key BUICK LESABRE 1999 Owner's Manual

First Edition for Buick LeSabre Owner's Manual ± 1999
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The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it's more
likely that the fetus won't be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right front passenger's safety belt
properly, see ªDriver Positionº earlier in this section.
The right front passenger's safety belt works the same way as
the driver's safety belt
-- except for one thing. If you ever pull
the lap portion of the belt out all the way, you will engage the
child restraint locking feature. If this happens, just let the belt
go back all the way and start again.
If your vehicle has a center passenger position, be sure
to use the correct buckle when buckling your
lap
-shoulder belt. If you find that the latch plate will not
go fully into the buckle, see if you are using the buckle
for the center passenger position.
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
This part explains the Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) or air bag system.
Your vehicle has ªNext Generationº frontal
air bags
-- one air bag for the driver and another
air bag for the right front passenger.Next Generation frontal air bags are designed to help
reduce the risk of injury from the force of an inflating
air bag. But even these air bags must inflate very
quickly if they are to do their job and comply with
federal regulations.
Here are the most important things to know about the air
bag system:
CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you aren't wearing your safety belt
-- even if you
have air bags. Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected from it. Air
bags are ªsupplemental restraintsº to the safety
belts. All air bags
-- even Next Generation air
bags
-- are designed to work with safety belts,
but don't replace them. Air bags are designed to
work only in moderate to severe crashes where
the front of your vehicle hits something. They
CAUTION: (Continued)

First Edition for Buick LeSabre Owner's Manual ± 1999
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1-24
NOTICE:
If you damage the covering for the driver's or the
right front passenger's air bag, the bag may not
work properly. You may have to replace the air
bag module in the steering wheel or both the air
bag module and the instrument panel for the
right front passenger's air bag. Do not open or
break the air bag coverings.
If your vehicle ever gets into a lot of water -- such as
water up to the carpeting or higher
-- or if water enters
your vehicle and soaks the carpet, the air bag controller
can be soaked and ruined. If this ever happens, and then
you start your vehicle, the damage could make the air bags
inflate, even if there's no crash. You would have to replace
the air bags as well as the sensors and related parts. If your
vehicle is ever in a flood, or if it's exposed to water that
soaks the carpet, you can avoid needless repair costs by
turning off the vehicle immediately and disconnecting the
battery cables. Don't let anyone start the vehicle under any
circumstances. See your dealer for service.
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the air bag system in several places
around your vehicle. You don't want the system to
inflate while someone is working on your vehicle. Your
dealer and the LeSabre Service Manual have
information about servicing your vehicle and the air bag
system. To purchase a service manual, see ªService and
Owner Publicationsº in the Index.
CAUTION:
For up to 10 minutes after the ignition key is
turned off and the battery is disconnected, an air
bag can still inflate during improper service. You
can be injured if you are close to an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid yellow connectors. They are
probably part of the air bag system. Be sure to
follow proper service procedures, and make sure
the person performing work for you is qualified
to do so.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.

2-
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Section 2 Features and Controls
Here you can learn about the many standard and optional features on your vehicle, and information on starting,
shifting and braking. Also explained are the instrument panel and the warning systems that tell you if everything is
working properly
-- and what to do if you have a problem.
2
-2 Keys
2
-4 Door Locks
2
-9 Remote Keyless Entry System (If Equipped)
2
-14 Trunk
2
-15 Theft
2
-16 Universal Theft-Deterrent (If Equipped)
2
-18 PASS-Key
II
2
-19 New Vehicle ªBreak-Inº
2
-20 Ignition Positions
2
-21 Starting Your Engine
2
-23 Engine Coolant Heater (If Equipped)
2
-24 Automatic Transaxle Operation
2
-27 Parking Brake
2
-28 Shifting Into PARK (P)
2
-30 Shifting Out of PARK (P)
2
-31 Parking Over Things That Burn2
-31 Engine Exhaust
2
-32 Running Your Engine While You're Parked
2
-33 Windows
2
-33 Horn
2
-34 Tilt Wheel
2
-34 Turn Signal/Multifunction Lever
2
-40 Exterior Lamps
2
-43 Interior Lamps
2
-46 Mirrors
2
-51 Storage Compartments
2
-53 Sun Visors
2
-53 OnStar
System
2
-54 The Instrument Panel - Your
Information System
2
-59 Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators

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Keys
CAUTION:
Leaving children in a vehicle with the ignition
key is dangerous for many reasons. A child or
others could be badly injured or even killed.
They could operate power windows or other
controls or even make the vehicle move. Don't
leave the keys in a vehicle with children.

