Q: What’s wrong with this?
A: The belt is torn.
Torn or frayed belts may not protect
you in a crash. They can rip apart undel
impact forces. If a belt is torn or frayed,
get
a new one right away. Before replacing
any safety belt, see
your dealer for the correct part number.
You’ll need the model year and model
number for your vehicle. The model
year is on your title and registration.
And you can find the model number on
the CertificatiodTire label of your
vehicle. See
Certification/Tire Label in
the
Index.
The model number on the replacement
belt must be listed on the safety belt you
want
to replace. Pull the shoulder belt
all the way out to see this label.
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35
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The oil light could also flash on in three
other situations:
. When the ignition is on (in the Run
position) but the engine is not
running, the light will come on as a
test to show you it is working, but the
light will
go out when you turn the
ignition to
Start. If it doesn't come on
with the ignition on, you may have a
problem with the fuse. Have it fixed
right away.
Sometimes when the engine is idling
at a stop, the light may flash on and
off. This is normal.
If you make a hard stop, the light may
come on for a moment. This is normal.
0-
A \
Voltmeter (ELEcmoNIc CLUSTER)
Your charging system gage will show
the rate of charge when the engine is
running. When the engine
is not
running but the ignition is on (in the
Run position), the display measures the
voltage output
of your battery, and will
flash until you turn the ignition to
Start.
The reading will change as the rate of
charge changes (with engine speed,
etc.), but readings between the warning
zones indicate the normal operating
range. Readings in either warning zone
indicate a possible problem with your
charging system. Have your Oldsmobile
serviced immediately. You
also have a warning light.
A box
around the battery symbol will flash
when the charging system needs
service.
If it comes on while you are driving, you
may have a loose belt or other problem
with the electrical charging system.
Have it checked right away. Driving
while this light is on could drain your
battery.
If
you must drive a short distance with
the light on, be certain to turn off all
your accessories, such as the radio and
air conditioner.
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Features & Controls
90
CHECK
OAGES
Battery Light (STANDARD CLUSTER)
The battery light will come on briefly
when you turn on the ignition as a
check to show you it is working. It
should go out once the engine
is
running. If it stays on, or comes on
while you are driving, you may have a
loose belt or other problem with the
electrical charging system. Have it
checked right away. Driving while this
light is on could drain your battery.
If
you must drive a short distance with
the light
on, be certain to turn off all
your accessories, such as the radio and
air conditioner.
I
CHECK
GAGES
Check Gages Ljght
(STANDARD CLUSTER)
This light will come on briefly when you
are starting the engine. If the light
comes on and stays on while you are
driving, check your various gages to see
if they are in the warning zones.
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Your Driving and the Road
106
Dejiensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about
driving is: Drive defensively.
Please start with
a very important safety
device in your Oldsmobile: Buckle up. (See
Safety Belts in the Index.)
Defensive driving really means “be
ready for anything.” On city streets,
rural roads, or freeways, it means
“always expect the unexpected.”
Assume that pedestrians or other
drivers are going to be careless and
make mistakes. Anticipate what they
might do. Be ready for their mistakes.
Rear-end collisions are about the most
preventable of accidents. Yet they are
common. Allow enough following
distance. It’s the best defensive driving
maneuver, in both city and rural
driving. You never know when the
vehicle in front of you is going to brake
or turn suddenly.
Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with
drinking and driving is a national
tragedy. It’s the number one contributor
to the highway death toll, claiming
thousands
of victims every year.
Alcohol takes away three things that
anyone needs to drive a vehicle:
Judgment
Muscular Coordination
Vision
Police records show that almost half of
all motor vehicle-related deaths involve
alcohol
- a driver, a passenger or
someone else, such as a pedestrian, had
been drinking. In most cases, these
deaths are the result of someone who
was drinking and driving. About
20,000
motor vehicle-related deaths occur each
year because of alcohol, and thousands
of people are injured. Just
how much alcohol is too much
if a
person plans to drive? Ideally,
no one
should drink alcohol and then drive.
