1995 Oldsmobile Achieva Owner's Manual - Page 149

Control of a Vehicle You have three systems that make your vehicle go where you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering and the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work at the places where the tires meet the road. Braking Braking action involves perception tir7z.e and rzaction time. First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal. That's perception time. Then you have to bring up your foot and do it. That's reaction time. Average reaction time is about 3 4 of a second. But that's only an average. It mightbe less with one driver and as long as two or three seconds or morewith another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination, and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs and frustration. But even in 3/4 of a second, a vehicle moving at 60 mph ( 100 kmh) travels 66 feet (20 m). That could be a lot of distance in an emergency, so keeping enough space between your vehicle and others is important. And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly with the surface of the road (whether it's pavement or gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire tread; and the condition of your brakes. Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in spurts -- heavy acceleration followed by heavy braking -- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic following distances, Sometimes, as when you're driving on snow or ice, it's easy to ask more of those control systems than the tires and road can provide. Thatmeans you can lose control of your vehicle. 4-5