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Driving Through Deep Standing  Water 
NOTICE: 
If you drive  too  quickly through  deep  puddles  or 
standing  water, water  can  come  in through  your 
engine's  air  intake  and  badly  damage  your 
engine.  Never drive  through  water  that  is slightly 
lower  than  the  underbody 
of your  vehicle. If you 
can't  avoid  deep  puddles 
or standing water, drive 
through  them  very slowly. 
Engine  Coolant  Heater (Option) 
In  very  cold  weather, 0°F (- 18 "C) or  colder,  the  engine 
coolant  heater  can  help. 
You'll get  easier  starting  and 
better  fuel  economy  during engine warm-up. 
Usually, 
the coolant  heater  should be plugged  in a minimum  of 
four  hours  prior 
to starting  your  vehicle. 
To use the  coolant  heater: 
1. Turn  off the  engine. 
2. Open  the  hood and unwrap  the electrical  cord. 
3. Plug it into  a normal,  grounded  110-volt  outlet. 
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1 NOTICE: 
After  you’ve  used  the  coolant  heater,  be  sure to 
store  the  cord 
as it  was  before to keep  it  away 
from moving  engine  parts.  If you  don’t,  it could 
be  damaged. 
How long should  you keep  the coolant heater plugged 
in?  The  answer depends  on the  weather,  the  kind 
of oil 
you have, and some other things. Instead of trying to list 
everything here, we ask that you contact your Pontiac 
dealer in the area where you’ll be parking your  vehicle. 
The  dealer  can give 
you the best advice for that 
particular  area. 
Shifting  the  Automatic Transaxle 
Your automatic transaxle  may have  a shift lever located 
on  the  console  betwe’en  the  seats 
or on the  steering 
column. 
There  are several  different positions  for your  shift lever. 
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Section 3 Comfort  Controls  and  Audio  Systems 
In this section  you’ll  find out how  to operate the comfort 
control  systems  and  audio systems offered  with your 
Pontiac.  Be sure  to read about the particular system 
supplied  with  your  vehicle. 
This section tells  you  how to make your air system  work 
for  you.  Your  Comfort Control System uses the new 
ozone-friendly R134a refrigerant. 
Fresh  air 
from outside  your vehicle  flows through your 
Pontiac  when the car is moving.  When the vehicle 
is not 
moving,  you can get outside air 
to flow through  by 
selecting  any 
air choice (except the rear  window 
defogger) and any fan speed.  The air conditioner and 
heater  work best if  you  keep your windows closed while 
using  them.  If 
you  have the rear seat 
passenger outlet,  you can 
adjust  the 
air flow toward 
either seating area, the floor 
or  upward. 
Adjust the direction 
of air flow  by moving the  louvered 
vents  on the instrument panel. 
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Use the air outlets to adjust and direct  the air flow. 
Adjust  the temperature control  and fan control  as 
desired.  The air conditioning compressor is not working 
when  vent  is selected. 
I# Heat: This setting directs  warmed  air through the 
heater ducts  toward the floor. Adjust the fan speed and 
the temperature control  for your comfort. Some warm 
air is diverted to the windshield  to minimize fogging. 
'fl Defog: This setting directs air to the heater ducts 
and  toward  the  windshield.  Use defog on cool, humid 
days to keep the windshield  and side  windows  clear. 
Adjust the fan speed and temperature  for your  cornfort. 
9 Defrost: This setting directs  most of the air toward 
the  windshield.  Use  defrost when  you  want to remove 
fog or ice from the windshi'eld.  Adjust the temperature 
control  toward 
warm and the fan control  toward high. 
Defrost  will work  better  if  heavy snow  and  ice 
are 
cleared away from the hood,  windshield  and the air inlet 
area between  the hood  and  windshield. 
0 
w. 
u/HI Rear  Window  Defog 
(Option): The lines you see 
on the rear window warm 
the glass. Press the  button  to 
A  light 
will glow in the 
switch  while the defogger  is 
working.  start 
warming ymr wlndow. 
After 10 minutes it 
will turn off by  itself  or pressing the 
button during the heating  cycle will 
also turn it off. If 
you need  additional warming time,  push  the button 
again. The system will then  operate for five rninutes 
before going off by itself. 
