2004 BUICK CENTURY stop start

Oil Pressure Light
If the vehicle has a an oil
problem, this light may
stay on after the engine is
started, or come on
while you are driving.
This light indicates that oil is not going through the
engine quickly enough to keep it lubricated. The engine
could be low on oil or could have some other oil
problem. Have it xed right away.
The oil light could also come on in the following
situations:
The light will come on briey when the ignition is
turned on to show that it is working properly. If it
does not come on with the ignition on, there may be
a problem with the fuse or bulb. Have it xed
right away.
Sometimes when the engine is idling at a stop, the
light may blink on and off. This is normal.
{CAUTION:
Do not keep driving if the oil pressure is low. If
you do, your engine can become so hot that it
catches re. You or others could be burned.
Check your oil as soon as possible and have
your vehicle serviced.
Notice:Lack of proper engine oil maintenance may
damage the engine. The repairs would not be
covered by your warranty. Always follow the
maintenance schedule in this manual for changing
engine oil.
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Radio Messages
CAL (CALIBRATE):Your audio system has been
calibrated for your vehicle from the factory. If CAL
appears on the display it means that your radio has not
been congured properly for your vehicle and must
be returned to the dealer for service.
Playing a CD
Insert a CD partway into the slot, label side up. The
player will pull it in. The CD should begin playing. If you
want to insert a CD while the ignition or the radio is
off, rst press the eject or DISP button.
If you turn off the ignition or radio with a CD in the
player, it will stay in the player. When you turn on the
ignition or system, the CD will start playing where
it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source.
As each new track starts to play, the track number will
appear on the display.
The CD player can play the smaller 8 cm single CDs
with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the smaller CDs
are loaded in the same manner.
If playing a CD-R the sound quality may be reduced
due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality
of the music that has been recorded, and the way the
CD-R has been handled. You may experience an
increase in skipping, difficulty in nding tracks, and/or
difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur
try a known good CD.Do not add paper labels to CDs, they could get caught
in the CD player.
Do not play 3 inch CDs without a standard adapter CD.
If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages”
later in this section.
1
s(Reverse):Press and hold this pushbutton to
reverse quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced level. Release it to play the passage. The
display will show the elapsed time of the track.
2
\(Forward):Press and hold this pushbutton to
advance quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced level. Release it to play the passage. The
display will show the elapsed time of the track.
4 RDM (Random):Press this pushbutton to hear the
tracks in random, rather than sequential, order.
Press RDM again to turn off random play.
DISP (Display):Press this button to see which track is
playing. Press it again within ve seconds to see
how long it has been playing. To change the default on
the display (track or elapsed time), press this button
until you see the display you want, then hold the button
until the display ashes. The selected display will
now be the default.
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©SEEK¨:Press the left arrow to go to the start of
the current track if more than eight seconds have played.
If you hold the button or press it more than once, the
player will continue moving backward through the CD.
Press the right arrow to go to the next track. If you hold
the button or press it more than once, the player will
continue moving forward through the CD.
To scan tracks, press and hold either SEEK arrow for
two seconds until SCAN appears on the display. You will
hear a beep. The CD will go to the next track, play for a
few seconds, then go on to the next track. The sound will
mute and SCAN and the track number will appear on the
display while scanning. The CD will only scan forward.
Press either SEEK arrow again to stop scanning.
BAND:Press this button to listen to the radio when a
CD is playing. The inactive CD will remain safely
inside the radio for future listening.
CD:Press this button to play a CD when listening to
the radio.
Z(Eject):Press this button to eject a CD. Eject may
be activated with either the ignition or radio off. CDs
may be loaded with the ignition or radio off, if this button
is pressed rst.
CD Messages
CHECK CD:If this message appears on the radio
display, it could for one of the following reasons:
It is very hot. When the temperature returns to
normal, the CD should play.
You are driving on a very rough road. When the
road becomes smooth, the CD should play.
The CD is dirty, scratched, wet, or upside down.
The air is very humid. If so, wait about an hour and
try again.
There may have been a problem while burning
the CD.
The label may be caught in the CD player.
If the CD is not playing correctly, for any other reason,
try a known good CD.
If any error occurs repeatedly or if an error cannot be
corrected, contact your dealer. If your radio displays an
error message, write it down and provide it to your
dealer when reporting the problem.
3-52

