air condition Acura TSX 2004 Owner's Manual

Excessive speed is a major f actor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally,
the higher the speed the greater the
risk, but serious accidents can also
occur at lower speeds. Never drive
f aster than is saf e f or current
conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.
While airbags can save lives, they
can cause serious or fatal injuries to
occupants who sit too close to them,
or are not properly restrained.
Inf ants, young children, and short
adults are at the greatest risk. Be
sure to f ollow all instructions and
warnings in this manual. (See page
.)
Children are saf est when they are
properly restrained in the back seat,
notthefrontseat.Achildwhoistoo
smallforaseatbeltmustbeproperly
restrained in a child saf ety seat. (See
page .) Having a tire blowout or a
mechanical f ailure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility
of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition f requently,
and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance. (See page .)
You’ll f ind many saf ety
recommendations throughout this
section, and throughout this manual.
Therecommendationsonthispage
are the ones we consider to be the
most important.
A seat belt is your best protection in
all types of collisions. Airbags
supplement seat belts, but airbags
are designed to inf late only in a
moderate to severe f rontal collision.
So even though your car is equipped
with airbags, make sure you and
your passengers always wear your
seat belts, and wear them properly.
(See page .)
Alcohol and driving don’t mix. Even
one drink can reduce your ability to
respond to changing conditions, and
your reaction time gets worse with
every additional drink. So don’t drink
and drive, and don’t let your f riends
drink and drive, either.
15
21 9
232
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Important Saf ety Precautions
Always Wear Your Seat BeltBe Aware of Airbag Hazards Control Your Speed
Restrain All Children K eep Your Car in Saf e Condition
Don’t Drink and Drive
6

For saf ety, you should check the
condition of your seat belts regularly.
Pull each belt out f ully and look f or
f rays, cuts, burns, and wear. Check
that the latches work smoothly and
that the lap/shoulder belts retract
easily. Any belt not in good condition
or not working properly will not
provide good protection and should
be replaced as soon as possible.Automatic seat belt tensioners that
deployed during a crash must be
replaced.
For inf ormation on how to clean your
seat belts, see page .
If a seat belt is worn during a crash,
it must be replaced by the dealer. A
belt that has been worn during a
crash may not provide the same level
of protection in a subsequent crash.
The dealer should also inspect the
anchors f or damage and replace
them if needed.
Acura provides a lif etime warranty
on seat belts. Acura will repair or
replace any seat belt component that
f ails to f unction properly during
normal use. Please see your
booklet f or
details. 299
Acura
Warranty Inf ormation
Seat Belt Maintenance
U.S. Models
Additional Inf ormation About Your Seat Belts
Driver and Passenger Saf ety45
Not checking or maintaining
seat belts can result in serious
injury or death if the seat belts
do not work properly when
needed.
Check your seat belts regularly
and have any problem
corrected as soon as possible.

Your car’s exhaust contains carbon
monoxide gas. You should have no
problem with carbon monoxide
entering the car in normal driving if
you maintain your car properly.
Have the exhaust system inspected
f or leaks whenever:The car is raised f or an oil change.
You notice a change in the sound
of the exhaust.
Thecarwasinanaccidentthat
may have damaged the underside. If you must sit in your parked car,
even in an unconf ined area, with the
engine running, adjust the heating
and cooling system as f ollows: With the trunk lid open, air f low can
pull exhaust gas into your car’s
interior and create a hazardous
condition. If you must drive with the
trunk lid open, open all the windows
and set the heating and cooling
system as shown below.
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
car out of the garage. Select the Fresh Air mode.
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 ety53
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.

