2002 CHEVROLET IMPALA Owners Manual

4-5
The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol
in one drink. No amount of coffee or number of cold
showers will speed that up. ªI'll be carefulº isn't the
right answer. What if there's an emergency, a need to
take sudden action, as when a child darts into the street?
A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able
to react quickly enough to avoid the collision.
There's something else about drinking and driving that
many people don't know. Medical research shows that
alcohol in a person's system can make crash injuries
worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal cord or
heart. This means that when anyone who has been
drinking
-- driver or passenger -- is in a crash, that
person's chance of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than if the person had not been drinking.
CAUTION:
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgment can be affected by even a small amount
of alcohol. You can have a serious
-- or even
fatal
-- collision if you drive after drinking.
Please don't drink and drive or ride with a
driver who has been drinking. Ride home in a
cab; or if you're with a group, designate a driver
who will not drink.

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 Brake System (If Equipped)
Your vehicle may have anti-lock brakes. ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
If your vehicle has anti-lock
brakes, this warning light
on the instrument panel will
come on briefly when you
start your vehicle.
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,
the anti
-lock brake system warning light will stay on.
See ªAnti
-Lock Brake System Warning Lightº in
the Index.

4-8
Let's say the road is wet and 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
At some time, nearly every driver gets into a situation
that requires hard braking.
If you have anti
-lock, you can steer and brake at the
same time. However, if you don't have anti
-lock, your
first reaction
-- to hit the brake pedal hard and hold it
down
-- may be the wrong thing to do. Your wheels
can stop rolling. Once they do, the vehicle can't respond
to your steering. Momentum will carry it in whatever
direction it was headed when the wheels stopped rolling.
That could be off the road, into the very thing you were
trying to avoid, or into traffic.If you don't have anti
-lock, use a ªsqueezeº braking
technique. This will give you maximum braking while
maintaining steering control. You do this by pushing on
the brake pedal with steadily increasing pressure.
In an emergency, you will probably want to squeeze the
brakes hard without locking the wheels. If you hear or
feel the wheels sliding, ease off the brake pedal. This
will help you retain steering control. If you do have
anti
-lock, it's different. See ªAnti-Lock Brakesº
in the Index.
In many emergencies, steering can help you more than
even the very best braking.
Traction Control System
(3800 V6 Engine)
Your vehicle is equipped with 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 reduces engine power and may also upshift the
transaxle and apply the front brakes to limit wheel spin.

4-10
United States Canada
This light will come on when your Traction Control
System is limiting wheel spin. See ªTraction Control
System Active Lightº in the Index.
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
re
-engage the cruise control. See ªCruise Controlº
in the Index.The Traction Control System operates in all transaxle
shift lever positions. But the system can upshift the
transaxle only as high as the shift lever position you've
chosen, so you should use the lower gears only when
necessary. See ªAutomatic Transaxleº in the Index.
When the system is on,
this warning light will come
on to let you know if there's
a problem.
See ªTraction Control System Warning Lightº in the
Index. When this warning light is on, the system will
not limit wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.
To limit wheel spin, especially in slippery road
conditions, you should always leave the Traction
Control System on. But you can turn the system
off if you ever need to. You should turn the system
off if your vehicle ever gets stuck in sand, mud or snow
and rocking the vehicle is required. See ªRocking Your
Vehicleº in the Index.

4-11
To turn the system
on or off, press the
TRAC OFF button
on the left side of the
instrument panel.
When you turn the system off, a chime will sound and
the Traction Control System warning light will come on
and stay on. If the Traction Control System is limiting
wheel spin when you press the button to turn the system
off, the warning light will come on and the system will
turn off right away.
You can turn the system back on at any time by pressing
the button again. The Traction Control System warning
light should go off.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 ªdriver lost controlº 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.

4-12
Suppose you're steering through a sharp curve.
Then you suddenly apply the brakes. Both control
systems
-- steering and braking -- have to do their
work where the tires meet the road. Unless you have
four
-wheel anti-lock brakes, adding the hard braking
can demand too much of those places. You can
lose control.
The same thing can happen if you're steering through
a sharp curve and you suddenly accelerate. Those two
control systems
-- steering and acceleration -- can
overwhelm those places where the tires meet the road
and make you lose control.
What should you do if this ever happens? Ease up on
the brake or 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 ªdriveº 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
-- but, unless you have
anti
-lock, not enough to lock your wheels. 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.