Radio Messages
CAL (CALIBRATE):Your audio system has been
calibrated for your vehicle from the factory. If CAL
appears on the display it means that your radio has not
been congured properly for your vehicle and must
be returned to the dealer for service.
Playing a Cassette Tape
You tape player is built to work best with tapes that are
up to 30 to 45 minutes long on each side. Tapes longer
than that are so thin they may not work well in this player.
The longer side with the tape visible should face to the
right. If the ignition and the radio are on, the tape can be
inserted and will begin playing. If you hear nothing or hear
a garbled sound, the tape may not be in squarely. Press
the eject button to remove the tape and start over.
While the tape is playing, use the VOLUME and AUDIO
controls just as you do for the radio. The display will
show an arrow to show which side of the tape is playing.
If you want to insert a tape while the ignition or radio
is off, rst press the eject or DISP button. Cassette tape
adapter kits for portable CD players will work in your
cassette tape player.
Your tape bias is set automatically when a metal or
chrome tape is inserted.
If an error appears on the display, see “Cassette Tape
Messages” later in this section.1
s(Reverse):Press this pushbutton to reverse
quickly within the tape. The radio will play while the tape
reverses. Press it again to return to playing speed.
2
\(Forward):Press this pushbutton to advance
quickly within the tape. The radio will play while the tape
advances. Press this pushbutton again to return to
playing speed.
6 SIDE:Press this pushbutton to play the other side of
the tape.
©SEEK¨:Your tape must have at least three
seconds of silence between each selection for seek to
work. Press the left or the right arrow to go to the
previous or to the next selection on the tape. SEEK and
a negative or positive number will be displayed.
Pressing the left or right arrow multiple times will
increase the number of selections to be searched up
to -5 or +5. If -5 or +5 is shown on the display the
cassette tape player will fast forward or rewind through
the four selections and stop at the fth selection.
To scan cassette tape selections, press and hold either
SEEK arrow for two seconds until SCN appears on
the display. You will hear a beep. The tape will go to the
next selection, play for a few seconds, then go on to
the next selection. The cassette tape will only scan
forward. Press either SEEK arrow again to stop
scanning.
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Playing a CD
Insert a CD partway into the slot, label side up. The
player will pull it in. The CD should begin playing. If you
want to insert a CD while the ignition or the radio is
off, rst press the eject button or DISP.
If you turn off the ignition or radio with a CD in the
player, it will stay in the player. When you turn on the
ignition or system, the CD will start playing where
it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source.
As each new track start to play, the track number will
appear on the display.
The CD player can play the smaller 8 cm single CDs
with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the smaller CDs
are loaded in the same manner.
If playing a CD-R the sound quality may be reduced
due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality
of the music that has been recorded, and the way the
CD-R has been handled. You may experience an
increase in skipping, difficulty in nding tracks, and/or
difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur
try a known good CD.
Do not add paper labels to CDs, they could get caught
in the CD player.
Do not play 3 inch CDs without a standard adapter CD.
If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages”
later in this section.1
s(Reverse):Press and hold this pushbutton to
reverse quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced volume. Release this pushbutton to play
the passage.
2
\(Forward):Press and hold this pushbutton to
advance quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced volume. Release this pushbutton to play the
passage.
4 RDM (Random):Press this pushbutton to hear the
tracks in random, rather than sequential, order.
Press RDM again to turn off random play.
DISP (Display):Press this button to see which track is
playing. Press it again within ve seconds to see
how long it has been playing. To change the default on
the display (track or elapsed time), press this button
until you see the display you want, then hold the button
until the display ashes. The selected display will
now be the default.
©SEEK¨:Press the left arrow to go to the start of
the current track if more than eight seconds have played.
If you hold the button or press it more than once, the
player will continue moving backward through the CD.
Press the right arrow to go to the next track. If you hold
the button or press it more than once, the player will
continue moving forward through the CD.
3-60

Braking
Braking action involvesperception timeand
reaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That isperception time.Then you have to bring up your
foot and do it. That isreaction time.
Averagereaction timeis about 3/4 of a second. But that
is only an average. It might be less with one driver
and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in 3/4 of a second, a vehicle moving
at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m). That
could be a lot of distance in an emergency, so keeping
enough space between your vehicle and others is
important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road (whether it is pavement
or gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; the condition of your brakes; the weight of
the vehicle and the amount of brake force applied.
Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive
in spurts — heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking — rather than keeping pace with traffic.
This is a mistake. Your brakes may not have time
to cool between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out
much faster if you do a lot of heavy braking.If you keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic
following distances, you will eliminate a lot of
unnecessary braking. That means better braking and
longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you are driving, brake
normally but do not pump your brakes. If you do,
the pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist.
But you will use it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle may have anti-lock brakes. ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
If your vehicle has anti-lock brakes, this warning light on
the instrument panel will come on briey when you
start your vehicle.United States
Canada
4-6

When you start your engine, or when you begin to drive
away, your anti-lock brake system will check itself.
You may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while
this test is going on, and you may even notice that
your brake pedal moves or pulses a little. This is normal.
Let us say the road is wet and you are driving safely.
Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam
on the brakes and continue braking. Here is what
happens with ABS:A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If
one of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer
will separately work the brakes at each wheel.
The anti-lock system can change the brake pressure
faster than any driver could. The computer is
programmed to make the most of available tire and road
conditions. This can help you steer around the obstacle
while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates
on wheel speed and controls braking pressure
accordingly.
4-7

Passing
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two-lane highway waits for just the right moment,
accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then
goes back into the right lane again. A simple maneuver?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane
highway is a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds. A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger
can suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents — the head-on collision.
So here are some tips for passing:
“Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides
and to crossroads for situations that might affect
your passing patterns. If you have any doubt
whatsoever about making a successful pass, wait
for a better time.
Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and
lines. If you can see a sign up ahead that might
indicate a turn or an intersection, delay your pass.
A broken center line usually indicates it is all
right to pass (providing the road ahead is clear).
Never cross a solid line on your side of the lane or
a double solid line, even if the road seems empty
of approaching traffic.
Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to
pass while you are awaiting an opportunity. For
one thing, following too closely reduces your area
of vision, especially if you are following a larger
vehicle. Also, you will not have adequate space if
the vehicle ahead suddenly slows or stops.
Keep back a reasonable distance.
When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start to accelerate but stay in the right lane and
do not get too close. Time your move so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes to move into
the other lane. If the way is clear to pass, you
will have a “running start” that more than makes up
for the distance you would lose by dropping
back. And if something happens to cause you to
cancel your pass, you need only slow down
and drop back again and wait for another
opportunity.
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