2003 BUICK RANDEZVOUS heater

Manual Lumbar
The knob that controls this
feature is located on the
outboard sides of the
driver’s and front
passenger’s seats.
Turn the knob toward the front of the vehicle to increase
lumbar support. Turn the knob toward the rear of the
vehicle to decrease lumbar support.
Heated Seats
Your vehicle may have
heated seats. If it does,
the heated seat switches
are located in the
instrument panel
switchbank.
This feature will quickly heat the seat cushions and
lower back of the driver’s and front passenger’s seat.
The left switch is for the driver’s seat and the right switch
is for the front passenger’s seat.
Press the top of the switch to turn the heater on. Press
the bottom of the switch to turn the heater off. The
heated seat switch will turn off when the ignition
is turned to OFF and will resume operation when the
ignition is turned to ON, unless the switch is turned off.
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2003 - Rendezvous OM

Keys...............................................................2-3
Remote Keyless Entry System.........................2-5
Remote Keyless Entry System Operation...........2-6
Doors and Locks.............................................2-8
Door Locks....................................................2-8
Power Door Locks..........................................2-9
Delayed Locking.............................................2-9
Programmable Automatic Door Locks................2-9
Rear Door Security Locks..............................2-10
Lockout Protection........................................2-11
Leaving Your Vehicle....................................2-11
Liftgate........................................................2-11
Windows........................................................2-13
Power Windows............................................2-14
Sun Visors...................................................2-14
Theft-Deterrent Systems..................................2-15
Content Theft-Deterrent.................................2-15
PASS-Key
®III ..............................................2-16
PASS-Key®III Operation...............................2-17Starting and Operating Your Vehicle................2-18
New Vehicle Break-In....................................2-18
Ignition Positions..........................................2-19
Starting Your Engine.....................................2-20
Engine Coolant Heater..................................2-21
Automatic Transaxle Operation.......................2-22
Parking Brake..............................................2-25
Shifting Into Park (P).....................................2-26
Shifting Out of Park (P).................................2-28
Parking Over Things That Burn.......................2-29
Engine Exhaust............................................2-29
Running Your Engine While You Are Parked.......2-30
Mirrors...........................................................2-31
Manual Rearview Mirror.................................2-31
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror................2-31
Outside Power Mirror....................................2-31
Outside Curb View Assist Mirror.....................2-32
Outside Convex Mirror...................................2-32
Outside Heated Mirrors..................................2-32
OnStar®System.............................................2-32
Section 2 Features and Controls
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2003 - Rendezvous OM

