1998 CHEVROLET CAVALIER engine overheat

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 0 The 1998 CheT ~ - :et Cavalier Owner’s Manual
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Seats and Restraint Systems
This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains the “SRS” system.
Features and Controls
This section explains how to start and operate your vehicle.
Comfort Controls and Audio Systems
This section tells you how to adiust the ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate your audio system.
Your Driving and the Roaa
Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions.
Problems on the Road
This section tells what to do if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or overheated engine, etc.
Service and Appearance Care
Here the manual tells you how to keep your vehicle running properly and looking good.
Maintenance Schedule
This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and what fluids and lubricants to use.
Customer Assistance Information
This section tells you how to contact Chevrolet for assistan.ce and how to get service and owner publications.
It also gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects”
on page 8- 10.
Index
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To Use the Engine Coolant Heater
1. Turn off the engine.
2. Open the hood and unwrap the electrical cord. On
vehicles
with a 2.2L engine, the electrical cord is
located near the engine oil dipstick.
On vehicles
with a
2.4L engine, the electrical cord is located in
front of the engine coolant surge tank on the
passenger’s side.
3. Plug it into a normal, grounded 1 10-volt AC outlet.
Pluggmg me cord into an ungrounded outlet
could cause an electrical shock. Also, the wrong
kind of extension cord could overheat and cause
a fire. You could be seriously injured. Plug the
cord into a properly grounded three-prong 110-volt AC outlet. If the cord won’t reach, use a
heavy-duty three-prong extension cord rated for
at least
15 amps.
4. Before starting the engine, be sure to unplug
and store the cord as it was before to keep it away
from moving engine parts. If you don’t, it could
be damaged.
How long should you keep the coolant heater plugged
in? The answer depends
on the outside temperature, the
kind
of oil you have, and some other things. Instead of
trying to list everything here, we ask that you contact
your dealer in the area where you’ll be parking your
vehicle. The dealer can give you
the best advice for that
particular area.
Automatic Transaxle Operation
Your vehicle may be equipped with a three-speed
automatic or a four-speed automatic transaxle. The shift
lever is located on the console between the seats.
There are six different positions for the shift lever on
the three-speed automatic and seven positions for the
four-speed automatic transaxles. While PARK
(P),
REVERSE (R) and NEUTRAL (N) operate identically
for both transaxles, the forward gear positions represent
different gearing and operation. See “Forward Gears
(3-Speed)” or “Forward Gears (4-Speed)” later
in this section.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Forward Gears (3-Speed)
DRIVE (D): This position is for normal driving.
SECOND (2): This position gives you more power but
lower fuel economy.
You can use SECOND (2) on hills.
It can help control your speed as you go down steep
mountain roads, but then you would also want to use
your brakes
off and on.
NOTICE:
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Don’t drive in SECOND (2) for more than
25 miles (40 km), or at speeds over 55 mph
(88 km/h), or you can damage your transaxle.
Use DRIVE
@) as much as possible. Don’t shift
into SECOND
(2) unless you are going slower
than
65 mph (105 km/h), or you can damage
your engine.
FIRST (1): This position gives you even more
power (but lower fuel economy) than SECOND (2). You
can use it on very steep hills, or in deep snow or mud. If
the selector lever is put in FIRST (l), the transaxle
won’t shift into first gear until the vehicle is going
slowly enough.
NOTICE:
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If your front wheels can’t rotate, don’t try to
drive. This might happen
if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud or were up against a solid
object. You could damage your transaxle. Also,
if
you stop when going uphill, don’t hold your
vehicle there with only the accelerator pedal. This
could overheat and damage the transaxle. Use
your brakes or shift into
PARK (P) to hold your
vehicle in position on
a hill.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine FIRST (1): This position gives you even more
power
(but lower fuel economy) than SECOND (2). You
can use it on very steep hills, or in deep snow or mud. If
the selector lever is put in FIRST (l), the transaxle
won’t shift into first gear until the vehicle is going
slowly enough.
NOTICE:
If your front wheels can’t rotate, don’t try to
drive. This might happen
if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud or were up against
a solid
object. You could damage your transaxle.
Also, if
you stop when going uphill, don’t hold your
vehicle there with only the accelerator pedal. This
could overheat and damage the transaxle. Use
your brakes or shift into
PARK (P) to hold your
vehicle in position on a hill.
Manual Transaxle Operation
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This is your shift pattern.
1 3 5
2 4 R

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine To set the parking brake, hold the brake pedal down and
pull up
on the parhng brake lever. If the ignition is on,
the brake system warning light will come on.
To release the parking brake, hold the brake pedal down.
Pull the parking brake lever up until you can press the
release button. Hold the release button
in as you move
the brake lever all the way down.
NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brake on can cause
your rear brakes to overheat. You may have to
replace them, and you could also damage other
parts of your vehicle.
Shifting Into PARK (P)
(Automatic Transaxle Only)
It can be dangerous to get out of your vehicle if
the shift lever is not fully in PARK (P) with the
parking brake
firmly set. Your vehicle can roll. If
you have left the engine running, the vehicle can
move suddenly. You or others could be injured.
To be sure your vehicle won’t move, even when
you’re on fairly level ground, use the
steps that
follow.
If you’re pulling a trailer, see “Towing a
Trailer” in the Index.
1. Hold the brake pedal down and set the
parking brake.
.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 2. Move the shift lever into the PARK (P) position like
this: Hold in the button on the lever, and push the
lever all the way toward the front
of your vehicle.
3. Move the ignition key to LOCK.
4. Remove the key and take it with you. If you can
leave your vehicle with the ignition key in your
hand, your vehicle
is in PARK (P).
Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine
Running (Automatic Transaxle Only)
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AUTION:
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It can be dangerous to leave your vehicle with the
engine running. Your vehicle could move
suddenly if the shift lever
is not fully in PARK (P)
with the parking brake firmly set. And, if you
leave the vehicle with the engine running, it could
overheat and even catch fire. You or others could
be injured. Don’t leave your vehicle with the
engine running unless you have to.
If you have to leave your vehicle with the engine
running, be sure your vehicle
is in PARK (P) and your
parking brake is firmly set before you leave it. After
you’ve moved the shift lever into PARK
(P), hold the
regular brake pedal down. Then, see if you can move the
shift lever away from PARK
(P) without first pushing
the button. If you can,
it means that the shift lever
wasn’t fully locked into PARK
(P).
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Ashtrays and Cigarette Lighter
To use the lighter, just push it in all the way and let go.
When it’s ready, it will pop back out by itself.
I NOTICE:
Don’t hold a cigarette lighter in with your hand
while
it is heating. If you do, it won’t be able to
back away from the heating element when it’s
ready. That can make it overheat, damaging the
lighter and the heating element.
To clean the front ashtray, push down on the snuffer
plate, lift the ashtray out then empty it.
To clean the rear ashtray, open it, push down on the
snuffer, and pull it out.
Don’t put papers and other things that burn into
your ashtrays.
If you do, cigarettes or other
smoking materials could set them on fire,
causing damage.
Sun Visors
To block out glare, you can swing down the visors. You
can also swing them
to the side.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Enhanced Traction System Active Light Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
When your Enhanced
Traction System is limiting
wheel spin, this light will
LOW
TRAC
come on.
Slippery road conditions may exist
if the Enhanced
Traction System active light comes on,
so adjust your
driving accordingly.
The light will stay on for a few seconds after the
Enhanced Traction System stops limiting wheel spin.
The Enhanced Traction System active 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 system is active.
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TEMP
Your vehicle is equipped with one of these gages.
With the ignition in
RUN, 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. 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.
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