
Check Gages Light Fuel Gage
CHECK GAGES
The CHECK GAGES light
will come on briefly when
you are starting the engine.
*
\\'
E-
UNLEADED
FUEL
ONLY
'
The fuel gage, when the
ignition is on, tells you
about how much fuel you
have
left in your tank.
If the light comes on and stays on while you are driving,
check your coolant temperature and engine
oil pressure
gages to see if they are in the warning zones. The gage
will first indicate EMPTY (E) before
you
are out
of fuel, and you should get more fuel as soon
as possible.
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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 (ABS)
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. This is normal.
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 ANTI -
LOCK
4-7
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City Driving
One of the biggest problems with city streets is the
amount of traffic on them. You’ll want to watch out for
what the other drivers are doing and pay attention to
traffic signals. Here
are ways to increase your safety in city driving:
0
a
0
Know the best way to get to where you are
going.
Get a city map and plan your trip into an
unknown part of the city just as you would for a
cross-country trip.
Try to use the freeways that
rim and crisscross most
large cities. You’ll save time and energy. (See the
next part, “Freeway Driving.”)
Treat a green light as a warning signal.
A traffic light
is there because the corner is busy enough to need it.
When a light turns green, and just before you start to
move, check both ways for vehicles that have not
cleared the intersection or may be running the
red light.
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Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your vehicle in good shape for winter.
You may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your vehicle.
Include an ice scraper, a small brush or broom, a supply
of windshield washer fluid, a rag, some winter outer
clothing, a small shovel, a flashlight, a red cloth and
reflective warning triangles. And, if you will be driving
under severe conditions, include a small bag
of sand, a
piece of old carpet or a couple of burlap bags to help
provide traction. Be sure
you properly secure these
:ms in your vehicle.
Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction.
However, if there is snow or ice between your tires and
the road, you can have a very slippery situation. You’ll
have a lot less traction or “grip” and will need
to be
very careful. What’s the worst time for
this? “Wet ice.” Very cold
snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive
on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it may offer the
least traction
of all. You can get wet ice when it’s about
freezing
(32°F; O’C) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try
to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.
4-24
ProCarManuals.com

Rear Axle Engine Coolant
When to Check and Change Lubricant
Refer to the Maintenance Schedule to determine how
often to check the lubricant and when to change it. See
“Scheduled Maintenance Services” in the Index.
How to Check Lubricant
If the level is below the
bottom
of the filler plug
hole, you’ll need to add some lubricant. Add enough
lubricant to raise the level
to the bottom
of the filler
plug hole.
What to Use
Refer to the Maintenance Schedule to determine what
kind of lubricant to use. See “Recommended Fluids and
Lubricants” in
the Index. The cooling
s stem in your vehicle
is filled with
DEX-COOL
8 engine coolant. This coolant is designed
to remain in your vehicle for
5 years or 150,000 miles
(240 000 km) whichever occurs first, if you add only
DEX-COOL’ extended life coolant.
The following explains your cooling sysre~ And how to
add coolant when it is low. If
you have a problem with
engine overheating,
see “Engine Overheating” in
the Index.
A 50/50 mixture of water and DEX-COOL’ coolant will:
0 Give freezing protection down to -34°F (-37°C).
0 Give boiling protection up to 265 “F (129°C).
Protect against rust and corrosion.
Help keep the proper engine temperature.
Let the warning lights and gages work as
they should.
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ProCarManuals.com

Mixing tires could cause you to lose control while
driving.
If you mix tires of different sizes or types
(radial and bias-belted tires), the vehicle may not
handle properly, and
you could have a crash.
Using tires
of different sizes may also cause
damage to your vehicle.
Be sure to use the same
size and type tires
on all wheels.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
The following information relates to the system developed
by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, which grades tires by treadwear, traction
and temperature performance. (This applies
only to
vehicles sold in the United States.) The grades are molded
on the sidewalls of most passenger car
tires. The Uniform
Tire
Quality Grading system does not apply to deep tread,
winter-type snow tires, space-saver or temporary use spare
tires, tires with nominal
rim diameters of 10 to 12 inches
(25 to
30 cm), or to some limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger
cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these grades, they must
also conform
to Federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified government test course.
For
example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and a half
(1 1/2) times as well on the government course as a tire
graded
.loo. The relative performance of tires depends
upon
the actual conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to variations
in driving habits, service practices and differences in
road characteristics and climate.
Traction -- A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are A, B, and
C, and they represent the tire’s ability to stop on wet
pavement as measured under controlled conditions
on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt and concrete.
A tire marked
C may have poor traction performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based
on braking (straightahead) traction tests and does
not
include cornering (turning) traction.
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ProCarManuals.com

