warning HONDA S2000 2003 1.G User Guide
Page 83 of 280
Keeptheinsideandoutsidemirrors
clean and adjusted f or best visibility.
Be sure to adjust the mirrors bef ore
you start driving.
The inside mirror has day and night
positions. The night position reduces
glare f rom headlights behind you.
Flip the tab on the bottom edge of
the mirror to select the day or night
position.Adjust the outside mirrors with the
adjustment switch on the driver’s
door armrest:
Turn the ignition switch ON (II).
Move the selector switch to L
(driver’s side) or R (passenger’s
side).
Push the red button next to the roof
switch to turn on the hazard warning
lights (f our-way f lashers). This
causes all f our outside turn signals
and both indicators in the instrument
panel to f lash. Use the hazard
warning lights if you need to park in
a dangerous area near heavy traffic,
or if your vehicle is disabled.
1.
2.
Mirrors
Adjusting the Power Mirrors
Hazard Warning
Hazard Warning, Mirrors
Inst rument s and Cont rols80
TAB SELECTOR SWITCH
ADJUSTMENT SWITCH
Page 148 of 280
µCheck 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
beingpassedbyothercars.The
spray f rom large cars reduces your
visibility, and the wind buf f eting can
cause you to lose control.Your car is not designed to tow a
trailer. Attempting to do so can void
your warranties.
Driving
Traction
Towing a Trailer
Driving in Bad Weather, Towing a Trailer
145
Page 184 of 280
Check the battery condition by
looking at the test indicator window
on the battery. The label on the
battery explains the test indicator’s
colors.Check the battery terminals for
corrosion (a white or yellowish
powder). To remove it, cover the
terminals with a solution of baking
soda and water. It will bubble up and
turn brown. When this stops, wash it
of f with plain water. Dry of f the
battery with a cloth or paper towel.
Coat the terminals with grease to
help prevent f uture corrosion.
Check the condition of your car’s
battery monthly. You should check
the color of the test indicator window,
and f or corrosion on the terminals.
Battery posts,
terminals, and related accessories
contain lead and lead compounds.
CONT INUED
Battery
Maint enance
WARNING:
Wash hands af ter handling.
181
TEST INDICATOR WINDOW
Page 222 of 280
If you have a f lat tire while driving,
stop in a saf e place to change it.
Stopping in traf f ic or on the shoulder
of a busy road is dangerous. Drive
slowly along the shoulder until you
gettoanexitoranareatostopthat
is far away from the traffic lanes.Open the trunk. Lif t up the tool
box lid and take the jack, wheel
wrench, and extension out of the
tool box.
Thesizedifferencemayalsocause
damage to the rear dif f erential, so do
not mount the compact spare on the
rear. If either rear tire goes f lat,
remove the f ront tire on that same
side, mount the compact spare tire
on the f ront, then mount the f ront
tire on the rear.
Park the car on f irm, level, non-
slippery ground away f rom traf f ic.
Put the transmission in Reverse.
Apply the parking brake.
Turn on the hazard warning lights
and turn the ignition switch to
LOCK (0). Have your passenger
get out of the car while you
change the tire.
Thecompactsparetireissmaller
than a standard tire, which will affect
the vehicle’s handling. Drive
cautiously when this spare is
mounted on your vehicle. 3.
1.
2.
CONT INUED
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed
Changing a Flat T ire
219
TOOL BOX LID
JACK
The car can easily roll off the
jack, seriously injuring anyone
underneath.
Follow the directions for
changing a tire exactly, and
never get under the car when it
is supported only by the jack. Use the jack that came with your car. If
you try to raise another car with this
jack or use another jack to raise your
car, the car or jack can be damaged.
Page 228 of 280
There may be an electrical
problem, such as no power to the
f uel pump. Check all the f uses
(see page ).
If youfindnothingwrong,youwill
need a qualif ied technician to f ind
the problem. See on page .
Do you have f uel? Turn the
ignition switch to ON (II) for a
minute and watch the f uel gauge.
The low f uel level warning light
may not be working, so you were
not reminded to f ill the tank. Are you using the proper starting
procedure? Ref er to on page .
If the headlights dim noticeably or
go out when you try to start the
engine, either the battery is dis-
charged or the connections are
corroded. Check the condition of the
battery and terminal connections
(see page ). You can then try
jump starting the car from a booster
battery (see page ).
In this case, the starter motor’s
speed sounds normal, or even f aster
than normal, when you press the
ENGINE START button, but the
engine does not run.
181
226 135239
245
T he Starter Operates Normally
Emergency
Towing
Starting the
Engine
If Your Engine Won’t Start
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed225
Page 232 of 280
If the temperature gauge stays at
the red mark, turn of f the engine. If you do not see steam or spray,
leave the engine running and
watch the temperature gauge. If
the high heat is due to overloading
(climbing a long, steep hill on a
hot day with the A/C running, for
example), the engine should start
to cool down almost immediately.
If it does, wait until the tempera-
ture gauge comes down to the mid-
point then continue driving.
Your car can overheat f or several
reasons, such as lack of coolant or a
mechanical problem. The only
indication may be the temperature
gauge climbing to or above the red
mark. Or you may see steam or
spray coming f rom under the car or
engine cover. In either case, you
should take immediate action. The reading on your car’s
temperature gauge should stay in
the midrange under most conditions.
