●HEADED DOWNHILL WITH CURB:A
Turn the wheels into the curb and move the
vehicle forward until the curb side wheel
gently touches the curb.
● HEADED UPHILL WITH CURB:
B
Turn the wheels away from the curb and
move the vehicle back until the curb side
wheel gently touches the curb.
● HEADED UPHILL OR DOWNHILL, NO
CURB:
C
Turn the wheels toward the side of the road
so the vehicle will move away from the cen-
ter of the road if it moves.
4. Place the ignition switch in the LOCK posi- tion. The power assisted steering uses a hydraulic
pump, driven by the engine, to assist steering.
If the engine stops or the drive belt breaks, you
will still have control of the vehicle. However,
much greater steering effort is needed, especially
in sharp turns and at low speeds.
WARNING
If the engine is not running or is turned off
while driving, the power assist for the
steering will not work. Steering will be
harder to operate.
The brake system has two separate hydraulic
circuits. If one circuit malfunctions, you will still
have braking at 2 wheels.
BRAKE PRECAUTIONS
Vacuum assisted brakes
The brake booster aids braking by using engine
vacuum. If the engine stops, you can stop the
vehicle by depressing the brake pedal. However,
greater foot pressure on the brake pedal will be
required to stop the vehicle and stopping dis-
tance will be longer.
Using the brakes
Avoid resting your foot on the brake pedal while
driving. This will overheat the brakes, wear out the
brake pads faster, and reduce gas mileage.
To help reduce brake wear and to prevent the
brakes from overheating, reduce speed and
downshift to a lower gear before going down a
slope or long grade. Overheated brakes may
reduce braking performance and could result in
loss of vehicle control.
POWER STEERING
BRAKE SYSTEM
Starting and driving5-31
ProCarManuals.com
General information
This information is for Flexible Fuel vehicles (FFV)
only. FFV vehicles can be identified by the fuel
filler door label that states Ethanol (E-85) or
Unleaded Gasoline Only. This section only cov-
ers those subjects that are unique to Flexible Fuel
vehicles.
CAUTION
Only vehicles with the E-85 filler door label
can operate on E-85. Fuel system or other
damage can occur if E-85 is used in vehicles
that are not designed to run on E-85.
Ethanol Fuel (E-85)
E-85 is a mixture of approximately 85% fuel etha-
nol and 15% unleaded gasoline.
WARNING
●Ethanol vapors are extremely flam-
mable and could cause serious per-
sonal injury.
● Never have any smoking materials lit in
or near the vehicle when removing the
fuel filler cap or filling the tank.
● Do not use E-85 as a cleaning agent and
never use it near an open flame. Fuel requirements
Your vehicle will operate on both unleaded regular
gasoline with an octane rating of at least 87 AKI
(Anti-Knock Index) number (Research octane num-
ber 91) , or E-85 fuel, or any mixture of these two.
For the best starting and vehicle driveability re-
sults, do not continually switch between E-85
and unleaded regular gasoline. If you must switch
fuels, NISSAN recommends the following:
● do not switch when the fuel gauge indicates
less than 1/4 full
● add more than 5 gallons of fuel
● operate the vehicle immediately after refuel-
ing for a period of at least 5 minutes
NOTE:
When the ambient temperature is above
90°F (32°C) , you may experience hard start-
ing and rough idle following start up even if
the above recommendations are followed.
Starting
The characteristics of E-85 fuel make it unsuit-
able for use when ambient temperatures fall be-
low 0°F (-18°C) . In the range of 0°F (-18°C) to
32°F (0°C) , you may experience an increase in
the time it takes for you engine to start, and a
deterioration in drivability (sags and/or hesita-
tions) until the engine is fully warmed up. Fuel consumption
Because E-85 fuel contains less energy per gal-
lon than gasoline, you will experience an increase
in fuel consumption. You can expect your fuel
mileage to decrease by about 30% compared to
gasoline operation.
Replacement parts
Many components in your Flexible Fuel Vehicle
(FFV) are designed to be compatible with etha-
nol. Always be sure that your vehicle is serviced
with correct ethanol compatible parts.
CAUTION
Replacing fuel system components with
non-ethanol compatible components can
damage your vehicle and may also affect
the warranty coverage.
Maintenance
If you operate your vehicle using E-85 fuel, follow
the correct maintenance log shown in the
“NISSAN Service and Maintenance Guide”.
CAUTION
Do not use ethanol mixture greater than
85% in your vehicle. It will cause difficulty
in cold starting and may affect drivability.
Technical and consumer information9-5
ProCarManuals.com
