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5-5. Driving tips
Utility vehicle precau-
tions
WARNING
■Utility vehicle precautions
Always observe the following pre-
cautions to minimize the risk of
death, serious injury or damage to
your vehicle:
This vehicle belongs to the
utility vehicle class, which
has higher ground clear-
ance and narrower tread in
relation to the height of its
center of gravity to make it
capable of performing in a
wide variety of off-road
applications.
●In a rollover crash, an unbelted
person is significantly more
likely to die than a person wear-
ing a seat belt. Therefore, the
driver and all passengers
should always fasten their seat
belts.
●Avoid sharp turns or abrupt
maneuvers, if at all possible.
Failure to operate this vehicle
correctly may result in loss of
control or vehicle rollover caus-
ing death or serious injury.
Utility vehicle feature
Specific design characteris-
tics give it a higher center of
gravity than ordinary passen-
ger cars. This vehicle design
feature causes this type of
vehicle to be more likely to
rollover. And, utility vehicles
have a significantly higher
rollover rate than other types
of vehicles.
●Loading cargo on the roof lug-
gage carrier (if equipped) will
make the center of the vehicle
gravity higher. Avoid high
speeds, sudden starts, sharp
turns, sudden braking or abrupt
maneuvers, otherwise it may
result in loss of control or vehi-
cle rollover due to failure to
operate this vehicle correctly.
●Always slow down in gusty
crosswinds. Because of its pro-
file and higher center of gravity,
your vehicle is more sensitive to
side winds than an ordinary
passenger car. Slowing down
will allow you to have better
control.
An advantage of the higher
ground clearance is a better
view of the road allowing you
to anticipate problems.
It is not designed for corner-
ing at the same speeds as
ordinary passenger cars any
more than low-slung sports
cars are designed to perform
satisfactorily under off-road
conditions. Therefore, sharp
turns at excessive speeds
may cause the vehicle to roll-
over.
●Do not drive horizontally across
steep slopes. Driving straight up
or straight down is preferred.
Your vehicle (or any similar off-
road vehicle) can tip over side-
ways much more easily than
forward or backward.
Off-road driving
When driving your vehicle off-
Owners Manual_USA_M42C01_en
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