Foreword
Welcome to the growing family of new NISSAN owners. This vehicle is delivered to you with confidence. It was produced using the latest
techniques and strict quality control.
This manual was prepared to help you understand the operation and maintenance of your vehicle so that you may enjoy many miles of
driving pleasure. Please read through this manual before operating your vehicle.
A separate Warranty Information and Maintenance Log Booklet explains details about the warranties covering your vehicle and
vehicle maintenance schedules. Additionally, a separate Customer Care/Lemon Law Booklet will explain how to resolve any
concerns you may have with your vehicle, as well as clarify your rights under your state's lemon law.
Your NISSAN dealership knows your vehicle best. When you require any service or have any questions, they will be glad to assist you with
the extensive resources available to them.
WARNING
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
REMINDERS FOR SAFETY!
Follow these important driving rules to help ensure a safe and
complete trip for you and your passengers:
cNEVER drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
cALWAYS observe posted speed limits and never drive too
fast for conditions.
cALWAYS use your seat belts and appropriate child restraint
systems. Pre-teen children should be seated in the rear seat.cALWAYS provide information about the proper use of
vehicle safety features to all occupants of the vehicle.
cALWAYS review this Owner's Manual for important safety
information.
1997 NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA
All rights reserved. No part of this Owner's Manual may be reproduced
or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
without the prior written permission of Nissan North America, Inc.
NOTES ON THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN
THIS OWNER'S MANUAL
This Owner's Manual contains descriptions and operating in-
structions for all systems, features and optional equipment that
might appear in any model of this vehicle built for any destina-
tion in North America, including the continental United States,
Canada and Hawaii. Therefore, you may find information in this
manual that does not apply to your vehicle.
MODIFICATION OF YOUR VEHICLE
This vehicle should not be modified. Modification could
affect its performance, safety or durability, and may even
violate governmental regulations. In addition, damage or
performance problems resulting from modifications may
not be covered under NISSAN warranties.
All information, specifications and illustrations in this manual are those
in effect at the time of printing. NISSAN reserves the right to change
specifications or design without notice and without obligation.
The inside pages of this manual contain
a minimum of 50% recycled fibers,
including 10% post-consumer fibers.
To ensure smooth, trouble-free, safe and
economical driving, NISSAN provides two
periodic maintenance schedules that may
be used, depending upon the conditions in
which you usually drive. These schedules
contain both distance and time intervals, up
to 60,000 miles (96,000 km)/48 months. For
most people, the odometer reading indi-
cates when service is needed. However, if
you drive very little, your vehicle should be
serviced at the regular time intervals shown
in the schedules.After 60,000 miles
(96,000 km)/48 months, continue peri-
odic maintenance at the same
mileage/time intervals.
SCHEDULE ONE
Follow Periodic Maintenance Schedule One
if your driving habits frequently include one
or more of the following driving conditions:
cRepeated short trips of less than 5
miles (8 km).
cRepeated short trips of less than 10
miles (16 km) with outside tempera-
tures below freezing.
cOperating the vehicle in hot weather
during stop-and-go ``rush hour'' traf-
fic.cExtensive idling and/or low speed
driving for long distances, such as
police, taxi or door-to-door delivery
use.
cDriving in dusty conditions.
cDriving on rough, muddy, or salt
spread roads.
cTowing a trailer, using a camper or a
car-top carrier.
SCHEDULE TWO
Follow Periodic Maintenance Schedule Two
if none of the driving conditions shown in
Schedule One apply to your driving habits.
PERIODIC MAINTENANCE
SCHEDULES
Maintenance9-5
ZX
Additional information on the following
items with an ``*'' is found in the ``Do-it-
yourself operations'' section of this
manual.
Emission control system
maintenance
Drive belts* ÐCheck drive belts for wear,
fraying or cracking and also for proper ten-
sion. Replace any damaged drive belts.
Air cleaner filter ÐUnder normal driving
conditions, the air cleaner filter should be
replaced in accordance with the maintenance
schedule. However, driving the vehicle in
dusty areas may cause rapid clogging of the
element. Consequently, the element may
have to be replaced more frequently.
