1997 CHEVROLET TAHOE Index

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The 1997 Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban Owner’s Manual
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Seats and Restraint Systems
This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains the “SIR’ system.
Features and Controls
This section explains how to start and operate your vehicle.
Comfort Controls and Audio Systems
This section tells you how to adjust the ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate your audio system.
Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions.
Problems on the Road
This section tells what to do if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or overheated engine, etc.
Service and Appearance Care
Here the manual tells you how to keep your vehicle running properly and looking good.
Maintenance Schedule
This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and what fluids and lubricants to use.
Customer Assistance Information
This section tells you how to contact Chevrolet for assistance and how to get service and owner publications.
It also gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page
8- 10.
Index
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine About Driving Your Vehicle Safety Warnings and Symbols
As with other vehicles of this type, failure to operate this You will find a number of safety cautions in this book.
vehicle correctly may result in loss
of control or an We use a box and the word CAUTION to tell you
accident. Be sure to read the “on-pavement” and about things that could hurt you if you were to ignore
“off-road” driving guidelines in this manual. (See the warning.
“Driving Guidelines” and “Off-Road Driving with your
Four-Wheel-Drive Vehicle” in the Index.)
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How to Use this Manual
Many people read their owner’s manual from beginning
to end when they first receive their new vehicle. If you
do this, it will help you learn about the features and
controls for your vehicle. In this manual, you’ll find
that pictures and words work together to explain
things quickly.
Index
A good place to look for what you need is the Index
in the back of the manual. It’s an alphabetical list of
what’s in the manual, and the page number where you’ll
find it.
m ~
These mean there is something that could hurt
you or other people.
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In the caution area, we tell you what the hazard is. Then
we tell you what to do
to help avoid or reduce the
hazard. Please read these cautions. If you don’t, you or
others could be hurt.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Your vehicle has a light
that comes on as a reminder
to buckle up. (See “Safety
Belt Reminder Light” in
the
J
Index.)
In most states and Canadian provinces, the law says to
wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a
crash, you don’t know if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be
so
serious that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive.
But most crashes are in between. In many of them,
people who buckle up can survive and sometimes
walk away. Without belts they could have been badly
hurt
or killed.
After more than
25 years of safety belts in vehicles,
the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does
matter
... a lot!
Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as
it goes.
Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it’s just a seat
on wheels.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should
I wear safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident
-- even one that isn’t your fault -- you and
your passengers can be hurt. Being a good driver
doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km)
of home. And the greatest number of serious
injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than
40 mph (65 kmh).
Safety belts are for everyone.
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there
are special things to know about
safety belts and children. And there are different rules
for smaller children and babies. If a child will be riding
in your vehicle, see the part of this manual called
“Children.” Follow those rules for everyone’s
protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with
the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear it
properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A CAUTION:
Air bags inflate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye.
If you’re too close to an inflating
air bag, it could seriously injure you. Safety belts
help keep
you in position before and during a
crash. Always wear your safety belt, even with air
bags. The driver should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of the vehicle.
I A CAUTION:
An inflating air bag can seriously injure small
children. Always secure children properly in your
vehicle.
To read how, see the part of this manual
called “Children” and the caution label on the
right front passenger’s safety belt.
AIR
BAG
There is an air bag
readiness light on the
instrument panel, which
shows
AIR BAG.
The system checks the air bag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. See “Air Bag Readiness Light” in the Index
for more information.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If something is between an occupant and an air
bag, the bag might not inflate properly or it
might force the object into that person. The path
of an inflating air bag must be kept clear. Don’t
put anything between an occupant and an air
bag, and don’t attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other air
bag covering.
When should an air bag inflate?
An air bag is designed to inflate in a moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crash. The air bag will inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system’s designed
“threshold level.”
If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold level is
about
9 to 16 mph (14 to 26 km/h). The threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design,
so that
it can be somewhat above or below this range.
If your
vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such as
a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle of the impact and
how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal
or
near-frontal impacts.
The air bag system is designed to work properly under
a wide range
of conditions, including off-road usage.
Observe safe driving speeds, especially on rough
terrain.
As always, wear your safety belt. See “Off-Road
Driving” in the Index for more tips on off-road driving.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The sensing
system triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related
hardware are all part of the air bag modules inside the
steering wheel and in the instrument panel in front
of the
right front passenger.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 0
0 Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module, which records information about
the air bag system. The module records information
about the readiness
of the system, when the sensors
are activated and driver’s safety belt usage at
deployment.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air
bag system. Improper service can mean that your
air bag system won’t work properly. See your dealer
for service.
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There
are parts of the air bag system in several places
around your vehicle. You don’t want the system to
inflate while someone is working on your vehicle. Your
GM dealer and the service manual have information
about servicing your vehicle and the air bag system. To
purchase a service manual, see “Service and Owner
Publications’’ in the Index.
NOTICE:
If you damage the covering for the driver’s or the
right front passenger’s
air bag, the bag may not
work properly. You may have to replace the air
bag module in the steering wheel or both the air
bag module and the instrument panel for the
passenger’s air bag.
Do not open or break the air
bag coverings.
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For up to 10 minutes after the ignition key is
turned
off and the battery is disconnected, an air
bag can still inflate during improper service. You
can be injured if you are close to an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid wires wrapped with yellow tape
or yellow connectors. They are probably part of
the air bag system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you is qualified to
do so.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Adding Equipment to Your Air
Bag-Equipped Vehicle
e.’ If I add a push bumper or a bicycle rack to the
front of my vehicle, will it keep the air bags
from working properly?
A: As long as the push bumper or bicycle rack is
attached to your vehicle so that the vehicle’s basic
structure isn’t changed, it’s not likely to keep the
air bags from working properly in a crash.
e.’ Is there anything I might add to the front of the
vehicle that could keep the air bags from
working properly?
A: Yes. If you add things that change your vehicle’s
frame, bumper system, front end sheet metal or
height, they may keep the
air bag system from
working properly. Also, the
air bag system may not
work properly
if you relocate any of the air bag
sensors.
If you have any questions about this, you
should contact Customer Assistance before you
modify your vehicle. (The phone numbers
and
addresses for Customer Assistance are in Step Two of
the Customer Satisfaction Procedure in this manual.
See “Customer Satisfaction Procedure”
in the Index.)
What if I add a snow plow? Will it keep the air
bags from working properly?
A: We’ve designed our air bag systems to work
properly under a wide range of conditions,
including snow plowing with vehicles equipped
with the optional Snow Plow Prep Package
(RPO
VYU). But don’t change or defeat the snow
plow’s “tripping mechanism.” If
you do, it can
damage your snow plow and your vehicle, and it
may cause an air bag inflation.
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