BUICK PARK AVENUE 1997 Owners Manual

If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or hear no
steam, the problem may not be too serious. Sometimes
the engine can get a little too hot when you:
Climb a long hill on a hot day.
Stop after high-speed driving.
Idle for long periods in traffic.
Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for
a minute or so:
1. Turn off your air conditioner.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving
-- AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (0)
or THIRD (3).
If you no longer have the overheat warning, you
can drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about
10 minutes. If the warning doesn’t come back on,
you can drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can idle the engine
for two or three minutes while you’re parked, to see if
the warning stops.
But then, if you still have the
warning,
turn ofthe engine and get everyone out of the
vehicle
until it cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
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When you decide it's safe to lift the hood, here's what
you'll see:
A. Radiator Pressure Cap
B. Electric Engine Fans
C. Coolant Recovery
Tank
A CAUTION:
An electric fan under the hood can start up even
when the engine is not running and can injure
you. Keep hands, clothing and tools away from
any underhood electric fan.
If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don't do anything else until it cools down.
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The coolant level should be at or above the FULL
COLD mark.
If it isn’t, you may have a leak in the radiator hoses,
heater hoses, radiator, water pump or somewhere else in
the cooling system.
Heater and radiator hoses, and other engine
parts, can be very hot. Don’t touch them.
If you
do, you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine if there is
a leak. If you run
the engine, it could lose all coolant. That could
cause an engine fire, and you could be burned.
Get any leak fixed before you drive the vehicle.
I NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check to
see
if the electric engine fans are running. If the engine
is overheating, both fans should be running.
If they
aren’t, your vehicle needs service.
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How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but the coolant
level isn’t at or above the
FULL COLD mark, add a
50/50 mixture of clean water (preferably distilled) and
DEX-COOL@ (silicate-free) antifreeze at the coolant
recovery tank. (See “Engine Coolant” in the Index for
more information.)
Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water, or some other
liquid like alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant mix
will. Your vehicle’s coolant warning
system is set for the proper coolant mix. With
plain water or the wrong mix, your engine could
get too hot but you wouldn’t get the overheat
warning. Your engine could catch fire and you or
others could be burned. Use a
50/50 mix of clean
water and
DEX-COOL@ coolant.
I NOTICE:
In cold weather, water can freeze and crack the
engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant mix.
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You can be burned if you spill coolant on hot engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and it will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don't spill coolant on a hot engine.
When the coolant in the coolant recovery tank is at or
above the
FULL COLD mark, start your vehicle.
If the overheat warning continues, there's one more
thing you can try. You can add the proper coolant mix
directly to the radiator but be sure the cooling system is
cool before you do it.
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Steam and scalding liquids from a hot cooling
system can blow out and burn you badly. They
are under pressure, and
if you turn the radiator
pressure cap
-- even a little -- they can come oul
at high speed. Never turn the cap when the
cooling system, including the radiator pressure
cap, is hot. Wait for the cooling system and
radiator pressure cap to cool if you ever have to
turn the pressure cap.
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How to Add Coolant to the Radiator
1. You can remove the radiator pressure cap when
the cooling system, including the radiator pressure
cap and upper radiator
hose, is no longer hot. Turn
the pressure cap slowly counterclockwise until
it
first stops. (Don’t press down while turning the
pressure cap.)
If you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop. A hiss means
there is still some pressure left.
2. Then keep turning the pressure cap, but now push
down as you turn it. Remove the pressure cap.
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3. Fill the radiator with the proper DEX-COOL@
coolant mixture, up to the base
of the filler neck.
I
4. Then fill the coolant recovery tank to the mTLL
COLD mark.
5. Put the cap back on the coolant recovery tank, but
leave the radiator pressure cap
off.
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6. Start the engine and let it run until you can feel the
upper radiator hose getting hot. Watch out for the
engine fans.
filler neck may be lower. If the level
is lower, add
more of the proper
DEX-COOL@ coolant mixture
through the filler neck until the level reaches the
base of the filler neck.
7. By this time, the coolant level inside the radiator
8. Then replace the pressure cap. At any time during
this procedure if coolant begins to flow out of the
filler neck, reinstall the pressure cap. Be sure the
arrows
on the pressure cap line up like this.
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If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving,
especially if you maintain your tires properly. If air goes
out of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But if you should ever have a “blowout,” here are a few
tips about what to expect and what to do:
If a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot
off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel firmly.
Steer to maintain lane position, and then gently brake to
a stop well out of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve, acts much like a
skid and may require the same correction you’d use in a
skid. In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake to a stop
-- well off the road if possible.
If a tire goes flat, the next part shows
how to use your
jacking equipment to change a flat tire safely.
Changing a Flat Tire
If a tire goes flat, avoid further tire and wheel damage
by driving slowly to a level place. Turn
on your hazard
warning flashers.
Changing a tire can cause an injury. The vehicle
can slip
off the jack and roll over you or other
people. You and they could be badly injured.
Find a level place to change your tire.
To help
prevent the vehicle from moving:
1. Set the parking brake firmly.
2. Put the shift lever in PARK (P).
3. Thrn off the engine.
To be even more certain the vehicle won’t move,
you can put blocks at the front and rear of the
tire farthest away from the one being changed.
That would be the tire on the other side of the
vehicle, at the opposite end.
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