lock OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA 2001 Repair Manual

4-17 Environmental Concerns
Off-road driving can provide wholesome and satisfying
recreation. However, it also raises environmental
concerns. Oldsmobile recognizes these concerns and
urges every off
-roader to follow these basic rules for
protecting the environment:

Always use established trails, roads and areas that
have been specially set aside for public off
-road
recreational driving; obey all posted regulations.

Avoid any driving practice that could damage the
environment
-- shrubs, flowers, trees, grasses -- or
disturb wildlife (this includes wheel
-spinning,
breaking down trees or unnecessary driving through
streams or over soft ground).

Always carry a litter bag . . . make sure all refuse is
removed from any campsite before leaving.

Take extreme care with open fires (where permitted),
camp stoves and lanterns.

Never park your vehicle over dry grass or other
combustible materials that could catch fire from
the heat of the vehicle's exhaust system.
Traveling to Remote Areas
It makes sense to plan your trip, especially when going
to a remote area. Know the terrain and plan your route.
You are much less likely to get bad surprises. Get
accurate maps of trails and terrain. Try to learn of any
blocked or closed roads.
It's also a good idea to travel with at least one other
vehicle. If something happens to one of them,
the other can help quickly.
Getting Familiar with Off-Road Driving
It's a good idea to practice in an area that's safe and
close to home before you go into the wilderness.
Off
-road driving does require some new and different
driving skills. Here's what we mean.
Tune your senses to different kinds of signals.
Your eyes, for example, need to constantly sweep
the terrain for unexpected obstacles. Your ears need
to listen for unusual tire or engine sounds. With your
arms, hands, feet and body, you'll need to respond to
vibrations and vehicle bounce.
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4-20 Approaching a Hill
When you approach a hill, you need to decide if it's one
of those hills that's just too steep to climb, descend or
cross. Steepness can be hard to judge. On a very small
hill, for example, there may be a smooth, constant
incline with only a small change in elevation where you
can easily see all the way to the top. On a large hill, the
incline may get steeper as you near the top, but you
may not see this because the crest of the hill is hidden
by bushes, grass or shrubs.
Here are some other things to consider as you
approach a hill.

Is there a constant incline, or does the hill get
sharply steeper in places?

Is there good traction on the hillside, or will the
surface cause tire slipping?

Is there a straight path up or down the hill so you
won't have to make turning maneuvers?

Are there obstructions on the hill that can block
your path (boulders, trees, logs or ruts)?
What's beyond the hill? Is there a cliff, an embankment,
a drop-off, a fence? Get out and walk the hill if you don't
know. It's the smart way to find out.

Is the hill simply too rough? Steep hills often have
ruts, gullies, troughs and exposed rocks because they
are more susceptible to the effects of erosion.
Driving Uphill
Once you decide you can safely drive up the hill,
you need to take some special steps.

Use a low gear and get a firm grip on the
steering wheel.

Get a smooth start up the hill and try to maintain
your speed. Don't use more power than you need,
because you don't want your wheels to start spinning
or sliding.

Try to drive straight up the hill if at all possible.
If the path twists and turns, you might want to
find another route.
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4-22

If your engine has stopped running, you'll need to
restart it. With the brake pedal pressed and the
parking brake still applied, shift the transmission
to PARK (P) and restart the engine. Then, shift
to REVERSE (R), release the parking brake, and
slowly back down the hill as straight as possible
in REVERSE (R).

As you are backing down the hill, put your left hand
on the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position.
This way, you'll be able to tell if your wheels are
straight and maneuver as you back down. It's best
that you back down the hill with your wheels straight
rather than in the left or right direction. Turning the
wheel too far to the left or right will increase the
possibility of a rollover.
Here are some things you must not do if you stall,
or are about to stall, when going up a hill.

Never attempt to prevent a stall by shifting into
NEUTRAL (N) to ªrev
-upº the engine and regain
forward momentum. This won't work. Your vehicle
will roll backwards very quickly and you could go
out of control.Instead, apply the regular brake to stop the
vehicle. Then apply the parking brake. Shift to
REVERSE (R), release the parking brake, and
slowly back straight down.

Never attempt to turn around if you are about to
stall when going up a hill. If the hill is steep enough
to stall your vehicle, it's steep enough to cause you
to roll over if you turn around. If you can't make it
up the hill, you must back straight down the hill.
Q:Suppose, after stalling, I try to back down
the hill and decide I just can't do it.
What should I do?
A:Set the parking brake, put your transmission in
PARK (P) and turn off the engine. Leave the
vehicle and go get some help. Exit on the uphill
side and stay clear of the path the vehicle would
take if it rolled downhill.
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4-38
What's the worst time for this? ªWet ice.º Very cold
snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it may offer the
least traction of all. You can get wet ice when it's about
freezing (32F; 0C) and freezing rain begins to fall.
Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand crews
can get there.Whatever the condition
-- smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow
-- drive with caution.
Accelerate gently. Try not to break the fragile traction.
If you accelerate too fast, the drive wheels will spin and
polish the surface under the tires even more.
Your anti
-lock brakes improve your vehicle's stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road. Even
though you have an anti
-lock braking system, you'll
want to begin stopping sooner than you would on dry
pavement. See ªAnti
-Lockº in the Index.

