Defensive Driving Most Complete Guide Part II

Safety belt

The seat belt purpose is to limit the movement of occupants of a vehicle in case of accidents or a sudden brake. In these cases, the belt prevents people shock with the internal parts of the vehicle or being thrown out of it, thereby reducing the severity of possible injuries.
For this, the safety belts must be in good storage conditions and all occupants must use them,
including the rear seats of passengers, even pregnant women and children.

Always make an inspection of belts:

■ Make sure the belts don't present cuts;
■ Make sure there are no seams to stop perfect elasticity;
■ Test the lock to see if is working perfectly;
■ Make sure the belts for rear seats are available for use of the occupants.

Correct use of the belt:

■ Adjust the body firmly, whithout being loose;

■ The range should be below the lower abdomen, especially for pregnant women.

■ The belt must be across the shoulder, crossing the breast without touching the neck;

■ Do not use clamps. They eliminate the effects of seat belt security.

Transport children up to ten years of age only in the bank rear of the vehicle, and staying on retainer affixed to the vehicle safety belt, appropriate to their stature, weight and age.
Some vehicles have no back seat. Exceptionally, and only these cases, you may carry children
children under 10 years in the front seat using the seat belt security. Depending on the age, they should be placed in appropriate chairs, aloowing the use of seat belts.
If the vehicle has "air bag" for the passenger, it is recommended you disconnect while carrying the child.
The safety belt use is individual. Transporting child in the lap, both with the same belt, may cause serious injury and even death of the child.
People in general have no exact notion of significance of the impact of a collision in traffic.
Learn that, under the laws of physics, colliding with a pole, or similar to a fixed object, 80
kilometers per hour, is the same as falling from a building of 9 floors.

Suspension

The purpose of the suspension and dampers is maintain the stability of the vehicle. When wear, may cause the loss of control of the vehicle and rolling over,
especially in curves and breaking. Check periodically the state of preservation and operation of them, on the basis of manufacturer's manual and taking the vehicle to authorized personnel.

Steering

The steering is one of the most important security components of the vehicle, one of those driveability. Any fails in the steering system of the vehicle can start "pulling" to one side, leading the driver to lose his control. When braking, these defects are increased. You should periodically check the sistem, correct the steering and make the preventive revisions in time in the manual of the manufacturer, with specialized staff.

Lighting System

The lighting system of your vehicle is essential, both for you to see your path, and to be seen by all other users of the road and thus ensuring traffic safety. Without lighting, or with poor lighting, you may cause collisions and other accidents. Check and avoid the main events:

■ lights burned in a bad state of conservation or
misaligned: reduce the panoramic visibility and you can not see anything that you should; See and be seen by all makes the traffic more secure.

■ Lanterns position of the defective or burnt at night or in darkened environments (rain, shadows): undermine the recognition of your vehicle by other users of the road;
■ brake lights burning or malfunction (night or day): you brakes and that is not flagged the other drivers. They will have less time and distance to brake safely;
■ direction indicator lights (blinker) burned or malfunction: prevent the other
drivers from understand your direction and this can cause accidents.
Periodically check the condition and the operation of lights and lanterns.

Brakes

The brake system wears with the use of your vehicle and has reduced its efficiency. Brakes require higher spending distances to brake safely and can cause accidents. The main components of the brake system are: hydraulic sistem, fluid, pads and discs or canvas, depending on the type of vehicle.

Here are the main reasons for loss of efficiency and preview:
■ Level of fluid low: just observe the level of shell;
■ fluid leak: note the existence of patches the floor under the vehicle;
■ Disc and inserts expenses: check with professional authorized;
■ Wear plies: check with qualified professional. When you cross local or soaked with puddles of water, using a vehicle with brakes canvas, the loss may occur
efficiency of the system for momentary brake. Noting the traffic conditions in place, slow down and step on the pedal brake a few times to return to normal.

In vehicles equipped with ABS (central electron receiving signals from the wheels, which manages the pressure in the cylinder and the brake command, avoiding the Wheel lock) check in the panel, the light indicative of problems in operation.
When driving, avoid using both breaks abruptly, as unnecessary, because it wears out prematurely the components of the brake system. Just drive carefully, observing the signs, laws and traffic conditions.

The correct position to avoid wear and physical address helps to avoid danger.

Follow the guidelines:

■ Drive with your arms and legs slightly bent, avoiding tensions;
■ Adjust your body in the seat and also the seat, the closest to an angle of 90 degrees;
■ Adjust the back of the head according to the occupants heights of the vehicle, preferably at the level the of eyes;
■ Hold the steering wheel with both hands and the hands in the clock position of 9 hours and 15 minutes. So you will see better thepanel, access the vehicle commands, and vehicles with "air bag", you don't harm its functioning;
■ Try to keep heels supported on the floor of the vehicle and avoid supporting the feet in the pedals when not using them;
■ Use shoes that are well fixed to your feet, so you can trigger pedals quickly and safely;
■ Put the safety belt of way that it fits firmly to your body. The belt must pass through the lower region of the abdomen and the belt cross pass on the chest and
not on the neck;
■ Be in a position to see and allows the information panel and always check the operation systems such as, for example, temperature of the engine.