Evap vapor lines ÐCheck vapor lines and
connections for leaks, looseness or deterio-
ration. If leaks are found, replace them.
Fuel lines ÐCheck the fuel hoses, piping
and connections for leaks, looseness or
deterioration. Replace any damaged parts.
Fuel filter ÐIf the vehicle is operated under
extremely adverse weather conditions or in
areas where ambient temperatures are ei-
ther extremely low or extremely high, thefilter might become clogged. In such an
event, replace the filter immediately.
Engine coolant* ÐChanging engine cool-
ant can be performed by your NISSAN
dealer or procedures can be found in the
Service Manual. Improper air relief after
changing coolant can result in reduced
heater performance and overheating.
Engine oil & oil filter* ÐUnder normal
driving conditions, the engine oil and oil filter
should be replaced in accordance with the
maintenance schedule. However, under se-
vere driving conditions, they may have to be
replaced more frequently.
Spark plugs* ÐReplace with new plugs
having the correct heat range.
Timing belt ÐReplace the timing belt for
driving the camshaft.
Chassis and body maintenance
Brake lines & cables ÐCheck the brake
lines and hoses (including brake booster
vacuum hoses, connections & check valve)
and parking brake cables for proper attach-
ment, leaks, cracks, chafing, abrasion, de-
terioration, etc.Brake pads, discs, drums & linings Ð
Check these and the other brake compo-
nents for wear, deterioration and leaks. Un-
der severe driving conditions, they may
have to be inspected more frequently.
Automatic transmission fluid* ÐCheck
the fluid level and visually inspect for signs
of leakage.
Under severe driving conditions, the fluid
should be replaced at the specified interval.
Steering gear & linkage, axle & suspen-
sion parts, and drive shaft boots ÐCheck
for damage, looseness and leakage of oil or
grease. Under severe driving conditions, they
may have to be inspected more frequently.
Exhaust system ÐVisually check the ex-
haust pipes, muffler, and hangers for proper
attachment, leaks, cracks, chafing, abra-
sion, deterioration, etc. Under severe driv-
ing conditions, inspection should be per-
formed more frequently.
Supplemental air bag system ÐCheck
the supplemental air bag system compo-
nents for proper attachment, damage, de-
formities, cracks, rust, etc. Work around and
on the supplemental air bag system should
be done by an authorized NISSAN dealer.
EXPLANATION OF
MAINTENANCE ITEMS
9-10Maintenance
ZX
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a braking
system, make sure it conforms to Federal
and/or local regulations and it is properly
installed.
WARNING
Never connect a trailer brake system
directly to the vehicle brake system.
Pre-towing tips
cBe certain your vehicle maintains a level
position when a loaded and/or unloaded
trailer is hitched. Do not drive the vehicle
if it has an abnormal nose-up or nose-
down condition; check for improper
tongue load, overload, worn suspension
or other possible causes of either condi-
tion.
cAlways secure items in the trailer to
prevent load shift while driving.
cBe certain your rear view mirrors conform
to all federal, state or local regulations. If
not, install any mirrors required for towing
before driving the vehicle.
Trailer towing tips
In order to gain skill and an understanding
of the vehicle's behavior, you should prac-
tice turning, stopping and backing up in an
area which is free from traffic. Steering,
stability, and braking performance are
somewhat different than under normal driv-
ing conditions.
cAlways secure items in the trailer to
prevent load shift while driving.
c
Avoid abrupt starts, acceleration or stops.
cAvoid sharp turns or lane changes.
cAlways drive your vehicle at a moderate
speed.
cAlways block the wheels on both vehicle
and trailer when parking. Parking on a
slope is not recommended; however, if
you must do so, first block the wheels
and apply the parking brake, and then
move the transmission shift selector le-
ver into the P (Park) position. If you move
the shift selector lever to the P (Park)
position before blocking the wheels and
applying the parking brake, transmission
damage could occur.
cWhen going down a hill, shift into a lowergear and use the engine braking effect.