But if one does, then what’s “too
much”? It can be a lot less than many
might think. Although it depends on
each person and situation, here is some
general information on the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of
someone who is drinking depends upon
four things:
How much alcohol is in the drink.
The drinker’s body weight.
The amount of food that is consumed
before and during drinking.
The length of time it has taken the
drinker to consume the alcohol.
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Your Driving and the Road
112
Steering in Emergencies
There are times when steering can be
more effective than braking. For
example, you come over a hill and find
a truck stopped in your lane,
or a car
suddenly pulls out from nowhere, or a
child darts out from between parked
cars and stops right in front of you.
You
can avoid these problems by braking -
if you can stop in time. But sometimes
you can’t; there isn’t room. That’s the
time for evasive action
- steering
around the problem.
Your Oldsmobile can perform very well
in emergemies like these. First apply
your brakes. It is better to remove as
much speed as
you can from a possible collision. Then
xeer around the
problem, to the left or right depending
on the space available.
An emergency like this requires close
attention and
a quick decision. If you
are holding the steering wheel at the
recommended
9 and 3 o’clock positions,
you can turn it a
full 180 degrees very
quickly without removing either hand.
But you have to act fast, steer quickly,
and just as quickly straighten the wheel
once
you have avoided the object.
The fact that such emergency situations
are always possible is
a good reason to
practice defensive driving at all times
and wear safety belts properly.
, IOFF ROAD RECOVERY /
Off-Road Recovery
You may find sometime that your right
wheels have dropped off the edge of a
road onto the shoulder while you’re
driving.
If the level of the shoulder is only
slightly below the pavement, recovery
should be fairly easy. Ease
off the
accelerator and then, if there is nothing
in the way, steer
so that your vehicle
straddles the edge of the pavement.
You
can turn the steering wheel up to 1/4
turn until the right front tire contacts
the pavement edge. Then turn your
steering wheel to
go straight down the
roadway.
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Your Driving and the Road
Turn Signals When Towing a
Trailer
When you tow a trailer, your vehicle has
to have a different turn signal flasher
and extra wiring. The green arrows on
your instrument panel will flash
whenever you signal a turn or lane
change. Properly hooked up, the trailer
lights will also flash, telling other
drivers you’re about to turn, change
lanes or stop.
When towing a trailer, the green arrows
on your instrument panel will flash for
turns even if the bulbs on the trailer are
burned out. Thus, you may think
drivers behind you are seeing your
signal when they are not, It’s important
to check occasionally to be sure the
trailer bulbs are still working.
Driving On Grades
Reduce speed and shift to a lower gear
before you start down a long or steep
downgrade. If you don’t shift
down, you
might have to use your brakes
so much
that they would get hot and no longer
work well. On
a long uphill grade, shift down and
reduce your speed
to around 45 mph
(70 km/h) to reduce the possibility of
engine and transmission overheating.
If you are towing a trailer that weighs
more than
3,000 pounds (1 350 kg), it’s
best to drive in
D instead of Overdrive
(or, as you need to, a lower gear). This
will minimize heat build-up and extend
the life of your transmission.
Parking on Hills
You really should not park your vehicle,
with a trailer attached, on a hill.
If
something goes wrong, your rig could
start to move. People can be injured,
and both your vehicle and the trailer
can be damaged.
But if you ever have to park your rig on
a hill, here’s how to do it:
1. Apply your regular brakes, but don’t
shift into
P (Park) yet.
2. Have someone place chocks under
the trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place,
release the regular brakes until the
chocks absorb the load.
4. Reapply the regular brakes. Then
apply your parking brake and then
shift to
P (Park).
5. Release the regular brakes.
When You Are Ready to Leave
After Parking on
a Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold
the pedal down while you:
Start your engine;
Shift into a gear; and
Release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until the trailer is clear
4. Stop and have someone pick up and
of
the chocks.
store the chocks.
Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more
often when you’re pulling a trailer. See
the Maintenance Schedule for more on
this. Things that are especially
important in trailer operation are
automatic transmission fluid (don’t
overfill), engine oil, axle lubricant, belt,
cooling system, and brake adjustment.
Each of these is covered in this manual,
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Sewice & Appearance Care
Payload
The Payload Capacity is shown on the
Certificationflire label. This is the
maximum load capacity that your
vehicle can carry. Be sure to include the
weight of the people inside as part of
your load. If you added any accessories
or equipment after your vehicle left the
factory, remember to subtract the weight
of these things from the payload.
Your dealer can help you with this.
Trailering Package
If your vehicle comes with the trailering
package, there is also a load rating
which includes the weight of the vehicle
and the trailer it tows. This rating is
called the Gross Combination Weight
Rating (GCWR)
.
When you weigh your trailer, be sure to
include the weight of everything you put
in it. And, remember to figure the weight
of the people inside as part
of your load.
Your dealer can help you determine
your GCWR.
Add-on Equipment
When you carry removable items, you
may need to put a limit on how many
people you carry inside your vehicle. Be
sure to weigh your vehicle before you
buy and install the new equipment.
NOTICE:
Your warranty doesn’t cover parts
or components that fail because of
overloading.
I Single Belt Accessory Drive
Your new vehicle uses a serpentine belt
that is lighter, more durable and fuel
efficient than systems with several belts.
The belt runs over or around the pulleys
on the engine.
A tensioner is used to
keep the belt tight at all times. The
tensioner also makes replacing the belt
easier.
If you need to replace the belt, be
sure to get the correct replacement belt.
Your dealership or parts supplier can
help you with this. The Accessory Drive
Belt Routing label on your vehicle will
show you how to route the belt your
vehicle uses.
I Air Conditioning
Every now and then have your
dealership check your air conditioning
system to be sure it has not lost any
cooling ability. If you think the system
is not working properly, have your
dealership check it out as soon as
possible.
The air conditioning will not work when
the temperature is below
40°F (4°C).
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Service & Appearance Care
188
The tire has a puncture, cut, or other
damage that can’t be repaired well
because of the size or location of the
damage.
Buying New Tires
To find out what kind and size of tires
you need, look at the Certificationnire
label.
The tires installed on your vehicle when
it was new had a Tire Performance
Criteria Specification (TPC Spec)
number on each tire’s sidewall. When
you get new tires, get ones with that
same TPC Spec number. That way, your
vehicle will continue to have tires that
are designed to give proper endurance,
handling, speed rating, traction, ride
and other things during normal service
on your vehicle.
If your tires have an all-
season tread design, the TPC number
will be followed by a
“MS” (for mud
and snow).
If you ever replace your tires with those
not having a TPC Spec number, make
sure they are the same size, load range,
speed rating and construction type
(bias, bias-belted or radial) as your
original tires.
Uniform Tire Qualify Grading
The following information relates to the
system developed by the United States
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature
performance. (This applies only to
vehicles sold in the United States.)
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative
rating based on the wear rate of the tire
when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified government
test course. For example, a tire graded
150 would wear one and a half (1 1/2)
times as well on the government course as
a tire graded
100. The relative
performance of tires depends upon the
actual conditions of their use, however,
and may depart significantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits,
service practices and differences in road
characteristics and climate.
Traction - A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to
lowest are: A,
B, and C. They represent
the tire’s ability to stop on wet
pavement as measured under controlled
conditions
on specified government test
surfaces of asphalt and concrete.
A tire
marked C may have poor traction
performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to
this tire is based on braking (straight-
ahead) traction tests and does not
include cornering (turning) traction.
Temperature - A, B, C
The temperature grades are A (the
highest),
B, and C, representing the
tire’s resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat
when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified indoor
laboratory test wheel. Sustained high
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