2003 OLDSMOBILE SILHOUETTE sensor

When an air baa jnflates, there is dust in the
air. This dust could cause breathing problems
for people with a history of asthma or other breathing trouble.
To avoid this, everyone in
the vehicle should get out as soon as it is safe
to do
so. If you have breathing problems but
can’t get out of the vehicle after an air bag
inflates, then get fresh air by opening a
window or a door.
If you experience breathing
problems following an air bag deployment,
you should seek medical attention.
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
manual for your vehicle covers the need to replace
other parts.
modules and possibly other parts. The service
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 -75

REVERSE (R): Use this gear to back up.
Notice: Shifting to REVERSE (R) while your vehicle
is moving forward could damage your transaxle.
Shift to REVERSE
(R) only after your vehicle
is stopped.
To rock your vehicle back and forth to get out of snow,
ice or sand without damaging your transaxle, see
If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow on
page 4-30.
NEUTRAL (N): In this position, your engine doesn’t
connect with the wheels. To restart when you’re already
moving, use NEUTRAL
(N) only. Also, use NEUTRAL (N)
when your vehicle is being towed.
Shifting into a drive gear while your engine
Unless your foot
is firmly on the brake pedal,
your vehicle could move very rapidly. You
could lose control and
hit people or objects.
Don’t shift into a drive gear while your engine
is racing.
“rqcjng” (running 3t high speed) i$ dangP?rQl!s
Notice: Damage to your transaxle caused by
shifting into a drive gear with the engine racing
isn’t covered by your warranty.
AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D): This position is for
normal driving. If you need more power for passing,
and you’re:
Going less than 35 mph (55 km/h), push your
Going about 35 mph (55 km/h) or more, push the
You’ll shift down to the next gear and have more power.
Notice; If your vehicle seems to start up rather
slowly, or if
it seems not to shift gears as you go
faster, something may be wrong with a transaxle
system sensor. If you drive very far that way,
your vehicle can be damaged.
So, if this happens,
.lave your vehicle serviced right away. Until then,
you can use SECOND
(2) when you are driving
less than
35 mph (55 km/h) and AUTOMATIC
accelerator pedal
about halfway down.
accelerator all the way down. n\~nnn~
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2-37

Warm-up Shift
Your vehicle has a computer controlled transaxle
designed to warm up the engine faster when the outside
temperature is
35°F (2°C) or colder. You may notice
that the transaxle will shift at a higher vehicle speed until
the engine is warmed up. This is a normal condition
designed to provide heat to the passenger compartment
and defrost the windows more quickly. See
Climate
Control System on
page 3-25 for more information.
THIRD
(3): This position is also used for normal driving,
but 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
When going down a steep hill. between gears).
SECOND
(2): This position gives you more power,
but lower fuel economy. 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.
Notice: Don’t drive in SECOND (2) for more than
25 miles (40 km), or at speeds over 55 mph (90 km/h),
or you can damage your transaxle. Use THIRD
(3) or
AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (D) as much as possible.
Don’t
shift into SECOND (2) unless you are going
slower than
65 mph (105 km/h) or you can damage
your engine.
Notice: If your vehicle seems to start up rather
slowly, or if
it seems not to shift gears as you go
faster, something may be wrong with a transaxle
system sensor. If you drive very far that way, your
vehicle can be damaged.
So, if this happens, have
your vehicle serviced
right away. Until then, you can
use SECOND
(2) when you are driving less than
35 mph (55 km/h) and THIRD (3) for higher speeds.
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
(I), the transaxle won’t downshift
into first gear until the vehicle is going slow enough.
Notice: If your front wheels won’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 to hold your
vehicle in position on a
hill.
2-38

Daytime Running Lamps/Automatic
Headlamp System
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the
day. DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful
in the short
periods after dawn and before sunset. Fully functional
daytime running lamps are required on all vehicles
first sold in Canada.
A light sensor on top of the instrument panel makes
the
DRL work, so be sure it isn’t covered. The DRL
system will make your front parking and turn signal
lamps come on in daylight when:
The ignition is on,
the exterior lamps control is off, and
the parking brake is released.
When the DRL are on, only your front parking and turn
signal lamps will be on. Your instrument panel won’t
Le I:+ . .- ue 111 up.
When it’s dark enough outside, the exterior lamps will
come on automatically. When it’s bright enough outside,
the exterior lamps will turn
off and the DRL will turn
on. Of course, you may still turn on the headlamps any
time you need to.
If you start your vehicle in a dark garage, the automatic
headlamp system will come on immediately. Once
you leave the garage, it will take approximately
one minute for the automatic headlamp system to
change to DRL
if it is light outside. During that delay,
your instrument panel cluster may not be as bright
as usual. Make sure your instrument panel brightness
control is in the full bright position. See “Instrument
Panel Brightness Control’’ under
lnterior Lamps
on page
3-17.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL and automatic
headlamp control
off, set the parking brake while the
ignition is in OFF or LOCK. Then start the vehicle.
The DRL and automatic headlamp control will stay
off
until you release the parking brake.
As with any vehicle. you should turn on the reuular
headlamp system when you need
it.
3-1 5

