heating Acura RSX 2004 Owner's Manual

Your Vehicle at a Glance
2
DOOR AND
HATCH LOCK SWITCH
POWER WINDOW
SWITCHESHEATING/COOLING
CONTROLS
AUDIO SYSTEM
SHIFT LEVER
FUEL FILL
DOOR RELEASE
HOOD RELEASE HANDLE
(P.
67)
(P. 78) (P.
49)
INDICATORS
GAUGES
MIRROR CONTROLS
(P.56)
(P. 81)
(P. 122)
(P.123) (P.
136, 139)
(P.
92)
(P.
88)
PARKING BRAKE
(P. 82)

Your vehicle’s exhaust contains
carbon monoxide gas. You should
have no problem with carbon
monoxide entering the vehicle in
normal driving if you maintain your
vehicle properly.
Have the exhaust system inspected
f or leaks whenever:The vehicle is raised f or an oil
change.
You notice a change in the sound
of the exhaust.
The vehicle was in an accident
that may have damaged the under-
side. High levels of carbon monoxide can
collect rapidly in enclosed areas,
such as a garage. Do not run the
engine with the garage door closed.
Even with the door open, run the
engine only long enough to move the
vehicle out of the garage. With the hatch open, air flow can
pull exhaust gas into your vehicle’s
interior and create a hazardous
condition. If you must drive with the
hatch open, open all the windows
and set the heating and cooling
system as shown below.
If you must sit in your parked vehicle,
even in an unconf ined area, with the
engine running, adjust the heating
and cooling system as f ollows:
Push the button.
Select the mode.
Turn the f an on high speed.
Set the temperature control to a
comfortable setting.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Carbon Monoxide Hazard
Driver and Passenger Saf ety45
Carbon monoxide gas is toxic.
Breathing it can cause
unconsciousness and even kill
you.
Avoid any enclosed areas or
activities that expose you to
carbon monoxide.

AT model is shown.
Control L ocations
Inst rument s and Cont rols48
POWER WINDOW
SWITCHES
FUEL FILL
DOOR RELEASEMIRROR CONTROLS
GAUGES HEATING/COOLING
CONTROLS
AUDIO SYSTEM
SHIFT LEVER
HOOD RELEASE HANDLE
DOOR AND
HATCH LOCK SWITCH
INDICATORS
(P. 67)
(P. 78) (P.
81) (P.
49)
(P. 56)
(P.88)
(P. 92)
(P. 136, 139)
(P. 123)
(P.
122)
PARKING BRAKE(P. 82)

...............
Vents, Heating, and A/C . 88
............................
Playing the Radio .92
..............................
Radio Reception .96
.................................
Playing a Tape .98
..................................
Playing a CD .101
..........
Playing a CD, CD Changer . 102
.......................................
CD Player .102
...................................
CD Changer .103
....................
Protecting Your CDs .108
.........
CD Player Error Messages . 109
.....
CD Changer Error Messages . 110
.................
Radio Thef t Protection . 112
..........................
Setting the Clock .113
............................
Security System .114
...............................
Cruise Control .115
Comf ort and Convenience Features
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures87

Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures
Vents, Heating, and A/C
88
TEMPERATURE CONTROL DIALMODE CONTROL DIAL
REAR WINDOW DEFOGGER BUTTON
RECIRCULATION BUTTON AIR CONDITIONING BUTTON FAN CONTROL DIAL

To use the heating and cooling
system in automatic mode, set the
system as f ollows.Set the f an control dial to AUTO.
Set the mode control dial to AUTO.
Turn the temperature control dial
to the desired temperature.
Select Fresh Air mode by pressing
the Recirculation button. The
indicator in the switch should be
off.
Turn on the A/C by pressing the
button.
To heat or cool the interior f aster,
select Recirculation mode and set
the temperature control dial to the
upper or lower limit. The system runs on f ull cooling or
heating only. It does not regulate the
interior temperature. When the
temperature is set between the lower
and upper limits, the system
regulates the interior temperature to
the set value.
TurningthefancontroldialtoOFF
shuts the heating and cooling system
completely off. Keep the system
completely of f only f or short periods.
To keep stale air and mustiness from
collecting, you should have the f an
running at all times.
You can manually set the system
controls f or ventilation, air
conditioning, heating, air f low
direction, and fan speed in various
combinations.
Pressing the A/C button turns the
air conditioning ON and OFF. The
indicator in the button comes on
when the A/C is ON.
When you turn the A/C of f , the
system cannot regulate the inside
temperature if you set the dial below
the outside air temperature.
With A/C on, use the temperature
control dial to adjust the temperature
of the air f low to a comf ortable
setting.
Air conditioning also removes mois-
ture from the air as it operates. You
canuseittodefogthewindows
quickly in cool or damp weather.
Used in combination with the heater,
it also makes the interior warm and
dry.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
CONT INUED
Vents, Heating, and A/C
Automatic Operation
Manual OperationA ir Condit ioning But t on
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures89

