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125
undermining your ability to steer and brake
the vehicle.<
Driving through water
Do not drive through water on the
road if it is deeper than 1 ft (30 cm),
and then only at walking speed at the most.
Otherwise, the vehicle's engine, the elec-
trical systems and the transmission may be
damaged.<
Brake system
Braking with ABS
The best way to achieve optimal response
from the ABS is to apply maximum pres-
sure to the brake pedal during emergency–
panic stops. Since the vehicle maintains
steering responsiveness, you can never-
theless avoid possible obstacles with a
minimum of steering effort.
Pulsation at the brake pedal combines with
sounds from the hydraulic circuits to indi-
cate to the driver that ABS is in its active
mode.
Do not drive with your foot resting on
the brake pedal. Even light but con-
sistent pedal pressure can lead to high
temperatures, brake wear and possibly
even brake failure.<
Disc brakes
Driving in wet conditions
While driving in wet conditions and in
heavy rain, it is a good idea to apply light
pressure to the brake pedal every few
miles. Monitor traffic conditions to ensure
that this maneuver does not endanger
other road users. The heat generated in this
process helps dry the pads and rotors to
ensure that full braking efficiency will then
be available when you need it.
Hills
You can retain full and unimpaired braking
efficiency by downshifting to a gear in
which only minimal brake applications are
needed when descending long or steep
downhill stretches.
You can further enhance the engine's bra-
king effect by selecting a lower gear in the
automatic transmission's manual mode,
downshifting as far as first gear on extre-
mely steep stretches, refer to page 68. This
strategy helps you avoid placing excessive
loads on the brake system.
Never allow the vehicle to coast with
the transmission in Neutral – or with
the engine switched off – there is no engine
braking when the transmission is in Neu-
tral, and no power-assist for brakes and
steering when the engine is not running.
Never allow floor mats, carpets or any other
objects to protrude into the area around the
accelerator and brake pedals and obstruct
their movement.<
Corrosion
When the vehicle is driven only occasio-
nally, during extended periods when the
vehicle is not used at all, and in operating
conditions where brake applications are
less frequent, there is an increased ten-
dency for corrosion to form on rotors, while
contaminants accumulate on the brake
pads. This occurs because the minimal
pressure which must be exerted by the
pads during brake applications to clean the
rotors is not reached.
Should corrosion form on the brake rotors,
the brakes will tend to respond with a pul-
sating effect that even extended applica-
tion will fail to cure.
Brake pads
If the brake pad wear warning lamp
appears in the Check Control,
accompanied by a text: please take
careful note of the additional information in
the Control Display.
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