1997 TOYOTA TACOMA lock

56In freezing weather, warm the windshield with the defroster before using the wash-
er. This will help prevent the washer fluid
from freezing on your windshield, which can block your vision.
NOTICE
Do not operate the wipers if the windshield is dry. It may scratch the
glass.

61
The engine ignition will continue to oper-
ate, however, until the battery is dis-
charged. Turn off the air conditioning,
blower, radio, e
ct., and drive directly to the
nearest Toyota dealer or repair shop.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving if the engine drive belt is broken or loose.
(d) Low Oil Pressure Warning Light
This light warns that the engine oil pres-
sure is too low.
If it flickers or stays on while you are driv-
ing, pull off the road to a safe place and
stop the engine immediately. Call a Toyo-
ta dealer or qualified repair shop for assis- tance.
The light may occasionally flicker when
the engine is idling or it may come on brief-
ly after a hard stop. There is no cause for concern if it then goes out when the en-
gine is accelerated slightly.
The light may come on when the oil level
is extremely low. It is not designed to indi- cate low oil level, and the oil level must bechecked using the level dipstick.
NOTICE
Do not drive the vehicle with the warning light onÐeven for one
block. It may ruin the engine.
(e) Low Fuel Level Warning Light
This light comes on when the fuel level in
the tank becomes nearly empty. Fill up the tank as soon as possible. (f) Malfunction Indicator Lamp
This lamp comes on in the following cases.
a. The fuel tank is completely empty. (See Fuel gaugeº in Chapter 1-5 for in- structions.)
b. The fuel tank cap is not tightened se-
curely. (See Fuel tank capº in Chapter
1-2 for instructions.)
c. There is a problem somewhere in your
engine or automatic transmission electri- cal system.
If it comes on while you are driving in case
c, have your vehicle checked/repaired by
your Toyota dealer as soon as possible. (g) ABSº Warning Light
This light warns that there is a problem
somewhere in your anti-lock brake sys-tem.
If the light comes on while you are driving,
have your vehicle checked by your T
oyota
dealer as soon as possible.
The light will come on when the ignition
key is turned to the ONº position. After
about 3 seconds, the light will go off. When the ABSº warning light is on (and
the brake system warning light is off), thebrake system operates conventionally but
anti-lock brake system is not assistingbrake performance so that the wheels can
lock-up during sudden braking or braking
on slippery road surfaces.
Vehicles with rear differential lock sys- temÐ
The anti-lock brake system does not op-
erate when the rear differential is locked.
It is normal operation for the ABSº warn-
ing light to be on at this time.

62(h) SRS Airbag Warning Light
This light will come on when the igni-
tion
key is turned to the ACCº or ONº
position. After about 6 seconds, the
light w ill go off. This means the airbag
system is operating properly.
The warning light system monitors the air-
bag sensor assembly, inflator, warning light, interconnecting wiring and power sources.
If either of the following conditions occurs, this indicates a malfunction somewhere in the parts monitored by the warning light
system. Contact your Toyota dealer as
soon as possible to service the vehicle. The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the ACCº or
ONº position or remains on.
The light comes on while driving.
(i) Light Reminder Buzzer
This buzzer will sound if the driver's door is opened while the ignition switch isturned to the LOCKº position with the
headlight switch on. Removing the key will
not stop the buzzer as long as the head- light switch is on. (j) Key Reminder Buzzer
This buzzer reminds you to remove the
key when you open the driver's door withthe ignition key in the ACCº or LOCKº position.
(k) Unengaged Parkº Warning Light
(vehicles with automatic tranmis- sion)
The light warns that the transmission
Parkº mechanism is not engaged. If the
front drive control lever is in the Nº posi-
tion while the selector lever is in the Pº
position, the transmission will disengage
and the wheels will not lock.
To restore the park function, shift
the front drive control lever out of
Nº, or the vehicle can move. CAUTION
!
(l) Automatic Transmission Fluid Tem- perature Warning Light
This light warns that the automatic trans- mission fluid temperature is too high. If this light comes on while you are driving,
slow down and pull off the road. Stop the
vehicle at a
safe place and put the selector
lever in Pº. With the engine idling, wait
until the light goes off. If the light goes off,
you may start the vehicle again. If the light
does not go off, call a Toyota dealer or
qualified repair shop for assistance.
(m)Low Windshield Washer Fluid
Level Warning Light (Canada)
The light warns that the windshield wash-
er fluid level is too low. Add washer fluid at
your earliest opportunity. (For instruc-
tions, see Adding washer fluidº in Chap- ter 7-3.)
CHECKING SERVICE REMINDER INDI-
CATORS (except the low fuel level
warning light)
1. Apply the parking brake.
2. Turn ignition key to ACCº. The SRS airbag warnign light should
come on. it goes off after about 6 sec- onds.

