1998 Oldsmobile Cutlass Owner's Manuals

If you drive regularly in steep count., or if you’re
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can make
your trips safer and more enjoyable.
0 Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all fluid
levels and also the brakes, tires, cooling system
and transaxle. These parts can work hard
on
mountain roads.
Know how to go downhills. The most important
thing to know is this: let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift to a lower gear when you go
down a steep or long
hill.
I = ~ ~ ~~ ~~ ~
If you don’t shift down, your brakes could
get
so hot that they wouldn’t work well. You
would then have poor braking or even none going
down a
hiIl. You could crash. Shift down to let
your engine assist your brakes on a steep
downhill slope.
0 Stay in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in
hills or mountains. Don’t swing wide or cut
across the center of the road. Drive at speeds that let
you stay
in your own lane.
could be something in your lane, like a stalled car or
an accident.
0 As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There
You may see highway signs on mountains that warn of
special problems. Examples are long grades, passiag or
no-passing zones, a falling rocks area or winding
roads. Be alert to these and take appropriate action.
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Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your vehicle in good shape for winter.
You may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your
mnk.
Include an ice scraper, a small brush or broom, a supply
of windshield washer fluid, a rag, some winter outer
clothing, a small shovel, a flashlight, a red cloth
and a
couple
of reflective warning triangles. And, if you will
be driving under severe conditions, include a small bag
of sand, a piece of old carpet or a couple of burlap bags
to help provide traction. Be sure you properly secure
these items in your vehicle.
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Driving on Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet the
road probably have good traction.
However, if there is snow or ice between your tires and
the road, you can have a
very slippery situation. You’ll
have a lot less traction or “grip” and will need to be
very careful. What’s
the worst time for this? “Wet ice.” Very cold
snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive
on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it may offer the
least traction
of all. You can get wet ice when it’s about
freezing
(32°F; OOC) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.
Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow
-- drive with caution. Accelerate gently.
Try not to break the fragile traction. If you accelerate
too fast, the drive wheels will spin and polish the surface
under the tires even more.
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~ ..~ .
Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle’s stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road. Even
though you have the anti-lock braking system, you’ll
want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry
pavement. See “Anti-Lock” in the Index.
Allow greater following distance on any
slippery road.
Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit a spot that’s covered with ice. On an
otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the sun can’t reach: around
clumps of trees, behind buildings or under bridges.
Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass may
remain icy when the surrounding roads are clear. If
you see a patch
of ice ahead of you, brake before you
are on
it. Try not to brake while you’re actually on
the ice, and avoid sudden steering maneuvers.
If You’re Caught in a Blizzal
If you are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a
serious situation. You should probably stay with your
vehicle unless you know for sure that you are near help
and you can hike through the snow. Here are some
things
to do to summon help and keep yourself and your
passengers safe:
Turn on your hazard flashers.
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Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
0 Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you have no blankets or extra clothing, make body
insulators from newspapers, burlap bags, rags, floor
mats
-- anything you can wrap around yourself or
tuck under your clothing to keep warm.
Snow can trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside.
CO could overcome you and kill
you. You can’t see it or smell it, so you might not
know it is in your vehicle. Clear away snow from
around the base of your vehicle, especially any
that is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to
time to be sure snow
doesn’t collect there.
Open a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This will help
keep
CO out.
You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
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~~~ ~ . ~~
-Run
your engine only as long as you must. This saves
fuel. When you run the engine, make it go a little faster
than just idle. That is, push the accelerator slightly. This
uses less fuel for the heat that you get and it keeps the
battery charged. You will need a well-charged battery to
restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling later on
with your headlamps. Let the heater run for
a while.
' Then, shut the engine off and close the window almost
all the way to preserve the heat. Start the engine again and repeat this only when you feel really uncomfortable
from the cold. But do it as little as possible. Preserve the
fuel as long as you can. To help keep warm, you can get
' out of the vehicle and do some fairly vigorous exercises
.. every half hour or so until help comes.
Recreational Vehicle Towing
You can tow your vehicle behind another vehicle for use
at your'destination. Be sure to use the proper towing
equipment designed for recreational towing. Follow the
instructions for the towing equipment.
Towing Your Vehicle from the Front
There are two ways to tow your vehicle from the front.
To tow your vehicle with a dolly, follow these steps:
1. Put the front wheels on a dolly.
2. Put the vehicle in PARK (P).
3. Set the parking brake and then remove the key.
4. Clamp the steering wheel in a straight-ahead position
with a clamping device designed for towing.
5. Release the parking brake.

To tow your vehicle with all four wheels on the ground,
follow these steps:
m
A
1. Position the vehicle to tow and then secure it.
2. Turn &.ignition switch to OFF.
3. Set the parking brake.
4. Remove the following fuses from the left side of the
instrument panel fuse block A) Radio, B)
Wiper,
H) Powertrain Control Module, K) Body Function
Control Module, Cluster.
This will prevent your battery
from
draining while towing. See “Instrument Panel Fuse
Block
- Left” in Section 6 for the location of these fuses.
5. Turn the ignition switch to ACC.
6. Shift your transaxle to NEUTRAL (N).
7. Release the parking brake.
Remember to replace the fuses once you reach your
destination.
To replace a fuse:
1. Set the parhg brake.
2. Remove the key from the
3. Replace the fuse. ignition switch.
I NOTICE:
Make sure that the towing speed does not exceed
65 mph (105 km/h), or your vehicle could be
badly damaged.
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8
I NOTICE:
Do not tow your vehicle from the rear. Your
vehicle could be badly damaged and the repairs:
would not be covered by your warranty.
. 5" :I .;: "
IF TIRES ARE 'HOT, ADD 4PS1128KPa
SEE OWNER'S MANUAL FOR ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION !
-, 1 ,
.- Loading Your Vehicle
m. CTR. RR. TOTAL LBS. KG
I
MAX. LOADING & GVWR SA'ME AS VEHICLE
CAPACITY WEIGHT XXX CO'LD~TIRE
TIRE'SIZE SPED PRESSURE
RTG PSIKPa
Two labels on your vehicle show how much weight it
total weight that you can carry. this^ weight is called the
Vehicle Capacity Weight,
and includes the weight of all
occupants, cargo and all nonfactory-installed options.