1993 GMC Sonoma Owner's Manual - Page 166

Your Driving and the Road Control of a Vehicle AM409005 You havethreesystemsthatmakeyourvehiclegowhereyouwant it togo. They are thebrakes,thesteering and theaccelerator. All threesystemshave to do their workattheplaceswhere the tires meettheroad. Sometimes,aswhenyou'redrivingonsnow or ice, it'seasytoaskmore thosecontrolsystemsthanthetiresandroadcanprovide.Thatmeansyou canlosecontrol of yourvehicle. of Braking Brakingactioninvolves First,youhavetodecide time. Thenyouhaveto perceptiontime and reaction time. to pushonthe brake pedal.That's perception bring up yourfoot and do it.That's reaction time. Average reaction time isabout 3/4 of asecond.Butthat'sonlyanaverage. It might be lesswithonedriver and aslongastwoorthreeseconds or morewithanother.Age,physicalcondition,alertness,coordination, and eyesightallplayapart. So do alcohol,drugsandfrustration.Buteven in 314 of asecond,avehiclemovingat 60 mph (100 km/h)travels 66 feet (20 m). That could bealot of distance in anemergency, so keepingenoughspace betweenyourvehicle and othersisimportant. of the And, of course,actualstoppingdistancesvarygreatlywiththesurface road(whetherit'spavementorgravel);thecondition ofthe road (wet, dry, icy); tire tread; and thecondition of yourbrakes. 4-1 2