1998 CADILLAC ELDORADO Owners Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine NOTICE:
If your engine catches fire because you keep
driving with no coolant, your vehicle can be
badly damaged. The costly repairs
would not be
covered by your warranty. See “Overheated
Engine Protection Operating Mode” in the Index.
If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or hear no
steam, the problem may
not be too serious. Sometimes
the engine can get a little too hot when you:
Climb a long hill on a hot day.
Stop after high-speed driving.
Idle for long periods in traffic.
Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or
so:
1. Turn off your air conditioner.
2. Dial temperature control to the highest heat setting
and open the windows, as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving
-- OVERDRIVE (0) or THIRD (3).
If you no longer have the overheat warning, you can
drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about
10 minutes.
If the warning doesn’t come back on,
you can
drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can idle the engine
for two or three rqinutes while you’re parked,
to see
if the warning stops. But then, if you still have the
warning,
turn off the engine and get everyone out of
the vehicle until it cools down. Also, see “Overheated
Engine Protection Operating Mode” listed previously
in this section.
You may decide not
to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
5-17

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When you decide it’s safe to lift the hood, here’s what
you’ll see:
A CAUTION:
An electric engine cooling fan under the hood can
start
up even when the engine is not running and
can injure you. Keep hands, clothing and tools
away
from any underhood electric fan.

A. Coolant Surge Tank with Pressure Cap
B. Electric Engine Fans
If the coolant inside the coolant surge tank is boiling,
don’t do anything else until it cools down.
5-18

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine .. ”.
If it isn’t, the coolant level should be indicated by a
CHECK COOLANT LEVEL message on the Driver
Information Center. If it is, you
may have a leak in the
radiator hoses, heater hoses, radiator, water pump or
somewhere else in the cooling system.
A CAUTION:
Heater and radiator hoses, and other engine
parts, can be very hot. Don’t touch them.
If you
do, you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine if there is
a leak. If you run
the engine, it could lose all coolant. That could
cause an engine fire, and you could be burned.
Get any leak fixed before you drive the vehicle.
NOTICE:
Engine damage if you keep running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
See “Overheated Engine Protection Operating Mode” in the Index.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check to
see if the electric engine cooling fans are running. If the
engine is overheating, both fans should be running. If
they aren’t, your vehicle needs service.
5-19

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Surge
Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but the coolant level
isn’t at the proper level
(2.5 inches (6.4 cm) below the
base
of the fill neck), add a 50/50 mixture of clean
water (preferably distilled) and DEX-COOL@ coolant at
the coolant surge tank, but be sure the cooling system,
including the coolant surge tank pressure cap,
is cool
before you do it. (See “Engine Coolant’‘ in
the Index for
more information.)
A CAUTION:
Steam and scalding liquids from a hot cooling
system can blow out and burn you badly. They
are under pressure, and if
you turn the coolant
surge tank pressure cap
-0 even a little -- they
can come out at high speed. Never turn the
cap when the cooling system, including the
coolant surge tank pressure cap, is hot. Wait
for the cooling system and coolant surge tank
pressure cap to cool
if you ever have to turn
the pressure cap.
I
Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water, or some other
liquid like alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant mixture will. Your vehicle’s coolant
warning system
is set for the proper coolant
mixture. With plain water or the wrong mixture,
your engine could get too hot but you wouldn’t
CAUTION: (Continued)
5-20

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine CAUTION: (Continued)
get the overheat warning. Your engine could
catch fire and you
or others could be burned.
Use a 50/50 mixture of clean water and
DEX-COOL@ coolant.
1 NOTICE:
In cold weather, water can freeze and crack the
engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
So
use the recommended coolant.
I A CAUTION:
You can be burned if you spill coolant on hot
engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and it
will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don't spill coolant on a hot engine.
I. You can remove the coolant surge tank pressure
cap when the cooling system, including the coolant
surge tank pressure cap and upper radiator hose,
is no longer hot. Turn the pressure cap slowly
counterclockwise until it first stops. (Don't press
down while turning the pressure cap.)
If you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop. A hiss means
there
is still some pressure left.
5-21

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine .: .. ,I
2. Then keep turning the cap, but now push down as
you turn it. Remove the pressure cap.
3. Then fill the coolant surge tank with the proper
mixture, up to the base of the filler neck.
5-22

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 4. With the coolant surge tank pressure cap off. start the
engine and
let it run until you can feel the upper
radiator hose getting
hot. Watch out for the engine
cooling fans.
By this time, the coolant level inside the coolant
surge tank may be lower. If the level
is lower, add
more
of the proper mixture to the coolant surge tank
until the level reaches about 2.5 inches (6.4 cm)
below the base of the filler neck.
a
5. Then replace the pressure cap. Be sure the arrows on
the pressure cap
line up like this.
Start the engine and allow it to warm up. If the CHECK
COOLANT LEVEL message does not appear on the
Driver Information Center, coolant
is at the proper fill
level.
If a CHECK COOLANT LEVEL message does
appear, repeat Steps
1 through 3 or see your dealer.
5-23

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving.
especially
if you maintain your tires properly. If air goes
out
of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But if you should ever have a “blowout,” here are
a few
tips about what
to expect and what to do:
If a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel firmly.
Steer to maintain lane position, and then gently brake
to
a stop well out of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve. acts much like a
skid and may require the same correction you’d use in a
skid. In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way
you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake
to a stop -- well off the road if possible.
If
a tire goes flat, the next part shows how to use your
jacking equipment to change a flat tire safely.
Changing a Flat Tire
If a tire goes flat, avoid further tire and wheel damage
by driving slowly
to a level place. Turn on your hazard
warning flashers.
I A CAUTION:
Changing a tire can cause an injury. The vehicle
can slip
off the jack and roll over you or other
people.
You and they could be badly injured.
Find
a level place to change your tire. To help
prevent the vehicle from moving:
1. Put the shift lever in PARK (P).
2, Set the parking brake firmly.
3. lhrn off the engine.
To be even more certain the vehicle won’t move,
you can put blocks
at the front and rear of the
tire farthest away from the one being changed.
That would be the tire on the other side
of the
vehicle,
at the opposite end.
5-24