Police records show that almost 40 percent of all motorvehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most cases,these deaths are the result of someone who wasdrinking and driving. In recent years, more than17,000 annual motor vehicle-related deaths have beenassociated with the use of alcohol, with about250,000 people injured.For persons under 21, it is against the law in everyU.S. state to drink alcohol. There are good medical,psychological, and developmental reasons forthese laws.The obvious way to eliminate the leading highwaysafety problem is for people never to drink alcoholand then drive.Medical research shows that alcohol in a person’ssystem can make crash injuries worse, especiallyinjuries to the brain, spinal cord, or heart. This meansthat when anyone who has been drinking — driveror passenger — is in a crash, that person’s chance ofbeing killed or permanently disabled is higher than if theperson had not been drinking.Control of a VehicleThe following three systems help to control yourvehicle while driving — brakes, steering, andaccelerator. At times, as when driving on snow or ice,it is easy to ask more of those control systems than thetires and road can provide. Meaning, you can losecontrol of your vehicle. See Traction Control System(TCS) on page 5-6 and StabiliTrak® System onpage 5-8.Adding non-dealer/non-retailer accessories can affectyour vehicle’s performance. See Accessories andModifications on page 6-3.5-3
