1973 CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO check engine

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine BEFORE DRIVING YOUR MONTE CARLO
DRIVER CHECKLIST
Before Entering Car
1. See that windows , mirrors and
lights are clean.
2 . Visually note inflation condition
of tires.
3. Check that area to rear is clear
if about to back up.
Before Driving Off
1. Lock all doors.
2. Position seat and adjust head
restraints.
3. Adjust inside and outside mir­
rors.
4 . Fasten seat belts.
5. Check that warning bulbs light
when key
is turned to start posi­
tion.
6 . Release parking brake (and see
that brake warning light turns
off). 7
. Be sure you understand your
car and how to operate it safely.
Keys
Two separate keys are provided
for your car. Each key has a differ­
ent cross section so that it can be
inserted only
in certain locks.
• Key with square head
(stamped "E") -for ignition
switch and door locks.
• Key with oval head (stamped
"H") -for all other locks.
fib
~ ALL OTHER LOCKS
3
The code number of each key is
stamped on the "knock out" plug
in the key head. Your Chevrolet
dealer removed these plugs and
placed them with the spare set of
keys in the special key envelope
that was given to you at time of
delivery. For your protection:
• Record the numbers on the key
envelope and discard the key
plugs.
• Keep the key envelope in a safe
place such
as your wallet, Not
In The Car.
In the event the original keys are
lost, duplicates can be made by
your dealer or a locksmith using
the key code information.
Be sure to lock the glove box or
console compartments and remove
the key from the car whenever it
is
necessary to leave the ignition key
with an attendant.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine • To fasten the shoulder belt, un­
stow it and place the knob on
the shoulder belt end in the
keyhole on the lap belt latch
plate. (The latch
is designed so
that this attachment can only be
completed before fastening the
lap belt.) Tilt the knob as neces­
sary, to pass
it through the slot.
Pull the knob firmly upward to
seat it at the narrow end of the
keyhole, then fasten the lap belt.
• Shoulder belts are lengthened
and shortened in the same man­
ner
as center seat lap belts.
• Shoulder belt should have suf­
ficient slack to insert a fist's
width between your chest and
the belt. This can be checked
by inserting a clenched
fist be­
tween the belt and your chest
with thumb against chest and
back of hand facing upward.
• When not in use, the shoulder
SHOULDER BELT
STOWAGE
9
belt may be stowed by leaving
it attached to the lap belt and
allowing the lap belt to rewind
into its retractor.
Take up re­
maining slack using the shoul­
der belt adjustment feature.
• .To completely restow the shoul ­
der belt, remove the belt knob
from the keyhole (tilting knob
as necessary). Then restow belt
along roof rail in accord with
illustration.
When not in use, all loose lap
and shoulder belts should be se­
cured to reduce the danger of the
metal ends striking an occupant in
an accident. When special stowage
provisions are not provided, the
loose ends should be attached to
each other and adjustment made
to remove the slack in the belt sys­
tem. Be sure that belts are not left
in a position where the webbing
or hardware can be pinched in the

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine seat structure or door, and thus
become damaged.
Seat Belt Inspection
• Periodically inspect belts, buck­
les, retractors , and anchors for
damage that could lessen the
effectiveness of the restraint
system.
• Keep sharp edges and damaging
objects away from belts.
• Replace belts if cut, weakened,
frayed ,
or subjected to collision
loads.
• Check that anchor mounting
bolts are tight.
• Have questionable parts re­
placed.
• Keep seat belts clean and dry.
• Clean only with mild soap solu­
tion
and lukewarm water.
• Do not bleach or dye belts since
this may severely weaken belts.
Head Restraints
• Head restraints are designed to
help reduce injuries due to
"whiplash ."
• Select
one of the three positions
-full up, intermediate , or full
down-which places the top of
the head restraint closest to the
top of your ears.
• Do not use head restraint above
the full up
"detent" position.
• Head restraint can be raised by
pulling up until you feel it click
into the
"detent" at the inter­
mediate position.
• To raise further, or to lower,
release latch at base of support­
ing rod and push up
or down on
restraint.
