1998 TOYOTA RAV4 warning

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Odometer and two trip meters
This meter displays the odometer and
two trip meters.
1. OdometerÐIt shows the total distance the vehicle has been driven.
2. Two trip metersÐThey show two differ- ent distances independently driven
since the last time each trip meter was
set to zero.
You can use one trip meter to calculate
the fuel economy and the other to
measure the distance on each trip. All
trip meter data is cancelled if the elec-
trical power source is disconnected. 3. Trip meter reset knobÐIt can reset the
two trip meters to zero, and also
change the meter display.
To change the meter display, quickly
push and release the knob. The meter
display changes in the order from the
odometer to trip meter A to trip meter
B, then back to the odometer each
time you push.
To reset the trip meter A to zero, dis-
play the meter A reading, then push
and hold the knob until the meter is
set to zero. The same process can be
applied for resetting the trip meter B. (a) If parking brake
is off, stop and
check.
(b) Fasten seat belts.
If the indicator or Do this.
buzzer comes on...
(c) Stop and check. (Indicator and buzzer)
(d) Stop and check. (type A)
(type B)
Service reminder indicators
and warning buzzers

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(g) Take vehicle to
Toyota dealer.
If the indicator or Do this.
buzzer comes on...
(type A)
(type B)
(f) Fill up tank.
(e) Take vehicle to
Toyota dealer.
(type A)
(type B)
(m) Remove key. (i) Stop and check.
(j) Take vehicle to
Toyota dealer
immediately.
(l) Turn off light. Light reminder
buzzer
Key reminder
buzzer
If the indicator or Do this.
buzzer comes on...
(h) Close all side doors, back door
(hardtop) and
tail gate (soft- top).
(k) Add washer fluid. (a) Brake System Warning Light
This light has the following functions:
Parking brake reminder
If this light is on, make sure the parking
brake is fully released. The light should
go off.
Low brake fluid level warning
If this light comes on and stays on while
you are driving, slowdown and pull off the
road. Then stop the vehicle carefully. Re-
member that stopping distance and pedal
effort may be increased. There maybe a
problem somewhere in the brake system.
Check the fluid level of the see- through
reservoir.
To make sure the parking brake has not
caused the warning light to come on,
check to see that the parking brake is
fully released.
If the brake fluid level is low...
At a safe place, test your brakes by start-
ing and stopping.
If you judge that the brakes still work
adequately, drive cautiously to your
nearest dealer or shop for repairs.
If the brakes are not working, have the
vehicle towed in for repairs. (For tow-
ing information, see Part 4.)

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CAUTION
It is dangerous to continue driving
normally when the brake fluid level is
low.
If the brake fluid level is correct...
Have the warning system checked by your
Toyota dealer.
(b) Seat Belt Reminder Light and Buzz- er
The light and buzzer remind you to buckle
up the driver 's seat belt.
Once the ignition key is turned to ºONº or
ºSTARTº, the reminder light flashes and
buzzer sounds if the driver 's seat belt is
not pulled out. Unless the driver starts to
pull the shoulder belt out of the retractor,
the light keeps flashing and the buzzer
stops after about 4 to 8 seconds.
(c) Discharge Warning Light
This light warns that the battery is being
discharged.
If it comes on while you are driving, there
is a problem somewhere in the charging
system. The engine ignition will continue to oper-
ate, however, until the battery is dis-
charged. Turn off the air conditioning,
blower, radio,etc., and drive directly to the
nearest Toyota dealer or repair shop.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving if the engine
drive belt is broken or loose.
(d) Low Oil Pressure Warning Light
This light warns that the engine oil pres-
sure is too low.
If it flickers or stays on while you are
driving, pull off the road to a safe place
and stop the engine immediately. Call a
Toyota dealer or qualified repair shop for
assistance.
The light may occasionally flicker when
the engine is idling or it may come on
briefly after a hard stop. There is no
cause for concern if it then goes out when
the engine is accelerated slightly.
The light may come on when the oil level
is extremely low. It is not designed to
indicate low oil level, and the oil level
must be checked using the level dipstick.
NOTICE
Do not drive the vehicle with thewarning light onÐeven for one block.It may ruin the engine.
(e) Malfunction Indicator Lamp
This lamp comes on in the following
cases.
a. The fuel tank is completely empty. (See
ºFuel gaugeº in Chapter 1- 5 for instruc-
tions.)
b. The fuel tank cap is not tightened se-
curely. (See ºFuel tank capº in Chapter
1- 2 for instructions.)
c. There is a problem somewhere in your
engine or automatic transmission electrical
system.
If it comes on while you are driving in
case c, have your vehicle checked/re-
paired by your Toyota dealer as soon as
possible.