Engine Coolant Heater
Your vehicle may have an engine coolant heater. In
very cold weather, 0°F(−18°C) or colder, the engine
coolant heater can help. You’ll get easier starting
and better fuel economy during engine warm-up.
Usually, the coolant heater should be plugged in a
minimum of four hours prior to starting your vehicle.
At temperatures above 32°F(0°C), use of the coolant
heater is not required.
To Use the Engine Coolant Heater
1. Turn off the engine.
2. Open the hood and unwrap the electrical cord. The
electrical cord is located on the driver’s side of the
engine compartment.
3. Plug it into a normal, grounded 110-volt AC outlet.
{CAUTION:
Plugging the cord into an ungrounded outlet
could cause an electrical shock. Also, the
wrong kind of extension cord could overheat
and cause afire. You could be seriously
injured. Plug the cord into a properly grounded
three-prong 110-volt AC outlet. If the cord
won’t reach, use a heavy-duty three-prong
extension cord rated for at least 15 amps.
4. Before starting the engine, be sure to unplug and
store the cord as it was before to keep it away
from moving engine parts. If you don’t, it could be
damaged.
How long should you keep the coolant heater plugged
in? The answer depends on the outside temperature, the
kind of oil you have, and some other things. Instead
of trying to list everything here, we ask that you contact
your dealer in the area where you’ll be parking your
vehicle. The dealer can give you the best advice for that
particular area.
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{CAUTION:
Snow can trap exhaust gases under your
vehicle. This can cause deadly CO (carbon
monoxide) gas to get inside. CO could
overcome you and kill you. You can’t see it or
smell it, so you might not know it is in your
vehicle. Clear away snow from around the
base of your vehicle, especially any that is
blocking your exhaust pipe. And check around
again from time to time to be sure snow
doesn’t collect there.
Open a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This will
help keep CO out.Run your engine only as long as you must. This saves
fuel. When you run the engine, make it go a little
faster than just idle. That is, push the accelerator
slightly. This uses less fuel for the heat that you get and
it keeps the battery charged. You will need a
well-charged battery to restart the vehicle, and possibly
for signaling later on with your headlamps. Let the
heater run for a while.
Then, shut the engine off and close the window almost
all the way to preserve the heat. Start the engine
again and repeat this only when you feel really
uncomfortable from the cold. But do it as little as
possible. Preserve the fuel as long as you can. To help
keep warm, you can get out of the vehicle and do
some fairly vigorous exercises every half hour or so until
help comes.
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Notice:We recommend you use onlyfluid labeled
DEXRON®-III, becausefluid with that label is
made especially for your automatic transmission.
Damage caused byfluid other than DEXRON
®-III is
not covered by your new vehicle warranty.
3. After addingfluid, recheck thefluid level as
described under“How to Check.”
4. When the correctfluid level is obtained, push the
dipstick back in all the way.
Engine Coolant
The cooling system in your vehicle isfilled with
DEX-COOL®engine coolant. This coolant is designed
to remain in your vehicle for 5 years or 150,000 miles
(240 000 km), whichever occursfirst, if you add
only DEX-COOL
®extended life coolant.
The following explains your cooling system and how to
add coolant when it is low. If you have a problem
with engine overheating, seeEngine Overheating on
page 5-22.A 50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable water and
DEX-COOL
®coolant will:
•Give freezing protection down to−34°F(−37°C).
•Give boiling protection up to 265°F (129°C).
•Protect against rust and corrosion.
•Help keep the proper engine temperature.
•Let the warning messages and gages work as they
should.
Notice:When adding coolant, it is important that
you use only DEX-COOL
®(silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL®is added to
the system, premature engine, heater core or
radiator corrosion may result. In addition, the engine
coolant will require change sooner -- at 30,000 miles
(50,000 km) or 24 months, whichever occursfirst.
Damage caused by the use of coolant other
than DEX-COOL
®is not covered by your new vehicle
warranty.
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What to Use
Use a mixture of one-halfclean, drinkable waterand
one-half DEX-COOL®coolant which won’t damage
aluminum parts. If you use this coolant mixture,
you don’t need to add anything else.
{CAUTION:
Adding only plain water to your cooling
system can be dangerous. Plain water, or
some other liquid such as alcohol, can boil
before the proper coolant mixture will. Your
vehicle’s coolant warning system is set for the
proper coolant mixture. With plain water or the
wrong mixture, your engine could get too hot
but you wouldn’t get the overheat warning.
Your engine could catchfire and you or others
could be burned. Use a 50/50 mixture of clean,
drinkable water and DEX-COOL
®coolant.
Notice:If you use an improper coolant mixture,
your engine could overheat and be badly damaged.
The repair cost wouldn’t be covered by your
warranty. Too much water in the mixture can freeze
and crack the engine, radiator, heater core and
other parts.If you have to add coolant more than four times a year,
have your dealer check your cooling system.
Notice:If you use the proper coolant, you don’t
have to add extra inhibitors or additives which claim
to improve the system. These can be harmful.
Checking Coolant
The engine coolant reservoir is located on the driver’s
side of the vehicle, above the engine air cleaner/filter.
SeeEngine Compartment Overview on page 5-10
for more information on location.
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CAUTION: (Continued)
from the vehicle until it cools down. Wait until
there is no sign of steam or coolant before you
open the hood.
If you keep driving when your engine is
overheated, the liquids in it can catchfire. You
or others could be badly burned. Stop your
engine if it overheats, and get out of the
vehicle until the engine is cool.
See“Overheated Engine Protection Operating
Mode”in the Index for information on driving
to a safe place in an emergency.
Notice:If your engine catchesfire because you
keep driving with no coolant, your vehicle can
be badly damaged. The costly repairs would not be
covered by your warranty. See“Overheated
Engine Protection Operating Mode”in the Index for
information on driving to a safe place in an
emergency.
If No Steam Is Coming From Your
Engine
If you get an engine overheat warning but see or hear
no steam, the problem may not be too serious.
Sometimes the engine can get a little too hot when you:
•Climb a long hill on a hot day.
•Stop after high-speed driving.
•Idle for long periods in traffic.
•Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or so:
1. If your air conditioner is on, turn it off.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving–AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D).
If you no longer have the overheat warning, you can
drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about 10 minutes.
If the warning doesn’t come back on, you can drive
normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
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The coolant level should be at or above the FULL
COLD mark. If it isn’t, you may have a leak at the
pressure cap or in the radiator hoses, heater hoses,
radiator, water pump or somewhere else in the cooling
system.
{CAUTION:
Heater and radiator hoses, and other engine
parts, can be very hot. Don’t touch them. If you
do, you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine if there is a leak. If you
run the engine, it could lose all coolant. That
could cause an enginefire, and you could be
burned. Get any leakfixed before you drive the
vehicle.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check
to see if the electric engine cooling fans are running.
If the engine is overheating, both fans should be
running. If they aren’t, your vehicle needs service.Notice:Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
See“Overheated Engine Protection Operating
Mode”in the Index for information on driving to a
safe place in an emergency.
Notice:When adding coolant, it is important that
you use only DEX-COOL
®(silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL®is added to
the system, premature engine, heater core or
radiator corrosion may result. In addition, the engine
coolant will require change sooner—at 30,000 miles
(50 000 km) or 24 months, whichever occursfirst.
Damage caused by the use of coolant other
than DEX-COOL
®is not covered by your new vehicle
warranty.
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