2002 OLDSMOBILE AURORA tow

2-28
AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D): This position is
for normal driving. If you need more power for passing,
and you're:

Going less than approximately 35 mph (55 km/h),
push your accelerator pedal about halfway down.

Going about 35 mph (55 km/h) or more, push the
accelerator all the way down.
You'll shift down to the next gear and have more power.
THIRD (3): This position is also used for normal
driving, however, it offers more power and lower fuel
economy than AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D).
Here are some times you might choose THIRD (3)
instead of AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D):

When driving on hilly, winding roads,

when towing a trailer, so there is less shifting
between gears, or

when going down a steep hill.
SECOND (2): This position gives you more power
but lower fuel economy than AUTOMATIC
OVERDRIVE (D) or THIRD (3). You can use
SECOND (2) on hills. It can help control your
speed as you go down steep mountain roads, but then
you would also want to use your brakes off and on.FIRST (1): This position gives you even more power
but lower fuel economy than SECOND (2). You can use
it on very steep hills, or in deep snow or mud. If the shift
lever is put in FIRST (1), the transaxle won't shift into
FIRST (1) until the vehicle is going slowly enough.
NOTICE:
If your front wheels can't turn, 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 overheat and damage the
transaxle. Use your brakes or shift into PARK (P)
to hold your vehicle in position on a hill.
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2-29
Parking Brake
Your vehicle has a PUSH
TO RELEASE parking
brake. To set the parking
brake, hold the regular
brake pedal down with your
right foot. Push down the
parking brake pedal with
your left foot.
If the ignition is on, the brake system warning light will
come on while the parking brake is set and a single
chime will be heard.To release the parking brake, hold the regular brake
pedal down with your right foot and push the parking
brake pedal with your left foot. This will release the
parking brake pedal. When you lift your left foot, the
parking brake pedal will follow it to the release position.
If you try to drive approximately 20 feet (6.1 m) with
the parking brake on, the brake light stays on and a
chime sounds until you release the parking brake.
NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brake on can cause
your rear brakes to overheat. You may have to
replace them, and you could also damage other
parts of your vehicle.
If you are towing a trailer and are parking on any hill,
see ªTowing a Trailerº in the Index. That section shows
what to do first to keep the trailer from moving.
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2-30
Shifting Into PARK (P)
CAUTION:
It can be dangerous to get out of your vehicle if
the shift lever is not fully in PARK (P) with the
parking brake firmly set. Your vehicle can roll.
If you have left the engine running, the vehicle
can move suddenly. You or others could be
injured. To be sure your vehicle won't move,
even when you're on fairly level ground, use
the steps that follow. If you're pulling a trailer,
see ªTowing a Trailerº in the Index.
1. Hold the brake pedal down with your right foot and
set the parking brake by pushing down the parking
brake pedal with your left foot.
2. Move the shift lever into PARK (P) by pushing the
lever all the way forward.
3. Turn the ignition key to OFF.
4. Remove the key and take it with you. If you can
leave your vehicle with the ignition key in your
hand, your vehicle is in PARK (P).
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2-34
CAUTION:
It can be dangerous to get out of your vehicle if
the shift lever is not fully in PARK (P) with the
parking brake firmly set. Your vehicle can roll.
Don't leave your vehicle when the engine is
running unless you have to. If you've left the
engine running, the vehicle can move suddenly.
You or others could be injured. To be sure your
vehicle won't move, even when you're on fairly
level ground, always set your parking brake and
move the shift lever to PARK (P).
Follow the proper steps to be sure your vehicle won't
move. See ªShifting Into PARK (P)º in the Index.
If you are parking on a hill and if you're pulling a
trailer, also see ªTowing a Trailerº in the Index.
Horn
Press on the center area of the steering wheel to sound
the horn.
Tilt Wheel
A tilt wheel allows you to adjust the steering wheel
before you drive. You can also raise it to the highest
level to give your legs more room when you exit and
enter the vehicle.
The lever that allows you to tilt the steering wheel is
located on the left side of the steering column.
To tilt the wheel, hold
the wheel and pull the
lever toward you. Then
move the wheel to a
comfortable position
and release the lever
to lock the wheel
in place.
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2-37 Flash-to-Pass Feature
This feature lets you use your high-beam headlamps
to signal a driver in front of you that you want to pass.
It works even if your headlamps are off.
To use it, pull the turn signal lever toward you.
Your high
-beam headlamps will turn on. They'll stay on
as long as you hold the lever there. Release the lever to
turn them off.
If your headlamps are on, and on high beam, your
headlamps will switch to low beam when the lever is
released. To get back to high beam, push the lever
away from you.
Windshield Wipers
The lever on the right side of your steering column
operates your windshield wipers.
If your windshield wipers are on for more than six
seconds while you are driving, the low
-beam
headlamps, instrument panel cluster backlighting and
the taillamps will turn on. For more information see
ªWiper
-Activated Headlampsº in the Index.
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2-38
For a single wiping cycle, move the lever down to
MIST. Hold it there until the wipers start, then release it.
The wipers will stop after one cycle. If you want more
cycles, hold the lever to MIST longer.
For steady wiping at low speed, move the lever up to the
LO position. For high
-speed wiping, move the lever up
further, to HI. To stop the wipers, move the lever to OFF.
You can set the wiper speed for a long or short delay
between wiper cycles. Move the lever up to the first
detent, INT (Intermittent). Turn the band labeled INT
ADJ (Intermittent Adjustment) down toward the shorter
lines for fewer wiper passes per minute. As you turn the
band toward the longer lines, the wiper cycles per
minute will increase.
Remember that damaged wiper blades may prevent
you from seeing well enough to drive safely. To avoid
damage, 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 your
blades do become damaged, get new blades or blade
inserts. See ªWindshield Wiper Blade Replacementº
in the Index.
Heavy snow or ice can overload your wipers. A circuit
breaker will stop them until the motor cools. Clear away
snow or ice to prevent an overload.
Rainsense
II Wipers (If Equipped)
The moisture sensor is mounted on the interior side of
the windshield below the rearview mirror and is used to
automatically operate the windshield wipers. This
system operates by monitoring the amount of moisture
build
-up on the windshield. Wipes occur as needed to
clear the windshield depending on the driving conditions
and sensitivity setting. In light rain or snow, fewer wipes
will occur. In heavy rain or snow, wipes will occur more
frequently. The system will operate in the delay, low
speed and high speed modes. 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 is activated by moving the wiper lever
up to the INT position and turning the INT ADJ band to
one of the five sensitivity levels within the delay area. 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. You can increase the
sensitivity of the system and the frequency of wipes by
turning the 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.
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2-42
Reducing Speed While Using Cruise Control
There are two ways to reduce your speed while using
cruise control:

Push the lever down until you reach a desired lower
speed then release it.

To slow down in very small amounts, push the lever
down briefly. Each time you do this, you'll go about
1 mph (1.6 km/h) slower.
Passing Another Vehicle While Using Cruise Control
Use the accelerator pedal to increase your speed. When
you take your foot off the pedal, your vehicle will slow
down to the cruise control speed you set earlier.
Using Cruise Control on Hills
How well your cruise control will work on hills depends
upon your speed, load, and the steepness of the hills.
When going up steep hills, you may have to step on the
accelerator pedal to maintain your speed. When going
downhill, you may have to brake or shift to a lower gear
to keep your speed down. Of course, applying the brake
takes you out of cruise control. Many drivers find this to
be too much trouble and don't use cruise control on
steep hills.Ending Cruise Control Without Erasing the
Set Speed
There are two ways to turn off the cruise control:

Step lightly on the brake pedal, or

pull the cruise lever towards you to cancel cruise.
To resume the set speed see ªResuming a Set Speedº
earlier in this section.
Erasing Cruise Control Speed Memory
When you turn off the cruise control or the ignition,
your cruise control set speed memory is erased.
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2-45
With your headlamp control in AUTO when it is
dark enough outside, your low
-beam headlamps will
automatically come on. The other lamps that turn on
with your headlamps will also turn on. When it is bright
enough outside, the regular lamps will go off, and your
high
-beam headlamps change to the reduced brightness
of DRL.
To turn off all exterior lighting at night when you
are parked, turn the exterior lamps control all the way
toward OFF. The DRL will turn on automatically and
the HEADLAMPS SUGGESTED message will be
displayed on the DIC when you move the transaxle
out of PARK (P).
If the exterior lamps control is in the parking lamps
position at night, only the parking lamps will be on.
If the transaxle is out of PARK (P), only the
parking lamps will be active and the HEADLAMPS
SUGGESTED message will be displayed on the DIC.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need it.
Automatic Headlamps
The automatic headlamps will keep your headlamps on
when it is dark outside and the ignition is in ON.
It's possible that your headlamps may go out if you
drive from a dark area into a bright area like a lighted
parking lot. If this happens, turn on your headlamps
with the exterior lamps control.
Light Sensor
Your automatic headlamps and DRL work with the light
sensor on top of the instrument panel. Don't cover it up.
If you do it will read ªdarkº and the automatic headlamp
lighting will turn on.
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