• Do not operate vehicle with head
restraints removed, since occu­
pants lose the protection pro­
vided.
10
Child Restraint
Children in automobiles should
be restrained to lessen the risk of
injury in accidents, sudden stops
or other hazardous situations. Gen­
eral motors dealers offer restraint
systems designed specifically for
use with infants.
In using any in­
fant
or child restraint system, read
. and comply with all installation
'and usage instructions.
All unused seat belts near the
child should be stowed properly
to help prevent them from striking
him in the event of an accident.
Lap belts and shoulder belts with­
out stowage provisions should
have buckles latched and belts
adjusted to remove slack.
Cars Not Equipped With
Special Child Restraints
If a child is traveling in a ve­
hicle not equipped with a General
Motors infant restraint
or other

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Detroit, Michigan 48202 (or in
Canada by writing to General
Moto rs of Canada Limited,
Owner
Relations Department , Oshawa,
Ontario) .
To assist in attaining good han­
dling of the car-trailer combina­
tion, it
is important that the trailer
tongue load be maintained at ap­
proximately
10% of the loaded
trailer weight. Tongue loads can be
adjusted by proper distribution of
the load in the trailer, and can be
checked by weighing separately the
loaded trailer and then the tongue.
When towing trailers, tires
should be inflated to the highest inflation
pressures shown on the
placard affixed to the left front
door . The allowable passenger and
cargo load, also shown on the same
placard ,
is reduced by an amount
equal to
the trailer tongue load on
the trailer hitch.
Maintenance
More frequent vehicle mainte­
nance
is required when using your
car to pull a trailer. Change the:
• Automatic transmission fluid
each
12 ,000 miles ,
• Rear axle fluid each 12,000
miles,
• Engine oil each 60 days or 3,000
12
miles , whichever occurs first.
• Positive crankcase ventilation
valve each 12 months or
12,000
miles, whichever occurs first.
Break-in Schedule
In addition to the new ca r
break-in instructions in this man­
ual, it
is recommended that your
new Monte Carlo be operated for
500 miles before trailer towing. If
it is necessary to tow during this
period , avoid speeds over
50 MPH
and full throttle starts. The same
precautions should be observed
whenever a new engine, transmis­
sion or axle
is installed in your car.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Turn Signal and Lane
. Change Features
The tum signal lever is located
on the left side of the steering
column immediately under the
steering wheel. The lever
is moved
upward to signal a right
tum and
downward to signal a left tum.
Lamps on the front and rear of
the car transmit this signal to
other motorists and pedestrians.
The ignition switch must be in the
"ON" position in order for the
turn signals to be operational. This
feature prevents battery drain if
the lever
is left in an "ON" posi­
tion when your car
is not in use.
In a normal turning situation
such
as turning a comer, the
signal
is cancelled automatically
after the tum
is completed. How­
ever, in some driving maneuvers
such
as changing lanes on an
expressway, the steering wheel
is
not turned back sufficiently after completing
the
tum to automatic­
ally cancel the turn signal.
For
convenience in such maneuvers,
the driver can flash the
tum
signals by moving the tum signal
lever part way (to the first stop)
and holding it there. The lever
returns to the neutral
or cancelled
position when the driver releases
his hold on the lever.
20
A green light on the instrument
cluster flashes to indicate proper
operation of the front and rear
tum signal lamps. If the indicator
lamp remains on and does not
flash, check for a defective lamp
bulb.
If the indicator fails to light
when the lever
is moved, check
the fuse and indicator bulb.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine FLOOR CONTROLS
Braking System
The service brake system is de­
signed for braking performance
under a wide range of driving con­
ditions even when the vehicle
is
loaded to its full rated vehicle load.
Power Brakes
• On cars with power brakes if
power assist to the brakes
is
interrupted due to a stalled en­
gine
or some malfunction, two
or more brake applications can
be made using reverse power.
• If the brake pedal is held down ,
the system
is designed to bring
the car to a full stop on reserve
power. However, the reserve
power
is partially depleted each
time the brake pedal
is applied
and released.
• When reserve power is ex- hausted,
the vehicle can still be
stopped by applying greater
force to the pedal.
