1997 OLDSMOBILE SILHOUETTE Owners Manual

What can you do about highway hypnosis? First, be
aware that it can happen.
Then here
are some tips:
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Make sure your vehicle is well ventilated, with a
comfortably cool interior.
Keep your eyes moving. Scan the road ahead and to the sides. Check your mirrors and your
instruments frequently.
If you get sleepy, pull off the road into a rest, service
or parking area and take a nap, get some exercise, or
both. For safety, treat drowsiness on the highway as
an emergency.
Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or mountains is different from
driving in flat or rolling terrain.
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If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you’re
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can
make your trips safer and more enjoyable.
Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all fluid
levels and also the brakes, tires, cooling system
and transaxle. These parts can work hard
on
mountain roads.
0 Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing to know is this:
let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift
to a lower gear when you go
down
a steep or long hill.
If you don’t shift down, your brakes could get
so hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would
then have poor braking or even none going
down
a hill. You could crash. Shift down to let
your engine assist your brakes on
a steep
downhill slope.
I A CAUTION:
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Coasting d!!!nhill in NEUTRAL (N) or with the
ignition off is dangerous. Your brakes will have
to do all the work of slowing down. They could
get
so hot that they wouldn’t work well. You
would then have poor braking or even none going
down
a hill. You could crash. Always have your
engine running and your vehicle in gear when
you go downhill.
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Know how to go uphill. You may want to shift down
to a lower gear. The lower gears help cool your engine
and transaxle, and you can climb the hill better.
Stay in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in hills or mountains. Don’t swing wide or cut
across
the center of the road. Drive at speeds that let
you stay
in your own lane.
0 As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There could be
something in your lane, like
a stalled car or an accident.
You may see highway signs on mountains that warn of
special problems. Examples are long grades, passing or
no-passing zones, a falling rocks area or winding
roads.
Be alert to these and take appropriate action.
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Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
a Have your Oldsmobile 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
items 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.
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If you have traction control, keep the system on. It will
improve your ability to accelerate when driving on a
slippery road. Even though your vehicle has a traction
control system, you’ll want to slow down and adjust
your driving to the road conditions. See “Traction
Control System” in
the Index.
If you don’t have traction control, accelerate gently. Try
not to break the gentle traction. If you accelerate too
fast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surface
under the tires even more.
Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle’s stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road. Even
though you have an anti-lock braking system, you’ll
want to begin stopping sooner than you would on
dry
pavement. See “Anti-Lock” in the Index.
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Allow greater following distance on any slippery road.
Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit a spot that’s covered with ice. On an
otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the
sun can’t reach: around
clumps
of trees, behind buildings or under bridges.
Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass may
remain icy when the surrounding roads
are clear. If
you see a patch of ice ahead of you, brake before you
are
on it. Try not to brake while you’re actually on
the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers.
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; 0°C) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.
Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow
-- drive with caution.
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If You’re Caught in a Blizzard
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0 Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
0 Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you have no blankets or extra clothing, make body
insulators
from newspapers, burlap bags, rags , floor
mats -- anything you can wrap around yourself or
tuck under your clothing to keep warm.
If you are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a
serious situation. You should probably stay with your
vehicle unless you know for sure that
you are near help
and you can hike through the snow. Here are some
things to do to wmmon help and keep yourself and
your You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
passengers safe:
0 Turn on your hazard flashers.
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I A CAUTION:
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Snow can trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside.
CO could overcome you and kill
you. You can’t see it
or smell it, so you might not
know it is in your vehicle. Clear away snow from
around the base
of your vehicle, especially any
that is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to time to be sure snow
doesn’t collect there.
Open a window just
a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This
will help
keep
CO out.
Run your engine only as long as you must. This saves
fuel. When you run the engine, make it go a little faster
than just idle. That is, push the accelerator slightly. This
uses less fuel for the heat that you get and it keeps the
battery charged. You will need a well-charged battery to
restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling later on
with your headlamps. Let the heater run for awhile.
Then, shut the engine off and close the window almost
all the way to preserve
the heat. Start the engine again
and repeat this only when you feel really uncomfortable
from the cold. But
do it as little as possible. Preserve the
fuel as long as you can.
To help keep warm, you can get
out of the vehicle and do some fairly vigorous exercises
every half hour or
so until help comes.
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Loading Your Vehicle
XXXXXXXX PRINTEO IN U.S.A. I
‘0 GVWR MFD BVGENERALMOTORSCORP
I mi-
GAWR FRT GAWR RR
I 0 m
THIS VEHICLE CONFORMS TO ALL APPLICABLE U.S. FEDERAL
MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS IN EFFECT ON THE DATE
OF MANUFACTURE SHOWN ABOVE.
I m mn
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The Certificationnire label also tells you the maximum
weights for the front and rear axles, called the Gross
Axle Weight Rating (GAWR). To find out the actual
loads on your front and rear axles, you need to go to a
weigh station and weigh your vehicle. Your retailer can
help you with this. Be sure to spread out your load
equally
on both sides of the centerline.
. . . - - - - .
-]TIRE SIZE SPEED RTG
1- RIM COLD TIRE PRESSURE]
The CertificationRire label is found on the rear edge of
the driver’s door.
The label shows the size of your original tires and the
inflation pressures needed to obtain the gross weight
capacity of your vehicle. This is called the Gross Vehicle
Weight Rating (GVWR). The GVWR includes the
weight of the vehicle, all occupants, fuel and cargo. Never exceed the
GVWR for your vehicle or the Gross
Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) for either the front or
rear axle.
Electronic Level Control (Option)
On vehicles equipped with the optional electronic level
control, the rear
of the vehicle is automatically kept
level as you load or unload your vehicle. However, you
should still
not exceed the GVWR or the GAWR.
You may hear the compressor operating when you load
or unload your vehicle, and periodically as the system
self-adjusts. This is normal.
The compressor should operate for brief periods of time.
If the sound continues for an extended period of time,
your vehicle needs service.
To keep your battery from
being drained, you may want to remove the ELC fuse in
the fuse control panel
until you can have your vehicle
serviced (see “Fuses and Circuit Breakers” in the Index.)
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Using heavier suspension components to get added
durability might not change your weight ratings.
Ask
your retailer to help you load your vehicle the right way.
A CAUTION:
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Do not load your vehicle any heavier than
the
GVWR, or either the maximum front or
rear
GAWR. If you do, parts on your vehicle
can break,
or it can change the way your
vehicle handles. These could cause you to lose
control. Also, overloading can shorten the life
of your vehicle.
I NOTICE:
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Your warranty does not cover parts or
. .. components that fail because of overloading. I
If you put things inside your vehicle -- like suitcases,
tools, packages, or anything else
-- they will go as fast
as the vehicle goes. If you have to stop or turn quickly,
or if there is a crash, they'll keep going.
A CAUTION:
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Things you put inside your vehicle c
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and injure people in a sudden stop or turn, or
in a crash.
Put things in the cargo area of your vehicle.
flry to spread the weight evenly.
0 Never stack heavier things, like suitcases,
inside the vehicle
so that some of them are
above the tops
of the seats.
0 Don't leave an unsecured child restraint in
your vehicle.
0 When you carry something inside the
vehicle, secure
it whenever you can.
0 Don't leave a seat folded down unless you
need to.
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