1998 Oldsmobile Cutlass service

Service
Your retailer knows your vehicle best and wants you to
be happy with it. We hope you’ll go to your retailer for
all your service needs. You’ll get genuine GM parts and
GM-trained and supported service people.
We hope you’ll want to keep your GM vehicle
all GM.
Genuine GM parts have one of these marks:
Genuine
Parts
Doing Your Own Service Work
If you want to do some of your own service work, you’ll
want to use the proper Oldsmobile Service Manual.
It
tells you much more about how to service your vehicle
than this manual can.
To order the proper service
manual, see “Service and Owner Publications” in
the Index.
Your vehicle has an
air bag system. Before attempting to
do your own service work, see “Servicing Your Air
Bag-Equipped Vehicle” in the Index.
You should keep a record with all parts receipts and list
the mileage and the date
of any service work you
perform. See “Maintenance Record” in the Index.

You can be injured and your vehicle could be
damaged if you
try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about it.
Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts
and tools before you attempt any vehicle
maintenance task.
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners. “Ehglish” and “metric”
fasteners can be easily confused.
If you use
the wrong fasteners, parts can later break
or
fall off. You could be hurt.
Adding Equipment to the Outside of
Your Vehicle
Things you might add to the outside of your vehicle can
affect the airflow around it. This may cause wind noise
and affect windshield washer performance. Check with
your retailer before adding equipment to the outside of
your vehicle.
Fuel
Use regular unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane or
higher. At a minimum, it should meet specifications
ASTM
D4814 in the United States and CGSB 3.5-M93
in Canada. Improved gasoline specifications .have been
developed by the American Automobile Manufacturers
Association (MA) for better vehicle performance
and engine protection. Gasolines meeting the
AAMA
specification could provide improved driveability and
emission control system protection compared to
other gasolines.
Be sure the posted octane
is at least 87. If the octane is
less than
87, you may get a heavy knocking noise when
you drive.
If it’s bad enough, it can damage your engine.
If you’re using fuel rated at
87 octane or higher and you
hear heavy knocking, your engine needs service. But don’t worry if you hear a
little pinging noise when
you’re accelerating or driving up a hill. That’s normal,
and you don’t have to buy a higher octane fuel to get rid\

of pinging. It’s the heavy’ constant knock that means
you have
a problem.
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I