Part 1Ignition switch with steering lock
65
OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS ANDCONTROLSÐ
Chapter 1-6 Ignition switch,
Transmission and Parking brake
Ignition swi
tch with steering lock
Automatic transmission
Manual transmission
Four-wheel drive system
Rear differential lock system
Parking brake
Cruise control
Clutch start cancel switch
STARTº ÐStarter motor on. The key will return to the ONº position when released.
For starting tips, see Part 3.
ONº ÐEngine on and all accessories on.
This is the normal driving position. ACCº - Accessories such as the ra-
dio operate, but the engine is off.
If you leave the key in the ACCº or
LOCKº position and open the driver's
door, a buzzer will remind you to remove
the key.
LOCKº ÐEngine is off and the steer-
ing wheel is locked. The key can be re-
moved only at this position. You must push in the key to turn the key
from ACCº to the LOCKº position. On
vehicles with an automatic transmission,
the selector lever must be put in the Pº
position before pushing the key. When starting the engine, the key may
seem stuck at the LOCKº position. To
free it, first be sure the key is pushed all
the way in, and then rock the steering
wheel slightly
while turning the key gently.For manual transmission:
Never remove the key when the
vehicle is moving, as this will lock
the steering wheel and result in loss
of steering control. CAUTION
!
NOTICE
Do not leave the key in the ONº position if the engine is not running.
The battery will discharge and the ignition could be damaged.

67
Your automatic transmission has a shift
lock system to minimize the possibility of
incorrect operation. This means you can
only shift out of Pº position when the brake
pedal is depressed (with the ignition
switch in ONº position and the selector le-ver pulled toward you). (a) Normal Driving
1. Start the engine as instructed in How to start the engineº in Part 3. The trans- mission must be in Pº or Nº.
2. With your foot holding down the brake pedal, shift the selector lever to Dº.
In Dº position, the automatic transmis-
sion system will select the most suitable
gear for running conditions such as nor-
mal cruising, hill climbing, hard towing, etc.
Always turn the overdrive switch on for
better fuel economy and quieter driving. If
the engine coolant temperature is low, thetransmission will not shift into overdrive
gear even with the overdrive switch on.
Never put your foot on the accelerator pedal while shifting. CAUTION
!
3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal. Depress the accelerator pedal
slowly for smooth starting.
(b) Using engine braking
To use engine braking, you can downshift the transmission as follows: Turn off the overdrive switch. The O/D
OFFº indicator light will come on and the transmission will downshift to the
third gear.
Shift into the 2º position when the ve-
hicle speed drops down to or lowerthan 106 km/h (66 mph). The trans- mission will downshift to the second
gear and more powerful engine brak-
ing will be obtained.
Shift into the Lº position when the ve-
hicle speed drops down to or lower than 61 km/h (38 mph). The transmis- sion will downshift to the first gear and
maximum engine braking will be ap- plied. Vehicles with cruise controlÐWhen the
cruise control is being used, even if you
downshift the transmission by turning off
the overdrive switch, engine braking is not
applied because the cruise control is not cancelled. For ways to decrease the ve-
hicle speed, see Cruise controlº in this
chapter.
Be careful when downshifting on a
slippery surface. Abrupt shifting
could cause the vehicle to spin orskid.
CAUTION
!
(c) Using the 2º and Lº positions
The 2º and Lº positions are used for
strong engine braking as described pre-
viously. With the selector lever in 2º or Lº, you
can start the vehicle in motion as with the
lever in Dº. With the selector lever in 2º, the vehicle
will start in the first gear and automatically
shift to the second gear.
With the selector lever in Lº, the trans-
mission is engaged in the first gear.

