1997 BUICK PARK AVENUE Owners Manual

Daytime Running 1 .rmps
Daytime Running Lamps (vrCL) can make it easier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the day.
DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the
short periods after dawn and before sunset.
A light sensor on top of the instrument panel monitors
the exterior light level for the operation of DRL and
twilight sentinel,
so be sure it isn’t covered.
The
DRL system will make your high-beam headlamps
come on at reduced brightness in daylight when:
0 The ignition is on,
0 The headlamp switch is off and
0 The transaxle is not in PARK (P).
When DRL are on, only your high-beam headlamps will
be on. The parking lamps, taillamps, sidemarker and
other lamps won’t be on. Your instrument panel won’t
be lit up either. When
it’s dark enough outside, your high-beam
headlamps will change to low-beam headlamps at full
brightness. The other lamps that turn on with your
headlamps will also
turn on. When it’s bright enough
outside, the regular lamps will turn
off, and your
high-beam headlamps change to the reduced brightness
of DRL.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, shift the
transaxle into PARK
(P). The DRL will stay off until
you shift out of PARK
(P).
To turn off all exterior lighting at night when you are
parked, turn off the headlamps and move the twilight
sentinel control to the left into the detent in the slider
control. When released, the control will return to the
Twilight Sentinel minimum delay position and the lights
will turn
off.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need it.
Cornering Lamps
The cornering lamps are designed to come on when you
signal a turn. This will provide more light for cornering
at night.
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Twilight Sentinel Interior Lamps
Instrument Panel Intensity Control
Instrument panel light brightness can be adjusted by
rotating the headlamp
knob clockwise.
Twilight
Sentinel turns your
lamps on and
off by sensing
how dark
it is outside.
To control the exit
delay feature of Twilight
Sentinel, slide the control to
any position to vary the
lamp timeout.
If you move the control all the way to MAX, your lamps
will remain on for three minutes after you turn off your
engine.
If you move the control almost all the way in the
other direction,
so it’s just on, the lamps will go off
quickly when you
turn off your engine. You can
change this delay time from only a few seconds to
three minutes.
Light Sensor
Your twilight sentinel and daytime running lamps work
with the light sensor on top of the instrument panel.
Don’t cover it up. If you do
it will read “dark” and the
headlamps will come on.
Courtesy Lamps
When any door is opened, several lamps go on. They
make it easy for
you to enter and leave the car. You can
also turn these lamps on by rotating the headlamp knob
clockwise all the way past the detent.
Delayed Entry Lighting
When you open the door, the interior lamps will come
on. When you close the door with the ignition
off, the
interior lamps will stay on for
25 seconds or until the
ignition is turned to an on position. Please note that
locking the doors with the power door lock switch will
override the delayed entry lighting feature and the lamps
will turn off right away.
NOTE: Using the remote keyless entry transmitter to
lock the door will not cancel delayed lighting.
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Theater Dimming
This feature allows for a three to five-second fade out of
the courtesy lamps instead
of immediate turn off.
Delayed Exit Lighting
With this feature, the interior lamps will come on for
25 seconds after you remove the key from the ignition.
This will give you time to find the door pull handle or
lock switches.
Illuminated Entry System
When you open either front door or press the UNLOCK
button on the remote keyless entry transmitter, the
lamps inside your vehicle will turn on. These lamps
will turn
off after about 40 seconds. These lamps will
also turn
off if you start the engine or activate the power
door locks.
Perimeter Lighting
When the UNLOCK button on the Remote Keyless
Entry transmitter is pressed, the daytime running lamps
(high-beams at reduced intensity), parking lamps and
back-up lamps will come on if it is dark enough outside
according to the twilight sentinel. This feature
will only be activated when the security
feedback feature is programmed to be in modes
1, 3 or 5
on the transmitter. Modes 0,2 and 4 do not respond with
exterior lights flashing when unlocking the vehicle
so
perimeter lighting will not be active.
This feature can be prograrnmed'on or off for
each transmitter.
To turn the feature
off
1. Press and hold the door lock switch on the door
throughout this procedure. All doors will lock.
2. Press the instant alarm button on the transmitter to
enter the programming mode. Perimeter lighting
remains on at this time and the horn will chirp
two times.
3. Press the instant alarm button on the key transmitter
again. Perimeter lighting is disabled and the horn
will chirp one time.
4. Release the door lock switch. The perimeter lighting
feature is now off.
NOTE: Pressing the UNLOCK button repeatedly may
cause the back-up lamps to turn on.
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To turn the feature on:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Press and hold the door lock switch on the door
throughout this procedure. All doors will lock.
Press the instant alarm button on the key transmitter
to enter the programming mode. Perimeter lighting
remains
off at this time and the horn will chirp
one time.
Press the instant alarm button on the transmitter
again. Perimeter lighting
is now enabled and the
horn will chirp two times.
