1-29
Your vehicle has a feature that will automatically unlock
the doors and turn the interior lamps on when the air
bags inflate (if battery power is available). You can lock
the doors again and turn the interior lamps off by using
the door lock and interior lamp controls.
In many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from
the right front passenger air bag.
Air bags are designed to inflate only once. After an
air bag inflates, you'll need some new parts for your
air bag system. If you don't get them, the air bag
system won't be there to help protect you in another
crash. A new system will include air bag modules
and possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
Your vehicle is equipped with an electronic frontal
sensor, which helps the sensing system distinguish
between a moderate frontal impact and a more
severe frontal impact. Your vehicle is also equipped
with a crash sensing and diagnostic module, which
records information about the frontal air bag system. The module records information about the readiness
of the system, when the system commands air bag
inflation and driver's safety belt usage at
deployment. The module also records speed, engine
rpm, brake and throttle data.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air
bag systems. Improper service can mean that an
air bag system won't work properly. See your dealer
for service.
NOTICE:
If you damage the covering for the driver's
or the right front passenger's air bag, or the
air bag covering on the driver's and right front
passenger's seatback, the bag may not work
properly. You may have to replace the air bag
module in the steering wheel, both the air bag
module and the instrument panel for the right
front passenger's air bag, or both the air bag
module and seatback for the driver's and right
front passenger's side impact air bag. Do not
open or break the air bag coverings.
1-33 Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the air bag systems in several places
around your vehicle. Your dealer and the service manual
have information about servicing your vehicle and the
air bag systems. To purchase a service manual, see
ªService and Owner Publicationsº in the Index.
CAUTION:
For up to 10 seconds after the ignition key is
turned off and the battery is disconnected,
an air bag can still inflate during improper
service. You can be injured if you are close to an
air bag when it inflates. Avoid yellow connectors.
They are probably part of the air bag systems.
Be sure to follow proper service procedures, and
make sure the person performing work for you is
qualified to do so.
The air bag systems do not need regular maintenance.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners. You'll find
them on the buckle end of the safety belts for the
driver and right front passenger. They help the safety
belts reduce a person's forward movement in a
moderate to severe crash in which the front of the
vehicle hits something.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a crash,
you'll need to get new ones, and probably other new
parts for your safety belt system. See ªReplacing
Restraint System Parts After a Crashº in the Index.
2-30
FIRST (1): This position gives you even more power
than SECOND (2). You can use it on very steep hills,
or in deep snow or mud.
If the traction control switch is off, your vehicle will not
go into FIRST (1) gear and the vehicle will accelerate
from stop more slowly. This can help in deep snow or
mud conditions. When the traction control is turned
off, a message will be lit on the Driver Information
Center (DIC).
NOTICE:
If your front wheels can't rotate, don't try to
drive. This might happen if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud or were up against a solid
object. You could damage your transaxle.
Also, if you stop when going uphill, don't hold
your vehicle there with only the accelerator
pedal. This could cause overheating and damage
the transaxle. Use your brakes to hold your
vehicle in position on a hill.
Performance Shift Display (STS Only)
When your vehicle detects a change in driving
conditions, it will automatically initiate the appropriate
performance shift mode. When this occurs, the gear
display on the instrument panel cluster will change to
indicate that the transaxle has shifted to a different gear.
For example, the gear display on the cluster may
indicate D, 3, 2, or 1 even though the gearshift lever is
still in OVERDRIVE (D). Once the performance shift
mode ends, the gear display on the cluster will return to
matching the gear shift lever indication.
2-41
LO or HI: Move the lever up to LO for steady wiping
at a slow speed. Move the lever higher to HI for steady
wiping at a high speed.
INT (DELAY): Move the lever up to the INT position,
then turn the INT ADJ band, which is located on the
lever, to adjust the delay time. The higher you turn
the INT ADJ band, the more frequent the wipers
will operate.
OFF: Lower the lever to its resting position (OFF) to
turn off the wipers.
