1993 GMC Sonoma Owner's Manual - Page 200

Your Driving and the Road Hi// and Mountain Roads AM470001 Drivingonsteephillsormountainsisdifferentfromdriving in flat or rolling terrain. If youdriveregularlyinsteepcountry,or if you'replanning to visit there,herearesometipsthatcanmakeyourtripssaferandmoreenjoyable. (See"Off-RoadDriving" in theIndexforinformationaboutdrivingoff-road.) Keepyourvehicleingoodshape.Checkallfluidlevelsand also the brakes,tires,coolingsystemandtransmission.Thesepartscanwork hard on mountainroads. Knowhow to godownhills.Themostimportantthing to knowisthis:let yourengine do some of theslowingdown.Don'tmakeyourbrakes do it all.Shifttoalowergearwhenyougodownasteeporlonghill.That way,youwillslowdownwithoutexcessiveuseofyourbrakes. If youdon'tshiftdown,yourbrakescouldget so hotthatthey ,,wouldn'tworkwell. You wouldthenhavepoorbraking or even n - - = V& oing down a hill. You could crash. Shift down to let your engine : 2s . -!%$assist your brakes on a steep downhill slope. - '= &!&$I I 4-46