1996 PONTIAC FIREBIRD wheel

1. Fog Lamp Switch (if equipped)
2. Main Lamp Control
3. Side Upper Air Vent
4. Instrument Cluster
5. Horn
6. Center Upper Air Vent
7.
Audio System
8. Glove Box
9. Comfort Controls
10. Cigarette Lighter .
1 1. Parking Brake Lever
12. Cupholder
13. Storage Console
14. Shift Lever
15. Ashtray (Automatic Transmission)
16. Rear Window Defogger Switch
17. Steering Wheel Controls
18. Remote Hatch Release
19. Convertible Top Switch (Option)
20. Traction Control System Switch (Option)
21. Second Gear Start (V6 Automatic only)
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Traction Control System Warning Light (Option)
T’CS
OFF
This warning light should
come on briefly as you start
the engine.
If the warning
light doesn’t come on then,
have it fixed
so it will be
ready to
warn you if there’s
a problem.
I. . . -,.L-,-
If it stays on, or comes‘0n’’when you’re driving, there
may be a problem with
your traction control system and
your vehicle may need service. When this warning light
is
OW, the system will not lifnit wheel spin. Adjust your
driving accordingly.
If your brakes begin to overheat, the brake portion of the
traction control system will shut down, but the throttle
and engine spark control wiil continue to work. The
warning light will not
come on when this happens.
The traction control system warning light may come on
for the following reasons:
If you turn the system off by pressing the button
located on the center of the console behind the shift
lever (Automatic Transmission) or in front of the
shiftboot (Manual Transmission), the warning light
will
come on and stay on. To turn the system back
on, press the button again. The warning light should
go
off. (See “Traction Control System’’ in the Index
for more information.)
If the temperature of the throttle control begins
to rise, the system will turn off and the warning
light will come on until the system cools down.
The system,does this
to prevent damage from
overheating.
If the tmchan CQII~XQ~ system warning light comes on
and stays on
for an extended period of time when the
system is turned on, your vehicle needs service.
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Low Traction Light
LOW
TRAC
When your anti-lock system
is adjusting brake pressure
to help avoid a braking skid,
this light will come on.
If you have the traction control system, this light will
also come on when the system is limiting wheel spin.
Slippery road conditions may exist if the low traction
light comes
on, so adjust your driving accordingly. The
light will stay on for a few seconds after the anti-lock
system stops adjusting brake pressure or the traction
control system stops limiting wheel spin.
The low traction light also comes
on briefly wlien you
turn the ignition key to
RUN. If the light doesn’t come
on then, have
it fixed so it will be there to tell you
when the anti-lock brake system or traction control
system
is active.
Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
This gage shows the engine
coolant temperature.
If ’
‘the gage pointer moves
into the red area, your
engine is too hot! 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.
In “Problems on the Road”, this section
shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index.
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Steering Wheel Controls (Option)
If your vehicle has this feature, you can control certain
radio functions using the buttons on
your steering wheel.
VOLUME: Press the up arrow to increase the volume
and the down arrow to decrease volume.
PLAY: Press this button to play a cassette tape or
compact disc when the radio is playing.
MUTE: Press this button to silence the system. Press it
again, or any other
radio button, to turn on the sound.
SEEK: Press the up mow to tune to the next radio
station and
the down arrow to tune to the previous radio
station. If a cassette tape or compact disc is playing, the
player will advance with the up arrow and rewind with
the down mow.
PRESET: Press this button to hear the radio stations
that
are set on your pushbuttons.
AM-F": Press this button to select AM, FM1 or €342.
If a cassette tape or compact disc is playing, the tape or
disc will stop playing and the radio will play.
UBderstanding Radio R: 3eption
FM Stereo
FM stereo will give you the best sound. But FM signals
will reach only about
10 to 40 miles ( 16 to 65 km). Tall
buildings or
hills can interfere with FM signals, causing
the sound to come and go.