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(f) Low Fuel Level Warning Light
This light comes on when the fuel level
in the tank becomes nearly empty. Fill up
the tank as soon as possible.
On inclines or curves, due to the move-
ment of fuel in the tank, the low fuel level
warning light may come on earlier than
usual.
(g) ºABSº Warning Light
This light warns that there is a problem
somewhere in your anti- lock brake sys-
tem.
If the light comes on while you are driv-
ing, have your vehicle checked by your
Toyota dealer as soon as possible.
The light will come on when the ignition
key is turned to the ºONº position. After
a few seconds, the light will go off.
When the ºABSº warning light is on (and
the brake system warning light is off), the
brake system operates conventionally but
anti- lock brake system is not assisting
brake performance so that the wheels can
lock- up during sudden braking or braking
on slippery road surfaces.
(h) Open Door Warning Light
This light remains on until all the doors,
back door (hardtop) and tail gate (soft-
top) are completely closed.
(i) Automatic Transmission Fluid Tem-
perature Warning Light (four- wheel
drive models)
This light warns that the automatic trans-
mission fluid temperature is too high.
If this light comes on while you are driv-
ing, slow down and pull off the road. Stop
the vehicle at a safe place and put the
selector lever in ºPº. With the engine id-
ling, wait until the light goes off. If the
light goes off, you can start the vehicle
again. If the light does not go off, call a
Toyota dealer or qualified repair shop for
assistance.
NOTICE
Continued driving with the warning light on may damage the automatictransmission.
(j) SRS Airbag Warning Light
This light will come on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the ºACCº or
ºONº position. After about 6 seconds,
the light will go off. This means the
system of the airbag and front seat belt
pretensioners are operating properly.
The warning light system monitors the air-
bag sensor assembly, seat belt pretension-
er assembly, inflators, warning light, inter-
connecting wiring, power sources.
If either of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction somewhere in
the parts monitored by the warning light
system. Contact your Toyota dealer as
soon as possible to service the vehicle.
The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the ºACCº or
ºONº position or remains on.
The light comes on or flashes while
driving.
(k) Low Windshield Washer Fluid Level Warning Light (Canada)
The light warns that the windshield washer
fluid level is too low. Add washer fluid at
your earliest opportunity. (For instructions,
see ºAdding washer fluidº in Chapter 7- 3.)

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(l) Light Reminder Buzzer
This buzzer will sound if the head light
switch is left on and the driver's door is
opened with the key removed from the
ignition switch.
(m) Key Reminder Buzzer
This buzzer reminds you to remove the
key when you open the driver 's door with
the ignition key in the ºACCº or ºLOCKº
position.
CHECKING SERVICE REMINDER INDICA-
TORS (except the low fuel level warning
light and low windshield washer fluid
level warning light)
1. Apply the parking brake.
2. Open one of the doors or tail gate (soft- top).
The open door warning light should
come on.
3. Close the door or tail gate (soft- top). The open door warning light should go
off.
4. Turn the ignition key to ºACCº. The SRS airbag warning light should
come on. It goes off after about 6 se-
conds. 5. Turn the ignition key to ºONº, but do
not start the engine.
All the service reminder indicators ex-
cept the open door warning light, SRS
airbag warning light and automatic
transmission fluid temperature warning
light should come on. The ºABSº warn-
ing light goes off after a few seconds.
6. Turn the ignition key to ºSTARTº. The automatic transmission fluid tempera-
ture warning light should come on.
If any service reminder indicator or warn-
ing buzzer does not function as described
above, either the bulb is burned out or the
circuit is in need of repair. Have it
checked by your Toyota dealer as soon as
possible.

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If the preset speed automatically cancels
out other than for the above cases or, if
the indicator light flashes several times,
the cruise control may be malfunctioning.
In such cases, have your vehicle checked
by your Toyota dealer at the earliest op-
portunity.
RESETTING AT A FASTER SPEED
Push the lever up in the ºRES/ACCº direc-
tion and hold it. Release the lever when
the desired speed is attained. While the
lever is held up, the vehicle will gradually
gain speed.
However, a faster way to reset is to ac-
celerate the vehicle and then push the
lever down in the ºSET/COASTº direction.
RESETTING AT A SLOWER SPEED
Push the lever down in the ºSET/COASTº
direction and hold it. Release the lever
when the desired speed is attained. While
the lever is held down, the vehicle speed
will gradually decrease.
However, a faster way to reset is to de-
press the brake pedal and then push the
lever down in the ºSET/COASTº direction.
On vehicles with automatic transmission,
even if you turn off the overdrive switch
with the cruise control on, engine braking
will not be applied because the cruise
control is not cancelled. To decrease the
vehicle speed, reset to a slower speed
with the cruise control lever or depress
the brake pedal. If you use the brake
pedal, cruise control is cancelled.
RESUMING THE PRESET SPEED
If the preset speed is cancelled by pu
lling
the control lever or by depressing the
brake pedal or clutch pedal, pushing the
lever up in the ºRES/ACCº direction will
restore the speed set prior to cancellation.
However, once the vehicle speed falls be-
low about 40 km/h (25 mph), the preset
speed will not be resumed.
CRUISE CONTROL FAILURE WARNING
If the ºCRUISEº indicator light in the
instrument cluster flashes when using the
cruise control, press the ºCRUISE ON-
OFFº button to turn the system off and
then press it again to turn it on. If any of the following conditions then oc-
curs, there is some trouble in the cruise
control system.
The indicator light does not come on.
The indicator light flashes again.
The indicator light goes out after it
comes on.
If this is the case, contact your Toyota
dealer and have your vehicle inspected.

