2008 Saturn VUE Owner's Manual - Page 223
2008 Saturn VUE Manual
Page 223 highlights
• Unless your vehicle has anti-lock brakes, avoid {CAUTION: Heavy braking when going down a hill can cause your brakes to overheat and fade. This could cause loss of control and a serious accident. Apply the brakes lightly when descending a hill and use a low gear to keep vehicle speed under control. There some things not to do when driving down a hill. These are important because, if you ignore them, you could lose control and have a serious accident: braking so hard that you lock the wheels when going downhill. If the wheels are locked, you cannot steer your vehicle. If the wheels lock up during downhill braking, you may feel the vehicle starting to slide sideways. To regain your direction, just ease off the brakes and steer to keep the front of the vehicle pointing straight downhill. Your vehicle is much more likely to stall when going uphill. But if it happens when going downhill: 1. Stop your vehicle by applying the regular brakes. Apply the parking brake. 2. Shift to PARK (P), or NEUTRAL if you have a manual transmission, and, while still braking, restart the engine. 3. Shift back to a low gear, release the parking brake, and drive straight down. 4. If the engine will not start, get out and get help. • When driving downhill, avoid turns that take you across the incline of the hill. A hill that is not too steep to drive down may be too steep to drive across. Your vehicle could roll over if you do not drive straight down. • Never go downhill with the transmission in NEUTRAL (N). This is called "free wheeling." The brakes will have to do all the work and could overheat and fade. 4-23