Driving your vehicle – Hyundai 2012 Elantra User Manual
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Driving your vehicle
• After parking the vehicle, check to be
sure the parking brake is not engaged
and that the parking brake indicator
light is out before driving away.
• Driving through water may get the
brakes wet. They can also get wet when
the car is washed. Wet brakes can be
dangerous! Your car will not stop as
quickly if the brakes are wet. Wet brakes
may cause the car to pull to one side.
To dry the brakes, apply the brakes light-
ly until the braking action returns to nor-
mal, taking care to keep the car under
control at all times. If the braking action
does not return to normal, stop as soon
as it is safe to do so and call an author-
ized HYUNDAI dealer for assistance.
• Do not coast down hills with the car out
of gear. This is extremely hazardous.
Keep the car in gear at all times, use
the brakes to slow down, then shift to a
lower gear so that engine braking will
help you maintain a safe speed.
• Do not "ride" the brake pedal. Resting
your foot on the brake pedal while driv-
ing can be dangerous because it can
result in the brakes overheating and los-
ing their effectiveness. It also increases
the wear of the brake components.
• If a tire goes flat while you are driving,
apply the brakes gently and keep the
car pointed straight ahead while you
slow down. When you are moving slow-
ly enough for it to be safe to do so, pull
off the road and stop in a safe place.
• If your vehicle is equipped with an auto-
matic transaxle, don't let your vehicle
creep forward. To avoid creeping for-
ward, keep your foot firmly on the brake
pedal when the vehicle is stopped.
• Use caution when parking on a hill.
Firmly engage the parking brake and
place the shift lever in P (automatic
transaxle) or in first or reverse gear
(manual transaxle). If your vehicle is
facing downhill, turn the front wheels
into the curb to help keep the vehicle
from rolling. If your vehicle is facing
uphill, turn the front wheels away from
the curb to help keep the vehicle from
rolling. If there is no curb or if it is
required by other conditions to keep
the vehicle from rolling, block the
wheels.
• Under some conditions your parking
brake can freeze in the engaged posi-
tion. This is most likely to happen when
there is an accumulation of snow or ice
around or near the rear brakes or if the
brakes are wet. If there is a risk that the
parking brake may freeze, apply it only
temporarily while you put the gear
selector lever in P (automatic
transaxle) or in first or reverse gear
(manual transaxle) and block the rear
wheels so the vehicle cannot roll. Then
release the parking brake.
• Do not hold the vehicle on the upgrade
with the accelerator pedal. This can
cause the transaxle to overheat.
Always use the brake pedal or parking
brake.