Release the door lock switch. The perimeter lighting
feature
is now on.
Front Reading Lamps
Turn on the front seat reading lamps by pressing the
switch on the overhead console. Press the switch again
to
turn them off. The driver’s switch controls the driver
and center lamps. The passenger switch controls the
passenger side lamp.
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Rear Reading Lamps Glove Box Lamp
To turn on the rear seat reading lamp, press the switch
above that rear door.
To turn off the lamp, press the
switch again.
Trunk Lamp
When you open the trunk to its full open position, a
lamp will come on inside the trunk. This lamp will
automatically turn
off when the trunk is closed. When
you open the glove box, a lamp will come on
inside the glove box. This will automatically turn
off
when the glove box is closed.
Battery Rundown Protection
This feature shuts off all lamps, that are left on for more
than
10 minutes when the ignition is off. This will keep
your battery from running down.
This feature can be
overridden by turning the headlamp switch
off and then
back on.
Parade Dimming
This feature prohibits the dimming of your instrument
panel displays during daylight while your headlamps
are
on. This feature operates with the light sensor for the
twilight sentinel and is fully automatic. When the light
sensor reads darkness outside, you will be able to dim
your instrument panel displays once again.
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Mirrors
Inside Manual Daymight Rearview Mirror Electrochromic Daymight Rearview Mirror
(If Equipped)
When you are sitting in a comfortable driving position,
adjust the mirror
so you can see clearly behind your
vehicle. Grip the mirror in the center to move it up or
down and side to side. The dayhight adjustment allows
you to adjust the mirror to avoid glare from the lamps
behind you. Pull the tab forward for daytime use; push it
back for night use. Your
Buick may have an automatic electrochromic
dayhight rearview mirror.
This mirror automatically changes to reduce glare from
headlamps behind you. A photocell on the back of the
mirror senses when it is becoming dark outside. Another
photocell built into the
mirror surface, senses when
headlamps
are behind you.
At night, when the glare is too high, the mirror will
gradually darken to reduce glare (this change may take a
few seconds). The mirror will return to its clear daytime
state when the glare is reduced.
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Press the button at the base of the mirror to turn on the
automatic feature. The button has an indicator light to
show it
is on. Press the button again to turn the
automatic feature
off.
Time Delay
The automatic mirror has a time delay feature which
prevents unnecessary switching from the night back to
the day position. This delay prevents rapid changing
of
the mirror as you drive under lights and through traffic.
Reverse Gear Day Mode
The reverse day mode is another important feature of the
electrochromic mirror. When the shift lever
is placed in
REVERSE (R), the mirror changes to the day mode.
This gives you a bright image in the mirror as you
back up.
Cleaning the Photocells
Use a cotton swab and glass cleaner to clean the
photocells when necessary.
Electrochromic Daymight Rearview Mirror
with Compass
(If Equipped)
This mirror automatically changes to reduce glare when
set in the
M (Mirror) or C/M (CornpassMirror) position.
This mirror automatically changes to reduce glare from
headlamps behind you. One photocell
on the back of the
mirror senses when it is becoming dark outside. Another
photocell is built into the mirror surface to sense
headlamps behind you.
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At night, when the glare is too high, the mirror will
gradually darken to reduce glare (this change may
take a
few seconds). The mirror will return to its clear daytime
state when the glare is reduced.
Setting the Mirror
OFF: This setting turns off the dayhight function and
compass. The mirror will stay in the day mode.
M: This turns on the dayhight portion of the mirror to
automatically reduce glare.
C/M: This setting turns on the compass in addition to
the dayhight function. The letter
or letters displayed in
the top right corner of the mirror indicate the direction
in which you are traveling.
Time Delay
This feature prevents rapid changing of the mirror from
the night mode to the day mode as you drive under
lights and through traffic.
Reverse Gear Day Mode
The reverse mode is another important feature of the
electrochromic mirror. When the
shift lever is placed in
REVERSE (R), the mirror changes to the day mode. This
gives you a bright image in the mirror as you back up.
Cleaning the Photocells
Use a cotton swab and glass cleaner to clean the
photocells when necessary.
Compass Calibration
Once the compass is calibrated, it does not need to be
recalibrated as long as the mirror is left in your vehicle
and the vehicle remains in the same geographical zone.
To calibrate the compass:
1. Set the switch on the mirror control to C/M.
2. Turn the vehicle ignition switch on. If the letter C
is not displayed in the mirror compass window, hold
the
CAL switch for more than 10 seconds. To hold
in the
CAL switch, insert a paper clip into the small
hole on the bottom
of the mirror housing. The
display will show a number first, but keep holding
until the letter
C appears.
360-degree circle at less than
5 mph (8 km/h) until
the display reads a compass direction.
3. For
quick calibration, drive the vehicle in a
For normal calibration, drive the vehicle on
your everyday routine, and the compass will
eventually calibrate.
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