Parking Brake
• To set parking brake, fully de­
press foot pedal at far left side.
• For maximum holding power,
depress regular brake pedal with
the other foot at the same time.
• To release parking brake, pull
"BRAKE RELEASE" lever on
lower left instrument panel.
• As a reminder, the brake system
warning light
is designed to glow
whenever the parking brake con­
trol
is not fully released, and the
ignition
is on.
• Never drive car with parking
brake set
as this may overheat
or otherwise damage rear brakes.
23
Clutch Adjustment
Clut8h adjustment should be
checked and adjusted periodically
as necessary to compensate for
clutch facing wear.
To check, de­
press pedal by hand until resist­
ance
is felt. Free travel of pedal
should be approximately one inch;
if very little
or no free travel is
evident, clutch adjustment is re­
quired.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Generator Indicator Light
This light provides a quick
check on the generating system
of your car. The red light will
go on when the ignition key
is
in the "on" position, but before
the engine
is started. After the
engine starts, the light should go
out and remain out.
If the light
remains on when engine
is run­
ning , have your Authorized Chev­
rolet Dealer locate and correct
the trouble
as soon as possible.
Engine Temperature
Indicator Light
This indicator light is provided
in the
instrument cluster to
quickly warn of an overheated
engine. With the ignition switch
in the
START position, the red
TEMP indicator will light to let
you know that it
is operating
properly. When the engine
is started, the red
light will go out immediately.
It will light up at no other time
unless for some reason the engine
reaches a dangerously high oper­
ating temperature.
If the red light
should come on, the engine must
be stopped until the cause of the
overheating
is corrected. Glance
at instrument cluster frequently
as
you drive to see if this light is on.
Brake System Warning Light
The service brake system is
designed so that half of the brake
system will provide some braking
action in the event of a hydraulic
leak in the other half of the
sys­
tem. If the warning light located
below the fuel gauge glows con­
tinuously when the ignition
is on
and after the brakes have been
firmly applied, it may indicate that
there
is a malfunction in one half
of the brake hydraulic system.
27
• As a check on bulb condition
the light should glow with the
parking brake applied and the
ignition on. (Light
is also a
reminder to release parking
brake) .
• Have system repaired if light
does not come on during check.
• This warning light is not a sub­
stitute for the visual check of
brake fluid level required
as
part of normal maintenance.
If the light glows red:
• The parking brake control is not
fully released or,
• The service brake system is
partially inoperative
What to do:
1. Check that the parking brake
is released. If it is ...
2. Pull off the road and stop,
carefully- remembering that:

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine • Stopping distances may be
greater.
• Greater pedal effort may be
required .
• Pedal travel may be greater.
3.
Tryout braking operation by
starting and stopping on road
shoulder -then:
• If you judge such operation
to be safe , proceed cautious
ly
at a s afe speed to nearest
dealer for repair.
• Or have car towed to dealer
for repair.
Continued operation of the car
in this condition
is dangerous.
Headlight Beam Indicator
Light
The headlights of your car have
high and low beams to provide
ybu
with proper night-time visibility
for most driving conditons . The
"low" beams are used during most
city driving. The "high" beams are especially
useful when driving
on
dark roads since they provide ex­
cellent long range illumination.
The headlight beam indicator will
be on whenever the high beams
or
"brights" are in use. The Headlight
Beam Switch controls the headlight
beams (see
Page 24).
Light Switch
The three position light switch controls
the headlights, taillights,
parking lights, side marker lights,
instrument lights and dome lights
as shown. The headlamp circuit
is protected by a circuit breaker in
the light switch. An overload on
the breaker will cause the lamps to
"flicker" on and off. If this condi­
tion develops, have your headlamp
wiring checked immediately.
PARKING LAMPS MARKER LAMPS TAIL AND INSTRUMENT LIGHTS
--,---.---~------ -- --------
TURN KNOB TO VARY INSTRUMENT LIGHTS fULLY COUNTER CLOCKWISE fOR DOME LIGHTS
28
HEADLIGHTS PARKING LAMPS MARKER LAMPS
•