1996 CADILLAC SEVILLE Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction.
However, if there is snow or ice between
your tires and
the road, you can have a very slippery situation. You’ll
have a lot less traction or “grip” and will need to be very
careful. What’s
the
worst time for this? “Wet ice.” Very cold
snow
or ice can be slick and hard to drive on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it
may offer the
least traction of all.
You can get wet ice when it’s about
freezing
(32°F; 0°C) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try to avoid driving
on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.
Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow
-- drive with caution.
Keep your traction control system
on. It improves your
ability to accelerate
when driving on a slippery road.
Even though your vehicle has a traction control system,
you’ll want to slow down and adjust your driving to the
road conditions. See “Traction Control System”
in the
Index.
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Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle's stability
when you make a hard
stop on a slippery road. Even
though you have the anti-lock braking system, you'll
want to begin stopping sooner than
you would on dry
pavement. See "Anti-Lock'' in the Index.
Allow greater following distance on any slippery
0 Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit
a spot that's covered with ice. On an
otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the sun can't reach: around
clumps
of trees, behind buildings or under bridges.
Sometimes the surface of a curve
or an overpass may
remain icy when the surrounding roads are clear. If
you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before you
are on it. Try not to brake while you're actually on
the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers.
road.
If You're Caught in a Blizzard
If you
are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a
serious situation. You should probably
stay with your
vehicle unless you know for sure
that you are near help
and you can hike through the snow. Here are some
things to do to summon help and keep yourself and your
passengers safe:
Turn on your hazard flashers.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Tie a red cloth 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.
A CAUTION:
Snow can trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside.
CO could overcome you and kill
you. You can’t see it or smell it, so you might not
know it is in your vehicle. Clear away snow from
around the base
of your vehicle, especially any
that is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to time
to be sure snow
doesn’t
collect there.
Open
a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away
from the wind. This will help
keep
CO out.
You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
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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 wili need a well-charged battery to
restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling later on
with your headlamps. Let the heater
run for awhile.
Then, shut the engine off and close the window almost
all the way to preserve the heat. Start the engine again
and repeat this only when you feel really uncomfortable
from the cold. But do it as little
as possible. Preserve the
fuel as long as you can.
To help keep warm, you can get
out of the vehicle and do some fairly vigorous exercises
every half hour
or so until help comes.
Loading Your Vehicle
(m OCCUPANTS VEHICLE CAP. WT.
TIRE-LOADING INFORMATION
FRT. CTR. RR. TOTAL LBS. KG
MAX. LOADING & GVWR SAME AS VEHICLE
CAPACITY WEIGHT XXX COLD TIRE
TIRE SIZE SPEED PRESSURE
RTG PSliKPa
FRT.
RR.
SPA.
IF TIRES ARE HOT, ADD 4PSI. 28KPa
SEE OWNER’S MANUAL FOR ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION
Two labels on your vehicle show how much weight it
may properly carry. The Tire-Loading Information label
found on the driver’s
door tells you the proper size,
speed rating and recommended inflation pressures for
the tires on your vehicle. It also gives you important
information about the number
of people that can be in
your vehicle and the total weight that you can carry.
This weight
is called the Vehicle Capacity Weight and
includes the weight
of all occupants, cargo and all
options not installed in the factory.
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MFD BY GENERAL MOTORS CORP
DATE GVWR GAWR FRT GAWR RR
THJS VEHICLE CONFORMS TO ALL APPLI
CABLE U.S. FEDERAL 'MOTOR VEHiCLE
SAFETY, BUMPER,
AND THEFT PREVENT
STANDARDS
IN EFFECT ON THE DATE 0
MANUFACTURE SHOWN ABOVE.

'ION
IF
The other label is the Certification label, found on the
rear edge
of the driver's door. It tells you the gross
weight capacity of your vehicle, called the GVWR
(Gross Vehicle Weight Rating). The GVWR includes the
weight of the vehicle,
all occupants, fuel and cargo.
Never exceed the
GVWR for your vehicle, or the Gross
Axle Weight Rating
(GAWR) for either the front or rear
axle.
If you do have a heavy load, you should spread it out.
Don't carry more than
176 lbs. (80 kg) in your trunk.
A CAUTION:
Do not load your vehicle any heavier than the
GVWR, or either the maximum front or rear
GAWR. If you do, parts on your vehicle can
break, or
it can change the way your vehicle
handles. These could cause
you to lose control.
Also, overloading can shorten the life
of your I-'
vehicle.
~ ._._,__ -. .~ -_?p_ -. _ . . . . I_ ~~.
