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Press the side of the switch with the down arrow to
lower the window.
Press the side of the switch
with the up arrow to raise
the window.
Express-Down Window
The driver’s window switch has an express-down
feature that allows
you to lower it without holding the
window switch, Hold the. driver’s window switch down
for more than half a second to activate
the express-down
feature, Lightly tap the switch
to open the window
slightly. The express-down feature can be interrupted at
any time by pressing the up arrow end
of the switch.
Lockout Switch
Your vehicle has a lockout feature to prevent passengers
from operating power windows. It is located on the
driver’s door. Press
LOCK to activate this feature. Press
NORM to have the windows return to normal operation.
Horn
To sound the horn, press the horn symbols on the
steering wheel pad.
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Tilt Wheel
You should adjust the tilt
steering wheel before
you drive.
Turn Signal/Multifunction Lever
You can raise it to the highest level to give your legs
more room when
you enter and exit the vehicle.
To tilt the wheel, hold the steering wheel and pull the
lever toward
YOU. Move the steering wheel to a
comfortable level, then release the lever to lock the
wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheel while driving. The
lever on the left side
of the steering column
includes your:
0 Turn Signal and Lane Change Indicator
Headlamp High/Low Beam Changer
Windshield Wipers
0 Windshield Washer
0 Cruise Control
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Section 4 Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find information about driving on different kinds of roads and in varying weather conditions, We’ve also
included many other useful tips on driving.
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Defensive Driving
Drunken Driving
Control of
a Vehicle
Braking Steering
Off-Road Recovery
Passing
Loss
of Control
Driving Guidelines
Off-Road Driving with Your GM
Four-Wheel-Drive Vehicle
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Driving at Night
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads
City Driving
Freeway Driving
Before Leaving on
a Long Trip
Highway Hypnosis
Hill and Mountain Roads
Winter Driving
Recreational Vehicle Towing
Loading Your Vehicle
Towing a Trailer
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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.
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 314 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
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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.
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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.
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Re,member: 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.
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.
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 the
brakes vibrate,
or YOLI may notice some noise, but
this is normal. Your anti-lock brakes work at all
times
-- whether you are in two-wheel or
four-wheel drive.
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 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.
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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
YOLK 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
the.ir work where the tires meet the road. Adding the
sudden acceleration can demand too much of those
places. You can lose control.
What should you do if this ever happens? Ease
up on the
accelerator pedal, steer the vehicle the way you want
it
to go, and slow down.
Speed limit signs near curves warn that you should
adjust your speed. Of course, the posted speeds are
based on good weather and road conditions. Under less
favorable conditions you’ll want to go slower.
If you need to reduce your speed as you approach a
curve, do
it before you enter the curve, while your front
wheels are straight ahead.
Try to adjust your speed
so you can “drive” through the
curve. Maintain a reasonable, steady speed. Wait to
accelerate
until you are out of the curve, and then
accelerate gently into the straightaway.
Steering in Emergencies
There are times when steering can be more effective
than braking. For example, you come over
a hill and
find
a truck stopped in your lane, or a car suddenly pulls
out from nowhere, or a child darts
out from between
parked cars and stops right
in front of you. You can
avoid these problems by braking
-- if you can stop in
time. But sometimes you can’t; there isn’t room. That’s
the time for evasive action
-- steering around
the problem.
Your vehicle can perform very well
in emergencies like
these. First apply your brakes. (See “Braking
in
Emergencies” earlier in this section.) It is better to
remove
as much speed as YOLI can from a possible
collision. Then steer around the problem, to
the left or
right depending on the space available.
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Load Recovery
You may find that your right wheels have dropped off
the edge of a road onto the shoulder while
you're driving.
An emergency like this requires close attention and a
quick decision. If you are holding the steering wheel at
the recommended
9 and 3 o'clock positions, you can
turn it a
full 180 degrees very quickly without removing
either hand.
But you have to act fast, steer quickly, and
just as quickly straighten the wheel once you have
avoided the object.
The fac.t that such emergency situations are always
possible is
a good reason to practice defensive driving at
all times
and wear safety belts properly.
OFF - ROAD RECOVE
edge of paved surface
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.
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0 Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder and
start your left lane change signal before moving out
of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough
ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front
in your
inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal
and move back into the right lane. (Remember that
your right outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you
just passed may seem to be farther away from you
than
it really is.)
Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on
two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the
next vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake lamps are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting to turn.
0 If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps
you
can ease a little to the right.
Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens
when the three control systems (brakes, steering
and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where the
tires meet the road
to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying
to steer
and constantly seek an escape route or area of
less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not
“overdriving” those conditions. But skids are
always possible.
The three types
of skids correspond to your vehicle’s
three control systems.
In the braking skid, your wheels
aren‘t rolling.
In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering
in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose cornering force. And
in the acceleration skid, too
much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin.
A cornering skid and an acceleration skid are best
handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.
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