
Setting Cruise Control
0 Cruise control can be dangerous where you
can’t drive safely at a steady speed.
So,
don’t use your cruise control on winding
roads
or in heavy traffic.
slippery roads. On such roads, fast changes
in tire traction can cause needless wheel
spinning, and you could lose control. Don’t
Cruise control can be dangerous on
If you leave your cruise control switch on when
you’re not using cruise,
you might hit a button
and go into cruise when you don’t want to. You
could be startled and even lose control. Keep the
cruise control switch off until you want to use it.
use cruise control on slippery roads.
1. Move the cruise control switch to ON.
2. Get up to the speed you want.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the optional
traction control system begins to
limit wheel spin,
the cruise control will automatically disengage. (See
“Traction Control System’’
in the Index.) When road
conditions allow you to safely
use it again, you may
turn
the cruise control back on.
&I button at the end of the
lever and release it. The
CRUISE light on the
instrument panel will
come on.
3. Push in the SETKOAST
4. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal.
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Control Buttons
The driver information center has three buttons that
control its functions.
EM, RESET MODE: The EnglishMetric, reset and
mode buttons for
the driver information center are
located to the left
of the steering wheel, just below the
instrument panel cluster.
EM: Press this button to change the display from
English to metric units or metric
to English.
RESET Press this button for one second to reset the
mode displayed.
MODE: Press this button to change the mode being
displayed.
Functions
AVG ECON: Shows your average fuel economy since
you last reset this mode. Average fuel economy is
viewed
as a long term approximation of your overall
driving and driving conditions.
To learn the average fuel
economy from a new starting point, press the RESET
button while the average fuel economy is displayed
in
the DIC.
INSTANTANEOUS FUEL ECONOMY Shows
your current
fuel economy. Instantaneous fuel
economy varies with your driving conditions, such
as
acceleration, braking and the grade of the road being
traveled.
The instantaneous fuel economy display cannot
be reset, therefore the reset button has no effect while in
this mode.
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I 1
Here’s how anti-lock works. Let’s say the road is wet.
You’re driving safely. Suddenly
an animal jumps out in
front of you.
You slam on the brakes. Here’s what happens with
ABS.
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels
is about to stop rolling, the computer will
separately work
the brakes at each front wheel and at the
rear wheels.
The anti-lock system can change the brake pressure faster
than any driver could. The computer
is programmed to
make the most of available tire and road conditions.
You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.
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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.
-‘sing Anti-Lock
uon’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
“Anti-Lock Brake System
Active Light” in the Index.
Traction Control System
(With
3800 Supercharged Engine)
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.
LOW TRAC
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
reengage the cruise control. (See “Cruise Control”
in the Index.)
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0
To turn the system on or
off, press the
TRACTION
button on the black panel
located directly behind
your automatic transaxle
shift lever.
When you turn the system off, the Enhanced Traction
System warning light will come on and stay on.
If the
Enhanced Traction System is limiting wheel spin when
you press the button to turn the system off, the warning
light will come on
-- but the system won’t turn off right
away. It will wait until there’s no longer a current need
to limit wheel spin.
You can turn the system back on at any time by pressing
the button again. The Enhanced Traction System
warning light should go off.
Braking in Emergencies
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.
Magnasteer TM
This steering system provides lighter steering effort for
parking and when driving at low speeds. Steering effort
will increase at higher speeds for improved road feel.
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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Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder, and
start your left lane change signal before moving out
of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough
ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front
in your
inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal
and move back into the right lane. (Remember that
your right outside mirror
is convex. The vehicle you
just passed may seem to be farther away from you
than
it really is.)
0 Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time
on two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the
next vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though
the brake lamps are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting
to turn.
following driver
to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little to the right.
If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes, steering
and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where the
tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying to steer and
constantly seek an escape route or area
of less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not “overdriving”
those conditions. But skids are always possible.
The three types of skids correspond
to your Buick’s
three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels
aren’t rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose cornering force. And in the acceleration skid, too
much throttle causes the driving wheels
to spin.
A cornering skid and an acceleration skid are best
handled by easing your foot
off the accelerator pedal.
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Do not tow a trailer if your vehicle is equipped with the
3800 L67 Supercharged engine.
Your vehicle
can tow a trailer if it is equipped with the
proper trailer towing equipment.
To identify what the
vehicle trailering capacity is for your vehicle, you
should read the information 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:
0
0
0
0
0
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
50 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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Turn Signals When Towing a Trailer
When you tow a trailer, your vehicle may need a
different turn signal flasher and/or extra wiring. Check
with your Buick dealer. 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.
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.
On a long uphill grade, shift down and reduce your
speed to around
45 mph (70 kmh) to reduce the
possibility
of engine and transaxle overheating.
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’s 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 shift to PARK
(P).
5. Release the regular brakes.
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