2001 BUICK LESABRE E brake

4-2
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is:
Drive defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device in your
vehicle: Buckle up. See ªSafety Beltsº in the Index.Defensive driving really means ªbe ready for anything.º
On city streets, rural roads or freeways, it means
ªalways expect the unexpected.º
Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going to be
careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what they might
do. Be ready for their mistakes.
Rear
-end collisions are about the most preventable of
accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough
following distance. It's the best defensive driving
maneuver, in both city and rural driving. You never
know when the vehicle in front of you is going to brake
or turn suddenly.
Defensive driving requires that a driver concentrate on
the driving task. Anything that distracts from the driving
task
-- such as concentrating on a cellular telephone call,
reading, or reaching for something on the floor
-- makes
proper defensive driving more difficult and can even
cause a collision, with resulting injury. Ask a passenger to
help do things like this, or pull off the road in a safe place
to do them yourself. These simple defensive driving
techniques could save your life.

4-6
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.
Also see ªTraction Control Systemº in the Index.
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.

4-7
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.
When you start your engine, or when you begin to drive
away, your anti
-lock brake system will check itself.
You may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise
while this test is going on, and you may even notice that
your brake pedal moves or pulses a little. This is normal.
If there's a problem with the
anti
-lock brake system, this
warning light will stay on.
See ªAnti
-Lock Brake
System Warning Lightº in
the Index.

4-8
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 slam on the brakes and continue braking.
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. This can help you steer around the obstacle
while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.

4-9
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.
Traction Control System
(If Equipped)
Your vehicle may have a traction control system that
limits wheel spin. This is especially useful in slippery
road conditions. The system operates only if it senses
that one or both of the front wheels are spinning or
beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the
system works the front brakes and reduces engine power
to limit wheel spin.
You may feel or hear the system working, but this
is normal.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction control
system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise control will
automatically disengage. When road conditions allow you to
safely use it again, you may reengage the cruise control.
See ªCruise Controlº in the Index.

4-12 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 ªBraking in
Emergenciesº earlier in this section. It is better to
remove as much speed as you can from a possible
collision. Then steer around the problem, to the left or
right depending on the space available.
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 fact that such emergency situations are always
possible is a good reason to practice defensive driving at
all times and wear safety belts properly.

4-14

Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to pass while
you're awaiting an opportunity. For one thing, following
too closely reduces your area of vision, especially if
you're following a larger vehicle. Also, you won't have
adequate space if the vehicle ahead suddenly slows or
stops. Keep back a reasonable distance.

When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start to accelerate but stay in the right lane and don't
get too close. Time your move so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes to move into the
other lane. If the way is clear to pass, you will have a
ªrunning startº that more than makes up for the
distance you would lose by dropping back. And if
something happens to cause you to cancel your pass,
you need only slow down and drop back again and
wait for another opportunity.

If other cars are lined up to pass a slow vehicle, wait
your turn. But take care that someone isn't trying to
pass you as you pull out to pass the slow vehicle.
Remember to glance over your shoulder and check
the blind spot.
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.

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.

4-15
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 ªoverdrivingº
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 is best handled by easing your foot off
the accelerator pedal.
If you have the traction control system, remember: It
helps avoid only the acceleration skid.
If you do not have traction control, or if the system is
off, then an acceleration skid is also best handled by
easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to go. If you start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for a
second skid if it occurs.
If you have Stabilitrak

, you may see the STABILITY
SYSTEM ACTIVE message on the Driver Information
Center. See ªStability System Active Messageº in the Index.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel or other material is on the road. For safety, you'll
want to slow down and adjust your driving to these
conditions. It is important to slow down on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and
vehicle control more limited.
While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try
your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration or
braking (including engine braking by shifting to a
lower gear). Any sudden changes could cause the tires to
slide. You may not realize the surface is slippery until
your vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning
clues
-- such as enough water, ice or packed snow on
the road to make a ªmirrored surfaceº
-- and slow
down when you have any doubt.
Remember: Any anti
-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.