2003 CHEVROLET SSR traction control

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 is important to take curves at a reasonable speed.
A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on
the news happen on curves. Here is 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 is no traction, inertia
will keep the vehicle going in the same direction. If
you have ever tried to steer a vehicle on wet ice, you
will 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 are in a curve, speed is the one factor you
can control.Suppose you are 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.
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 will 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.
4-10

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
are not 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.
Remember: Any traction control system helps avoid only
the acceleration skid. If your traction control 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.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel, or other material is on the road. For safety, you
will 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 mirrored surface — and
slow down when you have any doubt.
Remember: Any anti-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.
4-14

If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand,
Mud, Ice or Snow
In order to free your vehicle when it is stuck, you will
need to spin the wheels, but you do not want to
spin your wheels too fast. The method known as
“rocking” can help you get out when you are stuck, but
you must use caution.
{CAUTION:
If you let your tires spin at high speed, they
can explode, and you or others could be injured.
And, the transmission or other parts of the
vehicle can overheat. That could cause an
engine compartment re or other damage.
When you are stuck, spin the wheels as little as
possible. Do not spin the wheels above 35 mph
(55 km/h) as shown on the speedometer.
Notice:Spinning your wheels can destroy parts of
your vehicle as well as the tires. If you spin the
wheels too fast while shifting your transmission
back and forth, you can destroy your transmission.
For information about using tire chains on your
vehicle, seeTire Chains on page 5-64.
Rocking Your Vehicle To Get It Out
First, turn your steering wheel left and right. That will
clear the area around your front wheels. Turn your
traction control system off; seeTraction Control System
(TCS) on page 4-8. Then shift back and forth between
REVERSE (R) and a forward gear, spinning the wheels
as little as possible. Release the accelerator pedal
while you shift, and press lightly on the accelerator pedal
when the transmission is in gear. By slowly spinning
your wheels in the forward and reverse directions, you
will cause a rocking motion that may free your
vehicle. If that does not get you out after a few tries,
you may need to be towed out. If you do need to
be towed out, seeTowing Your Vehicle on page 4-30.
Towing
Towing Your Vehicle
Consult your dealer or a professional towing service if
you need to have your disabled vehicle towed. See
Roadside Assistance Program on page 7-5.
For information about recreational vehicle towing, see
the following entry.
4-30

Buying New Tires
To nd out what kind and size of tires your vehicle
needs, look at the Certication/Tire label or the Tire and
Loading Information label. SeeLoading Your Vehicle
on page 4-31, for examples of these labels and
where they are located on your vehicle.
The tires installed on your vehicle when it was new had
a Tire Performance Criteria Specication (TPC Spec)
number on each tire’s sidewall. When you get new
tires, GM recommends that you get tires with that same
TPC Spec number. That way your vehicle will continue
to have tires that are designed to give proper endurance,
handling, load range, speed rating, traction, ride, tire
pressure monitoring system performance and other
things during normal service on your vehicle. If your tires
have an all-season tread design, the TPC number will
be followed by an “MS” (for mud and snow).
If you ever replace your tires with those not having a
TPC Spec number, make sure they are the same size,
load range, speed rating and construction type (bias,
bias-belted or radial) as your original tires.{CAUTION:
Mixing tires could cause you to lose control
while driving. If you mix tires of different sizes
(other than those originally installed on your
vehicle) or types (radial and bias-belted tires),
the vehicle may not handle properly, and you
could have a crash. Using tires of different
sizes (other than those originally installed on
your vehicle) may also cause damage to your
vehicle. Be sure to use the correct size and
type tires on all four wheels.
{CAUTION:
If you use bias-ply tires on your vehicle, the
wheel rim anges could develop cracks after
many miles of driving. A tire and/or wheel
could fail suddenly, causing a crash. Use only
radial-ply tires with the wheels on your vehicle.
5-59

Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Quality grades can be found where applicable on the
tire sidewall between tread shoulder and maximum
section width. For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance. (This
applies only to vehicles sold in the United States.)
The grades are molded on the sidewalls of most
passenger car tires. The Uniform Tire Quality Grading
system does not apply to deep tread, winter-type
snow tires, space-saver or temporary use spare tires,
tires with nominal rim diameters of 10 to 12 inches
(25 to 30 cm), or to some limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger
cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these
grades, they must also conform to federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specied government test course.
For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and
a half (1.5) times as well on the government course as
a tire graded 100. The relative performance of tires
depends upon the actual conditions of their use,
however, and may depart signicantly from the norm
due to variations in driving habits, service practices and
differences in road characteristics and climate.
Traction – AA, A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are AA, A,
B, and C. Those grades represent the tire’s ability
to stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled
conditions on specied government test surfaces of
asphalt and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance. Warning: The traction grade
assigned to this tire is based on straight-ahead braking
traction tests, and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydroplaning, or peak traction characteristics.
5-60

