1996 OLDSMOBILE AURORA brake light

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 faster if you 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
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent
a braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti-lock brake system will check itself. You may
hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test
is going on, and you may even notice that your brake
pedal moves a little. This is normal.
LOCK
ANT‘- (e)
If there’s a problem with the
anti-lock brake system, this warning light will stay on.
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 or always decrease
stopping distance.
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.
Using Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down
and let anti-lock work for you. You may hear a motor or
clicking noise during a hard stop, but this is normal.
Traction Control System
Your vehicle has a traction control system that limits wheel
spin.
This is especially useful in slippery road conditions.
The system operates only
if it senses that one or both of
the front wheels are spinning or beginning to lose traction.
When
this happens, the system works the front brakes and
reduces engine power to limit wheel spin.
TRACTION
ACTIVE
This light will come on
when your traction control
system is limiting wheel
spin. See “Traction Control
System Active Light”
in the
Index.
You may feel or hear the system working, but this is
normal.
If your vehicle
is in cruise control when the traction
control system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise
control will automatically disengage. When road
conditions allow you to safely use it again, you may
re-engage the cruise control. (See “Cruise Control” in
the Index.)
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Driving too fast through large water puddles or even
going through some car washes can cause problems,
too.
The water may affect your brakes. Try to avoid puddles.
But
if you can’t, try to slow down before you hit them,
Wet brakes can cause accidents. They won’t work
well in
a quick stop and may cause pulling to one
side. You could lose control of the vehicle.
After driving through a large puddle
of water or
a car wash, apply your brake pedal lightly until
your brakes work normally.
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Turn Signals When Towing a Trailer
The green arrows on your instrument panel will flash
whenever you signal a turn or lane change. Properly
hooked up, the trailer lamps 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.
Your vehicle may have bulb warning messages. When
you plug a trailer lighting system into your vehicle’s
lighting system, its bulb warning messages may not let
you know
if one of your lamps goes out. So, when you
have a trailer lighting system plugged in, be sure to
check your vehicle and trailer lamps from time to time
to be sure they’re all working. Once you disconnect the
trailer lamps, the bulb warning messages again can tell
you
if one of your vehicle lamps is out.
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.
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
PARK (P) 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
PARK (P).
5. Release the regular brakes.
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1. Check the other vehicle. It must have a 12-volt
battery with a negative ground system.
I NOTICE:
If the other system isn’t a 12-volt system with a
negative ground, both vehicles can be damaged.
2. Get the vehicles close enough so the jumper cables
can reach, but be sure the vehicles aren’t touching
each other.
If they are, it could cause a ground
connection you don’t want.
You wouldn’t be able to
start your Aurora, and the bad grounding could
damage the electrical systems.
You could be injured
if the vehicle rolls. Set the
parking brake firmly on each vehicle. Put an
automatic transaxle in PARK (P) or a manual
transaxle in NEUTRAL
(N).
3. Turn off the ignition on both vehicles. Unplug
unnecessary accessories plugged into the cigarette
lighter or accessory power outlet. Turn
off all lamps
that aren’t needed as well as radios. This will avoid
sparks and help save both batteries. In addition, it
could save your radio.
I NOTICE:
If you leave your radio on, it could be badly
damaged. The repairs wouldn’t be covered by
your warranty.
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your brake system fixed, since a leak means that
sooner or later your brakes won’t work well, or won’t
work at all.
So, it isn’t a good idea to “top off’ your brake fluid.
Adding brake fluid won’t correct a leak.
If you add fluid
when your linings are worn, then you’ll have too much
fluid when you get new brake linings. You should add
(or remove) brake fluid, as necessary, only when work is
done
on the brake hydraulic system.
I ’
A CAUTION:
When your brake fluid falls to a low level, your brake
warning light will come on. A chime will sound if you
try
to drive with this warning light on. See “Brake
System Warning Light” in the Index.
What to Add
When you do need brake fluid, use only
DOT-3 brake
fluid
-- such as Delco Supreme 11 @ (GM Part
No. 1052535). Use new brake fluid from a sealed
container only, and always clean the brake fluid
reservoir cap before removing
it.
If you have too much brake fluid, it can spill on
the engine. The fluid will burn if the engine is hot
enough.
You or others could be burned, and your
vehicle could be damaged. Add brake fluid only
when work is done on the brake hydraulic system. With the wrong kind of fluid in
your brake
system, your brakes may not work well, or they
may not even work at
all. This could cause a
crash. Always use the proper brake fluid.
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Some driving conditions or climates may cause a brake
squeal when the brakes are first applied or lightly
applied. This does not mean something is wrong with
your brakes.
Brake linings should always be replaced as complete
axle sets.
Brake Pedal Travel
See your retailer if the brake pedal does not return to
normal height, or
if there is a rapid increase in pedal
travel. This could be a sign of brake trouble.
Brake Adjustment
Every time you apply the brakes, with or without the
vehicle moving, your brakes adjust for wear.
Replacing Brake System Parts
The braking system on a modern vehicle is complex.
Its many parts have
to be of top quality and work well
together if the vehicle
is to have really good braking.
Vehicles we design and test have top-quality
GM brake
parts in them, as your Aurora does when it is new. When
you replace parts of your braking system
-- for example,
when your brake linings wear down and you have
to
have new ones put in -- be sure you get new genuine
GM replacement parts. If you don’t, your brakes may
no longer work properly. For example, if someone
puts in brake linings that are wrong for your vehicle,
the balance between your front and rear brakes can
change
-- for the worse. The braking performance
you’ve come to expect can change in many other ways
if someone puts in the wrong replacement brake parts.
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/ INSTRUMENT PANEL
FUSE BLOCK
F! BAG
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TURN ~
LPS
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CHIME
SHIFT
I DIS I i
21 HVAC RELAY
PERIM LIGHTS
Fuse
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Usage
Supplemental Inflatable Restraint
(Air Bag)
Injectors
Anti-Lock Brake System
Left Exterior Lamps
Turn Signal Lamps
Injectors Climate Controls, Magnetic Speed
Right Exterior Lamps
Chime (Ignition
I), Memory Set
Powertrain Control Module,
VATS PASS-Key@II
Auxiliary Power
Interior
Lamps
Shift Sols
Linear EGR
Cruise Control
Perimeter Lights
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