Pontiac 1996 Grand Am Owner's Manual page 162

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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 redly 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.
If 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.
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 Pontiac's
three control systems. In
the
braking
skid, your wheels
aren't rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steeiing in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose cornering force. And in the acceleration skid, too
much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin.
A cornering skid is best handled by easing your foot off
the accelerator pedal.
If
you have the Enhanced Traction System, remember:
It
helps avoid only the acceleration skid.
If you do not have the Enhanced Traction System, or if
the system is off, then an acceleration skid is
also
best
handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.
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.
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