1998 CHEVROLET MALIBU brakes

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine For example,
these symbols
are used
on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
BURNS AVOID
SPARKS
OR
FLAMES
SPARK
OR ,111,
COULD FLAME
EXPLODE BATTERY
These symbols are important
for you and
your passengers
whenever your vehicle is
driven:
n
FASTEN
SEAT
BELTS
These symbols have
to do with
your lamps:
SIGNALS e e
TURN
FOG LAMPS
$0
Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
-
These symbols
are
on some of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
These symbols are used on
warning and
indicator lights:
CHARGING 1-1
BATTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(0)
R
ENGINE OIL e,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
LIGHTER
D
HORN )cr
SPEAKER
cr
FUEL p3
viii

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine THIRD (3): This position is also used for normal
driving, however, it offers more power and lower fuel
economy than AUTOMATIC
OVERDRIVE (D). Here
are some times you might choose THIRD
(3) instead of
AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
(D):
0 When driving on hilly, winding roads.
When towing a trailer, so there is less shifting
When going down a steep hill.
SECOND
(2): This position gives you more power but
lower fuel economy.
You can use SECOND (2) on hills.
It can help control your speed as you
go down steep
mountain roads, but then you would also want to use
your brakes
off and on.
between gears.
NOTICE:
Don’t
drive in SECOND (2) for more than 25 miles
(41 km), or at speeds over 55 mph (88 km/h), or
you can damage your transaxle. Use AUTOMATIC
OVERDRIVE @) or THIRD (3) as much as
possible. Don’t shift into SECOND (2) unless you
are going slower than 65 mph (105 km/h) or you
can damage your engine. FIRST
(1): This
position gives you even more power
(but lower fuel economy) than
SECOND (2). You can
use it on very steep hills, or
in deep snow or mud.
If the selector lever is put in FIRST
(I), the transaxle
won’t shift into first gear until the vehicle is going
slowly enough.
I
NOTICE:
If your front wheels can’t rotate, don’t try to
drive. This might happen if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud
or were up against a solid
object. You can damage your transaxle.
Also, if you stop when going uphill, don’t hold
your vehicle there with only the accelerator
pedal. This could overheat and damage the
transaxle. Use your brakes or shift into
PARK (P)
to hold your vehicle in position on a hill.
2-21

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Second-Gear Start
Your vehicle is equipped with a second-gear start
feature. Place the shift lever
in SECOND (2) gear to
provide more traction when you are starting on ice
or
other slippery surfaces. The transaxle will be in
SECOND (2) gear when the vehicle begins to move.
After starting in
SECOND (2) gear, place the shift lever
in
THIRD (3) or AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D).
This feature is only for improved traction only when the
road surface is slippery and is not intended for
continuous use or when the vehicle is stuck in sand,
mud, ice, snow or gravel.
Parking Brake
To set the parking brake,
hold the regular brake pedal
down with your right foot.
Push down the parking
brake pedal with your left
foot.
If the ignition is on,
the brake system warning
light will come on.
To release the parking brake, hold the regular brake
pedal down with your right foot. Push down
on the
parking brake pedal with your left foot. If the parking
brake is not released when you begin to
drive, a chime
will sound warning you that the parking brake is still on,
NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brake on can cause
your rear brakes to overheat. You may have
to
replace them, and you could also damage other
parts
of your vehicle.
If you are towing a trailer and are parking on a hill, see
“Towing a Trailer” in the Index. That section shows
what to do first
to keep the trailer from moving.
2-22

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If the light and chime come on while you are driving,
pull off the road and stop carefully. You may notice that
the pedal is harder to push.
Or, the pedal may go closer
to the floor.
It may take longer to stop. If the light is still
on, have the vehicle towed for service. (See “Towing
Your Vehicle” in the Index.)
Your brake system may not be working properly
if the brake system warning light
is on. Driving
with the brake system warning light on can lead
to an accident.
If the light is still on after you’ve
pulled
off the road and stopped carefully, have
the vehicle towed for service.
When the ignition is on, the brake system warning light
will also come on when you set your parking brake. The
light will stay on if your parking brake doesn’t release
fully. If it stays on after your parking brake is fully
released, it means you have a brake problem.
Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light
With the anti-lock brake
system, this light will come
on when you turn your
ignition on
or start your
engine and it will stay
on for three seconds.
That’s normal.
If the light stays on, turn the ignition to OFF. Or, if the
light comes on and the chime sounds when you’re driving,
stop
as soon as possible and turn the ignition off. Then
start the engine again to reset the system. If the light still
stays on, or comes on again while you’re driving, your
vehicle needs service.
If the regular brake system warning
light isn’t
on, you still have brakes, but you don’t have
anti-lock brakes.
If the regular brake system warning light
is
also on, you don’t have anti-lock brakes and there’s a
problem with
your regular brakes. See “Brake System
Warning Light” earlier in this section.
The anti-lock brake system warning light should come
on briefly when you turn the ignition key
to ON. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you
if there is a problem.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Control of a Vehicle %raking
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 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 314
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.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in
spurts
-- heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking
-- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a
mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool between
hard stops. Your brakes
will wear out much faster if you
do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the
traffic and allow realistic following distances, you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking. That means
better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes. If you do, the
pedal may get harder
to push down. If your engine
stops,
you will still have some power brake assist. But
you will use it when
you brake. Once the power assist is
used up,
it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder to push.
Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent
a braking skid.
If there’s a problem with the anti-lock brake system, this
warning light will stay on.
See “Anti-Lock Brake
System Warning Light” in
the Index.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine You slam on the brakes. Here’s what happens with ABS.
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at
both rear wheels.
The anti-lock system can change the brake pressure faster
than
any driver could. The computer is programmed to
make the
most of available tire and road conditions.
Here’s how anti-lock works. Let’s say the road is wet.
You’re driving safely. Suddenly
an animal jumps out in
front
of you.
You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.
4-8

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Remember: Anti-lock doesn’t change the time you need
to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease
stopping distance.
If you get too close to the vehicle in
front of you, you won’t have time to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows or stops. Always leave
enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have
anti-lock brakes.
Using Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down
firmly and let anti-lock work for you. You may feel a
slight brake pedal pulsation or notice some noise, but
this is normal.
Braking in Emergencies
With anti-lock, you can steer and brake at the same
time. In many emergencies, steering can help you more
than even the very best braking.
Steering
Power Steering
If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops or the system is not functioning, you can steer but
it will take much more effort.
Steering Tips
Driving on Curves
It’s important to take curves at a reasonable speed.
A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on
the news happen
on curves. Here’s why:
Experienced driver or beginner, each of
us is subject to
the same laws of physics when driving on curves. The
traction of the tires against the road surface makes it
possible for the vehicle to change its path when you turn
the front wheels. If there’s no traction, inertia will keep
the vehicle going in the same direction. If you’ve ever
tried to steer a vehicle on wet ice, you’ll understand this\
.
The traction you can get in a curve depends on the
condition of your tires and the road surface, the angle at
which the curve is banked, and your speed.
While you’re
in
a curve, speed is the one factor you can control.
Suppose you’re steering through a sharp curve. Then you
suddenly accelerate. Both control systems
-- steering and
acceleration
-- have to do their work where the tires meet
the road. Adding the sudden acceleration can demand too
much of those places.
You can lose control.
4-9