AM
The range for most AM stations is greater than for FM,
especially at night. The longer range, however, can
cause stations
to interfere with each other. AM can pick
up noise horn things like storms and power lines. Try
reducing the treble to reduce this noise if you ever get it.
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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 sudd’enly slows or stops. Alwayssleave
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 feel
the system working,
or you may notice some noise,
but this is normal.
LOW
TRAC
When your anti-lock system
is adjusting brake pressure
to help avoid a braking skid,
this light will come
on.
See ‘‘L’ow Traction Light”
in the
Index
naction Control, System
(Option: LTl VS Engine) I
Your vehicle may have a traction control system that
limits wheel spin. This is especially usefulin slippery
road conditions.
The system operates only if it senses that
one or both of
the rear wheels are spinning or beginning
to lose traction. When
this happens, the system works the
rear brakes and reduces engine, power (by closing the
throttle and managing engine spark) to limit wheel spin.
LOW
TRAC
This light will come on
when YQLU traction control
system is limiting wheel
spin. See “Low Traction
Light”
in the Index. You
may feel or hear the system
working, but this is normal.
The traction control system may operate on dry roads
under some conditions, and you may notice a reduction in
acceleration when this happen,€, This is normal and doesn’t
mean there’s
a problem with your vehicle. Examples of
fhese conditions include a hard acceleration in a turn, or an
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abrupt upshift or downshft. Also, when the compact spare
tire is on the rear axle,
the traction control system will
cycle and limit acceleration for about
the first 15 seconds
of driving after each engine start.
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.)
TCS
OFF
When the system is on,
this warning light will
come on to let you know
if
there’s a problem with your
traction control system.
See “Traction Control
System Warning Light”
in the Index.
When this warning light is
on, the system will not limit
wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.
The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever you start your vehicle.
To limit wheel spin, especially in slippery road
conditions,
you should
always leave the system on. But you
can turn the
traction control system
off if you ever need to.
(You should turn the system off if your vehicle ever
gets stuck in sand, mud, ice
or snow. See “Rocking
Your Vehicle” in the Index.)
Automatic Transmission Manual Transmission
To turn the system off, press the button located on
the center
of the console behind the shift lever
(Automatic Transmission) or in front
of the shift
boot (Manual Transmission).
The light on the button will go off, and the traction
control system warning light will come on and stay on.
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. If the traction control system is limiting wheel spin
when you press the button, the light on the button will
.go off and the warning light will come on -- but the
_. ._ ,system won't turn off right away. It will wait until
gathere's
no longer a current need to limit wheel spin. I
You can turn the system back an at any time by pressing
the button
again. The light on the button should come
on, and the traction control system w'arning light should
go off.
If your car is equipped with P245/50zR16 tires, the
traction control system will automatically
turn off at
speeds above 108 mph (1 74 km/h). (The traction, control
system waning light will not corn on.) When the
vehicle
speed drops below 103 mph (1 66 km/h) the
system will automatically come on again.
- 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.
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An emergency like this requires close attention and a
quick decision. If you are holding
the steering wheel at
the recommended
9 and 3 o’clock positions, you can
turn it a full 180 degrees very quickly without removing
either hand. But you have to act fast, steer
quickly, and
just
as quickly straighten the wheel once you’have
’ avoided the object,
The fact
that such emergency situations are always
possible
is a good reason to practice defensive driving at
all times and wear safety belts properly.
Off-Road Recovery
YOU may find sometime that your right wheels have
dropped
off the edge of a road onto the shoulder while
you’re driving.
If the level of the shoulder is only slightly below the
pavement, recovery should be fairly easy. Ease
off the
accelerator and then, if there
is nothing in the way, steer so
that your vehicle straddles the edge of the pavement. You
can turn the steering wheel up to one-quarter turn until the
right front
tire contacts the pavement edge. Then tum your
steering wheel to
go straight down the roadway.
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