2003 Pontiac Grand Am Owner's Manual - Page 194

2003 Pontiac Grand Am Manual

Page 194 highlights

Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder, and start your left lane change signal before moving out of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front in your inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal and move back into the right lane. (Remember that your right outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you just passed may seem to be farther away from you than it really is.) Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the next vehicle. Don't overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly. Even though the brake lamps are not flashing, it may be slowing down or starting to turn. 0 Loss of Control Let's review what driving experts say about what happens when the three control systems (brakes, steering and acceleration) don't have enough friction where the tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked. In any emergency, don't give up. Keep trying to steer and constantly seek an escape route or area of less danger. Skidding In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle. Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable care suited to existing conditions, and by not "overdriving" those conditions. But skids are always possible. The three types of skids correspond to your vehicle's three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels aren't rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and lose cornering force. And In the acceleratlon skid, too much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin. I f you're being passed, make it easy for the following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you can ease a little to the right. 4-15

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Check
your
mirrors, glance over your shoulder, and
start
your
left
lane change signal before moving out
of
the
right
lane to pass. When you are far
enough ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front
in your inside mirror, activate your
right lane
change signal and move back into the right lane.
(Remember
that
your right outside mirror is convex.
The
vehicle
you just passed may
seem
to
be
farther
away
from you than it really is.)
Try not
to
pass more than one vehicle at a time on
two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the
next
vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake lamps are not flashing, it
may
be slowing down
or starting to turn.
0
I f
you’re being passed, make it easy
for the
following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little
to
the right.
Loss
of
Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes,
steering and acceleration) don’t have enough friction
where the tires meet the road to do what the driver has
asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying
to steer
and constantly seek an escape route or area of
less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control
of
the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and
by not
“overdriving” those conditions. But skids
are always
possible.
The three types of skids correspond to your vehicle’s
three control systems. In
the braking skid, your wheels
aren’t rolling. In the steering or cornering skid,
too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip
and lose cornering force.
And
In
the acceleratlon
skid, too much throttle causes the driving wheels
to
spin.
4-1
5