2003 FIAT PALIO wiper blades

71
DRIVING AT NIGHT
If you are driving at night these are
the main rules to follow:
– Drive carefully: it is harder to dri-
ve at night.
– Slow down especially if the road is
not lit.
– At the first signs of sleepiness, stop:
continuing would be a risk for yourself
and everybody else. Only start driving
again when you have had enough rest
– Keep a greater safety distance from
the cars in front of you than during
daylight hours: it is hard to judge how
fast other cars are going when all you
can see are their lights.
– Make sure the headlight beams are
properly positioned: if they are too
low, they reduce visibility and strain
your eyes. If they are too high they can
dazzle other drivers.
– Only use main beam headlights
when you are driving outside town
and make sure they do not annoy oth-
er drivers.– Dip your headlights as soon as you
see cars coming in the other direction
and pass them with the headlights
dipped.
– Keep all lights clean.
– Be careful of animals crossing the
road when driving in the country.
DRIVING IN THE RAIN
Rain and wet road surfaces spell dan-
ger.
All manoeuvres are more difficult on
a wet road because the grip of the
wheels on the tarmac is greatly re-
duced. This is why braking distances
are much longer and road-holding is
lower.
Here is some advice for driving in the
rain:
– Reduce speed and maintain a
greater safety distance from the cars
in front.
– If it is raining particularly heavily, vis-
ibility is also reduced. In these cases,
switch on the dipped headlights even if
it is still daylight so you can be seen
more easily. – Do not drive through puddles at
speed and hold on tightly to the wheel
if you do: a puddle taken at high speed
might cause you to lose control of the
car (“aquaplaning”).
– Move the ventilation controls to
the position for demisting the win-
dows (see chapter “Getting to know
your car”) to avoid visibility problems.
– Periodically check the condition of
the windscreen wiper blades.
DRIVING IN FOG
– If the fog is thick, do not start out
on a journey.
If driving in mist, blanket fog or when
there is the danger of fog patches:
– Keep your speed down.
– Turn on the dipped headlights and
front foglights, if fitted, even during the
day. Do not drive with your headlights
at main beam.
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72
– Remember that fog also means the
tarmac is wet and therefore manoeu-
vres of all kinds are more difficult and
stopping distances are longer.
– Keep a good distance from the ve-
hicle in front of you.
– As far as possible, avoid spurts of
speed or sudden deceleration.
– Do not overtake other vehicles if
you can help it.
– If you are forced to stop your car
(breakdown, limited visibility etc.) try
to stop off the road. Turn on the haz-
ard lights and, if possible, the dipped
beam headlights. Rhythmically sound
the horn if you realize another car is
coming.MOUNTAIN DRIVING
– When driving downhill, use the en-
gine braking by engaging a low gear, so
as not to overheat the brakes.
– Under no circumstances should
you drive downhill with the engine off
or with the car in neutral, let alone
with the ignition key out.
– Drive at a moderate speed without
cutting corners.
– Remember that overtaking while
going uphill is slower and therefore re-
quires more free road. If you are be-
ing overtaken while driving uphill,
make it easier for the other vehicle
to pass.
DRIVING ON SNOW AND
ICE
Here are some tips for driving in
these conditions:
– Before starting off make sure that
the windscreen wiper blades are not
frozen to the windscreen.
– Remove the snow from the climate
control system air vent. – Keep your speed down.
– Use chains if the roads are covered
in snow: see paragraph “Snow chains”
in this chapter.
– Do not stay parked on high snow
for too long with engine running: the
snow could divert the carbon oxide
of the exhaust gases in the passenger
compartment.
– Mainly use the braking effect of the
engine and under all circumstances
avoid braking sharply.
– When braking in a car not fitted
with ABS, reduce the possibility of the
wheels locking by varying the pressure
you exert on the brake pedal.
– Do not accelerate suddenly and
avoid swerving.
– In the winter, even apparently dry
roads may have icy patches. Be care-
ful therefore when driving over patch-
es that do not get much exposure to
sun or are lined with trees or rocks
where ice may have not have melted.
– Keep a good distance from the ve-
hicles in front.
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78
RECURRENT
CHECKS AND
BEFORE LONG
DISTANCE TRIPS
Periodically, remember to check:
– tyre pressure and conditions
– level of battery fluid
– engine oil level
– coolant level and conditions of the
system
– brake fluid level
– windscreen washer liquid level
– power steering fluid level.
STORING THE
CAR
The following precautions should be
taken if the car will not be used for
more than a month:
– Park the car in covered, dry and if
possible well-ventilated premises.
– Engage a gear.
– Make sure the handbrake is not en-
gaged.
– Remove the cables from the bat-
tery terminals (first remove the cable
to the negative terminal), and check
the battery charge. If the car is to be
stored for long periods the battery
charge should be checked every
month and recharged if it falls below
12,5V.
– Clean and protect the painted parts
using protective wax.– Clean and protect the shiny metal
parts using special compounds readi-
ly available.
