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A CAUTION:
Using a match near a battery can cause battery
gas to explode. People have been hurt doing this,
and some have been blinded. Use
a flashlight if
you need more light.
Be sure the batteries have enough water. You
don’t need to add water to the ACDelco
Freedom@ battery (or batteries) installed in
every new
GM vehicle. But if a battery has filler
caps, be sure the right amount of fluid is there. If
it is
low, add water to take care of that first. If
you don’t, explosive gas could be present.
Battery fluid contains acid that can burn you.
Don’t get
it on you. If you accidentally get it in
your eyes or on your skin, flush the place with
water and get medical help immediately.
5. Check that the jumper cables don’t have loose or
missing insulation.
If they do, you could get a shock.
The vehicles could be damaged, too.
Before
you connect the cables, here are some basic
things
you should know. Positive (+) will go to
positive
(+) and negative (-) will go to an unpainted
metal engine part or
a body metal surface. Don’t
connect positive
(+) to negative (-) or you will get a
short that would damage the battery and maybe other
parts, too. And don’t connect the negative
(-) to
negative
(-).
Fans or other moving engine parts can injure you
badly. Keep your hands
away from moving parts
once the engine is running.
I
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9. Make your last connection away from the battery, to
the engine block, frame or other unpainted metal
parts
of your vehicle. A ground location has been
provided through a stud attached
to the body surface.
10. Remove the cap on the ground location before using.
11. Now start the vehicle with the good battery and run
the engine for a while.
12. Try to start the vehicle with the dead battery. If it
won’t start after
a few tries, it probably needs service.
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13. Remove the cables in reverse order to prevent
electrical shorting. Take care that they don’t touch
each other or any other metal.
A. Engine Block, Frame, Unpainted Metal Engine Part
or Body Surface
Towing Your Vehicle
Try to have your GM dealer or a professional towing
service tow your vehicle. They can provide the right
equipment and know-how to
tow it without damage. See
“Roadside Assistance” in your Index.
If your vehicle has been changed since it was
factory-new,
by adding things like fog lamps, aero
skirting, or special tires and wheels, these things could
be damaged during towing.
Before you do anything, turn
on the hazard
warning flashers.
When
you call, tell the towing service:
0 That your vehicle has rear-wheel drive.
0 The make, model and year of your vehicle.
Whether you can move the shift lever for
the transmission.
If there was an accident, what was damaged.
B. Good Battery
C. Dead Battery
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Rear Towir -
I NOTICE:
Do not tow the vehicle from the rear with loads
approaching rated
GVW as the weight transfer will
cause the front suspension to become overloaded.
NOTICE:
Do not tow with the sling-type equipment or the
rear bumper will be damaged. Use wheel lift
or
car-carrier equipment. Additional ramping may
be required for car-carrier equipment. Use safety
chains and wheel straps.
Towing a vehicle over rough surfaces could
damage a vehicle. To help avoid damage, install
a towing dolly and raise the vehicle until
adequate clearance is obtained between the
ground and/or wheel-lift equipment.
Engine Overheating (Gasoline Engine)
You will find a coolant temperature gage on your vehicle’s
instrument panel.
If you have a diesel engine, you will also
find a low coolant light on your instrument panel.
If your vehicle has a diesel engine, see “Engine
Overheating”
in the Diesel Engine Supplement.
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If Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
' Steam from an overheated engine can burn you
badly, even if you just open the hood. Stay away
from the engine if you see or hear steam coming
from
it. Just turn it off and get everyone away
from the vehicle until it cools down. Wait until
there is no sign of steam or coolant before you
open the hood.
If you keep driving when your engine is
overheated, the liquids in
it can catch fire. You or
others could
be badly burned. Stop your engine if
it overheats, and get out of the vehicle until the
engine is cool.
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.
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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:
0 Climb a long hill on a hot day.
0 Stop after high-speed driving.
0 Idle for long periods in traffic.
0 Tow a trailer. See “Driving on Grades” in the Index.
If
you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or
so:
1. If you have an air conditioner, turn it off.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary. 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, push the accelerator until
the engine speed
is about twice as fast as normal idle
speed. Bring the engine speed back to normal idle speed
after two
or three minutes. Now see if the warning stops.
But then, if
you still have the warning, turn ofSthe
engine
and get everyone out of the vehicle until it
cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving
-- DRIVE (D).
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Cooling System (Gasoline Engines)
When you decide it’s safe to lift the hood, here’s what
you’ll see:
.. .
A. Radiator Pressure Cap
B. Coolant Recovery Tank
C. Engine Fan(s)
If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don’t do anything else
until it cools down.
e;- ..
The coolant level should be at or above the FULL
COLD mark.
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If it isn’t, you may have a leak in the radiator hoses,
heater hoses, radiator, water pump or somewhere else
in
the cooling system.
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.
I NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, start the engine again.
See
if the engine cooling fan speed increases when
idle speed
is doubled by pushing the accelerator pedal
down.
If it doesn’t, your vehicle needs service. Turn off
the engine.
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