NOTICE:
Your warranty does not cover parts or
components that fail because of overloading.
If you put things inside your vehicle -- like suitcases,
tools, packages or anything else
-- they will go as fast as
the vehicle goes.
If you have to stop or turn quickly, or
if there is a crash, they'll keep going.
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A CAUTION:
Things you put inside your vehicle can strike and
injure people in
a sudden stop or turn, or in a
crash.
Put things in the trunk of your vehicle. In a
trunk, put them
as far forward as you can.
Try to spread the weight evenly.
Never stack heavier things, like suitcases,
inside the vehicle
so that some of them are
above the tops of the
seats.
Don’t leave an unsecured child restraint in
your vehicle.
0 When you carry something inside the
vehicle, secure it whenever you can.
Towing a Trailer
A CAUTION:
If you don’t use the correct equipment and drive
properly,
you can lose control when you pull a
trailer. For example, if the trailer is too heavy, the
brakes may not work well
-0 or even at all. You
and your passengers could be seriously injured.
Pull
a trailer only if you have followed all the
steps in this section. Ask your Cadillac dealer for
advice and information about towing
a trailer
with your vehicle.
NOTICE:
Pulling a trailer improperly can damage your
vehicle and result in costly repairs not covered by
your warranty.
To pull a trailer correctly, follow
the advice in
this part, and see your Cadillac
dealer for important information about towing
a
trailer with your vehicle.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your vehicle can tow a trailer if it is equipped with
proper towing equipment. To identify what the vehicle
trailering capacity is for your vehicle,
you should read
the infomation in “Weight of the Trailer” that appears
later in this section. But trailering
is different than just
driving your vehicle by itself. Trailering means changes
in handling, durability and fuel economy. Successful,
safe trailering takes correct equipment, and it has to be
used properly.
That’s the reason for this part. In it
are many
time-tested, important trailering tips and safety rules.
Many of these
are important for your safety and that of
your passengers. So please read this section carefully
before you pull a trailer.
Load-pulling components such as the engine, transaxle,
wheel assemblies and tires
are forced to work harder
against the drag of the added weight. The engine is
required to operate at relatively higher speeds and under
greater loads, generating extra heat. What’s more, the
trailer adds considerably to wind resistance, increasing
the pulling requirements.
If You Do Decide To Pull A Trailer
If you do, here are some important points.
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There are many different laws, including speed limit
restrictions, having to do with trailering. Make sure
your rig will be legal, not only where
you live but
also where you’ll
be driving. A good source for this
information can be state or provincial police.
Consider using a sway control. You can ask a hitch
dealer about sway controls.
Don’t tow a trailer at all during the first
1,000 miles
(1 600 km) your new vehicle is driven. Your engine,
axle or other parts could be damaged.
Then, during the first
500 miles (800 km) that you
tow a trailer, don’t drive over
SO mph (80 km/h) and
don’t make starts at
full throttle. This helps your
engine and other
parts of your vehicle wear in at the
heavier loads.
Obey speed limit restrictions when towing a trailer.
Don’t drive faster than the maximum posted speed
for trailers (or
no more than 55 mph (90 km/h)) to
save wear
on your vehicle’s parts.
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Three important considerations have to do with weight:
the weight
of the trailer, the weight of the trailer tongue
and the total weight
on your vehicle’s tires.
Weight of the Trailer
How heavy can a trailer safely be?
It should never weigh more than
1,000 lbs. (450 kg)
total, including the load. But even that can be too heavy.
It depends on how you plan to use your rig.
For
example, speed, altitude, road grades, outside
temperature and how much your vehicle is used to pull a
trailer are all important. And, it can also depend on any
special equipment that you have on your vehicle.
You can ask your dealer
for our trailering information or
advice, or you can write
us at:
Cadillac Customer Assistance Center
Cadillac Motor Car Division
30009 Van Dyke
P.O. Box 9025
Warren, MI 48090-902s
In Canada, write to:
General Motors
of Canada Limited
Customer Assistance Center
1908 Colonel Sam Drive
Oshawa, Ontario
L1H 8P7
Weight of the Trailer Tongue
The tongue load (A) of any trailer is an important
weight to measure because it affects the total capacity
weight
of your vehicle. The capacity weight includes the
curb weight
of the vehicle, any cargo you may carry in it
and the people who will be riding in
the vehicle. And if
you will tow a trailer, you must subtract the tongue load
from your vehicle’s capacity weight because your
vehicle will be carrying that weight,
too. See “Loading
Your Vehicle”
in the Index for more information about
your vehicle’s maximum load capacity.
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