Anti-Lock Brake System Active Light
When your anti-lock system
is adjusting brake pressure
to help avoid a braking skid,
the
LOW TRAC light will
Engine Loolant Temperature Light
This light tells you that
your engine coolant has
overheated or your radiator
CYL hhh cooling fan is not working.
Slippery road conditions will exist
if this light comes on,
so adjust your driving accordingly. The light will stay on
for
a few seconds after the system stops adjusting brake
pressure.
The
LOW TRAC light also comes on briefly, as a bulb
check, when the engine is started. If the light doesn’t
come on then, have it fixed
so it will be there to tell you
when the system is active. If
you have been
operating your vehicle under normal
driving conditions, you should pull off the road, stop
your vehicle and turn off the engine as soon as possible.
Hot Coolant Can Burn You Badly!
In “Problems on the Road,” this manual shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index.
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Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
You have a gage that
shows the engine coolant
temperature.
If the gage
pointer moves into the red
area, your engine is too hot!
I u TEMPERATURE I
That reading means the same thing as the warning light.
It means that your engine coolant has overheated.
If you
have been operating your vehicle under normal driving
conditions, you should pull
off the road, stop your
vehicle
and turn off the engine as soon as possible.
Hot Coolant Can Burn You Badly!
In “Problems on the Road,” this manual shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index.
Low Coolant Warning Light
\I
4 \‘
If this light comes on, your
system
is low on coolant
and the engine may
overheat. See “Engine
Coolant” in the Index and
have your vehicle serviced
as soon as you can.
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Sometimes when the engine is idling at a stop, the
0 If you make a hard stop, the light may come on for a
light
may blink
011 and off. This is normal.
moment. This is normal.
1 NOTICE:
Damage to your engine from neglected oil
problems can be costly and
is not covered by your
warranty.
Low Oil Level Light
Your engine is equipped
with an oil level monitoring
system. When the ignition
key
is turned on, the LOW
OIL LEVEL light will
briefly flash. If the light
does not flash, have it fixed
so it will be ready to warn
you
if there’s a problem.
If the light stays on, stop the vehicle on a level surface
and turn
the engine off. Check the oil level using the
engine oil dipstick. (See “Engine Oil” in the Index.) If
the light does not flash, have the low oil level sensor
system repaired
so it will be ready to warn you if there’s
a problem.
The oil level monitoring system only checks oil level
during
the brief period between key on and engine
crank. It does not monitor engine oil level when the
engine is running. Additionally, an oil level check is
only performed if the engine has been turned off for a
considerable period of time, allowing the oil normally in
circulation
to drain back into the oil pan.
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Heating
On cold days use HTR with the temperature lever all the
way to WARM. The system will bring in outside air,
heat it and send it to the floor ducts.
If your vehicle has an engine coolant heater, you can
use
it to help your system provide warm air faster when it’s
cold outside
(0°F (-18°C) or lower). An engine coolant
heater warms the coolant your engine and heating
system use to provide heat. See “Engine Coolant
Heater” in
the Index.
Ventilation
For mild outside temperatures when little heating or
cooling
is needed, use VENT to direct outside air
through your vehicle. Your vehicle also
has the
flow-through ventilation system described later in this
section.
Defogging and Defrosting Windows
Your system has two settings for clearing the front and
side windows.
To defrost the windows quickly, use
FRONT with the temperature lever all the way to
WARM.
To warm passengers while keeping the
windows clean, use
BLEND.
Rear Window Defogger
The rear window defogger
uses
a warming grid to
remove fog from the rear
window. Press the button to
turn the defogger on. It will
turn itself off after about ten
minutes.
If you
turn it on again, the defogger will only run for about
five minutes before turning
off. You can also turn it off by
turning
off the ignition or pressing the button again.
Do not attach anything like a temporary vehicle license
or decal across the defogger grid.
1 NOTICE:
Don’t use a razor blade or something else sharp
on the inside
of the rear window. If you do, you
could cut or damage the warming grid, and the
repairs wouldn’t be covered by your warranty.
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44 (3): Press this button to reverse the tape rapidly.
Press it again to return to playing speed. The radio will
play while the tape reverses.
bb (4): Press this button to advance quickly to another
part of the tape. Press the button again to return
to playing
speed. The radio will play while the tape advances.
