1998 NISSAN SENTRA Owners Manual

Key reminder chime
A chime sounds if the driver side door is
opened while the key is left in the ignition
switch. Remove the key and take it with you
when leaving the vehicle.
Light reminder chime
A chime sounds when the driver side door is
opened if the headlights or parking lights
are on (ignition switch is turned off).
Turn the headlight control switch off before
leaving the vehicle.
Brake pad wear warning
The disc brake pads have audible wear
warnings. When a brake pad requires re-
placement, it makes a high pitched scraping
sound when the vehicle is in motion,
whether or not the brake pedal is de-
pressed. Have the brakes checked as soon
as possible if the warning sound is heard.
Malfunction indicator light
(MIL)
If the malfunction indicator light comes on
steady or blinks while the engine is running,it may indicate a potential emission control
problem.
The malfunction indicator light may also
come on steady or blink if the fuel filler cap
has not been closed tightly or if the fuel tank
is nearly empty. Check to make sure the
fuel cap is secure and that you have at least
three gallons of fuel in the fuel tank.
After driving for a while, the light should
remain off if no other potential emission
control system problem exists.
Operation
The malfunction indicator light will come on
in one of two ways:
1. Malfunction indicator light on steady - An
emission control system malfunction has
been detected. Have the vehicle in-
spected by an authorized NISSAN
dealer. You do not need to have your
vehicle towed to the dealer.
2. Malfunction indicator light blinking - An
engine misfire has been detected which
may damage the emission control sys-
tem. To reduce or avoid emission control
system damage:cdo not drive at speeds above 45 MPH
(72 km/h).
c
avoid hard acceleration or deceleration.
cavoid steep uphill grades.
cif possible, reduce the amount of cargo
being hauled or towed.
The malfunction indicator light may stop
blinking and come on steady. Have the
vehicle inspected by an authorized NISSAN
dealer. You do not need to have your vehicle
towed to the dealer.
CAUTION
Continued vehicle operation without
having the emission control system
checked and repaired as necessary
could lead to poor driveability, reduced
fuel economy, and possible damage to
the emission control system.
Some conditions may cause the malfunc-
tion indicator light to come on steady or
blink. Examples are as follows:
cvehicle ran out of fuel, which caused the
engine to misfire.
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cfuel filler cap was left off or improperly
installed, allowing fuel to evaporate into
the atmosphere.
If you suspect that you experienced one or
both of the above conditions, drive the ve-
hicle to an authorized NISSAN dealer and
have the vehicle inspected. Avoid any un-
necessary diagnosis during the service by
informing the dealer of the conditions listed
above that may have occurred.
The theft warning system provides visual
and audio alarm signals if parts of the
vehicle are disturbed.
How to activate the theft warning
system
1. Close all windows.
2. Remove the key from the ignition switch.
3. Close the hood, trunk lid and all doors.
4. Push the
button on the multi-remote
controller. All the doors lock. The hazard
lights flash twice and the horn beeps
once to indicate all doors are locked.c
When thebutton is pushed with all
doors locked, the hazard lights flash twice
and the horn beeps once as a reminder that
the doors are already locked. The horn may
or may not beep once. Refer to ``silencing
the horn beep feature'' later in this section.
The system can be activated even if the
windows are open.
5.
Confirm that the SECURITY indicator
light comes on. The SECURITY light
glows for about 30 seconds and then
begins to flash once every three seconds.
The system is now activated. If, during
this 30-second time period, the door is
unlocked by the key or the multi-remote
controller, or the ignition key is turned to
ACC or ON, the system will not activate.
cIf the key is turned slowly when lock-
ing the door, the system may not acti-
vate. Furthermore, if the key is turned
excessively to the unlock position, the
system may be deactivated when the
key is removed. If the indicator light
fails to glow for 30 seconds, unlock
the door once and lock it again.
cEven when the driver and/or passen-
gers are in the vehicle, the system will
IC0005
THEFT WARNING
(if so equipped)
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activate with all doors, hood, and
trunk lid locked and ignition key off.
Turn the ignition key to ACC or ON to
turn the system off.
The theft warning system is NOT activated if
one of the following occurs:
cA door is unlocked or the ignition key is
turned to the ACC or ON position during
the 30 seconds in which the SECURITY
light stays on.
cThe SECURITY light blinks at a steady
1/2 second on - 1/2 second off rate (a
door, the trunk, or the hood is open and
the key is not in the ACC or ON position).
When the ignition key is turned to the
ACC or ON position, the SECURITY light
turns off.
Theft warning system operation
The theft warning system emits the follow-
ing alarm:
cThe headlights blink and the horn sounds
intermittently. In addition, the starter mo-
tor does not operate.
cThe alarm automatically turns off after 2
to 3 minutes. However, the alarm reacti-
vates if the vehicle is tampered withagain. The alarm can be shut off by
unlocking a door or trunk lid with the key
or by pressing the
buttonon the
multi-remote controller.
