1998 HONDA ODYSSEY spare tire

Towing a Trailer

Your vehicle has a trailer lighting connector. To use the connector,
remove the left rear light cover.
Refer to the drawing above for the
wiring color code and purpose of
each connector pin.
Since the lighting and wiring can be
different for various brands of
trailers, have a technician who is
familiar with your trailer modify its
lighting plug. A converter may be required between the vehicle and
trailer for the lights to work correctly. Before Starting Out
As you are preparing to tow your
trailer, do the following: Measure the trailer's tongue load.
You can do this with a bathroom
scale.
Verify that the hitch and safety
chain are securely fastened. Check the condition and air
pressure of all tires on the trailer and your vehicle. Low tire
pressure can seriously affect the
handling. Also check the spare tire. With everything loaded and the
trailer connected, check that therear of the vehicle is not sagging.
If so, redistribute the load in the
vehicle. Check that all lights on the vehicle
and trailer are working properly.
Driving

GROUND
(BLACK)
BACK-UP LIGHT
(GREEN/BLACK)
LEFT TURN SIGNAL
(GREEN/BLUE)

RIGHT TURN SIGNAL
(GREEN/YELLOW)
BRAKE LIGHT

(GREEN/WHITE)
TAILLIGHT
(RED/BLACK)ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Tires

To safely operate your vehicle, your
tires must be the proper type and
size, in good condition with adequate

tread, and correctly inflated. The

following pages give more detailed
information on how and when tocheck air pressure, how to inspect
your tires for damage and wear, and
what to do when your tires need to
be replaced.
Inflation

Keeping the tires properly inflated
provides the best combination of
handling, tread life and riding comfort. Underinflated tires wear
unevenly, adversely affect handling and fuel economy, and are more
likely to fail from being overheated. Overinflated tires can make your
vehicle ride more harshly, are more prone to damage from road hazards,
and wear unevenly.
We recommend that you visually check your tires every day. If you
think a tire might be low, check it
immediately with a tire gauge. Use a gauge to measure the air
pressure at least once a month. Even
tires that are in good condition may lose one to two psi (10 to 20 kPa, 0.1
to 0.2 kgf/cm2) per month.
Remember to check the spare tire at
the same time you check all theother tires.
Check the pressure in the tires when
they are cold. This means the vehicle
has been parked for at least three
hours. If you have to drive the
vehicle before checking the tire pressure, the tires can still be
considered "cold" if you drive less
than 1 mile (1.6 km).

Maintenance

Using tires that are excessively
worn or improperly inflated can
cause a crash in which you can be seriously hurt or killed.
Follow all instructions in this
owner's manual regarding tire inflation and maintenance.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Tires

If you check the pressure when the
tires are hot (the vehicle has been driven several miles), you will see
readings 4 to 6 psi (30 to 40 kPa, 0.3
to 0.4 kgf/cm2) higher than the cold reading. This is normal. Do not let
air out to match the specified cold
pressure. The tire will be
underinflated.
You should get your own tire pressure gauge and use it whenever
you check your tire pressures. This
will make it easier for you to tell if a pressure loss is due to a tire problemand not due to a variation between

gauges.
Recommended Tire Pressures for
Normal Driving

The following chart shows the recommended cold tire pressures for
most normal driving conditions andspeeds. Tire pressures for high
speed driving are shown on page
251.

The compact spare tire pressure is: 60 psi (420 kPa , 4.2 kgf/cm2) These pressures are also given on
the tire information label on thedriver's doorjamb.
Tubeless tires have some ability to self-seal if they are punctured.
However, because leakage is often
very slow, you should look closely for punctures if a tire starts losing

pressure.

MaintenanceProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Lights

1. Open the tailgate. Swing the taillight cover open and remove it.
To replace a bulb on the right side, remove the spare tire (see page 224).