Do not attach a temporary  vehicle license, tape or decals 
across the defogger grid 
on the rear  window. 
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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After 10 minutes,  it will go off by  itself,  or  pressing  the Ventilation Tips 
button again during the heating cycle will turn it off. If 
you need additional warming  time,  push the button 
again.  The system  will then operate  for  five minutes 
before  going 
off by itself. 
Do not  attach  a temporary vehicle license, tape or decals 
across  the  defogger grid on  the  rear  window. 
Keep  the  hood  and  front air inlet  free of ice, snow, or 
any  other obstruction (such as leaves).  The heater 
and  defroster will work better,  reducing the chance 
of  fogging  your windows. 
Control 
in cold weather, select a heater  function that 
0 When you  enter  a vehicle  with Standad  Climate 
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. 
OF /"C: Press  this button to read the temperature in 
degrees  Fahrenheit  or Celsius. 
., .. . 
provides air through  the floor ducts, then turn  the  fan 
to 
HI for a  few moments before driving  away. This 
will  blow moist air from the intake  ducts toward the 
floor,  not  the  windshield.  It  reduces the chance  of 
fogging  your  windows. 
If you have  the Electronic 
Climate  Control,  the 
AUTO setting does this for you. 
0 Keep the air path under  the  fbnt seats  clear  of objects. 
This helps air to  circulate throughout your vehicle. 
When  the  engine  idles  for a long  time,  the  exterior 
temperature  sensor  may cause 
the system to blow air 
that  is  too  cool.  Once  the  vehicle  is  moving  again  the 
system 
will try to  maintain  the  set  temperature  inside 
your vehicle. 
0 When you start  your  vehicle  and the EXT TEMP 
display  flashes for some time, the  system may  need 
repair.  See your  Pontiac  dealer. 
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clo'th to your  vehicle  to alert police that  you've been 
stopped  by the  snow.  Put 
on extra clothing or  wrap a 
blanket  around you.  If  you have no blankets or extra 
clothing,  make  body  insulators from newspapers, burlap 
bags,  rags, floor  mats 
-- anything  you can wrap  around 
yourself 
or tuck  under your clothing  to keep warm. 
You can run the engine  to keep warm, but  be careful. 
Run your  engine only as  long as you  must. 
This saves 
fuel. When 
you run  the engine,  make it go a little faster 
than  just idle. That is,  push the accelerator slightly. This 
uses less  fuel 
for the heat that you  get  and it keeps the 
battery charged.  You will need a well-charged battery 
to 
restart the vehicle, and possibly  for signaling later on 
with your  headlamps.  Let the heater run for awhile. 
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If you  get the overheat warning  with no sign of steam, 
try 
this for a minute  or so: 
1. Turn off your air conditioner. 
2. Turn on your heater to  full hot at the highest fan 
speed  and open the  window  as  necessary. 
3. If you’re  in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N); 
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while driving -- 
AUTOMATIC  OVERDRIVE (@) or DRIVE (D). 
If y’ou  no longer  have the overheat  warning,  you  can 
drive. Just  to be  safe,  drive slower for about ten minutes. 
If  the  warning  doesn’t  come back 
on, you  can  drive 
normally. 
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your 
vehicle right  away. 
If  there’s  still 
no sign of steam,  you  can  idle the engine 
for two or three minutes while  you’re parked, to  see if 
the  warning  stops. But then,  if  you still have the 
warning, 
turn off the  engine  and  get  everyone out of the 
vehicle until it cools down. 
You may decide not to lift the  hood  but to get service 
help  right  away. 
Cooling System 
When  you decide  it’s safe  to lift  the hood,  here’s what 
you’ll  see: 
Coolant recovery  tank 
0 Radiator pressure cap 
0 Electric engine fans 
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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 FULL 
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. 
NOTICE: 
Engine damage from running your engine 
without coolant isn’t covered by  your warranty. 
If there  seems  to be  no leak  with the engine  an, check  to 
see  if the  electric  engine fans  are running.  If the  engine 
is overheating,  both fans should be running. If they 
aren’t, 
your vehicle  needs  service. 
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