1997 PONTIAC FIREBIRD warning

System Warning Light” and “Towing Your Vehicle” in Anti-Lock 1- System Warning Eight
the Index.)
Your braKe s cem may not be working properly
if the brake system warning light is on. Driving
~ with the brake system warning light on can lead
to an accident.
If the light is still on or if the
anti-lock brake system warning light
is flashing
after
you’ve pulle’d of€ the road and stopped
~
!
ABS
INOP
With the anti-lock brake
system, this light will come
on when you start your
engine and it will stay
on for three seconds.
That’s normal.
carefully, have the vehicle towed for service. If the light flashes when you’re driving, you don’t have
anti-lock brakes and there could be
a problem with your
regular brakes. Pull off the road and stop carefully. You
When the ignition is on* the brake system warning light may notice that the pedal is harder to push. or, the pedal
on when YOu set Your Parking brake* The may go closer to the floor, It may take longer to stop,
light will stay
on if your parking brake doesn’t release Have the vehicle towed for service. (See “Towing Your
fully.
If it stays on after your parking brake is fully Vehicle” in the Index.)
released, it means you have
a brake problem.
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Traction Control System Warning Light
(If Equipped)
I
Your regular brake system may not be working
properly if the anti-lock brake system warning
light is flashing. Driving with the anti-lock
brake system warning light flashing can lead to
an accident. After you’ve pulled off the road
and stopped carefully, have the vehicle towed
for service.
If the anti-lock brake system warning light stays on
longer than normal after you’ve started your engine, turn
the ignition off. Or, if the light comes on and stays on
when you’re driving, stop as soon as possible and turn
the ignition off. Then start the engine again to reset the
system.
If the light still stays on, or comes on again
while you’re driving, your Pontiac needs service. If the
light is on but not flashing and the regular brake system
warning light isn’t on, you still have brakes, but you
don’t have
anti-lock brakes.
The anti-lock brake system warning light should come
on briefly when you turn the ignition key to RUN. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed so it will be
ready to warn you if there is a problem.
TCS
OFF
This warning light should
come on briefly as you start
the engine.
If the. warning
light doesn’t come on then,
have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you if there’s
a problem.
If it stays on, or comes on when you’re driving, there
may be a problem with your traction control system and
your vehicle may need service. When this warning light
is on, the system will not limit wheel spin. Adjust your
driving accordingly.
If your brakes begin to overheat, the brake portion of the
traction control system will shut down, but the throttle
and engine spark control will continue
to work. The
warning light will not come on when this happens.

The traction control system warning light may come on
for the following reasons:
If you turn the system off by pressing the switch
located at the front
of the console the warning light
will come on and stay on and the light on the switch
will
go out. To turn the system back on, press the
switch again. The warning light should go off.
(See “Traction Control System” in the Index
for more information.)
If the temperature of the throttle control b’egins to
rise, the system will turn off and the warning light
will come
on until the system cools down. The
system does this to prevent damage from
overheating.
If the traction control system warning light comes on
and stays on for an extended period
of time when the
system
is turned on, your vehicle needs service.
Low Traction Light
When your anti-lock system
is adjusting brake pressure
to help avoid
a braking skid,
this light will come on.
LOW
TRAC
If you have the traction control system, this light will
also come
on when the system is limiting wheel spin.
Slippery road conditions may exist if the low traction
light comes on,
so adjust your driving accordingly. The
light will stay on for a few seconds after the anti-lock
system stops a’djusting brake pressure or the traction
control system stops limiting wheel spin.
The low traction
light also comes on briefly when you
turn the ignition
key to RUN. If the light doesn’t come
on then, have
it fixed so it will be there to tell you when
the anti-lock brake system or traction control system
is active.
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Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
This gage shows the engine
coolant temperature.
If the
gage pointer moves into the
red area, your engine is too
hot! It means that your
engine coolant has
overheated.
Low Coolant Light (VS Engine)
This warning light should
come on while you are
starting your engine.
If the
light doesn’t
come on, have
it repaired.
If you have been operating your vehicle under normal
driving conditions, you should pull off the road, stop
your vehicle and turn off the engine as soon as possible.
In “Problems
on the Road,” this manual shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index. Your
Firebird is equipped with
a LOW COOLANT
indicator which is designed to detect when the coolant
level drops below set limits. If the low coolant level
sensor (on the radiator) drops while the engine is
running,
the LOW COOLANT indicator will light and
remain lit until the ignition switch
is turned to the OFF
position. Check coolant level and add coolant as needed.
The LOW COOLANT light might stay on after filling
the radiator. Turn the ignition switch to the
OFF
position, then restart the engine to verify that the LOW
COOLANT light goes out. See “Engine Coolant” in
the Index.
2-83

