2001 Acura RL tire pressure

Important Safety Precautions
You'll find many safely recommendations throughout this
section, and throughout this manual.
The recommendations on this page are the ones we consider to be the
most important.
Always Wear Your Seat Belt A seat belt is your best protection in all types of collisions. Airbags
supplement seat belts, but airbags
are designed to inflate only in a
moderate to severe frontal collision.
So even though your car is equipped
with airbags, make sure you and
your passengers always wear your seat belts, and wear them properly. (See page 15.)
Restrain All Children Children are safest when they are
properly restrained in the back seat,
not the front seat. A child who is too small for a seat belt must be properly
restrained in a child safety seat. (See
page 20.) Be Aware of Airbag Hazards
While airbags can save lives, they can cause serious or fatal injuries to
occupants who sit too close to them,
or are not properly restrained.
Infants, young children, and short
adults are at the greatest risk. Besure to follow all instructions and
warnings in this manual. (See page 9.)

Don't Drink and Drive

Alcohol and driving don't mix. Even one drink can reduce your ability to
respond to changing conditions, and
your reaction time gets worse with every additional drink. So don't drink
and drive, and don't let your friends
drink and drive, either. Control Your Speed
Excessive speed is a major factor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally,
the higher the speed the greater the risk, but serious accidents can alsooccur at lower speeds. Never drive
faster than is safe for current conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.
Keep Your Car in Safe Condition
Having a tire blowout or amechanical failure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition frequently,and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance. (See page 206.)

Driver and Passenger Safety

Indicator Lights

The instrument panel has many indicators to give you important
information about your car.
Seat Belt Reminder Light
This indicator lights when you turn the ignition switch ON (II). It is a
reminder to you and your passengers
to protect yourselves by fastening
the seat belts. A beeper also sounds
if you have not fastened your seat

belt.

If you do not fasten your seat belt,
the beeper will stop after a few seconds but the light stays on until
you do. Both the light and the beeper stay off if you fasten your seat belt
before turning on the ignition. Low Oil Pressure
Indicator
The engine can be severely damaged if this light flashes or stays on when
the engine is running. For complete
information, see page 285.

Charging System
Indicator
If this light comes on when the
engine is running, the battery is not
being charged. For complete
information, see page 286.
U.S.


Canada

Parking Brake and Brake System
Indicator
This light has two functions:
1. This indicator comes on when you turn the ignition switch ON (II). It
is a reminder to check the parking
brake. Driving with the parking
brake not fully released candamage the brakes and tires.
2. If the indicator remains lit after you have fully released theparking brake while the engine isrunning, or if it comes on whiledriving, it can indicate a problem
in the brake system. For complete
information, see page 289 .
Instruments and Controls
BRAKE

Fuel Economy

The condition of your car and your driving habits are the two most
important things that affect the fuel
mileage you get.
Car Condition
Always maintain your car according to the maintenance schedule. This
will keep it in top operating condition.
An important part of that mainte- nance is the Owner Maintenance
Checks (see page 215 ). For
example, an underinflated tire
causes more "rolling resistance,"
which uses fuel. It also wears out
faster, so check the tire pressure at least monthly.
In winter, the build-up of snow on
your car's underside adds weight and
rolling resistance. Frequent cleaning
helps your fuel mileage and reduces
the chance of corrosion. Driving Habits
You can improve fuel economy by driving moderately. Rapid acceler-
ation, abrupt cornering, and hard
braking use more fuel.
Always drive in the highest gear that allows the engine to run and acceler-
ate smoothly.
Depending on traffic conditions, try
to maintain a constant speed. Every
time you slow down and speed up,
your car uses extra fuel. Use the cruise control, when appropriate, to
increase fuel economy. A cold engine uses more fuel than a
warm engine. It is not necessary to"warm-up" a cold engine by letting it
idle for a long time. You can drive
away in about a minute, no matter
how cold it is outside. The engine
will warm up faster, and you get
better fuel economy. To cut down on the number of "cold starts," try to
combine several short trips into one.
The air conditioning puts an extra load on the engine which makes it
use more fuel. Turn off the A/C orset the climate control to a higher
temperature to cut down on air
conditioning use. Use the flow-
through ventilation when the outside air temperature is moderate.

Before Driving

Preparing to Drive

You should do the following checks and adjustments every day before
you drive your car.
1. Make sure all windows, mirrors, and outside lights are clean and
unobstructed. Remove frost, snow,or ice.
2. Check that the hood and trunk are
fully closed.

3. Visually check the tires. If a tire

looks low, use a gauge to check its
pressure.

4. Check that any items you may be

carrying with you inside are stored
properly or fastened down
securely.

5. Check the adjustment of the seat (see page 94 ).
6. Check the adjustment of the

inside and outside mirrors (see
page 99 ).

7. Check the adjustment of the

steering wheel (see page 7 1 ).

8. Make sure the doors are securely

closed and locked.

9. Fasten your seat belt. Check that

your passengers have fastened
their seat belts (see page 15 ).

