2003 OLDSMOBILE AURORA engine coolant

If No Steam Is Coming From Your
Engine
An overheat warning, along with a low coolant message,
can indicate a serious problem. See “Low Coolant
Message” under
DIC Warnings and Messages
on page 3-50.
If you get an engine overheat warning with no low
coolant message, 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. In heavy traffic, let the engine idle in NEUTRAL (N)
while stopped. If it is safe to do
so, pull off the road,
shift to PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N) and let the
engine idle.
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 and you have not stopped, pull
over, stop, and park your vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can idle the engine
for three minutes while you’re parked. If you still
have the warning,
turn off the engine and get everyone
out
of the vehicle until it cools down. Also, see
“Overheated Engine Protection Operating Mode” listed
previously in this section.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
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Cooling System
When you decide it’s safe to lift the hood, here’s what
you’ll see:
A. Coolant Surge Tank with Pressure Cap
S. Two Electric Engine Cooling Fans
I
An electric engine cooling fan under the hood
can start up even when the engine is not
running and can injure you.
Keep hands,
clothing and tools away from any underhood
electric fan.
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If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don’t do anything else until it cools down. The vehicle
should be parked on a level surface.
A low coolant level should be indicated by a LOW
ENGINE COOLANT message on the Driver Information
Center.
If it is, 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. 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 engine fire, and you could be
burned. Get any leak fixed 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.
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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 occurs first.
Damage caused by the use of coolant other
than DEX-COOL@
is not covered by your new vehicle
warranty.
How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Surge Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, check to see if
coolant is visible in the surge tank. If coolant is visible
but the coolant level isn’t at or above the
FULL COLD fill
mark line (4.5 inches (1 1 cm) from the top of the filler
neck), add a
50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable water and
DEX-COOL@ coolant at the coolant surge tank, but be
sure the cooling system, including the coolant surge tank
Coolant on page 5-24 for more information.
If no coolant is visible in the surge tank, add coolant as
follows:
nrmnnl~vn rr-n ;r. rrnnl hnfnm Irntl An it Cnn Enn;nn pIcIaauIcI uuy, Id vvvl UcIIUIb yvu uv IL. UcIU LIlylf ICI
Steam and scalding Ii ids from a hot cooling
system can blow out and burn you badly. They
are under pressure, and
if you turn the coolant
surge tank pressure cap -- even a little -- they
can come out at high speed. Never
turn the
cap when the cooling system, including the
coolant surge tank pressure cap, is hot. Wait
for the cooling system and coolant surge tank
pressure cap to cool if you ever have to turn
the pressure cap.
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1 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.
CAUTION: (Continued)
I I
With plain water or the wrong mixture, your
engine could get too hot
but you wouldn’t get
the overheat warning. Your engine could catch
fire and you or others could be burned. Use a
50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable water and
DEX COOL@ coolant.
Notice: In cold weather, water can freeze and crack
the engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant
IT-:-’=- e.
You can be burned if you spill coolant on hot
engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol and
it will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don’t spill coolant on a hot engine.
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4. With the coolant surge tank pressure cap off, start
the engine and let
it run until you can feel the upper
radiator hose getting hot. Watch out for the
engine cooling fans.
By this time, the coolant level inside the coolant
surge tank may be lower.
If the level is lower, add
more of the proper mixture to the coolant surge
tank until the level reaches about
4.5 inches
(1 1 cm) from the top of the filler neck.
5. Then replace the pressure cap. Be sure the arrow
on the pressure cap lines up like this.
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Windshield Washer Fluid Notice:
What to Use
When you need windshield washer fluid, be sure to read
the manufacturer’s instructions before use.
If you will
be operating your vehicle in an area where the
temperature may fall below freezing, use a fluid that has
sufficient protection against freezing. See
Engine
Compartment Overview on page
5-14 for reservoir
location.
Adding Washer Fluid
Open the cap with the
washer symbol on it. Add
washer fluid until the
tank is full.
a
a
When using concentrated washer fluid, follow
the manufacturer’s instructions for adding water.
Don’t mix water with ready-to-use washer fluid.
Water can cause the solution to freeze and
damage your washer fluid tank and other parts
of the washer system.
Also, water doesn’t
clean as well as washer fluid.
Fill your washer fluid tank only three-quarters
full when
it’s very cold. This allows for
expansion if freezing occurs, which could
damage the tank if
it is completely full.
Don’t use engine coolant (antifreeze) in your
windshield washer.
It can damage your
washer system and paint.
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90,000 Miles (150 000 km)
0 Inspect throttle body bore and valve plates for
deposits, open the throttle valve and inspect all
surfaces. Clean as required.
An Emission Control
Service. (See footnote
t.)
Control Service.
page
5-63 for proper rotation pattern and additional
information.
(See footnote @.) (See footnote +.)
0 Replace engine air cleaner filter. An Emission
0 Rotate tires. See Tire Inspection and Rotation on
97,500 Miles (162 500 km)
U Rotate tires. See Tire Inspection and Rotation on
page 5-63 for proper rotation pattern and additional
information.
(See footnote @.) (See footnote +.)
100,000 Miles (1 66 000 km)
0 Replace spark plugs. An Emission Control Service.
0 Change automatic transaxle fluid and bottom screens
if the vehicle is mainly driven under one or more of
these conditions:
- In heavy city traffic where the outside
temperature regularly reaches
90°F (32°C) or
higher.
- In hilly or mountainous terrain.
- When doing frequent trailer towing.
0 If you haven’t used your vehicle under severe service
conditions listed previously and therefore, haven’t
changed your automatic transaxle fluid, change both
the fluid and filter.
150,000 Miles (240 000 km)
0 Drain, flush and refill cooling system (or every
60 months since last service, whichever occurs first).
See
Engine Coolant on page 5-24 for what to use.
Inspect hoses. Clean radiator, condenser, pressure
cap and neck. Pressure test the cooling system and pressure cap.
An Emission Control Service.
U Inspect engine accessory drive belt. An Emission
Control Service.
- Uses such as found in taxi, police or delivery
service.
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