2004 Oldsmobile Silhouette weight

Reclining Seatbacks
To adjust a manual seatback, pull up on the lever
located on the outboard side of the driver's or front
passenger's seat. It is easier to recline the seat if you
lean forward, taking your weight off the seatback.If your vehicle has the eight-way power seats, there is a
power recliner. See
Eight-Way Power Seats on page 1-4.
But don't have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is
moving.
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To recline the seatback, lift up on the recliner lever,
located on the outboard side of the seat. Use the recliner
lever to move the seatback to the desired position.It is easier to raise or lower the seatback if you lean
forward, taking the weight off the seatback.
The seatbacks on the second row captain's chairs also
fold forward to put items behind the left and right seats.
Lift up on the recliner lever and fold the seatback
forward. The seatback will lock into place when you
push it back to the upright position.
The armrests can be lowered or raised for entering
or exiting the vehicle.
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{CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to,
any air bag when it in¯ates can be seriously
injured or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer outstanding protection for adults and
older children, but not for young children and
infants. Neither the vehicle's safety belt system
nor its air bag system is designed for them.
Young children and infants need the protection
that a child restraint system can provide.
Q:What are the different types of add-on child
restraints?
A:Add-on child restraints, which are purchased by
the vehicle's owner, are available in four basic
types. Selection of a particular restraint should take
into consideration not only the child's weight,
height and age but also whether or not the restraint
will be compatible with the motor vehicle in
which it will be used.
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For most basic types of child restraints, there are
many different models available. When purchasing
a child restraint, be sure it is designed to be
used in a motor vehicle. If it is, the restraint will
have a label saying that it meets federal motor
vehicle safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer's instructions that come
with the restraint state the weight and height
limitations for a particular child restraint. In addition,
there are many kinds of restraints available for
children with special needs.
{CAUTION:
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck. This is
necessary because a newborn infant's neck is
weak and its head weighs so much compared
with the rest of its body. In a crash, an infant in
a rear-facing seat settles into the restraint,
so the crash forces can be distributed across
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
the strongest part of an infant's body, the back
and shoulders. Infants always should be
secured in appropriate infant restraints.
{CAUTION:
The body structure of a young child is quite
unlike that of an adult or older child, for whom
the safety belts are designed. A young child's
hip bones are still so small that the vehicle's
regular safety belt may not remain low on the
hip bones, as it should. Instead, it may settle
up around the child's abdomen. In a crash, the
belt would apply force on a body area that's
unprotected by any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal injuries. Young
children always should be secured in
appropriate child restraints.
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Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine
Running
{CAUTION:
It can be dangerous to leave your vehicle with
the engine running. Your vehicle could move
suddenly if the shift lever is not fully in
PARK (P) with the parking brake ®rmly set.
And, if you leave the vehicle with the engine
running, it could overheat and even catch ®re.
You or others could be injured. Do not leave
your vehicle with the engine running.
If you have to leave your vehicle with the engine
running, be sure your vehicle is in PARK (P) and your
parking brake is ®rmly set before you leave it. After you
have moved the shift lever into PARK (P), hold the
regular brake pedal down. Then, see if you can move
the shift lever away from PARK (P) without ®rst pulling it
toward you. If you can, it means that the shift lever
was not fully locked into PARK (P).
Torque Lock
If you are parking on a hill and you do not shift your
transaxle into PARK (P) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl in
the transaxle. You may ®nd it difficult to pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P). This is called torque lock.
To prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then
shift into PARK (P) properly before you leave the
driver's seat. To ®nd out how, see
Shifting Into Park (P)
on page 2-38.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out of
PARK (P) before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need to have another
vehicle push yours a little uphill to take some of the
pressure from the parking pawl in the transaxle, so you
can pull the shift lever out of PARK (P).
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If you have the luggage carrier, you can load things on
top of your vehicle.
Notice:Loading cargo on the luggage carrier that
weighs more than 150 lbs. (68 kg) or hangs over
the rear or sides of the vehicle may damage
your vehicle. Load cargo so that it rests on the slats
as far forward as possible and against the side
rails, making sure to fasten it securely.
When you carry cargo on the luggage carrier of a
proper size and weight, put it on the slats, as far forward
as you can. You can then tie it down.
Don't exceed the maximum vehicle capacity when
loading your vehicle. For more information on vehicle
capacity and loading, see
Loading Your Vehicle on
page 4-33.
To prevent damage or loss of cargo as you're driving,
check now and then to make sure the cargo is still
securely fastened.
2-55

4. Put the tray sill, located on the back of the
convenience center, in the upright position.
5. Slide the convenience center in and align it so that
the forks, located on the bottom rear of the
convenience center, slide into the seat anchors.
6. Press down on the front of the convenience center
so the center locates on the sill mounting bracket.7. Turn the hand knob clockwise until it is tight.
8. Pull up on the convenience center to make sure it
is locked into place.
The tray sill can be folded down onto the stowable seat
to close the space between the two while the stowable
seat is folded down. To do this, ¯ip the sill plate up and
over toward the stowable seat.
The cover of the convenience center can be left in its
upright position while the vehicle is moving.
The convenience center has six hooks on the inside
cover for hanging items on. The prop rods can hold up
to 49 lbs. (21.8 kg) on the cover of the convenience
center while in its upright position.
The convenience center and the stowable seat both
have a maximum weight capacity of 400 lbs. (181.6 kg).
Notice:Overloading your vehicle may cause
damage. Repairs would not be covered by your
warranty. Do not overload your vehicle.
2-59

Many adults Ð by some estimates, nearly half the adult
population Ð choose never to drink alcohol, so they
never drive after drinking. For persons under 21,
it is against the law in every U.S. state to drink alcohol.
There are good medical, psychological and
developmental reasons for these laws.
The obvious way to eliminate the leading highway
safety problem is for people never to drink alcohol and
then drive. But what if people do? How much is ªtoo
muchº if someone plans to drive? It is a lot less
than many might think. Although it depends on each
person and situation, here is some general information
on the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of someone
who is drinking depends upon four things:
·The amount of alcohol consumed
·The drinker's body weight
·The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
·The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the alcohol.
According to the American Medical Association, a
180 lb (82 kg) person who drinks three 12 ounce (355 ml)
bottles of beer in an hour will end up with a BAC of about
0.06 percent. The person would reach the same BACby drinking three 4 ounce (120 ml) glasses of wine or
three mixed drinks if each had 1-1/2 ounces (45 ml) of
liquors like whiskey, gin or vodka.
It is the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces
or 90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person's
BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person
who consumes food just before or during drinking will
have a somewhat lower BAC level.
4-3