1993 GMC Jimmy Owner's Manual - Page 191

car suddenly pullsout from nowhere, or a child darts out from between parked cars and stops right in frontofyou.Youcanavoidtheseproblemsby braking-ifyou can stop in time.Butsometimesyoucan't;thereisn'troom. That's the time for, evasive action-steering around the problem. Yourvehiclecanperformverywell brakes. in emergencieslikethese.Firstapplyyour It is better to removeasmuchspeedasyoucanfromapossiblecollision. to theleftorrightdependingonthespace Thensteeraroundtheproblem, available. Anemergencylikethisrequirescloseattentionandaquickdecision. I you f areholdingthesteeringwheelattherecommended 9 and 3 o'clockpositions, you can turn it a full 180 degreesveryquicklywithoutremovingeitherhand. But you have to act fast, steer quickly, and just as quickly straighten the to steer wheelonceyouhaveavoidedtheobject.Youmustthenbeprepared to acontrolledstop. backtoyouroriginallaneandthenbrake Dependingonyourspeed,thiscanberatherviolentforanunprepareddriver. This is oneofthereasonsdrivingexpertsrecommendthatyouuseyour safetybeltsandkeepbothhandsonthesteeringwheel. Thefactthatsuchemergencysituationsarealwayspossible to. practice defensive driving at all times. is agoodreason Off-Road Recovery Youmay findsometimethatyourrightwheelshavedropped aroadontotheshoulderwhileyou'redriving. off theedgeof If the level oftheshoulder is onlyslightlybelowthepavement,recovery off theacceleratorandthen, if thereisnothingin shouldbefairlyeasy.Ease theway,steer so thatyourvehiclestraddlestheedge of thepavement.You to 1/4 turnuntiltherightfronttirecontacts canturnthesteeringwheelup to gostraightdownthe thepavementedge.Thenturnyoursteeringwheel roadway. 4-1 9