69
(g) Rocking your vehicle if stuck
If you rock your vehicle to make it
out when it becomes stuck in snow,
mud, sand, etc., first check that there are no objects or people
around the vehicle. During
operation, the vehicle may suddenly move forward or
backward as it becomes unstuck,
causing injury or damage to nearby
people or objects.
CAUTION
!
NOTICE
If you rock your vehicle, observe the following precautions to prevent
damage to the transmission andother parts.
Do not depress the acceleratorpedal while shifting the selectorlever or before the transmission is
completely shifted to forward or reverse gear.
Do not race the engine and avoid
spinning the wheels.
If your vehicle remains stuck afterrocking the vehicle several times,
consider other ways such as tow-ing.
(h) If you cannot shift the selector lever
out of Pº position
If you cannot shift the selector lever from Pº position even though the brake pedal
is depressed, use the shift lock override
button. For instructions, see If you can- not shift automatic transmission selectorleverº in Part 4.

71
Your automatic transmission has a shift
lock system to minimize the possibility of
incorrect operation. This means you can
only shift out of Pº position when the brake
pedal is depressed (with the ignition
switch in ONº position and the selector le- ver pulled toward you).
(a) Normal driving
1. Start the engine as instructed in How to start the engineº in Part 3. The trans- mission must be in Pº or Nº.
2. With your foot holding down the brake pedal, shift the selector lever to Dº.
In Dº position, the automatic transmis-
sion system will select the most suitable
gear for running conditions such as nor-
mal cruising, hill climbing, hard towing, etc.
Always turn the overdrive switch on for
better fuel economy and quieter driving. If
the engine coolant temperature is low, the transmission will not shift into the over-
drive gear even with the overdrive switch on.
Never put your foot on the
accelerator pedal while shifting. CAUTION
!
3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal. Depress the accelerator pedal
slowly for smooth starting.
(b) Using engine braking
To use engine braking, you can downshift the transmission as follows: Turn off the overdrive switch. The O/D
OFFº indicator light will come on and the transmission will downshift to the
third gear.
Shift into the 2º position. The trans-
mission will downshift to the second
gear when the vehicle speed drops
down to or lower than 131 km/h (81
mph), and more powerful engine brak-
ing will be obtained.
Shift into the Lº position. The trans-mission will downshift to the first gear
when the vehicle speed drops down to
or lower than 63 km/h (39 mph), and
maximum engine braking will be ap- plied. Vehicles with cruise control-When the
cruise control is being used, even if you
downshift the transmission by turning offthe overdrive switch, engine braking will
not be applied because the cruise control
is not cancelled. For ways to decrease the
vehicle speed, see Cruise controlº in
this
chapter.
Be careful when downshifting on a
slippery surface. Abrupt shifting
could cause the vehicle to spin or skid. CAUTION
!
(c) Using 2º and Lº positions The 2º and Lº positions are used for
strong engine braking as described pre-
viously. With the selector lever in 2º or Lº, you
can start the vehicle in motion as with the
lever in Dº. With the selector lever in 2º, the vehicle
will start in the first gear and automatically
shift to the second gear.
With the selector lever in Lº, the trans-
mission is engaged in the first gear.

73
(h) Rocking your vehicle if stuck
If you rock your vehicle to make it
out when it becomes stuck in snow,
mud, sand, etc., first check that there are no objects or people
around the vehicle. During
operation, the vehicle may suddenly move forward or
backward as it becomes unstuck,
causing injury or damage to nearby
people or objects.
CAUTION
!
NOTICE
If you rock your vehicle, observe the following precautions to prevent
damage to the transmission andother parts.
Do not depress the acceleratorpedal while shifting the selectorlever or before the transmission is
completely shifted to forward or reverse gear.
Do not race the engine and avoid
spinning the wheels.
If your vehicle remains stuck afterrocking the vehicle several times,
consider other ways such as tow-ing.
(i) If you cannot shift the selector lever
out of Pº position
If you cannot shift the selector lever from the Pº position even though the brake
pedal is depressed, use the shift lock
override button. For instructions, see If you cannot shift automatic transmissionselector leverº in Part 4.