check engine CADILLAC DEVILLE 1996 7.G Owner's Guide

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in
spurts
-- heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking
-- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a
mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool between
hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much faster if you
do a lot
of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the
traffic and allow realistic following distances,
you will
eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking. That means
better braking and longer brake
life.
If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes. If
you do, the
pedal may get harder
to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist. But
you will use it when you brake. Once the power assist is
used up, it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder
to push.
Anti-Lock Brakes
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti-lock brake system will check itself.
You may
hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test
is going on, and you may even notice that your brake
pedal moves a little. This is normal.
ANTI -
LOCK
If there’s a problem with the
anti-lock brake system, this
warning light will stay on. See “Anti-Lock Brake
System
Warning Light” in
the Index.
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Passing
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two-lane highway waits for just the right moment,
accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then goes
back into the right lane again.
A simple maneuver?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane highway is a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming traffic for several seconds.
A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger can
suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents
-- the head-on collision.
So here are some tips for passing:
“Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides and to
crossroads for situations that might affect your passing
patterns.
If you have any doubt whatsoever about
making a successful pass,
wait for a better time.
Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and lines.
If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a
turn or an intersection, delay your pass. A broken
center line usually indicates it’s
all right to pass
(providing the road ahead is clear). Never cross a solid
line on your side of the lane or a double solid line,
even
if the road seems empty of approaching traffic.
Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to pass
while you’re awaiting
an opportunity. For one thing,
following too closely reduces your area of vision,
especially if you’re following a larger vehicle. Also,
you won’t have adequate space if the vehicle ahead
suddenly
slows or stops. Keep back a reasonable
distance.
When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start
to accelerate but stay in the right lane and don’t
get too close. Time your move
so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes to move into the
other lane.
If the way is clear to pass, you will have a
“running start’’ that more than makes up for the
distance you would lose by dropping back. And if
something happens
to cause you to cancel your pass,
you need only slow down and drop back again and
wait for another opportunity.
If other cars are lined up to pass a slow vehicle, wait
your turn. But take care that someone isn’t trying to
pass you
as you pull out to pass the slow vehicle.
Remember to glance
over your shoulder and check
the blind spot.
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Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder and
start your left lane change signal before moving out
of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough
ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front in your
inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal
and move back into the right lane. (Remember that
your right outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you
just passed may seem to be farther away from you
than it really is.)
Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on
two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the next
vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake
lamps are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting to turn.
If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
following driver
to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little to the right.
Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes, steering
and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where
the
tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying to steer and
constantly seek
an escape route or area of less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids
by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not “overdriving”\

those conditions. But skids are always possible.
The three types
of skids correspond to your Cadillac’s
three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels aren’t rolling.
In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and
lose comering force. And in the acceleration skid, too
much throttle causes the driving wheels
to spin.
A cornering skid is best handled by easing your foot off
the accelerator pedal.
Remember: Any traction control system helps avoid
only the acceleration skid.
If your traction control system is
off, then an
acceleration skid is also best handled by easing your
foot
off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to go. If you
start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for a
second skid
if it occurs.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Here are some tips on night driving.
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Drive defensively.
Don’t drink and drive.
Since
you can’t see as well, you may need to slow
down and keep more space between you and other
vehicles.
Slow down, especially
on higher speed roads. Your
headlamps can light up only
so much road ahead.
In remote areas, watch for animals.
If you’re tired, pull off the road. in a safe place and
rest.
Night Vision
No one can see as well at night as in the daytime. But as
we get older these differences increase. A 50-year-old
driver may require at least twice as much light to see the
same thing at night as a 20-year-old.
What
you do in the daytime can also affect y6lE night
vision. For example,
if you spend the day in bright
sunshine you
are wise to wear sunglasses. Your eyes
will have less trouble adjusting
to night. But if you’re
driving, don’t wear sunglasses at night. They may cut
down
on glare from headlamps, but they also make a
lot of things invisible. You
can
be temporarily blinded by approaching
headlamps. It can take
a second or two, or even several
seconds, for your eyes to readjust to the dark. When you
are faced with severe glare (as from
a driver who
doesn’t lower the high beams, or a vehicle with
misaimed headlamps), slow down
a little. Avoid staring
directly into the approaching headlamps.
Keep your windshield and all the glass on your vehicle
clean
-- inside and out. Glare at night is made much
worse by dirt on the glass. Even the inside
of the glass
can build up a film caused by dust.
Dirty glass makes
lights dazzle and flash more than clean glass would,
making the pupils
of your eyes contract repeatedly.
Remember that your headlamps light up
far less of a
roadway when you are in a turn or curve. Keep
your
eyes moving; that way, it’s easier to pick out dimly
lighted objects. Just as your headlamps should be
checked regularly for proper aim,
so should your eyes
be examined regularly. Some drivers suffer from night
blindness
-- the inability to see in dim light -- and
aren’t even aware of
it.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine City Driving
One of the biggest problems with city streets is the
amount of traffic
on them. You’ll want to watch out for
what the other drivers are doing and pay attention to
traffic signals. Here are ways to increase your safety in city driving:
Know the best way to get to where you are going.
Get a city map and plan your trip into an unknown
part of the city just as you would for a cross-country
Try to use the freeways that rim and crisscross most
large cities. You’ll save time and energy. (See the
next part, “Freeway Driving.”)
Treat a green light as a warning signal. A trd3c light
is there because the comer is busy enough to need it.
