1993 GMC Sonoma Owner's Manual - Page 184

Your Driving and the Road If youdecideyoucangodownahillsafely,thentry to keepyourvehicle headed straightdown,andusealowgear.Thisway,enginedrag can help yourbrakesandtheywon'thave to doallthework.Descendslowly,keeping yourvehicleundercontrolatalltimes. Heavybrakingwhengoingdownahillcancauseyourbrakes to overheatandfade.Thiscouldcauselossofcontrolandaserious lccident.Applythebrakeslightlywhendescel ng ahill and usea lowgeartokeepvehiclespeedundercontrol. Q: Arethere some things I shouldnotdowhendrivingdown a hill? A: Yes!Theseareimportantbecause if youignore them you could lose control and haveaseriousaccident. Whendrivingdownhill,avoidturnsthattakeyouacrosstheincline of the hill. A hillthat'snottoosteep to drivedownmay be toosteep to drive across. You couldrollover if youdon'tdrivestraightdown. Nevergodownhillwiththetransmission in N (Neutral),orwiththeclutch pedaldepressed in amanualshift.This is called"free-wheeling." Your brakeswillhave to doalltheworkandcouldoverheat and fade. Avoidbraking so hardthatyoulockthewheelswhengoingdownhill. If yourfrontwheels are locked,youcan'tsteeryourvehicle.Ifyourwheels lockupduringdownhillbraking,youmay feel thevehiclestarting to slide sideways. To regainyourdirection,justease off the brakes and steer to keep the front of the vehicle pointing straight downhill. Q: Am I likelyto stall whengoingdownhill? A: It'smuchmorelikelytohappengoinguphill.But downhill,here'swhat to do. if ithappensgoing Stopyourvehiclebyapplyingtheregularbrakes.Applytheparking brake. Shiftto P (Park)(or to N (Neutral)withthemanualtransmission)and, whilestillbraking,restart the engine. Shiftback to alow gear,releasetheparkingbrake,anddrivestraight down. I theenginewon'tstart,getoutandgethelp. f 4-30