Fog Lamps
Your vehicle may have fog
lamps.
If it does, the fog
lamps switch is located in
the instrument panel
switchbank. Press the fog lamp symbol on the switch
to turn on the lamps. The
indicator light will be lit when the fog lamps are on.
Press the top part of the switch to turn them
off.
The indicator light will go off.
When your DRL are on, the exterior lamps control must
first be turned from the
off position before the fog
lamps can be turned on.
Your parking lamps
or headlamps must be on for your
fog lamps to turn on.
At night, when the light sensor automatically turns on
your headlamps, the fog lamps can be turned on when
the exterior lamps control is in any position.
Your fog lamps will go
off when you switch to high
beams. Using your high beams in fog is not
recommended.
3-1 6

Ultrasonic Rear Parking Assist
(URPA)
The Ultrasonic Rear Parking Assist (URPA) system
is designed to help you park, while the vehicle is in
REVERSE (R). It operates only at very low speeds, less
than
3 mph (5 km/h). URPA can help make parking
easier and to help you avoid colliding with objects such as
parked vehicles. The URPA system can detect objects
up to
5 feet (1.5 m) behind the vehicle, and tell you how
close these objects are from your rear bumper.
Your vehicle’s URPA operates when the shift lever is
moved into REVERSE (R) and the vehicle speed is less
than
3 mph (5 km/h). Four ultrasonic sensors located
at the rear bumper are used to detect the distance to the
object. The URPA display is located inside the vehicle,
near the rear window. It has three color-coded lights
used to provide distance and system information to
the driver.
~~ children licj -.%s, or pets arc __ your
vehicle,
RPA won’t tell you they are there.
You could strike them and they could be
injured or killed. Whether or not you are using
URPA, check carefully behind your vehicle and
then watch closely whenever you back
up.
URPA can be turned off by
pressing the rear park aid
disable switch located
in the instrument panel
switchbank. When the
system is disabled
an indicator light will be lit
on the switch. You will
not see any lights on the
rear display
if the switch
is in the
off position.
3-22

How the System Works
Unless disabled, the URPA will turn on automatically
when the shift lever is moved into REVERSE (R).
When the system turns on, the three lights on the
display will illuminate for one and a half seconds to let
you know that the system is working. If your vehicle
is moving in REVERSE (R) at a speed greater
than
3 mph (5 km/h), the red light will flash to remind
you that the system does not work at speed greater than
3 mph (5 km/h).
If an object is detected at a REVERSE (R) speed of
less than
3 mph (5 km/h), one of the following will occur:
Description
1.5 m 5 ft.
amber light Metric
English I - I
ambedamber lights
0.5 m
continuous chime 1.0 m 40 in.
ambedambedred lights
& 20 in.
1 ambedambedred lights
chime I I
A chime will sound the first time an object is detected
between
20 inches (0.5 m) and 5 feet (1.5 m) away.
flashing
& continuous I 0.3 m
L
When
the System Does Not Seem to
Work Properly
The light may flash red when the vehicle is in
REVERSE (R) if the ultrasonic sensors are not kept
clean.
So be sure to keep your rear bumper free of mud,
dirt, snow, ice and slush. Other conditions that may
affect system performance include things like the
vibrations from a jackhammer or the compression of
air brakes on a very large truck. If after cleaning
the rear bumper and then driving forward at least
15 mph
(25 km/h), the display continues to flash red,
see your dealer.
If a trailer was attached to your vehicle, or a bicycle or
an object was on the back of, or hanging out of your
liftgate during your last drive cycle, the light may
also flash red. The light will continue to flash whenever
in REVERSE (R) until your vehicle is driven forward
at least 15 mph (25 km/h) without any obstructions
behind the vehicle.
For cleaning instructions, see
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URPA cannot detect objects that are above liftgate level.
In order for the rear sensors to recognize an object,
it must be within detection range behind the vehicle.
3-23

Air Bag Readiness Light
There is an air bag readiness light on the instrument
panel, which shows the air bag symbol. The system
checks the air bag’s electrical system for malfunctions.
The light tells you
if there is an electrical problem.
The system check includes the air bag sensor, the air
bag modules, the wiring and the diagnostic module.
For more information on the air bag system, see
Air Bag
Systems on page
1-69.
This light will come on
when you start your
vehicle, and it will flash for
a few seconds. Then
the light should go out.
This means the system
is ready.
If the air bag readiness light stays on after you start the
bag system may not work properly. Have your vehicle
serviced right away. .,nL;-lm nr n-mrrn nm ..rhn- ,,-ma qvn Av;~r;mrn \,A~*V qir VGIIIbIG VI bW111Ga VI1 YYIIGII YWU UI’V UiIViIIy’ YWUt UBI
If the air bag .eaG...ess light ,.ays on after y--
start your vehicle, it means the air bag system
may not be working properly. The air bags
in
your vehicle may not inflate in a crash, or they
could even inflate without a crash. To help avoid
injury to yourself or others, have your vehicle
serviced right away if the air bag readiness
light
stays on after you start your vehicle.
The air bag readiness light should flash for a few
seconds when you turn the ignition key to
RUN. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
so it will
be ready to warn you
if there is a problem.
3-43