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Brake system
TANDEM MASTER CYLINDER BRAKE SYSTEM
The tandem master cylinder brake system
is a hydraulic system with two separate
sub- systems. If either sub- system s
hould
fail, the other will still work. However, the
pedal will be harder to press, and your
stopping distance will be longer. Also, the
brake system warning light may come on.
CAUTION
Do not drive your vehicle with only a
single brake system. Have your
brakes fixed immediately.
BRAKE BOOSTER
The brake booster uses engine vacuum to
power- assist the brakes. If the engine
should quit while you are driving, you can
bring the vehicle to a stop with normal
pedal pressure. There is enough reserve
vacuum for one or two stopsÐbut no
more!
CAUTION
Do not pump the brake pedal if the
engine stalls. Each push on the
pedal uses up your vacuum reserve.
Even if the power assist is com-
pletely lost, the brakes will still
work. But you will have to push the
pedal hardÐmuch harder than nor-
mal. And your braking distance will
be longer.
ANTI- LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM
(with ºABSº warning light)
The anti- lock brake system is designed to
automatically help prevent lock- up of the
wheels during sudden braking or braking
on slippery road surfaces. This assists in
providing directional stab ility and steering
performance of the vehicle under these
circumstances.
The anti- lock brake system becomes op-
erative after the vehicle has accelerated
to a speed in excess of approximately 10
km/h (6 mph). It stops operating when the
vehicle decelerates to a speed below
approximately 5 km/h (3 mph). You may hear a sound in the engine
compartment for a few seconds when the
engine is started or just after the vehicle
is started. This means that the anti- lock
brake system is in the self check mode,
and does not indicate a malfunction.
Effective way to press the ºABSº brake
pedal: When the anti- lock brake system
function is in action, you may feel the
brake pedal pulsating and hear a noise.
In this situation, to let the anti- lock
brake system work for you, just hold the
brake pedal down more firmly. Do not
pump the brake. This will result in re-
duced braking performance.
The brake pedal pulsation caused by the
anti- lock brake system may indicate haz-
ardous road surface conditions. Although
the anti- lock brake system assists in pro-
viding vehicle control, it is still important
to drive with all due care, because the
anti- lock brake system cannot overcome
the laws of physics that act on your ve-
hicle: Braking capab ility is dependent on tire
friction with the road surface.

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Even though the anti- lock brake sys-
tem is operating, a driver cannot main-
tain full control on certain slippery road
surfaces, when cornering at high
speeds, or in violent maneuvers.
Avoid high speeds on wet roads. The
anti- lock brake system cannot elimi-
nate the risk of hydroplaning and loss
of tire friction.
Always maintain a safe distance from the
vehicle in front of you. Compared with
vehicles not fitted with an anti- lock brake
system, your vehicle may r equire a longer
stopping distance in the following cases:
Driving on rough, gravel or snow- cov-
ered roads.
Driving with tire chains installed.
Driving on roads where the road sur-
face is pitted or has other differences
in surface height.
CAUTION
Do not use tires other than the
manufacturer 's designated tires, and
do not mix tires or wheels of differ-
ent sizes. You may prevent the anti-
lock brake system from operating at
full effectiveness.
Ty p e A
Ty p e B ºABSº warning light
This light comes on when the ignition key
is turned to the ºONº position. After a few
seconds, the light will go off.
If either of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction somewhere in
the parts monitored by the warning light
system. Contact your Toyota dealer as
soon as possible to service the vehicle.
The light does not come on as de-
scribed above, or remains on.
The light comes on while driving.
Even if the anti- lock brake system should
fail, the brake system will still operate
conventionally. However, when the ºABSº
warning light is on (and the brake system
warning light is off), anti- lock brake sys-
tem is not assisting brake performance so
that the wheel can lock- up during sudden
braking or braking on slippery road sur-
faces. Have your vehicle checked by your
Toyota dealer as soon as possible.