– Sprinkle talcum powder on the
rubber windscreen and rear window
wiper blades and lift them off the glass.
– Slightly open the windows.
– Cover the car with a cloth or per-
forated plastic sheet. Do not use
sheets of no-perforated plastic as they
do not allow moisture on the car body
to evaporate.
– Inflate the tyres to +0.5 bar above
the normal specified pressure and
check it at intervals.
– Do not drain the engine cooling
system.
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123
RUBBER TUBING
Follow the Service Schedule to the
letter as concerns supply line, power
steering and brake system rubber tub-
ing. Ozone, high temperatures and
long absence of fluid in the system can
in fact cause the hardening and crack-
ing of the pipes with possible loss of
fluid. A careful check is therefore es-
sential.
WINDSCREEN/
REAR WINDOW
WIPER
BLADES
Periodically clean the rubber part
with suitable products.
Change the blades if the rubber edge
is warped or worn out. You should in
any case change them approximately
once a year.– Remove any snow that has settled
on the glass: besides saving the blades
you will avoid straining the electric
windscreen wiper motor and causing
it to overheat.
– Do not operate the wind-
screen/rear window wipers on dry
glass.
Replacing the windscreen wiper
blades fig. 21
1)
Lift the windscreen wiper arm A
off the glass and position the blade
so as to form a 90° angle with the arm.
2) Push the blade downwards to re-
lease it from the arm
A.
3) Refit a new blade, inserting the
tongue on the proper set of the arm.
Make sure that is locked.
Travelling with worn
wiper blades is dangerous
because it reduces visibil-
ity in bad weather.
Some simple steps can reduce po-
tential damage to the blades:
– If the temperature falls to below
zero, make sure the rubber blade is
not frozen to the glass. If necessary,
free it with a de-icing compound.
fig. 21
P4E01818
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SPRAY NOZZLES
If there is no jet of liquid, first make
sure that there is liquid in the reser-
voir: see “Checking Fluid Levels” in
this chapter.
Then make sure that the holes in the
nozzles
fig. 23-24 are not clogged up,
use a pin for this if necessary.The windscreen washer jets can be
directed by adjusting the inclination of
the nozzles. Insert a screwdriver in
A-
fig. 23
so to direct the jets to the
highest point reached by the blades in
their movement.
fig. 23
P4E01819
fig. 24
P4E02262
Changing the rear window
wiper blade fig. 22
1)
To remove the blade, operate on
the indicated lever.
2) Refit the new blade, by inserting
it in the relevant seat.
fig. 22
P4E02261
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146
Main beam headlights
- control ..................................... 13-41
- flashing...................................... 13-42
- bulb replacement ................... 88
Maintenance
- Additional interventions ..... 108
- servicing schedule.................. 105
- servicing schedule plan......... 106
Max speeds ................................... 138
Paintwork identification
plate ............................................ 130
Paintwork
- maintenance .......................... 126
- Identification plate ............... 130
Parking ........................................... 67
Passenger compartment air vents 38
Performances ................................ 138
Periodic checks and before
long distances........................... 78
Plate light ...................................... 92
Power steering fluid level ......... 114
Pretensioners ................................ 32
Protecting emission control
devices ....................................... 74Protecting the environment ..... 63
Raising the car .......................... 99
Ready to start ............................... 8
Rear mirror
- rear view mirrors .................. 14-24
- driving mirror ......................... 23
Rear window washer
- control ..................................... 13-43
- fluid level ................................ 114
Rear window wiper
- controls.................................... 13-43
- blades ...................................... 127
- sprayer ..................................... 124
Rev counter................................... 34
Reversing lights
(bulb replacement) ................. 90
Roof rack ....................................... 55
Safe driving
- travelling ................................. 70
- driving with ABS ................... 73
- driving in rain.......................... 71
- driving at night ...................... 71
- driving in the mountains ...... 72- driving in fog ........................... 71
- driving on snow and ice .... 72
- before driving ........................ 69
Seat belts ........................................ 12-24
- general warnings .................... 27
- use ..................................... 12-24-26
- maintenance .......................... 28
- adjusting the height of the
seat belts ................................ 12-25
Seats
- cleaning .................................... 127
- adjustments ............................. 11-22
Side/tail lights
- control .................................... 13-41
- front bulb replacement ...... 89
- rear bulb replacement.......... 90
Side/tail lights
- control ..................................... 13-42
- front bulb replacement ...... 89
- side bulb replacement ......... 89
- rear bulb replacement.......... 90
Snow chains ................................. 77
Sound system ............................... 60
- aerial ......................................... 62
- standard equipment .............. 61
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148
- fluid level.................................. 114
Windscreen washer
- control ..................................... 13-42
- blades........................................ 124
- sprayer ..................................... 124
Windscreen/rear window washer
fluid level ................................... 114
Windscreen/rear window wiper
blades ......................................... 123
Windscreen/rear window wiper
sprayers ..................................... 124
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