Cadillac 2010 SRX Crossover Owner's Manual

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Contents

8-4 Driving and OperatingThis means that when anyone whohas been drinking — driver orpassenger — is in a crash, thatperson's chance of being killed orpermanently disabled is higher thanif the person had not been drinking.Control of a VehicleThe following three systemshelp to control the vehicle whiledriving — brakes, steering, andaccelerator. At times, as whendriving on snow or ice, it is easy toask more of those control systemsthan the tires and road can provide.Meaning, you can lose control ofthe vehicle. See Traction ControlSystem (TCS) on page 8‑32 andStabiliTrak System on page 8‑33.Adding non‐dealer/non‐retaileraccessories can affect vehicleperformance. See Accessories andModifications on page 9‑3.BrakingSee Brake System Warning Lighton page 4‑23.Braking action involves perceptiontime and reaction time. Deciding topush the brake pedal is perceptiontime. Actually doing it isreaction time.Average reaction time is aboutthree‐fourths of a second. But that isonly an average. It might be lesswith one driver and as long as twoor three seconds or more withanother. Age, physical condition,alertness, coordination, andeyesight all play a part. So doalcohol, drugs, and frustration. Buteven in three‐fourths of a second, avehicle moving at 100 km/h(60 mph) travels 20 m (66 ft). Thatcould be a lot of distance in anemergency, so keeping enoughspace between the vehicle andothers is important.And, of course, actual stoppingdistances vary greatly with thesurface of the road, whether it ispavement or gravel; the condition ofthe road, whether it is wet, dry,or icy; tire tread; the condition of thebrakes; the weight of the vehicle;and the amount of brake forceapplied.Avoid needless heavybraking. Some people drive inspurts — heavy accelerationfollowed by heavy braking — ratherthan keeping pace with traffic. Thisis a mistake. The brakes might nothave time to cool between hardstops. The brakes will wear outmuch faster with a lot of heavybraking. Keeping pace with thetraffic and allowing realistic followingdistances eliminates a lot ofunnecessary braking. That meansbetter braking and longer brake life.If the engine ever stops while thevehicle is being driven, brakenormally but do not pump thebrakes. If the brakes are pumped,the pedal could get harder to pushdown. If the engine stops, there willstill be some power brake assist butit will be used when the brake is