1993 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme service

Cooling System
When you decide it’s safe to lift the
hood, here’s what you’ll see:
(A) Coolant recovery tank
(B) Radiator pressure cap
(C) Electric engine fan
If the coolant inside the coolant
recovery tank is boiling, don’t do
anything else until it cools down. The
coolant level should be at or above
the
COLD mark.
If it isn’t,
you may have a leak in the
radiator hoses, heater hoses, radiator,
water pump or somewhere else in the
cooling system.
I
- 1
CAUTION I
Heater and radiator hoses,
and other engine parts, can
1;, ;cry hot. Don’t touch them. If
you do,
you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine
if there is a
leak. If you
run the engine, it could
lose all coolant. That could cause
an engine fire, and you could be
burned. Get any leak fixed before
I
you drive the vehicle.
I
If there seems to be no leak, check to
see
if the electric engine fan is running.
If the engine is overheating, the fan
should be running.
If it isn’t, your
vehicle needs service.
How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery
Tank:
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but
the coolant level isn’t at or above
COLD, add a
50/50 mixture of clean
water (preferably distilled) and a proper
antifreeze at the coolant recovery
tank.
(See the Index under Engine Coolant
for more information abaut the proper
coolant
mix.)
199

Part 6
Service &Appearance Care
21 7

Service & Appearance Cure
GM -
Service
Your Oldsmobile dealer knows your
vehicle best and wants you to be happy
with it. We hope you’ll go to your dealer
for all your service needs. You’ll get
genuine GM parts and GM-trained and
supported service people.
We hope you’ll want to keep your GM
vehicle all GM. Genuine GM parts have
one
of these marks.
Doing Your Own Service Work
If you want to do some of your own
service work, you’ll want to get the
proper Oldsmobile Service Manual. It
tells you much more about how to
service your Oldsmobile than this
manual can.
To order the proper service
manual, see the
Index under Service
Publications.
You should keep a record with all parts
receipts and list the mileage and the
date
of any service work you perform.
See the
Index under Maintenance
Record.
P

If it’s bad enough, it can damage your
engine.
If you’re using fuel rated at 87 octane or
higher and you still hear heavy
laoclcing, your engine needs service.
But don’t
worry if you hear a little
pinging noise when you’re accelerating
or driving up a hill. That’s normal, and
you don’t have to buy
a higher octane
fuel to get rid
of pinging. It’s the heavy,
constant knock that means you have a
problem.
Fuel Capacity:
16.5 U.S. Gallons (62 L). Use unleaded
fuel only.
What about gasoline with blending
materials that contain oxygen, such
as
MTBE or alcohol?
MTBE is “methyl tertiary-butyl
ether.’’ Fuel that is no more than
15%
MTBE is fine for your vehicle.
Ethanol is ethyl or grain alcohol.
Properly-blended fuel that is no more
than
10% ethanol is fine for your
vehicle.
Methanol is methyl or wood alcohol.
- -1
219

Sewice & Appeurunce Care
220
Gasolines for Cleaner Air
Your use of gasoline with detergent
additives will help prevent deposits
from forming in your engine and fuel
system. That helps Beep your engine in
tune and your emission control system
working properly. It’s good for your
vehicle, and you’ll be doing your part
for cleaner air.
Many gasolines are now blended with
materials called oxygenates. General
Motors recommends that you use
gasolines with these blending materials,
such as MTBE and ethanol. By doing
so, you can help clean the air, especially
in those parts of the country that have
high carbon monoxide levels. In
addition, some gasoline suppliers are
now producing reformulated gasolines.
These gasolines are specially designed
to reduce vehicle emissions. General
Motors recommends that you use
reformulated gasoline. By doing
so, you
can help clean the air, especially in
those parts of the country that have
high ozone levels.
You should ask your service station
operators
if their gasolines contain
detergents and oxygenates, and
if they
have been reformulated to reduce
vehicle emissions.
Fuels in Foreign Countries
If you plan on driving in another
country outside the
U.S. or Canada,
unleaded fuel may be hard to find.
Do not use leaded gasoline. If you use
even one tankful, your emission
controls won’t work well or
at all. With
continuous use, spark plugs can get
fouled, the exhaust system can corrode,
and your engine oil can deteriorate
quickly. Your vehicle’s oxygen sensor
will be damaged. All of that means
costly repairs that wouldn’t be covered
by your warranty.

Service & Appearance Care
222
Filling Your Tank (CONT.) 1 . Checking Things Under the
I
Hood Release
To open the hood, first pull the handle
inside the vehicle.

Service & Appearance Care
Air Cleaner
Refer to the Maintenance Schedule to
determine when to replace the air filter
and the
PCV filter.
See the
Index under Scheduled
Maintenance Services.
Operating the engine with
the air cleaner off can cause
you or others to be burned. The air
cleaner not only cleans the air, it
stops flame if the engine backfires.
If it isn’t there, and the engine
backfires, you could be burned.
Don’t drive with it
off, and be
careful working
on the engine with
the air cleaner off.
To Check or Replace:
1. Remove the four screws
the cover. and
pull off
I

238
Service & Appearance Care
Windshield Washer Fluid (CONT.)
Brake Master Cylinder
Your brake master cylinder is here. It is
filled with DOT-3 brake fluid.
Your vehicle is equipped with either Standard Power Brakes or the Anti-
Lock Brake System.
There are only two reasons why the
brake fluid level in your master cylinder
might go down. The first
is that the
brake fluid goes down to an acceptable
level during normal brake lining wear.
When new linings are put in, the fluid
level goes back up. The other
reason is that fluid is leaking
out of the brake system. If it is, you
should have your brake system fixed, since a leak means that sooner or later
your brakes won’t work well, or won’t
work at all.
So, it isn’t a good idea to “top off’ your
brake fluid. Adding brake fluid won’t correct a leak. If you add fluid when
your linings are worn, then you’ll have
too much fluid when you get new brake
linings. You should add (or remove)
brake fluid, as necessary, only when
work is done on the brake hydraulic
system.