it are many
Many of these are important
for your safety and that of
your passengers. So please read this section carefully
before you pull a trailer.
NOTICE: time-tested, important trailering tips and safety rules.
Pulling a trailer improperly can damage your
vehicle and result in costly repairs not covered
by
your warranty. To pull a trailer correctly, follow Load-pulling components such as the engine, transaxle,
the advice in this part, and see your Pontiac wheel assemblies and tires are forced to work harder
dealer for important information about towing a against the drag of the added weight. The engine is
trailer with your vehicle. required to sperate at relatively higher speeds and under
greater loads, generating extra heat. What’s more, the
trailer adds considerably to wind resistance, increasing
If You Do Decide To Pull A Trailer
If you do, here are some important points:
Do not tow a trailer if your vehicle is equipped with the pulling requirements.
3800 (L67) supercharged engine.
Your vehicle can tow
a trailer if it is equipped with
proper towing equipment.
To identify what the vehicle
trailering capacity is for your vehicle, you should read
There are many different laws, including speed limit
the information in “Weight of the Trailer” that appears restrictions, having to do with trailering. Make sure
later
in this section. But trailering is different than just your rig will be legal, not only where you live but
driving your vehicle by itself, Trailering means changes also where you’ll be driving.
A good source for this
in handling, durability and fuel economy. Successful, information
can be state or provincial police.
safe trailering takes correct equipment, and it has to be
Consider using a sway control. You can ask a hitch
used Droperly. dealer about
sway controls.
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