2. Determine which of the three bulbs is burned out: tail/stoplight,
back-up light or turn signal.
3. Remove the socket by turning it
one-quarter turn counterclockwise.
4. Remove the burned out bulb from the socket by pulling it straight outof its socket.
5. Install the new bulb in the socket. 6. Reinstall the socket into the light

assembly.

7. Test the lights to make sure the new bulb is working.
8. Reinstall the taillight assembly
cover.

9. (Right side) Reinstall the spare tire.
Maintenance

COVER

Replacing Rear BulbsProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Taking Care of the Unexpected
This section covers the more- common problems that motorists
experience with their vehicles. It
gives you information about how to safely evaluate the problem and what
to do to correct it. If the problem has stranded you on the side of the road,
you may be able to get going again. If not, you will also find instructionson getting your vehicle towed. Compact Spare Tire....................... 222
Changing a Flat Tire..................... 223
If Your Engine Won't Start........... 229 Nothing Happens or theStarter Motor OperatesVery Slowly......................... 229
The Starter Operates Normally................................. 230
Jump Starting................................. 230 If Your Engine Overheats............. 232
Low Oil Pressure Indicator .......... 234Charging System Indicator........... 235
Malfunction Indicator Lamp ........ 236
Brake System Indicator................ 237 Closing the Sunroof....................... 238
Fuses............................................... 239 Checking and Replacing........... 240

Towing............................................ 244

Taking Care of the UnexpectedProCarManuals.comMain Menu s t

Compact Spare Tire

Your vehicle has a compact spare tire that takes up less space. Use thisspare tire as a temporary replace-
ment only. Get your regular tire
repaired or replaced and put back on
your vehicle as soon as you can.
Check the inflation pressure of the
compact spare tire every time you
check the other tires. It should be
inflated to:60 psi (420 kPa , 4.2 kgf/cm2)

Follow these
precautions whenever

you are using the compact spare tire:

Do not exceed 50 mph (80 km/h)

under any circumstances.

This tire gives a harsher ride and
less traction on some road sur-

faces than the regular tire. Use

greater caution while driving on

this tire.
Do not mount snow chains on the

compact spare.

The wheel of the compact spare
tire is designed especially to fit

your vehicle. Do not use your
spare tire on another vehicle

unless it is the same make and

model.
INDICATOR LOCATION MARK
The compact spare tire has a shorter tread life than a regular tire. Replace
it when you can see the tread wear
indicator bars. The replacement should be the same size and design
tire, mounted on the same wheel.
The compact spare tire is not designed to be mounted on a regular
wheel, and the compact wheel is not designed for mounting a regular tire.
Taking Care of the Unexpected TREAD WEAR INDICATOR BARProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Changing a Flat Tire
If you have a flat tire while driving,
stop in a safe place to change it.
Stopping in traffic or on the shoulder of a busy road is dangerous. Drive
slowly along the shoulder until you
get to an exit or an area to stop that is far away from the traffic lanes. TOOL KIT


SPARE TIRE
JACK
1. Park the vehicle on firm, level ground away from traffic. Turn on
the hazard warning lights and turn
the ignition
switch to LOCK (0).
2. Put the transmission in Park. Set the parking brake. Have all of the
passengers get out of the vehicle
while you change the tire. ARMREST PAD
TRAY
3. Open the tailgate. Fold down the third seat's seat-back (see page80).

4. The tool kit and jack are stored under the third seat armrest on
the driver's side. Remove the armrest pad by pulling it straight

up.

CONTINUED

Taking Care of the Unexpected

The vehicle can easily roll off
the jack, seriously injuring
anyone underneath.
Follow the directions for
changing a tire exactly, and
never get under the vehicle when it is supported only by the

jack.ProCarManuals.comMain Menu Table of Contents s t

Changing a Flat Tire

5. Remove the tools from the tray. Remove the tray by pulling itstraight up.
6. Loosen the jack from its holder by turning the end counterclockwise.Remove the jack from the
compartment. 7. Unzip the spare tire cover.

STORAGE BIN

8. Unscrew the wing bolt. Remove the storage bin and spare tire.
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