ÛÝPressing the OFF button shuts the
climate control system completely
of f . Keep the system completely of f
only f or short periods. To keep stale
air and mustiness f rom collecting,
you should have the f an running at
all times.
The system automatically selects the
proper mix of conditioned and/or
heated air that will, as quickly as
possible, raise or lower the interior
temperature f rom its current level to
the set temperature.
When you set the temperature to its
lower limit ‘‘ ’’ or its upper
limit ‘‘ ’’, the system runs at
f ull cooling or heating only. It does
not regulate the interior temperature.
In cold weather, the f an will not
come on automatically until the car
has been driven f or a short time and
the heater starts to develop warm air.
To put the Automatic Climate
Control in f ully-automatic mode,
press the AUTO button, then set the
desired temperature by pressing
‘‘ ’’ or ‘‘ ’’ on the driver’s side
temperature control bar. You will see
AUTO in the system’s display. Fully-automatic Operation
Without Navigation System
Climat e Cont rol Syst em
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures115
RECIRCULATION BUTTON
TEMPERATURE DISPLAY
AUTO BUTTON OFF BUTTON
FAN CONTROL BAR
DRIVER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE
CONTROL BAR PASSENGER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE
CONTROL BAR

Press the A/C button to turn the air
conditioningonandoff.Youwillsee
A/C ON or A/C OFF in the display. You can manually select various
f unctions of the Climate Control
system when it is in f ully automatic
mode. All other f eatures remain
automatically controlled. Making any
manual selection causes the word
AUTO in the display to go out.
When you turn the A/C of f , the sys-
tem cannot regulate the inside tem-
perature if you set the temperature
below the outside temperature. With
the A/C of f , use the driver’s side tem-
perature control bar to adjust the
temperature of the air flow to a com-
fortable setting. Semi-automatic Operation
A ir Condit ioning (A /C) But t on
Climat e Cont rol Syst em
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures116
RECIRCULATION BUTTONAIR CONDITIONING (A/C) BUTTON
PASSENGER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE CONTROL
BAR
DRIVER’S SIDE TEMPERATURE
CONTROL BAR

ÛÝ
To put the Automatic Climate
Control in f ully-automatic mode,
press the AUTO button. The
indicator in the button will light.
Then set the desired temperature by
pressing ‘‘ ’’ or ‘‘ ’’ on the driver’s
side temperature control bar.
The system automatically selects the
proper mix of conditioned and/or
heated air that will, as quickly as
possible, raise or lower the interior
temperature f rom its current level to
the set temperature.
CONT INUED
With Navigation System
Climat e Cont rol Syst em
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures
Fully-automatic Operation
121
AUTO BUTTON
OFF BUTTON
RECIRCULATION
BUTTON
TEMPERATURE DISPLAY
DRIVER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE
CONTROL BAR PASSENGER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE
CONTROL BAR

Touching ‘‘ON’’ or ‘‘OFF’’ in the
display turns the air conditioning on
andoff.YouwillseeA/CONorA/C
OFF in the display.
When you turn the A/C of f , the sys-
tem cannot regulate the inside tem-
perature if you set the temperature
control bars below the outside tem-
perature. With the A/C of f , use the
temperature control bars to adjust
the temperature of the air flow to a
comfortable setting.
CONT INUED
A ir Condit ioning (A /C) Icons
Climat e Cont rol Syst em
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures123
PASSENGER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE DISPLAY
DRIVER’S SIDE
TEMPERATURE DISPLAY
MODE ICONS
FAN CONTROL
ICONSAIR CONDITIONING
(A/C) ICONS
A/C BUTTON