Section 9 Index
Adjustable Mast Antenna ........................ 3-28
AirBag
....................................... 1-25
Adding Equipment
............................ 1-32
How Does it Restrain
.......................... 1-30
How
it Works ................................ 1-28
Location
.................................... 1-28
Readiness Light
......................... 1.27. 2.5 1
Servicing ................................... 1-31
What Makes
it Inflate .......................... 1-29
What Will
You See After it Inflates ............... 1-30
When Should it Inflate
......................... 1-29
Aircleaner
.................................... 6-17
Air Conditioning
................................ 3 -7
Air Conditioning Refrigerants
..................... 6-67
Alignment and Balance. Tire
...................... 6-47
Aluminum Wheels. Cleaning
...................... 6-55
Antenna. Adjustable Mast
........................ 3-28
Antenna. Power
................................ 3-28
Antifreeze
..................................... 6-22
Anti-Lock
Brake System Warning Light
................ 2.53. 4.7
Brakes
...................................... 4-7
Appearance Care
............................... 6-49
Air Control.
Climate Control System
................. 3-3 Appearance
Care Materials
....................... 6-57
Arbitration Program .............................. 8-9
Audio Systems
.................................. 3-8
Automatic Transmission
Transmission Check
........................... 7-46
Transmission Fluid
............................ 6-18
Transmission Operation
........................ 2-20
Transmission Park Mechanism Check
............. 7-48
Axle. Locking Rear
............................. 2-23
Axle. Rear
.................................... 6-22
Ashtrays
...................................... 2-43
Shifting
..................................... 2-20
Battery
...................................... 6-32
Jump Starting
................................. 5-3
Replacement. Remote Keyless Entry
............... 2-8
Warnings
.................................... 5-3
Warnings
.................................... 5-3
Before Leaving on a Long Trip
.................... 4-21
Blizzard. Driving In
............................. 4-25
BBB Auto
Line
................................. 8-9
Better Business Bureau Mediation
................... 8-9
9-1
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Halogen Bulbs ................................ 6-32 .
Hazard Warning Flashers .......................... 5-2
Head Restraints
................................. 1-5
Headlamps .................................... 2-39
Bulb Replacement
............................ 6-33
High/Low Beam Changer
...................... 2-34
OnReminder
................................ 2-40
Wiring
..................................... 6-59
Hearing Impaired. Customer Assistance
.............. 8-4
Heating
........................................ 3-7
High-Beam Headlamps
.......................... 2-34
Highway Hypnosis
.............................. 4-22
Hill and Mountain Roads
......................... 4-22
Hitches. Trailer
................................. 4-33
Hood
Checking Things Under
......................... 6-7
Prop
........................................ 6-8
Release
...................................... 6-7
Horn ......................................... 2-32
Hydroplaning
.................................. 4-18
Ignition Switch
................................ 2- 16
Ignition Transmission Lock Check
................. 7-47
Inflation. Tire
.................................. 6-42
Inside Daymight Rearview Mirror
................. 2-43
Inspections
.................................... 7-49
Brakesystem
................................ 7-50
Exhaust Systems
............................. 7-49
Radiator and Heater Hose
...................... 7-49
RearAxle
................................... 7-50 Steering
.................................... 7-49
Suspension
.................................. 7-49
Throttle Linkage
.............................. 7-49
Brightness Control
............................ 2-38
Cleaning
.................................... 6-52
Cluster ..................................... 2-48
FuseBlock
.................................. 6-60
Interior Lamps ................................. 2-40
.................................... J ack. Tire 5-25
Jump Starting
................................... 5-3
Keyless Entry System
........................... 2-6
Keys
.......................................... 2-2
Labels 4-27
Certification
................................. 4-27
CertificationEire
............................. 4-27
Service Parts Identification
..................... 6-58
Tire-Loading Information
...................... 4-27
Vehicle Identification Number
................... 6-58
Lamps
........................................ 2-38
Dome
...................................... 2-40
Interior
..................................... 2-40
OnReminder
................................ 2-40
Panel
....................................... 2-40
Underhood
.................................. 2-42
Leaving
Your Vehicle with the Engine Running ....... 2-26
Lighter ....................................... 2-45
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