When a light
turns green, and just before you start
to move, check both ways for vehicles that have not
cleared
the intersection or may be running the red light.
trip.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Freeway Driving
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Mile for mile, freeways (also called thruways, parkways,
expressways, turnpikes or superhighways) are the safest
of all roads. But they have their own special rules.
The most important advice on freeway driving is: Keep
up with traffic and keep to the right. Drive at
the same
speed most
of the other drivers are driving. Too-fast or
too-slow driving breaks a smooth traffic flow. Treat the.
left lane on
a freeway as a passing lane.
At the entrance, there is usually a ramp that leads to the
freeway. If you have a clear view of the freeway as YOU
drive along the entrance ramp, you should begin to
check traffic. Try to determine where you expect to
blend with
the flow. Try to merge into the gap at close to
the prevailing speed. Switch on your
turn signal, check
your mirrors and glance over your shoulder as often as
necessary. Try to blend smoothly with the traffic
flow.
Once you are on the freeway, adjust your speed to the
posted
limit or to the prevailing rate if it’s slower. Stay
in the right lane unless
you want to pass.
Before changing lanes, check your mirrors. Then use
your turn signal.
Just before
you leave the lane, glance quickly over your
shoulder to make sure there isn’t another vehicle in your
“blind” spot.
Once you
are moving on the freeway, make certain you
allow a reasonable following distance. Expect to move slightly slower
at night.
When you want to leave
the freeway, move to the proper
lane well in advance.
If you miss your exit, do not,
under any circumstances, stop
and back up. Drive on to
the
next exit.
The exit ramp can be curved, sometimes quite sharply.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The exit speed is usually posted. Reduce your speed according to your speedometer, not
to your sense of motion. After driving for any distance
at higher speeds, you may tend to
think you are going
slower than you actually are.
Before Leaving on a Long Trip
Make sure you’re ready. Try to be well rested. If you
must start when you’re not fresh
-- such as after a day’s
work
-- don’t plan to make too many miles that first part
of the journey. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes you
can easily drive in.
Is your vehicle ready for a
long trip? If you keep it
serviced and maintained, it’s ready
to go. If it needs
service, have it done before starting out. Of course,
you’ll
find experienced and able service experts in
Cadillac dealerships all across North America. They’ll
be ready and willing to help if you need
it.
Here are some things you can check before a trip:
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Windshield Washer Fluid: Is the reservoir full? Are
all windows clean inside and outside?
Wiper Blades: Are they in good shape?
Fuel, Engine Oil, Other Fluids: Have you checked
all levels?
Lamps: Are they all working? Are the lenses clean?
Tires: They are vitally important to a safe,
trouble-free trip. Is the tread good enough for long-distance driving? Are the tires all inflated
to the
recommended pressure?
Weather Forecasts: What’s the weather outlook
along your route? Should you delay your trip a short
time to avoid a major storm system?
Maps: Do you have up-to-date maps?
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Highway Hypnosis
Is there actually such a condition as “highway
hypnosis”? Or is it just plain falling asleep at the wheel?
Call it highway hypnosis, lack
of awareness or whatever.
There
is something about an easy stretch of road with
the same scenery, along with
the hum of the tires on the
road, the drone
of the engine and the rush of ,the wind
against the vehicle that can make you sleepy. Don’t let it \
happen to you!
If it does, your vehicle can leave the
road
in less than a second, and you could crash and be
injured.
What can you do about highway hypnosis? First,
be
aware that it can happen.
Then here are some tips:
Make sure your vehicle is well ventilated, with a
comfortably cool interior.
Keep your eyes moving. Scan the road ahead and to
the sides. Check your rearview
mirrors and your
instruments frequently.
If you get sleepy, pull off the road into a rest, service
or parking area and take a nap, get some exercise
or
both. For safety, treat drowsiness on the highway as
an emergency.
Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or mountains is different from
driving
in flat or rolling terrain.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you’re
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can make
your
trips safer and more enjoyable.
Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all fluid
levels and
also the brakes, tires, cooling system and
transaxle. These parts can work hard on mountain
roads.
0 Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing to
know is this: let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift to a lower gear when you
go
down a steep or long hill.
I /I CAUTION:
If you don’t shift down, your brakes could get so
hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would then
have poor braking or even none going down
a
hill. You could crash. Shift down to let your
engine assist your brakes on
a steep downhill
slope.
A CAUTION:
Coasting downhill in NEUTRAL (N) or with the
ignition
off is dangerous, Your brakes will have to
do
all the work of slowing down, They could get so
hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would then
have poor braking or even none going down
a hill.
You could crash, Always have your engine running
and your vehicle in gear when you
go downhill.
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Know how to go uphill. You may want to shift down
to a lower gear. The lower gears help cool your engine
and transaxie, and you can climb the
hill better.
Stay
in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in hills or mountains. Don’t swing wide or cut
across the center of the road. Drive at speeds that let
you stay in your own lane.
As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There could be
something in your lane, like a stalled car or an accident.
You may see highway signs on
mountains that warn of
special problems. Examples are long grades, passing or
no-passing zones, a
falling rocks area or winding
roads. Be alert to these and take appropriate action.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you have no blankets
or extra clothing, make body
insulators
from newspapers, burlap bags, rags, floor
mats
-- anything you can wrap around yourself or
tuck under
your clothing to keep warm.
A CAUTION:
Snow can trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside. CO could overcome you and kill
you.
You can’t see it or smell it, so you might not
know it
is in your vehicle. Clear away snow from
around the base of your vehicle, especially any
that is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to time to be sure snow
doesn’t collect there.
Open
a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This will help
keep
CO out.
You
can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful.
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