Itmaygohigherif youaredrivingup
a long steep hill on a very hot day. If
it climbs to the red mark, you should
determine the reason. Saf ely pull to the side of the road.
Put the transmission in Neutral
and set the parking brake. Turn
of f the heating and cooling system
andallotheraccessories.Turnon
the hazard warning indicators.
If you see steam and/or spray
coming f rom under the hood, turn
of f the engine.Wait until you see no more signs
of steam or spray, then open the
hood.
1. 3.
4.
5.
2.
CONT INUED
If Your Engine Overheats
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed229
Steam and spray from an
overheated engine can
seriously scald you.
Do not open the hood if steam
is coming out.
Driving with the temperature gauge
reading at the red mark can cause
serious damage to your engine.
Page 235 of 280
This indicator should light when the
ignition switch is ON (II), and go out
af ter the engine starts. It should
never come on when the engine is
running. If it starts f lashing, it
indicates that the oil pressure
dropped very low f or a moment, then
recovered. If the indicator stays on
with the engine running, it shows
that the engine has lost oil pressure
and serious engine damage is
possible. In either case, you should
take immediate action.Start the engine and watch the oil
pressure indicator. If the light
does not go out within ten seconds,
turn of f the engine. There is a
mechanical problem that needs to
be repaired bef ore you can
continue driving. (See
on page .)
Saf ely pull of f the road and shut
of f the engine. Turn on the hazard
warning indicators.
If necessary, add oil to bring the
level back to the full mark on the
dipstick (see page ). Letthecarsitforaminute.Open
the hood and check the oil level
(see page ). Although oil level
and oil pressure are not directly
connected, an engine that is very
low on oil can lose pressure during
cornering and other driving
maneuvers.
1.
2.
3. 4.
123 161 245
Emergency
Towing
L ow Oil Pressure Indicator
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed232
LOW OIL PRESSURE INDICATOR
Running the engine with low oil
pressure can cause serious mechanical
damage almost immediately. Turn of f
the engine as soon as you can saf ely get
the car stopped.
Page 245 of 280
µ
µ
µ
µ
µ
µ
µ
µ
µµ
µ
No. Amps.
No.
No.
Circuits Protected
Circuits Protected
Circuits Protected
Amps. Amps.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13 40 A
20 A
30 A
20 A
40 A
20 A
1
2
3
4
5 14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Magnetic Clutch Relay
Right Headlight
ACG S
Hazard Warning Lights
Cooling Fan
Not used
Stop
Lef t Headlight
ABS F/S
ABS Motor
Battery
IG1 Main
Lighting 1 Relay
Lighting 2 Relay
Horn Relay
Power Window Motor
Right Roof Motor
Not used
Back Up ACC
Lef t Roof Motor
Heater Motor
Condenser Fan
Not used
Condenser Fan Relay
Cooling Fan Relay
Rear Window Defogger
Not used
Not used
EPS
Air Pump
20 A
70 A
60 A 20 A
15 A
10 A
20 A
15 A
20 A
20 A
30 A
100 A 40 A
Fuses
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed242
(AUXILIARY FUSE BOX)
UNDER-HOOD FUSE BOXES
(MAIN FUSE BOX)
Page 255 of 280
µ
The treadwear grade is a compara-
tive rating based on the wear rate of
the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specif ied government
test course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one and one-
half (1 1/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded
100. The relative perf ormance of
tires depends upon the actual condi-
tions of their use, however, and may
depart signif icantly f rom the norm
due to variations in driving habits,
service practices and dif f erences in
road characteristics and climate.
The tires on your vehicle meet all
U.S. Federal Saf ety Requirements.
All tires are also graded f or
treadwear, traction, and temperature
perf ormance according to
Department of Transportation
(DOT) standards. The f ollowing
explains these gradings.
Quality grades can be f ound where
applicable on the tire sidewall
between the tread shoulder and the
maximum section width. For
example:
The traction grades, f rom highest to
lowest, are AA, A, B, and C. Those
grades represent the tire’s ability to
stop on wet pavement as measured
under controlled conditions on
specif ied government test surf aces
of asphalt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction
perf ormance.
Warning: The traction grade
assignedtothistireisbasedon
straight-ahead braking traction tests,
and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydroplaning, or peak
traction characteristics.
All passenger car tires must conf orm
to Federal Saf ety Requirements in
addition to these grades.
T echnical Inf ormation
DOT T ire Quality Grading (U.S. Vehicles)
T readwear
Unif orm T ire Quality Grading T readwear 200
Traction AA
Temperature A Traction AA, A, B, C
252
Page 256 of 280
µWarning: The temperature grade f or
this tire is established f or a tire that
is properly inf lated and not over-
loaded. Excessive speed, underinf la-
tion, or excessive loading, either
separately or in combination, can
cause heat buildup and possible tire
f ailure.
The temperature grades are A (the
highest), B, and C, representing the
tire’s resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat
when tested under controlled
conditions on a specif ied indoor
laboratory test wheel. Sustained high
temperature can cause the material
of the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive temperature
can lead to sudden tire f ailure. The
grade C corresponds to a level of
perf ormance which all passenger car
tires must meet under the Federal
Motor Vehicle Saf ety Standard No.
109. Grades B and A represent
higher levels of perf ormance on the
laboratory test wheel than the
minimum required by law.
T echnical Inf ormation
DOT T ire Quality Grading (U.S. Vehicles)
Temperature A,B,C
253