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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.
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.
’C
s
review wnat arlving 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.
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 Cadillac’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 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.
Remember:
Any
traction control system helps avoid
only the acceleration skid.
If your traction control system is
off,
then an
acceleration skid is also best handled by easing your
foot
off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to
go.
If you start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready
for
a
second skid
if
it
occurs.
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