I If your vehicle is certified to meet California Emission
j Standards (indicated on the underhood emission control
label), it is designed to operate on fuels that meet
California specifications. If such fuels are not available
' in states adopting California emissions standards, your
1 vehicle will operate satisfactorily on fuels meeting
federal specifications, but emission control system
1 performance may be affected. The malfunction indicator
lamp on your instrument panel may turn on and/or your
vehicle may fail a smog-check test. If this occurs, return
to your authorized Oldsmobile retailer for diagnosis to
determine the cause of failure. In the event it is
1 determined that the cause of the condition is the type of
1 fuels used, repairs may not be covered by your warranty,
~ Some gasolines that are not reformulated for low
emissions contain an octane-enhancing additive called
methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT); ask your service station operator whether or not
his fuel
contains MMT. General Motors does not recommend the
~ use of such gasolines. If fuels containing MMT are used,
spark plug life may be reduced and your emission
control system performance may be affected. The
, malfunction indicator lamp on your instrument panel i may turn on. If this occurs, return to your authorized
i Oldsmobile retailer for service, To
provide cleaner
air, all gasolines in the United States
are now required to contain additives that will help
prevent deposits from forrning
in your engine and fuel
system, allowing your emission control system to
function properly. Therefore, you should not have to add
anything to the fuel. In addition, gasolines containing
oxygenates, such as ethers and ethanol, and
reformulated gasolines may be available in your area to
help clean the
air. General Motors recommends that you
use these gasolines
if they comply with the
specifications described earlier.
NOTICE:
Your vehicle was not designed for fuel that
contains methanol. Don't use it. It can corrode
metal parts in'your fuel system and also damage
plastic and rubber parts. That damage wouldn't
be covered under your warranty.
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As shown in the chart, SAE 5W-30 is best for your
vehicle. However, you can use
SAE 1OW-30 if it’s going
to be
0°F (-18°C) or above. These numbers on an oil
container show its viscosity, or thickness.
Do not use
other viscosity oils, such as
SAE 2OW-50.
NOTICE:
Use only engine oil with the American Petroleum
Institute Certified For Gasoline Engines
“Starburst” symbol. Failure
to use the
recommended
oil can result in engine damage not
covered
by your warranty.
GM Goodwrench@ oil meets all the requirements for
your vehicle.
If you are in an area where the temperature falls below
-20°F (-29”C), consider using either an SAE 5W-30
synthetic oil or an
SAE OW-30 oil. Both will provide
easier cold starting and better protection for your engine
at extremely low temperatures.
Engine Oil Additives
Don’t add anything to your oil. Your retailer is ready to
advise
if you think something should be added.
When to Change Engine Oil
If any one of these is true for you, use the short tripkity
maintenance schedule:
0
0
0
0
0
Most trips are less than 5 to 10 miles (8 to 16 h).
This is particularly important when outside
temperatures are below freezing.
Most
trips include extensive idling (such as frequent
driving in stop-and-go traffic).
Most trips are through dusty areas.
You frequently tow a trailer
or use a carrier on top of
your vehicle.
The vehicle
is used for delivery service, police, taxi
or other cornmercial application.
Driving under these conditions causes engine oil to
break down sooner. If any one of these is true for your
vehicle, then you need to change your oil and filter
every 3,000 miles (5
000 km) or 3 months -- whichever
occurs first.
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If none of them is true, use the long triphighway
maintenance schedule. Change the oil and filter every
7,500 miles (12 500 km) or 12 months -- whichever
occurs first. Driving a vehicle with a fully warmed
engine under highway conditions causes engine oil
to
break down slower.
What to Do with Used Oil
Did you know that used engine oil contains certain
elements that may be unhealthy for your skin and could
even cause cancer? Don’t let used oil stay on your skin
for very long. Clean your skin and nails with soap and
water, or
a good hand cleaner. Wash or properly throw
away clothing or rags containing used engine oil. (See
the manufacturer’s warnings about the use and disposal
of oil products.)
Used oil can be a real threat to the environment.
If you
change your own
oil, be sure to drain all free-flowing oil
from the filter before disposal. Don’t ever dispose of oil
by putting it in the trash, pouring it on the ground, into
sewers, or into streams or bodies of water. Instead,
recycle it
by taking it to a place that collects used oil. If
you have
a problem properly disposing of your used oil,
ask your retailer, a service station or a local recycling
center for help.
The air cleaner is located on the driver’s side of the
engine compartment.
To check or replace the air filter:
1. Unscrew the four Phillips-head screws, then pull the
cover back.
2. Remove the air cleaner filter.
3. Be sure to install the air cleaner filter and replace the
cover tightly.
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Refer to the Maintenance Schedule to determine when to
replace the air filter.
See “Scheduled Maintenance Services” in the Index.
Operating the engine with the air cleaner off can
cause you or others to be burned. The air cleaner
not
only cleans the air, it stops flame if the engine
backfires.
If it isn’t there, and the engine
backfires, you could be burned. Don’t drive with
it off, and be careful working on the engine with
the air cleaner off.
NOTICE:
If the air cleaner is off, a backfire can cause a
damaging engine fire. And,
dirt can easily get
into your engine, which will damage it. Always
have the air cleaner
in place when you’re driving.
Automatic Transaxle Fluid
It is not necessary to check the transaxle fluid level. A
transaxle fluid leak is the only reason for fluid loss. If a
leak occurs, take the vehicle to your Oldsmobile retail
facility Service Department and have it repaired as soon
as possible. You may also have your fluid level checked
by your retailer or service center when you have your oil changed.
Change both the fluid and filter every
50,000 miles
(83 000 km) if the vehicle is mainly driven under one or
more of these conditions:
In heavy city h.aff.3~ where the outside temperature
0 In hilly or mountainous terrain.
When doing frequent trailer towing.
Uses such as found in taxi, police or delivery service.
If you do not use your vehicle under any of these
conditions, the fluid and filter do not require changing.
regularly reaches
90°F (32” C) or higher.
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Brake Wear
Your vehicle has front disc brakes and rear drum brakes.
Disc brake pads have built-in wear indicators that make a
high-pitched warning sound when the brake pads are
worn
and new pads are needed. The sound may come and go or
be heard
all the time your vehicle is moving (except when
you
are pushing on the brake pedal firmly).
The brake wear warning sound means that soon
your brakes won’t work well. That could lead
to
an accident. When you hear the brake wear
warning sound, have your vehicle serviced.
I NOTICE:
~~ ~ ~~
Continuing to drive with worn-out brake pads
could result
in costly brake repair.
Some driving conditions or climates may cause a brake
squeal when the brakes are first applied or lightly
applied. This does not mean something is wrong with
your brakes.
Properly torqued wheel nuts are necessary to help
prevent brake pulsation. When tires are rotated, inspect
brake pads for wear and evenly torque wheel nuts in the
proper sequence to GM specifications.
Your rear drum brakes don’t have wear indicators, but
if
you ever hear a rear brake rubbing noise, have the rear
brake linings inspected immediately. Also, the rear
brake drums should be removed and inspected each time the tires are removed for rotation or changing. When
you have the front brake pads replaced, have the rear
brakes inspected, too.
Brake linings should always be replaced as complete axle sets.
See “Brake System Inspection” in Section
7 of this
manual under Part
C “Periodic Maintenance
Inspections.”
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Dome Lamp
To change, your dome lamp bulb, grasp the center front
and center rear portion
of the housing and squeeze
firmly but gently.. The housing should pop off.
If this doesn’t work, you may need to use a small
flat-head screwdriver pder the side
of the housing to
help pry it
.off.
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
Replacement blades come in different types and are
removed
in different ways. For the proper type and
length, see “Capacities and Specifications” in the Index.
Here’s how to remove the Sheppard’s
Hook type:
1. Pull the windshield wiper arrn away from the
2. Push the release lever and slide the wiper assembly
3. Install a new blade by reversing Steps 1 and 2.
windshield.
toward the driver’s side
of the vehicle.
Tires
Your new vehicle comes with high-quality tires made by
a leading tire manufacturer. If you ever have questions
about your tire warranty and where to obtain service, see
your Oldsmobile Warranty booklet for details.
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