1998 CHEVROLET EXPRESS light

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Off-Road Recovery
You may find that your right wheels have dropped off the
edge of
a road onto the shoulder while you’re driving.
OFF- ROAD RECOVERY / A-*g
If the level of the shoulder is only slightly below the
pavement, recovery should be fairly easy. Ease off the
accelerator and then, if there is nothing in the way, steer
so that your vehicle straddles the edge of the pavement.
You can turn the steering wheel up to one-quarter turn
until the right front tire contacts the pavement edge.
Then turn your steering wheel to
go straight down
the roadway.
Passing
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two-lane highway waits for just the right moment,
accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then goes
back into the right lane again.
A simple maneuver?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle
on a two-lane
highway
is a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds.
A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger can
suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents
-- the head-on collision.
So here are some tips for passing:
“Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides
and to crossroads for situations that might affect
your passing patterns.
If you have any doubt
whatsoever about making a successful pass, wait
for a better time.
Watch for traflic signs, pavement markings and lines.
If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a
turn or an intersection, delay your pass.
A broken
center line usually indicates it’s all right
to pass
(providing the road ahead
is clear). Never cross a solid
line on your side
of the lane or a double solid line,
even if
the road seems empty of approaching traffic.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Driving at Nieht e
e
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.
Here are some tips on night driving.
Drive defensively.
a
e
e
a
Don’t drink and drive.
Adjust your inside rearview mirror to reduce the
glare from headlamps behind you.
Since you can’t see as well, you may need to
slow down and keep more space between you and
other vehicles.
Slow down, especially on higher speed roads. Your
headlamps can light up only
so much road ahead.
In remote areas, watch for animals.
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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
Driving in E 1 Wet Roads
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A CAUTION:
Wet brakes can cause accidents. They won’t work
as well in a quick stop and may cause pulling to
one side. You could lose control
of the vehicle.
After driving through
a large puddle of water or
a car wash, apply your brake pedal lightly until
your brakes work normally.
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.
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
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.
0 Have good tires with proper tread depth. (See
“Tires”
in the Index.)
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Citv Driving One of the biggest problems with city streets is the
amount of traffic on them. You’ll want
to watch out for
what the other drivers are doing and pay attention to
traffic signals.
Here are ways to increase your safety in city driving:
0 Know the best way to get to where you are going. Get
a city map and plan your
trip into an unknown part of
the city just as you would for a cross-country hip.
0 Try to use the freeways that rim and crisscross most
large cities. You’ll save time and energy. (See the
next part, “Freeway Driving.”)
0 Treat a green light as a warning signal. A traffic light is
there because the corner is busy enough to need it. When a light
turns green, and just before you start to
move, check both ways for vehicles that have not
cleared the intersection
or may be running the red light.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Freeway Driving
Mile for mile, freeways (also called thruways, parkways,
expressways, turnpikes or superhighways) are the safest
of all roads. But they have their own special rules.
The most important advice on freeway driving is: Keep
up with traffic and keep to
the right. Drive at the same
speed most
of the other drivers are driving. Too-fast or
too-slow driving breaks
a smooth traffic flow. Treat the
left lane on a freeway as a passing lane. At
the entrance, there is usually a ramp that leads to the
freeway. If you have
a clear view of the freeway as you
drive along the entrance ramp,
you should begin to
check traffic. Try to determine where you expect to
blend with the flow. Try to merge into the gap at close to
the prevailing speed. Switch on your turn signal, check
your mirrors and glance over your shoulder
as often as
necessary. Try to blend smoothly with the traffic flow.
Once
you are on the freeway, adjust your speed to the
posted limit or to the prevailing rate if it’s slower. Stay
in the right lane unless you want to
pass.
Before changing lanes, check your mirrors. Then use
your turn signal.
Just before you leave the lane, glance quickly over your
shoulder to make sure there isn’t another vehicle in your
“blind” spot.
Once you are moving
on the freeway, make certain you
allow a reasonable following distance. Expect to move
slightly slower at night.
When you want
to leave the freeway, move to the proper
lane well
in advance. If you miss your exit, do not,
under any circumstances, stop and back up. Drive on to
the next exit.
The exit ramp can
be curved, sometimes quite sharply.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your vehicle in good shape for winter. Include
an ice scraper, a small brush or broom, a supply
of windshield washer fluid, a rag, some winter outer
clothing,
a small shovel, a flashlight, a red cloth and
reflective warning triangles. And,
if you will be driving
under severe conditions, include a small bag
of sand, a
piece of old carpet or a couple of burlap bags
to help
provide traction. Be sure you properly secure these
items in your vehicle.
Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction.
However, if there
is snow or ice between your tires and
the road,
you can have a very slippery situation. You’ll
have a
lot less traction or “grip” and will need to be
very careful.
0 You may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine ’ 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.
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 (or batteries) charged. You will need a
well-charged battery (or batteries)
to restart the vehicle,
and possibly for signaling later on with your headlamps.
Let the heater run for a while.
If you have a diesel engine,
you may have to run it at a
higher speed to get enough heat. 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.
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