10.Turn the ignition switch ON (II).

Check the indicator lights in the
instrument panel.

11.Start the engine (see page 181).
12.Check the gauges and indicator

lights in the instrument panel (see
page 53).

Driving

The Braking System

Brake System Design
The hydraulic system that operates the brakes has two separate circuits.Each circuit works diagonally across
the car (the left-front brake is connected with the right-rear brake,
etc.). If one circuit should develop a
problem, you will still have braking
at two wheels.

Front
Anti-lock Brakes

Your car has an Anti-lock BrakeSystem (ABS) as standard
equipment. ABS helps to prevent the
wheels from locking up and skidding during hard braking, allowing you to
retain steering control.
When the front tires skid, you lose steering control; the car continues
straight ahead even though you turn
the steering wheel. The ABS helps to
prevent lock-up and helps you retain steering control by pumping the
brakes rapidly; much faster than a person can do it.
The ABS also balances the front-to rear braking distribution according
to vehicle loading. You should never pump the
brake pedal, this defeats the
purpose of the ABS. Let the ABS
work for you by always keeping firm, steady pressure on the brake pedal
as you steer away from the hazard.
This is sometimes referred to as
"stomp and steer."

You will feel a pulsation in the brake pedal when the ABS activates, and
you may hear some noise. This is normal, it is the ABS rapidly
pumping the brakes.
Activation varies with the amount of traction your tires have. On dry
pavement, you will need to press on
the brake pedal very hard before you activate the ABS. However, you may
feel the ABS activate immediately if
you are trying to stop on snow or ice.

Driving

Driving in Bad Weather

Visibility — Being able to see clearly in all directions and being
visible to other drivers are important in all weather conditions. This is
more difficult in bad weather. To be seen more clearly during daylight
hours, turn on your headlights.
Inspect your windshield wipers and
washers frequently. Keep the wind- shield washer reservoir full of the
proper fluid. Have the windshield
wiper blades replaced if they start to streak the windshield or leave parts
unwiped. Use the defroster and air conditioning to keep the windows
from fogging up on the inside (see
pages 128 and 133). Traction — Check your tires
frequently for wear and properpressure. Both are important in
preventing "hydroplaning" (loss of
traction on a wet surface). In the
winter, mount snow tires on all four
wheels for the best handling.
Watch road conditions carefully, they can change from moment tomoment. Wet leaves can be as slip-
pery as ice. "Clear" roads can have
patches of ice. Driving conditionscan be very hazardous when the
outside temperature is near freezing.
The road surface can become covered with areas of water puddles
mixed with areas of ice, so your
traction can change without warning.
Be careful when downshifting. If
traction is low, you can lock up the drive wheels for a moment and cause
a skid. Be very cautious when passing, or
being passed by other vehicles. The spray from large vehicles reduces
your visibility, and the wind buffeting can cause you to lose control.
Driving

Owner Maintenance Checks
You should check the following items at the specified intervals. If
you are unsure of how to perform any check, turn to the page given. Engine oil level — Check every
time you fill the fuel tank. See page 171.
Engine coolant level — Check the
radiator reserve tank every time
you fill the fuel tank. See page 172 .

Windshield washer fluid — Check the level in the reservoir monthly.
If weather conditions cause you to
use the washers frequently, check
the reservoir each time you stop
for fuel. See page 227 . Automatic transmission — Check
the fluid level monthly. See page
228.
Brakes — Check the fluid level
monthly. See page 230 . Tires — Check the tire pressure
monthly. Examine the tread for
wear and foreign objects. See page
245.

Lights — Check the operation of
the headlights, parking lights,
taillights, high-mount brake light,
turn signals, brake lights, and
license plate lights monthly. See

page 250.

Maintenance

Timing Belt, Tires

Timing Belt
The timing belt and balancer belt should normally be replaced at the
intervals shown in the maintenance
schedule.

Replace these belts at 60,000 miles (U.S.) or 100,000 km (Canada) if you
regularly drive your car in one or
more of these conditions:
In very high temperatures
(over 110°F, 43°C).
In very low temperatures

(under — 20°F, — 29°C).

Tires
To safely operate your car, your tiresmust be the proper type and size, in
good condition with adequate tread, and correctly inflated. The following
pages give more detailed information on how and when to check air
pressure, how to inspect your tires
for damage and wear, and what to do
when your tires need to be replaced.
Inflation

Keeping the tires properly inflated
provides the best combination of
handling, tread life and riding comfort. Underinflated tires wear
unevenly, adversely affect handling
and fuel economy, and are more
likely to fail from being overheated. Overinflated tires can make your car
ride more harshly, are more prone to damage from road hazards, and wear

unevenly.

We recommend that you visually check your tires every day. If you
think a tire might be low, check it immediately with a tire gauge.

CONTINUED

Maintenance

Using tires that are excessively
worn or improperly inflated can
cause a crash in which you canbe seriously hurt or killed.
Follow all instructions in this

owner's manual regarding tire
inflation and maintenance.