Air conditioning places an extra load
on the engine. Watch the engine
coolant temperature gauge (see page) when using the A/C in heavy
traf f ic or driving up long hills. If it
moves near the red zone, turn of f the
air conditioning until the gauge
reads normally.
This button controls the source of air
going into the system. When the
indicator in this button is on, the
system is recirculating the interior
air (Recirculation mode). When the
indicator is of f , f resh air is brought
in f rom outside the vehicle (Fresh
Air mode). Push the button to
change between recirculated and
f resh air. Use Recirculation mode to heat or
cool the interior more quickly, or to
keep out smoke and dust. Leaving
the system in the Recirculation mode
with the A/C off can cause the
windows to fog up. Switch to Fresh
Air mode as soon as the interior
reaches a comf ortable temperature
or the outside smoky, dusty condi-
tion clears.
You can manually select the f an
speed by turning the f an speed
control dial. Turning this dial
clockwise increases the f an speed,
which increases air flow.
When the dial is set to AUTO, the
system controls the f an speed
automatically.
Use this dial to select the direction of
airf low coming out of the system.
Some air will come out of the side
vents in all modes.
In AUTO mode, the system controls
the air f low direction automatically
between the dashboard vents and
the f loor vents.
The main air flow comes out
of the dashboard vents.
The main air flow is directed
to the floor vents.
The main air flow is divided
between the floor vents and
defroster vents at the base of the
windshield.
57
Vents, Heating, and A/C
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures
Recirculat ion But t on
Fan SpeedMode Cont rol Dial
90

When you select or ,
the A/C turns on automatically to
help dehumidif y the air and def og
the windshield. When you select
another mode, the A/C stays on. If
you do not want to use the A/C in
that mode, press the button to turn it
off.The main air f low is directed
to the windshield for faster defrost-
ing or def ogging. To def rost or def og
more quickly, turn the temperature
control dial to maximum. Select , and set the f an speed to
high. Theheatingandcoolingsystemhas
temperature sensors next to the
steering column and in the top of the
dashboard. Do not cover the sensors
or spill any liquid on them.
If there is actual frost on the win-
dows, f irst select the Recirculation
mode. If the windows are f ogged,
select the Fresh Air mode. Warmed
air will then flow from the wind-
shield and side def roster vents.
Vents, Heating, and A/C
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures
T emperature Sensors
91

The manual transmission is syn-
chronizedinallforwardgearsfor
smooth operation. It has a lockout so
you cannot shift directly from Fifth
to Reverse. When shif ting up or
down,makesureyoupushtheclutch
pedal down all the way, shift to the
next gear, and let the pedal up
gradually. When you are not shif ting,
do not rest your f oot on the clutch
pedal. This can cause your clutch to
wear out faster.Come to a full stop before you shift
into Reverse. You can damage the
transmission by trying to shift into
Reverse with the vehicle moving.
Push down the clutch pedal, and
pause f or a f ew seconds bef ore
shif ting into Reverse, or shif t into
one of the f orward gears f or a
moment. This stops the gears so
they won’t ‘‘grind.’’
When slowing down, you can get
extra braking f rom the engine by
shifting to a lower gear. This extra
braking can help you maintain a safe
speed and prevent your brakes f rom
overheating while going down a
steep hill. Bef ore downshif ting,
make sure engine speed will not go
into the tachometer’s red zone in the
lower gear.
5-speed and 6-speed Manual T ransmissions
Driving136
Rapid slowing or speeding-up
can cause loss of control on
slippery surfaces. If you crash,
you can be injured.
Use extra care when driving on
slippery surfaces.

If your seat belts get dirty, use a sof t
brush with a mixture of mild soap
and warm water to clean them. Do
not use bleach, dye, or cleaning
solvents. Let the belts air dry bef ore
you use the vehicle.
Dirt build-up in the loops of the seat
belt anchors can cause the belts to
retract slowly. Wipe the insides of
the loops with a clean cloth
dampened in mild soap and warm
water or isopropyl alcohol.The driver’s f loor mat that came
with your vehicle hooks over the
f loor mat anchor. This keeps the
f loor mat f rom sliding f orward and
possibly interf ering with the pedals.
If you remove the driver’s f loor mat,
make sure to re-anchor it when you
putitbackinyourvehicle.If you use a non-Acura f loor mat,
make sure it f its properly and that it
canbeusedwiththefloormat
anchor. Do not put additional f loor
mats on top of the anchored mat.
This f ilter removes the dust and
pollenthatisbroughtinfromthe
outside through the heating and
cooling system.
Have your Acura dealer replace this
f ilter every 30,000 miles (48,000 km)
under normal conditions. It should
be replaced every 15,000 miles
(24,000 km) if you drive primarily in
urban areas that have high
concentrations of soot in the air, or if
the airflow from the heating and
cooling system becomes less than
usual.
Seat Belts, Floor Mats, Dust and Pollen Filter
Maint enance
Seat Belts
Floor Mats
Dust and Pollen Filter
180
LOOP