1993 Pontiac Trans Sport Owner's Manual - Page 149

Your Driving and the Road Braking Don't "ride" the brakes letting your by Braking action involves perception time And, of course, actual stopping pedal left foot rest lightly on the brake distances vary greatly with the surface and reaction time. while driving. of the road (whether it's pavement or First, you have todecide to push on the gravel); the conditionof the road (wet, brake pedal. That's perception time. Then you have to bring up your foot and dry, icy); tire tread,; andthe condition of your brakes. do it. That's reaction time. Most drivers treat their brakes with Average reaction time is about 34 of a care. Some, however, overwork the second. But that'sonly an average. It braking system with poor driving habits. might be less with one driver and as Avoid needless heavy braking. Some long as two or three seconds or more people drive in spurts-heavy with another. Age, physical condition, acceleration hllowed by heavy alertness, coordination, and eyesight all braking-rather than keeping pace play a part. So do alcohol, drugs and frustration. But even in % of a second, a with t r a c . This is a mistake. Your brakes may not have timeto cool vehicle moving at60 mph (100 km/hj travels 66 &et (20 m). That could be a between hard stops. Your brakes wili wear out much faster you do a lot of if lot of distance inan emergency, so keeping enough space between your heavy braking. vehicle and othersis important.