The alarm is activated by:
copening the door or trunk lid without
using the key (even if the door is un-
locked by releasing the door inside lock
switch) or opening the trunk lid by oper-
ating the opener lever.
copening the hood.
cpushing in or pulling out the key cylinder
on the door or trunk lid.
How to stop the alarm
The alarm stops only by unlocking a door or
the trunk lid with the key or by pressing
the
buttonon the multi-remote control-
ler.The alarm does not stop if the ignition
switch is turned to ACC or ON position.
Silencing the horn beep feature
If desired, the horn beep feature can be
deactivated using the multi-remote controller.
To deactivate:Press and hold theand
buttonsfor at least two seconds.
The hazard lights will quickly flash three
times to confirm that the horn beep feature
has been deactivated.
To activate:Press and hold the
and
buttonsfor at least two seconds once
more.
AIC1037
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The hazard lights will quickly flash three
times to confirm that the horn beep feature
has been reactivated.
Deactivating the horn beep feature does not
silence the horn if the alarm is triggered.
If the system does not operate as de-
scribed above, have it checked by an
authorized NISSAN dealer.
Push the lever down to operate the wiper.
Pull the lever toward you to operate the
washer. The ignition switch must be in the
ON position for the wipers or washer to be
activated. Operating the washer automati-
cally cycles the wipers two times.
CAUTION
The following could damage the washer
system:
cOperating the washer continuously
for more than 30 seconds.cOperating the washer if the reservoir
tank is empty.
WARNING
In freezing temperatures the washer
solution may freeze on the windshield
and obscure your vision, which may
lead to an accident. Warm the wind-
shield with the defroster before you
wash the windshield.
AIC0645
WINDSHIELD WIPER AND
WASHER SWITCH
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To defog the rear window glass, start the
engine and push the rear window defogger
switch on. (The indicator light on the switch
comes on.) Push the switch again to turn
the defogger off.
The rear window defogger switch automati-
cally turns off after approximately 15 min-
utes.
CAUTION
When cleaning the inner side of the
rear window, be careful not to scratch
or damage the rear window defogger.
AIC0646
REAR WINDOW DEFOGGER
SWITCH
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Lighting
Turn the switch to theposition:
The front parking, tail, license plate and
instrument panel lights come on.
Turn the switch to the
position:
The headlights come on and all the other
lights remain on.
To select the high beam function, push the
lever forward. The high beam lights come
on and the
light illuminates. Pull it
back to select the low beam.
Passing signal
Pulling and releasing the lever flashes the
headlight high beams on and off.
DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT
SYSTEM (Canada only)
The headlights automatically illuminate at a
reduced intensity when the engine is started
with the parking brake released. The day-
time running lights operate with the head-
light switch in the OFF position or in the
position. Turn the headlight switch
to theposition for full illumination
when driving at night.If the parking brake is applied before the
engine is started, the daytime running lights
do not illuminate. The daytime running lights
illuminate once the parking brake is re-
leased. The daytime running lights will re-
main on until the ignition switch is turned off.
WARNING
When the daytime running light system
is active, tail lights on your vehicle are
not on. It is necessary at dusk to turn
on your headlights. Failure to do so
could cause an accident injuring your-
self and others.
AIC1038
HEADLIGHT AND TURN
SIGNAL SWITCH
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Turn signal
Move the lever up or down to signal the
turning direction. When the turn is com-
pleted, the turn signals cancel automati-
cally.
Lane change signal
To signal a lane change, move the lever up
or down to the point where the indicator light
begins to flash, but the lever does not latch.
The instrument brightness control operates
when the headlight switch is in the
orposition.
Turn the control to adjust the brightness of
instrument panel lights.To turn the front fog lights on, rotate the
switch to theposition.
To turn them off, rotate the switch to the
OFF position.
The headlight switch must be in the
position (low beam headlights on) for
the fog lights to operate. The fog lights
automatically turn off whenever the high-
beam headlight function is selected.
AIC0608AIC0618
INSTRUMENT BRIGHTNESS
CONTROLFRONT FOG LIGHT SWITCH
(if so equipped)
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Push the switch on to warn other drivers
when you must stop or park under emer-
gency conditions. All turn signal lights flash.
WARNING
c
When stalled or stopped on the road-
way under emergency conditions,
move the vehicle well off the road.
cDo not use the hazard warning flashers
while moving on the highway unless
unusual circumstances force you to
drive so slowly that your vehicle might
become a hazard to other traffic.cTurn signals do not work when the
hazard warning flasher lights are on.
The flashers can be actuated with the igni-
tion switch in either the OFF or ON position.
Some state laws may prohibit the use of
the hazard warning flasher switch while
driving.
The cigarette lighter element is an acces-
sory. A genuine NISSAN cigarette lighter can
be purchased from an authorized NISSAN
dealer.
AIC0647
AIC0607
HAZARD WARNING FLASHER
SWITCHCIGARETTE LIGHTER
(accessory) AND ASHTRAY
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