1996 CADILLAC ELDORADO instrument panel

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine or the instrument panel ... or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop.
You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take
the forces. That’s why
safety belts make such good sense.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The right front passenger’s air bag is in the instrument
panel on the passenger’s side.
I A CAUTION:
I-
Don’t put anything on, or attach anything to, the
steering wheel or instrument panel. Also, don’t
put anything (such
as pets or objects) between
any occupant and the steering wheel or
instrument panel. If something
is between an
occupant and an air bag, it could affect the
performance
of the air bag -- or worse, it could
cause injury.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When should an air bag inflate?
The air bag is designed to inflate in moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crashes. The air bag
will inflate
only
if the impact speed is above the system’s designed
“threshold level.”
If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold level is
about
9 to 15 mph (14 to 24 km/h). The threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design,
so that
it can be somewhat above or below this range. If your
vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such
as a parked car, the threshold level
will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help
the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle
of the impact and
the vehicle’s deceleration. Vehicle damage is only one
indication of this.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In a frontal or near-frontal impact of sufficient severity,
the air bag sensing system detects that the vehicle is
suddenly stopping as a result of a crash. The sensing
system triggers a chemical reaction
of the sodium azide
sealed
in the inflator. The reaction produces nitrogen
gas, which inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag and
related hardware are all part of the air bag modules
packed inside the steering wheel and in the instrument
panel
in front of the right front passenger.
How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. The air
bag supplements the
protection provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute
the force
of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s
upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But
air bags would not help you
in many types of collisions,
including rollovers, rear impacts and side impacts,
primarily because an occupant’s motion
is not toward
the air bag. Air bags should never be regarded as
anything more than a supplement to safety belts, and
then only
in moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal
collisions.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After the air bag inflates, it quickly deflates. This occurs
so quickly that some people may not even realize the air
bag inflated. Some components of the air bag module in
the steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag, or the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s bag, will
be hot for a short time. The part of the bag that comes
into contact with you may be warm, but it will never be
too hot to touch. There will be some smoke and dust
coming from vents in the deflated air bags. Air bag
inflation will not prevent the driver from seeing or from
being able to steer the vehicle, nor will it stop people
from leaving the vehicle.
A CAUTION:
When an air bag inflates, there is dust in the air.
This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history
of asthma or other
breathing trouble. To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as it
is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but can’t get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh air
by opening a window or door.
Your vehicle has a feature that will automatically unlock
the doors and turn the interior lamps on when the air bag
inflates (if battery power
is available). But if you want
to, you can lock the doors again and
turn the interior
lamps off by using the door lock and interior lamp
controls.
In many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may
also occur from the
right front passenger air bag.
0 The air bags are designed to inflate only once. After
they inflate, you’ll need some new parts for your air
bag system. If you don’t get them, the air bag system
won’t be there to help protect you in another crash.
A new system will include air bag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module, which records information about
the air bag system. The module records information
about the readiness of the system, when the sensors
are activated and driver’s safety belt usage at
deployment.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Section 2 Features and Controls
I
Here you can learn about the many standard and optional
features on your Cadillac,
and dormation on starting,
shifting and braking.
Also explained are the instrument
panel and the warning systems that tell you
if everything is
working properly -- and what to do if you have a problem.
Keys
A CAUTION:
Leaving young children in a vehicle with the
ignition key
is dangerous for many reasons. A child
or others could be badly injured or even killed.
They could operate power windows or other
controls
or even make the vehicle move. If they
turned the ignition to on and moved the shift lever out
of PARK (P), that would release the
parking brake. Don't leave the keys in
a vehicle
with young children.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Trunk
It can be dangerous to drive with the trunk lid
open because carbon monoxide
(CO) gas can
come into your vehicle.
You can’t see or smell
CO. It can cause unconsciousness and even death.
If you must drive with the trunk lid open or if
electrical wiring or other cable connections must
pass through the seal between the body and the trunk lid:
Make sure all windows are shut.
lhrn the fan on your heating or cooling
system to its highest speed with the setting
on
AUTO or ECON and the temperature
between
65°F (18°C) and 85°F (29°C).
That will force outside air into your vehicle.
See “Comfort Controls” in the Index.
instrument panel, open them all the
way.
If you have air outlets on or under the
See “Engine Exhaust” in the Index.
Trunk Lock Release (Option)
To use this feature,
your vehicle must be in
PARK (P). Press the
TRUNK release button
located above the radio on
the Driver Information Center to open the trunk.
You can also press the trunk button on the Keyless Entry
transmitter to access the trunk compartment.
If you do
not have the full console, press the trunk button on the
Keyless Entry transmitter.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Reach under the driver’s side of the instrument panel
and pull
on the manual release lever, which is located
above the parking brake pedal. If the parking brake does
not release, you will have to have your vehicle serviced.
A CAUTION:
-
If your hand or arm is in the way of the pedal,
you could be hurt. The pedal springs back quickly. Keep your hand and arm away when
you use the manual release lever.
NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brak6 bn’can cause
your rear brakes to overheat. You may have to
replace them and you could also damage other
parts
of your vehicle.
If you are towing a trailer and are parking on a hill, see
“Towing a Trailer’’ in the Index. This section shows
what to do first to keep the trailer from moving.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Turn SignallMultifunction Lever
Turn and Lane Change Signals
The turn signal has two upward (for right) and two
downward (for left) positions. These positions allow you
to signal a turn or a lane change.
To signal a turn move the lever all the way up or down.
The lever returns automatically when the
turn is complete.
A green arrow on the
instrument panel will flash
in the direction of the turn
or lane change.
Raise or lower the lever until the arrow starts
to flash to
signal a lane change. Hold it there until the lane change
is complete. The lever returns when it‘s released. If
the turn signal is left on, a warning chime will sound
and the DIC will display TURN SIGNAL ON (after
driving about a mile) to remind you to turn it
off.
Arrows that flash rapidly when signaling for a turn or
lane change may be caused by a burned out signal bulb.
Other drivers won’t see
the turn signal.
Replace burned out bulbs
to help avoid possible
accidents. Check
the fuse (see “Fuses and Circuit
Breakers” in the Index) and for burned-out bulbs
if the
arrow fails to work when signaling a turn.
Headlamp High/Low Beam
Pull the turn signal lever all
the way toward you and
then release it to change the
headlamps from low beam
to high or from high beam
to low. The blue light on the
instrument panel will be on
indicating high-beam usage.
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