Braking

Braking action involves perception time and reaction time. Deciding to push the brake pedal is perception time. Actually doing it is reaction time.

Average driver reaction time is about three-fourths of a second. In that time, a vehicle moving at 100 km/h (60 mph) travels 20m (66 ft), which could be a lot of distance in an emergency.

Helpful braking tips to keep in mind include:

• Keep enough distance between you and the vehicle in front of you.

• Avoid needless heavy braking.

• Keep pace with traffic.

If the engine ever stops while the vehicle is being driven, brake normally but do not pump the brakes. Doing so could make the pedal harder to push down. If the engine stops, there will be some power brake assist but it will be used when the brake is applied.

Once the power assist is used up, it can take longer to stop and the brake pedal will be harder to push.

    See also:

    Automatic Door Locks
    Vehicles with an automatic lock/unlock feature enable you to program the vehicle's power door locks. This feature can be programmed through the Driver Information Center (DIC). See Vehicle Personaliza ...

    When Should an Airbag Inflate?
    Frontal airbags are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal crashes to help reduce the potential for severe injuries mainly to the driver's or right front passenger's head an ...

    Hill Start Assist (HSA)
    This vehicle has a Hill Start Assist (HSA) feature, which may be useful when the vehicle is stopped on a grade. This feature is designed to prevent the vehicle from rolling, either forward or rearward ...