When ascending a long grade, downshift
the transmission to a lower gear and
reduce speed to reduce chances of en-
gine overloading and/or overheating.
cIf the engine coolant rises to an ex-
tremely high temperature when the air
conditioning system is on, turn the air
conditioner off. Coolant heat can be ad-
ditionally vented by opening the win-
dows, switching the fan control dial to
high and setting the temperature control
dial to the WARM position.
cTrailer towing requires more fuel than
normal circumstances.
cAvoid towing a trailer for the first 500
miles (800 km) of the vehicle's life.
cHave your vehicle serviced more often
than at intervals specified in the recom-
mended Maintenance Schedule.
cWhen making a turn, your trailer wheels
will be closer to the inside of the turn than
your vehicle wheels. To compensate for
this, make a larger than normal turning
radius during the turn.
cCrosswinds and rough roads adversely
Technical and consumer information
10-17
ZX
11 Index
A
After an accident........................................ 6-11
Air bag (See supplemental restraint
system) ...................................................... 1-18
Air bag warning light .................................. 1-23
Air cleaner housing filter ............................ 8-13
Air conditioner
Air conditioner operation ............... 4-20, 4-5
Air conditioner service .......................... 4-14
Air conditioner specification label ....... 10-11
Air conditioner system refrigerant and
lubrication recommendations ................ 10-6
Heater and air conditioner (automatic)
(if so equipped)..................................... 4-10
Heater and air conditioner (manual)....... 4-3
Rear seat heater and air conditioner ... 4-13
Air flow charts .............................................. 4-7
Alarm system (See theft warning) ............. 2-10
Anchor point locations ............................... 1-53
Antenna
Manual .................................................. 4-20
Power.................................................... 4-20
Anti-lock brake system (ABS).................... 5-15
Anti-lock brake warning light ....................... 2-8
Armrests....................................................... 1-6
Ashtray (See cigarette lighter and
ashtray) ...................................................... 2-16Audio system
AM-FM radio with cassette player ........ 4-14
Compact disc (CD) player .................... 4-21
Autolamp switch......................................... 2-14
Automatic
Automatic power window switch .......... 2-21
Automatic transmission fluid (ATF) ........ 8-8
Driving with automatic transmission ....... 5-5
B
Battery........................................................ 8-11
Before starting the engine ........................... 5-5
Brake
Anti-lock brake system (ABS) .............. 5-15
Brake booster ....................................... 8-18
Brake fluid ................................... 10-2, 8-10
Brake light (See stop light) ................... 8-22
Brake pedal .......................................... 8-17
Brake system ........................................ 5-14
Brake warning light ................................. 2-7
Brake wear indicators ............................. 2-9
Parking brake check ............................. 8-16
Parking brake operation ......................... 5-9
Self-adjusting brakes ............................ 8-17
Break-in schedule ...................................... 5-11
Bulb check/instrument panel ....................... 2-6
Bulb replacement ....................................... 8-22C
Capacities and recommended fuel/
lubricants.................................................... 10-2
Cargo net ................................................... 3-14
Cargo (See vehicle loading
information) .............................................. 10-12
Cassette player (See audio system) ......... 4-14
CB radio or car phone ............................... 4-25
Check engine indicator light
(See malfunction indicator light) .................. 2-9
Child restraint with top tether strap ........... 1-49
Child restraints ........................................... 1-39
Child safety sliding door lock....................... 3-5
Cigarette lighter (accessory)
and ashtray ................................................ 2-16
Cleaning exterior and interior ...................... 7-2
Clock .......................................................... 2-23
Coin tray .................................................... 2-18
Cold weather driving .................................. 5-16
Compact disc (CD) player ......................... 4-21
Controls
Audio controls ....................................... 4-14
Audio controls (rear) ............................. 4-24
Audio controls (steering wheel) ............ 4-23
Heater and air conditioner controls
(automatic) ............................................ 4-10
Heater and air conditioner controls
(manual).................................................. 4-3
ZX