Those bands cover these f requen-
cies:
AM band:
530 to 1,710 kilohertz
FM band:
87.7 to 107.9 megahertz
Radio stations on the AM band are
assigned f requencies at least ten
kilohertz apart (530, 540, 550).
Stations on the FM band are
assigned f requencies at least 0.2
megahertz apart (87.9, 88.1, 88.3).
Stations must use these exact
f requencies. It is f airly common f or
stations to round-of f the f requency in
their advertising, so your radio could
display a f requency of 100.9 even
though the announcer may identif y
the station as ‘‘FM101.’’A radio station’s signal gets weaker
as you get f arther away f rom its
transmitter. If you are listening to an
AM station, you will notice the sound
volume becoming weaker, and the
stationdriftinginandout.If youare
listening to an FM station, you will
see the stereo indicator f lickering of f
and on as the signal weakens.
Eventually, the stereo indicator will
go of f and the sound will f ade
completely as you get out of range of
the station’s signal.
Driving very near the transmitter of
a station that is broadcasting on a
f requency close to the f requency of
the station you are listening to can
also af f ect your radio’s reception.
You may temporarily hear both
stations,orhearonlythestationyou
are close to.
Your Acura’s radio can receive the
complete AM and FM bands.
How well your Acura’s radio receives
stations is dependent on many
f actors, such as the distance f rom
the station’s transmitter, nearby
large objects, and atmospheric
conditions.
Radio Frequencies
Radio Reception
Audio System
Comf ort and Convenience Feat ures154

A cold engine uses more f uel than a
warm engine. It is not necessary to
‘‘warm-up’’ a cold engine by letting it
idle f or a long time. You can drive
away in about a minute, no matter
how cold it is outside. The engine
will warm up f aster, and you get
better f uel economy. To cut down on
the number of ‘‘cold starts,’’ try to
combine several short trips into one.
You can improve f uel economy by
driving moderately. Rapid acceler-
ation, abrupt cornering, and hard
braking use more f uel.
Always drive in the highest gear that
allows the engine to run and acceler-
ate smoothly.
The air conditioning puts an extra
load on the engine which makes it
usemorefuel.Turnoff theA/Cto
cut down on air conditioning use.
Use the f low-through ventilation
when the outside air temperature is
moderate.
The condition of your car and your
driving habits are the two most
important things that affect the fuel
mileage you get.
Always maintain your car according
to the maintenance schedule. This
will keep it in top operating condition.
Depending on traf f ic conditions, try
to maintain a constant speed. Every
time you slow down and speed up,
your car uses extra f uel. Use the
cruise control, when appropriate, to
increase f uel economy.
An important part of that mainte-
nance is the
(see page ). For
example, an underinf lated tire
causes more ‘‘rolling resistance,’’
which uses f uel. It also wears out
f aster, so check the tire pressure at
least monthly.
In winter, the build-up of snow on
your car’s underside adds weight and
rolling resistance. Frequent cleaning
helps your f uel mileage and reduces
thechanceof corrosion. 242 Driving Habits
Owner Maintenance
Checks Car Condition
Fuel Economy
Bef ore Driving190

µµBeing able to see
clearly in all directions and being
visible to other drivers are important
in all weather conditions. This is
more dif f icult in bad weather. To be
seen more clearly during daylight
hours, turn on your headlights. Check your tires
f requently f or wear and proper
pressure. Both are important in
preventing ‘‘hydroplaning’’ (loss of
traction on a wet surface). In the
winter, mount snow tires on all f our
wheels f or the best handling.
Watch road conditions caref ully,
they can change f rom moment to
moment. Wet leaves can be as slip-
pery as ice. ‘‘Clear’’ roads can have
patches of ice. Driving conditions
can be very hazardous when the
outside temperature is near f reezing.
The road surf ace can become
covered with areas of water puddles
mixed with areas of ice, so your
traction can change without warning.
Be caref ul when downshif ting. If
traction is low, you can lock up the
drive wheels f or a moment and cause
askid. Be very cautious when passing, or
beingpassedbyothervehicles.The
spray f rom large vehicles reduces
your visibility, and the wind buf f eting
can cause you to lose control.
Inspect your windshield wipers and
washers f requently. Keep the wind-
shield washer reservoir f ull of the
proper f luid. Have the windshield
wiper blades replaced if they start to
streak the windshield or leave parts
unwiped. Use the def roster and air
conditioning to keep the windows
f rom f ogging up on the inside (see
pages and ).
119 126
Visibility
Traction
Driving
Driving in Bad Weather
220