Allow greater following distance on any
slippery road.

Watch for slippery spots. The road might be fine
until you hit a spot that's covered with ice. On an
otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the sun can't reach: around
clumps of trees, behind buildings or under bridges.
Sometimes the surface of a curve or an overpass
may remain icy when the surrounding roads are
clear. If you see a patch of ice ahead of you,
brake before you are on it. Try not to brake while
you're actually on the ice, and avoid sudden
steering maneuvers.
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4-40
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.
Run your engine only as long as you must. This saves
fuel. When you run the engine, make it go a little faster
than just idle. That is, push the accelerator slightly. This
uses less fuel for the heat that you get and it keeps the
battery charged. You will need a well
-charged battery
to restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling later
on with your headlamps. Let the heater run for a while.Then, shut the engine off and close the window almost
all the way to preserve the heat. Start the engine again
and repeat this only when you feel really uncomfortable
from the cold. But do it as little as possible. Preserve the
fuel as long as you can. To help keep warm, you can get
out of the vehicle and do some fairly vigorous exercises
every half hour or so until help comes.
Recreational Vehicle Towing
Your vehicle was not designed to be towed with all four
wheels on the ground, nor was it designed to be towed
with only two wheels on the ground. If your vehicle
must be towed, see ªTowing Your Vehicleº in the Index.
NOTICE:
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on
the ground will damage drivetrain components.
And, since your vehicle has all
-wheel drive,
towing with only two wheels on the ground will
also damage drivetrain components.
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4-51 Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more often when you're
pulling a trailer. See the Maintenance Schedule for
more on this. Things that are especially important
in trailer operation are automatic transmission fluid
(don't overfill), engine oil, axle lubricant, belt, cooling
system and brake system. Each of these is covered
in this manual, and the Index will help you find them
quickly. If you're trailering, it's a good idea to review
these sections before you start your trip.
Check periodically to see that all hitch nuts and
bolts are tight.
Trailer Wiring Harness
The trailer wiring harness is an eight-wire harness
assembly. The harness is stored under the vehicle,
on the driver's side corner frame crossmember.
The harness is fused in the engine compartment fuse
block. See ªFuses and Circuit Breakersº in the
Index. The harness does not have a connector and
should be wired by a qualified electrical technician. The technician can use the following color code chart
when connecting the wiring harness to your trailer.

Dark Blue: Use for electric trailer brakes or
auxiliary wiring.

Red: Use for battery charging; it connects to the
starter solenoid.

Light Green: Back
-up lamps.

Brown: Taillamps and parking lamps.

Yellow: Left stoplamp and turn signal.

Dark Green: Right stoplamp and turn signal.

White: Ground wire.

Light Blue: Auxiliary stoplamp.
Securely attach the harness to the trailer, then tape or
strap it to your vehicle's frame rail. Be sure you leave
it loose enough so the wiring doesn't bend or break,
but not so loose that it drags on the ground. Store the
harness in its original place. Wrap the harness together
and tie it neatly so it won't be damaged.
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5-14 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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5-18
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.
CAUTION:
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. Turn 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.
The following steps will tell you how to use the jack and
change a tire.
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5-19 Removing the Spare Tire and Tools
The jacking equipment you'll need is stored along the
driver's side inner rear quarter panel. Your vehicle is
also equipped with work gloves and a plastic ground
mat to assist in the changing of a flat tire.
1. To remove the jack
cover, pull up on the
latch(es) located on
the cover. Remove
the wheel blocks,
jack and wheel wrench.The spare tire is stored underneath the vehicle.
NOTICE:
Never remove or restow a tire from/to a stowage
position under the vehicle while the vehicle is
supported by a jack. Always tighten the tire fully
against the underside of the vehicle when restowing.
2. To remove the spare,
insert the chisel end
of the wheel wrench,
on an angle, into the
hole in the rear bumper.
Be sure the chisel end
of the wheel wrench
connects into the
hoist shaft.
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5-20
Turn the wheel wrench counterclockwise to lower the
spare tire. Keep turning the wheel wrench until the spare
tire can be pulled out from under the vehicle.
3. When the tire has been completely lowered, tilt the
retainer at the end of the cable and pull it through
the wheel opening. Pull the tire out from under
the vehicle.
NOTICE:
To help avoid vehicle damage, do not drive the
vehicle before the cable is restored.
Put the spare tire near the flat tire.The tools you'll be using include the jack (A), and the
wheel wrench (B).
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