MIST: Pull the lever down once and release it for a
single wipe cycle. For more cycles, hold the lever down
in the MIST position longer.
To wash the windshield, press the button located at the
tip of the lever.
Be sure to clear ice and snow from the wiper blades
before using them. If they're frozen to the windshield,
carefully loosen or thaw them. If the blades do become
damaged, get new blades or blade inserts.
Heavy snow or ice can overload the wiper motor.
A circuit breaker will stop the motor until it cools.
Clear away snow or ice to prevent an overload.Rainsense II Wipers
The moisture sensor is mounted on the interior side of
the windshield below the rearview mirror and is used to
automatically operate the wipers by monitoring the
amount of moisture build
-up on the windshield. Wipes
occur as needed to clear the windshield depending on
driving conditions and the sensitivity setting. In light
rain or snow, fewer wipes will occur. In heavy rain or
snow, wipes will occur more frequently. The Rainsense
wipers operate in a delay mode as well as a continuous
low or high speed as needed. If the system is left on for
long periods of time, occasional wipes may occur
without any moisture on the windshield. This is normal
and indicates that the Rainsense system is activated.
The Rainsense system can be activated by moving the
wiper stalk up to the INT position and turning the INT
ADJ band to one of the five sensitivity levels. The
bottom INT ADJ position is the lowest sensitivity
setting, level one. This allows more rain or snow to
collect on the windshield between wipes. Turning INT
ADJ band away from you to the higher sensitivity
levels. The top position is the highest sensitivity setting,
level five. A single wipe will occur each time you turn
the INT ADJ band to a higher sensitivity level to
indicate that the sensitivity level has been increased.
2-54
This is the on/off button, located on the lower left
side of the mirror for the electrochromic and compass
functions of the rearview mirror.
The mirror also includes an eight
-point compass
display in the upper right corner of the mirror face.
When on, the compass automatically calibrates as the
vehicle is driven.
When cleaning the mirror, use a paper towel or similar
material dampened with glass cleaner. Do not spray
glass cleaner directly on the mirror as that may cause the
liquid cleaner to enter the mirror housing.
Mirror Operation
To turn on the automatic dimming feature, press and
hold the on/off button for about three seconds. To turn
off automatic dimming, press and hold the on/off button
for about three seconds again. The green indicator light
will be illuminated when this feature is active. The
automatic dimming feature will be active each time the
vehicle is started.Compass Operation
Press the on/off button once to turn the compass on
or off.
When the ignition and the compass feature are on, the
compass will show two character boxes for
approximately two seconds. After two seconds, the
mirror will display the compass heading.
Compass Calibration
If after two seconds, the display does not show a
compass heading (ªNº for North, for example), there
may be a strong magnetic field interfering with the
compass. Such interference may be caused by a
magnetic antenna mount, magnetic note pad holder
or a similar magnetic item. If the letter ªCº should
ever appear in the compass window, the compass may
need calibration.
The mirror can be calibrated by driving the vehicle in
circles at 5 mph (8 km/h) or less until the display
reads a direction.
The compass can be placed in calibration mode by
pressing and holding the on/off button until a ªCº is
shown in the compass display.
2-90
MPG INST: This message shows the instantaneous fuel
economy which varies with your driving conditions,
such as acceleration, braking and the grade of the road
being traveled. The INFO RESET button does not
function in this mode.
GAL FUEL USED (Reset): This message shows how
much fuel has been used since the last reset. To learn
how much fuel is used from a new starting point, press
the RESET button while the GAL FUEL USED is
displayed in the DIC.
AVG MPH (Reset): This message shows the average
speed you have traveled at since the last time you reset
the value. To reset the value, press the INFO button to
display AVG MPH then press and hold the INFO
RESET button until 0.0 AVG MPH is displayed.
TIMER: This feature is like a stopwatch, in that
you can clock the time it takes to get from one point
to another.
To operate, press the INFO button to display TIMER.