Used Replacement Wheels
{CAUTION:
Putting a used wheel on your vehicle is
dangerous. You cannot know how it has been
used or how far it has been driven. It could fail
suddenly and cause a crash. If you have to
replace a wheel, use a new GM original
equipment wheel.
Tire Chains
{CAUTION:
Do not use tire chains. There is not enough
clearance. Tire chains used on a vehicle
without the proper amount of clearance can
cause damage to the brakes, suspension or
other vehicle parts. The area damaged by the
tire chains could cause you to lose control of
your vehicle and you or others may be injured
in a crash. Use another type of traction device
only if its manufacturer recommends it for use
on your vehicle and tire size combination and
road conditions. Follow that manufacturer’s
instructions. To help avoid damage to your
vehicle, drive slowly, re-adjust or remove the
device if it is contacting your vehicle, and do
not spin your wheels. If you do nd traction
devices that will t, install them on the
rear tires.
5-64

Light (cont.)
TCS Warning Light......................................3-29
Traction Control System (TCS) Warning..........3-29
Lighted Visor Vanity Mirrors..............................2-12
Loading Your Vehicle.......................................4-31
Locks
Door........................................................... 2-7
Leaving Your Vehicle..................................... 2-9
Power Door.................................................. 2-8
Programmable Automatic Door Locks............... 2-8
Loss of Control...............................................4-13
M
Maintenance, Normal Replacement Parts............5-91
Maintenance Schedule
At Each Fuel Fill........................................... 6-9
At Least Once a Month.................................. 6-9
At Least Once a Year..................................6-10
At Least Twice a Year................................... 6-9
Brake System Inspection..............................6-14
Engine Cooling System Inspection.................6-14
Exhaust System Inspection...........................6-13
Fuel System Inspection................................6-13
How This Section is Organized....................... 6-3
Introduction.................................................. 6-2
Maintenance Requirements............................. 6-2
Part A - Scheduled Maintenance Services......... 6-4
Part B - Owner Checks and Services............... 6-9Maintenance Schedule (cont.)
Part C - Periodic Maintenance Inspections.......6-13
Part D - Recommended Fluids and
Lubricants...............................................6-15
Part E - Maintenance Record.........................6-17
Scheduled Maintenance................................. 6-5
Steering, Suspension and Front Drive Axle
Boot and Seal Inspection..........................6-13
Using.......................................................... 6-4
Your Vehicle and the Environment................... 6-2
Maintenance When Trailer Towing.....................4-49
Making Turns.................................................4-47
Malfunction Indicator Light................................3-30
Manually Open Tonneau..................................3-47
Map Pocket...................................................2-31
Matching Transmitter(s) to Your Vehicle............... 2-6
Memory Seat.................................................2-44
Message
DIC Warnings and Messages........................3-45
Mexico, Central America and Caribbean Islands/
Countries (Except Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin
Islands) — Customer Assistance..................... 7-4
Mirrors
Manual Rearview Mirror................................2-24
Outside Automatic Dimming Heated Mirror......2-26
Outside Convex Mirror.................................2-25
Outside Power Heated Mirrors.......................2-25
Mode Knob....................................................3-19
MyGMLink.com................................................ 7-3
9

T
Tachometer....................................................3-24
Tailgate........................................................... 2-9
Taillamps.......................................................5-46
TCS Warning Light..........................................3-29
Temperature Knob...........................................3-18
Testing the Alarm............................................2-13
Theft-Deterrent, Radio.....................................3-80
Theft-Deterrent Systems...................................2-12
Content Theft-Deterrent................................2-12
Passlock
®...................................................2-14
Tilt Wheel........................................................ 3-4
Tire Inator Kit Storage....................................5-72
Tire Sealant...................................................5-67
Tire Sidewall Labeling......................................5-52
Tire Size.......................................................5-53
Tire Terminology and Denitions........................5-54
Tires.............................................................5-51
Buying New Tires........................................5-59
Chains.......................................................5-64
If a Tire Goes Flat.......................................5-65
Ination -- Tire Pressure...............................5-56
Inspection and Rotation................................5-57
Tire Inator Kit............................................5-66Tires (cont.)
Uniform Tire Quality Grading.........................5-60
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance.................5-61
Wheel Replacement.....................................5-62
When It Is Time for New Tires......................5-58
Tlat (Tonneau Latch) Hall Switch Fault...............3-50
Tonn (Tonneau) Hall Switch Fault......................3-51
Tonn (Tonneau) Latd (Latched) Switch Fault.......3-51
Top Strap......................................................1-29
Top Strap Anchor Location...............................1-31
Torque Lock...................................................2-21
Total Weight on Your Vehicle’s Tires..................4-42
Towing
Loading Your Vehicle...................................4-31
Recreational Vehicle.....................................4-31
Towing a Trailer..........................................4-38
Your Vehicle...............................................4-30
Traction
Control System (TCS).................................... 4-8
Control System Warning Light.......................3-29
Traction Active................................................3-51
Trailer
Recommendations.......................................4-38
Trailer Brakes.................................................4-46
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