SIDE (5): Press this button to change the side of the
tape that is playing.
on (6): Press this button to reduce background noise.
The display will show either
OFF or ON for a few
seconds when you press the butt.on.
Dolby@
B Noise Reduction manufactured under license
from Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation.
“Dolby” and the
on@ symbol are trademarks of Dolby
Laboratories Licensing Corporation.
EJECT: Press this button to remove the tape. The radio
will play.
Cln: This message may appear on the display. If it does,
your cassette tape player needs to be cleaned. It will still
play tapes, but you should clean
it as soon as possible to
prevent damage
to your tapes and player. See “Care of
Your Cassette Tape Player” in the Index. After you clean
the player, press and hold EJECT for five seconds to
reset the Cln indicator.
“- - -” will appear in the display
to show the indicator was reset.
AM/FM Stereo Radios with Automatic Tone
Control
If your Buick has a radio with Automatic Tone Control,
the instructions below will explain how to use the radio.
To find out if your radio has Automatic Tone Control,
look for a
TONE button. If the system has one, you have
Automatic Tone Control. If not, see the systems
explained earlier
in this section.
Playing the Radio
Press the VOLUME knob to turn the system on and off.
VOLUME: Turn this knob clockwise to increase
volume. Turn
it counterclockwise to decrease volume.
RECALL: Press this button briefly to recall the station
being played or the clock display. To change what is
normally shown on the display (station or time), press
the button until you see the display
you want, then hold
the button
until the display flashes. If you press the
button when the ignition
is off, the clock will show for a
few seconds.
Finding a Station
AM-FM:
Press this button to get AM, FMl or FM2.
The display shows your selection.
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Section 4 Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find information about driving on different
kinds
of roads and in varying weather conditions. We’ve
also included many other useful tips on driving.
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive
defensively.
Please start
with a very important safety device in your
Buick: 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.
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Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive
in spurts -- heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking
-- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a
mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool between
hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much fidster
if YOLI
do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the
traffic and allow realistic following distances, you will
eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking. That means
better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes. If
you do, the
pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist. But
you will use it when you brake. Once the power assist is
used up,
it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder to push.
Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)
Your Buick has an advanced electronic braking system
that will help prevent
a braking skid.
This light on the instrument
panel
will come on briefly
when you start your vehicle.
When you start your vehicle, or when
you begin to drive
away, you may hear
a momentary motor or clicking
noise. And
you may even notice that your brake pedal
moves
a little while this is going on. This is the ABS
system testing itself.
If there’s a problem with the
anti-lock brake system, the anti-lock brake system
warning light
will stay on or flash.
See ”Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light”
in the
Index.
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Remember: Anti-lock doesn’t change the time you need
to get your foot up to the brake pedal. If you get too
close to the vehicle in front of you, you won’t have time
to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows or
stops. Always leave enough room up ahead
to stop, even
though you have anti-lock brakes.
To Use Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down
and let anti-lock work for you. You may feel the system
working, or
you may notice some noise, but this is
normal. When your anti-lock system is adjusting brake
pressure to help avoid a braking skid, the
LOW TRAC
light will come on. See “Anti-Lock Brake System
Active Light”
in the Index.
Braking in Emergencies
Use your anti-lock braking system when you need to.
With anti-lock,
you can steer and brake at the same
time. In many emergencies, steering can help
you more
than even the very best braking.
Steering
Power Steering
If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops or the system is not functioning, you can steer but
it will take much more effort.
Steering Tips
Driving on Curves
It’s important to take curves at a reasonable speed.
A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on
the news happen on curves. Here’s why:
Experienced driver or beginner, each
of us is subject to
the same laws of physics when driving on curves. The
traction
of the tires against the road surface makes it
possible for the vehicle to change its path when you turn
the front wheels. If there’s no traction, inertia will keep
the vehicle going
in the same direction. If you’ve ever
tried to steer
a vehicle on wet ice, you’ll understand this.
The traction you can get in a curve depends on the
condition
of your tires and the road surface, the angle at
which the curve
is banked, and your speed. While
you’re
in a curve, speed is the one factor you can
control.
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