Each of the fields for the hours, minutes and seconds are
two numeric digits.Once TIMER 00:00:00 is displayed, press the ON/OFF
button to start the timing feature. Press the ON/OFF
button again to stop it. If you will be starting and
stopping your vehicle, during a trip for instance, the
TIMER feature will automatically start timing where it
left off when you last stopped. To reset it, press and hold
the INFO RESET button until the display reads TIMER
00:00:00. Press the INFO button to exit from the
TIMER display.
BATTERY VOLTS: This message shows the current
battery voltage. If the voltage is normal the display will
show BATTERY VOLTS OK. If the voltage drops
below 10.5 volts, the display will show BATTERY
VOLTS LOW. If the voltage is above 16 volts, the
display will show BATTERY VOLTS HIGH. If the
display shows the high or low message, you will need
to have your battery checked. See ªDriver Information
Center (DIC) Messagesº in the Index for
more information.
3-3
Passenger's Side Temperature Knob
The right front passenger can control the temperature of
air for both the front passenger and rear seat area. (The
passenger's and driver's knob adjust from 60 F (16 C)
to 90 F (32 C) independent of each other. It is
suggested, however, that the passenger's setting stay no
more than four degrees warmer or cooler in temperature
from the driver's setting.) To turn the system on, press
the passenger's side TEMP knob. Turn the passenger's
side TEMP knob clockwise to increase the temperature
and counterclockwise to decrease the temperature. Press
the passenger's side TEMP knob again to turn off the
passenger's side system. If the passenger's side is turned
off, the driver's side will control the temperature of the
entire vehicle.
Automatic Operation
When the system is set for automatic operation, sensors
will control the air delivery mode. Air will come from
the floor, the instrument panel or windshield outlets.
The fan speed will vary as the system maintains the
selected temperature setting.
Be careful not to put anything over the electronic solar
sensors located near the ends of the instrument panel
near the windshield. These sensors are used by the
automatic system to regulate temperature.To find your comfort zone, start with the 75F (24C)
setting and allow about 30 minutes for the system to
regulate. Turn the TEMP knob to adjust the temperature
if necessary. If you choose 60F (16C), the system
will remain at that maximum cooling setting and will
not regulate fan speed. If you choose 90F (32C),
the system will remain at that maximum heating setting
and will not regulate fan speed. Choosing either
maximum setting will not cause the system to heat or
cool any faster.
With the automatic setting, the air conditioning
compressor cycles when needed to cool the air. In cold
weather, when the system senses the need for heat, the
airflow will be directed out the floor outlets. As the
interior temperature approaches a desired setting, the
blower speed will decrease. To maintain interior
comfort, the airflow may move to the instrument panel
air outlets and floor outlets (bi
-level mode). On bright
sunny days in cold weather, the airflow may come out of
the air conditioning outlets (A/C mode) to maintain
comfort and prevent stuffiness.
If your vehicle is sitting out on a hot day and you have it
set on AUTO, the air will first flow out the floor outlets
for a few seconds. This is normal. This is to remove hot
air from the air outlets. As the air is cooled, the airflow
will move through the air conditioning outlets.
3-11
Audio Systems
Your audio system has been designed to operate easily
and give years of listening pleasure. You will get the
most enjoyment out of it if you acquaint yourself with it
first. Find out what your audio system can do and how
to operate all its controls, to be sure you're getting the
most out of the advanced engineering that went into it.
Setting the Clock
Press and hold HR or MN until the time display begins
to change. Release the button as you get close to the
correct time. The time may be set anytime the clock is
displayed. There is a two
-second delay before the clock
goes into time
-set mode.
AM-FM Stereo with Cassette Tape and
Compact Disc Player
Playing the Radio
PWR/VOL: Press this knob lightly to turn the system
on. Press the knob again to turn the system off. To
increase volume, turn the knob clockwise. Turn it
counterclockwise to decrease volume.
HR or MN: Display the time with the ignition off by
pressing this button.