1993 GMC Suburban Owner's Manual - Page 191

p p - . . . . ..., a .. ... ..., , ...- Lass of Control Let'sreview what drivingexperts say about what happenswhenthethree friction controlsystems(brakes.steeringandacceleration)don'thaveenough wherethetiresmeettheroadtodowhatthedriverhasasked. In anyemergency,don'tgiveup.Keeptrying escaperoute or area of lessdanger. to steer,andconstantlyseekan Skidding Inaskid,adrivercanlosecontrol ofthevehicle.Defensivedriversavoid mostskidsbytakingreasonablecaresuited to existingconditions,andbynot "overdriving"thoseconditions.Butskidsarealwayspossible. Thethreetypes of skids correspond to your vehicle's three control systems. In thebrakingskidyourwheelsaren'trolling. In thesteering or cornering skid,toomuchspeedorsteeringinacurvecausestirestoslipandlose corneringforce.And in theaccelerationskidtoomuchthrottlecausesthe driving wheels to spin. A corneringskidandanaccelerationskidarebesthandledbyeasingyour foot off the accelerator pedal. If yourvehiclestarts to slide(aswhenyouturn off the acorner on a wet, snow- or ice-covered road), ease your foot acceleratorpedalassoon as youfeelthevehiclestarttoslide.Quicklysteer If youstartsteeringquicklyenough,your the way youwantthevehicletogo. vehicle will straightenout. As it does,straightenthefrontwheels. Ofcourse,traction is reducedwhenwater,snow,ice,gravel,orothermaterial slow downandadjustyourdrivingto is on theroad.Forsafety,you'llwantto these conditions.It is importanttoslowdownonslipperysurfacesbecause stoppingdistancewillbelongerandvehiclecontrolmorelimited. While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try your best to avoid suddensteering,acceleration,orbraking(includingenginebrakingbyshifting toalowergear).Anysuddenchangescouldcausethetirestoslide.You maynotrealizethesurfaceisslipperyuntilyourvehicle is skidding.Learnto recognizewarningclues-suchasenoughwater,iceorpackedsnowonthe road to make a"mirroredsurface"-andslowdownwhenyouhaveany doubt. Remember:Anyanti-lockbrakingsystem(ABS)helpsavoidonlythebraking skid.Steerthewayyouwant to go. 4-23