Toyota 4Runner 1998 Owner's Manual page 163

Off−road driving precautions
When driving your vehicle off−road, please
observe the following precautions to en-
sure your driving enjoyment and to help
prevent the closure of areas to off−road
vehicles.
a. Drive your vehicle only in areas where
off−road vehicles are permitted to travel.
b. Respect private property. Get owner's
permission before entering private proper-
ty.
c. Do not enter areas that are closed.
Honor gates, barriers and signs that re-
strict travel.
d. Stay on established roads. When condi-
tions are wet, driving techniques should
be changed or travel delayed to prevent
damage to roads.
For owners in U.S. mainland, Hawaii and
Puerto Rico:
To obtain additional information pertaining
to driving your vehicle off−road, consult
the following organizations.
D
State and Local Parks and Recreation
Departments
D
State Motor Vehicle Bureau
D
Recreational Vehicle Clubs
D
U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of
Land Management
158
CAUTION
Always observe the following precau-
tions to minimize the risk of serious
personal injury or damage to your ve-
hicle:
D
Drive carefully when off the road.
Do not take unnecessary risks by
driving in dangerous places.
D
Do not grip the steering wheel
spokes when driving off−road. A
bad bump could jerk the wheel and
injure your hands. Keep both hands
and especially your thumbs on the
outside of the rim.
D
Always check your brakes for effec-
tiveness immediately after driving in
sand, mud, water or snow.
D
After driving through tall grass,
mud, rock, sand, rivers, etc., check
that there is no grass, bush, paper,
rags, stone, sand, etc. adhering or
trapped on the underbody. Clear off
any such matter from the under-
body. If the vehicle is used with
these materials trapped or adhering
to the underbody, a breakdown or
fire could occur.
4RUNNER ( )
D
The driver and all passengers
should fasten their seat belts whe-
never the vehicle is moving.
NOTICE
z If driving through water, such as
when crossing shallow streams,
first check the depth of the water
and the bottom of the river bed for
firmness. Drive slowly and avoid
deep water.
z Take all necessary safety measures
to ensure that water damage to the
engine or other components does
not occur.
Water entering the engine air intake
will cause severe engine damage.
Water can wash the grease from
wheel bearings, causing rusting and
premature failure, and may also en-
ter the differentials, transmission
and transfer case, reducing the gear
oil's lubricating qualities.