Low Oil Light
LOW
OIL
Your vehicle is equipped
with an oil level monitoring
system. When you start
your engine, the warning
light will come on briefly. If
the light doesn’t come on,
have it repaired.
If the light stays on after starting your engine, your
engine
oil level may be too low. You may need to add
oil. See “Engine Oil” in the Index.
NOTICE:
The oil level monitoring system only checks the
oil level when
you are starting your engine. It
does not keep monitoring the level once
your
engine is running. Also, the oil level check only
works when the engine has been turned off long
enough for the oil to drain back into the oil pan.
2-88

Check Gages Light When the gage pointer first indicates EMPTY (E) you
need to get more right away.
CHECK
GAGES
Fuel Gage
I
This warning light will
come on briefly when
YOU
are starting the engine. If
the light comes on and
stays on while you are
driving, check your gages
to see if they are in the
warning areas.
Your fuel gage shows about
how much fuel is in
your
tank. The gage works only
when the ignition switch is
in the RUN position. Here are four concerns some owners have had
about the
fuel gage. All these situations are normal and do not
indicate that anything
is wrong with the fuel gage.
0
0
0
0
At the gas station, the gas pump shuts off before the
gage reads FULL
(F).
It takes more (or less) gas to fill up than the gage
reads. For example, the gage reads
1/2 full, but it
took more (or less) than half
of the tank's capacity to
fill it.
The gage moves
a little when you turn, stop or
speed up.
When you turn the engine off, the gage doesn't go
back to
EMPTY (E).

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, or when you 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, and you may even notice that your
brake pedal moves a little. This is normal.
ABS
INOP
If there’s a problem with the
anti-lock brake system, this
warning light will stay
on or
flash. See “Anti-Lock
Brake System Warning
Light” in the Index.
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 st,op rolling, the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at
the
rear wheels.
4-7

LOW
TRAC
This light will come on
when your traction control
system is limiting wheel
spin. See “Low Traction
Light” in the Index.
You
may feel or hear the system
working, but this is normal.
TCS
OFF
When the system is on,
this warning light will
come on to let you how
if
there’s a problem with your
traction control. system.
See “Traction Control
System Warning Light”
in the Index.
The traction control system may operate on dry roads
under some conditions, and you may notice a reduction
in acceleration when this happens. This is normal and
doesn’t mean there’s a problem with your vehicle.
Examples of these conditions include a hard acceleration
in
a turn, or an abrupt upshift or downshift. Also, when
the compact spare tire is on
the rear axle, the traction
control system will cycle and limit acceleration for about
the first 15 seconds of driving after each engine start.
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
re-engage the cruise control. (See “Cruise Control’’ in
the Index.)
When this warning light is on, the system will not limit
wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.
The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever you start your vehicle.
To limit wheel spin,
especially in slippery road conditions, you should
always leave the system on. But you can turn the
traction control system off
if you ever need to. (You
should turn the system off if your vehicle ever gets stuck
in sand, mud,
ice or snow. See “Rocking Your Vehicle”
in the Index.)
4-9