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The ignition key is for the
ignition only.
The door keys are for the
doors and all other locks.When a new vehicle is delivered, the dealer removes the
plugs from the keys and gives them to the first owner.
However, the ignition key may not have a plug. If the
ignition key doesn't have a plug, it will have a
bar
-coded key tag.
Each plug or tag has a code on it that tells your dealer or
a qualified locksmith how to make extra keys. Keep the
plugs or the tags in a safe place. If you lose your keys,
you'll be able to have new ones made easily using these
plugs or the tag. If your ignition keys don't have plugs
or the tag, go to your dealer for the correct key code if
you need a new ignition key.
NOTICE:
Your vehicle has a number of features that can
help prevent theft. But you can have a lot of
trouble getting into your vehicle if you ever lock
your keys inside. You may even have to damage
your vehicle to get in. So be sure you have
extra keys.

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Door Locks
CAUTION:
Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
Passengers -- especially children -- can easily
open the doors and fall out. When a door is
locked, the inside handle won't open it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an unlocked
door when you slow down or stop your vehicle.
This may not be so obvious: You increase the
chance of being thrown out of the vehicle in a
crash if the doors aren't locked. Wear safety belts
properly, lock your doors, and you will be far
better off whenever you drive your vehicle.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
From the outside, use your door key or remote keyless
entry transmitter (if equipped). With your door key,
turning the key toward the rear of the vehicle will lock
the door. Turning the key toward the front of the vehicle
will unlock it.
If your vehicle has a theft
-deterrent system and it is
activated, unlock the doors only with the key or remote
keyless entry system. This will avoid setting off
the alarm.
To lock the door from the
inside, slide the manual
door lock control on the
door down. To unlock the
door, slide the manual door
lock control up.

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2-5 Power Door Locks
With power door locks,
you can lock or unlock all
the doors of your vehicle
using the driver's or
front passenger's door
lock switch.
The switch on each rear door works only that door's
lock. It won't lock (or unlock) all of the doors
-- that's
a safety feature.
Memory Door Locks
Close the doors and turn on the ignition. Every time you
move the shift lever out of PARK (P), all of the doors
will lock. And, every time you stop and move the shift
lever into PARK (P), the doors will unlock. If someone
needs to get out while you're not in PARK (P), have that
person use the manual or power lock. When the door is closed again, it will not lock automatically. Just use the
manual or power lock to lock the door again. If you
need to lock the doors before shifting out of PARK (P),
just use the manual or power lock button.
Personal Choice Programming
If your vehicle is equipped with remote keyless entry,
you can program the memory door locks feature to
change to the following modes:
Mode Operation
0 No automatic door lock or unlock.
1 All doors automatically lock when shifted
out of PARK (P). No automatic door unlock.
2 All doors automatically lock when shifted
out of PARK (P). Only the driver's door
automatically unlocks when shifted into
PARK (P).
3 All doors automatically lock when shifted
out of PARK (P). All doors automatically
unlock when shifted into PARK (P).
Vehicles are delivered programmed in Mode 3.

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Use the following procedure to change modes:
1. Close all the doors and turn the ignition on. Keep all
doors closed throughout this procedure.
2. Press and hold LOCK on the driver's power door
lock switch through Step 4.
3. Press the LOCK button on the remote keyless entry
transmitter. The automatic door locks will remain in
the current mode.
4. Press the LOCK button on the transmitter again.
Each time the transmitter's LOCK button is
pressed, the mode will advance by one, going from
3 to 0 to 1, etc.
Note: The door locks will cycle according to the
mode entered while customizing the memory door
locks. (Mode ª0º has no feedback.)
5. Release the power door lock switch. The automatic
door locks will remain in the most recent
mode selected.Delayed Locking (If Equipped)
This feature lets the driver delay the actual locking of
the vehicle. When the power door lock switch is pressed
with the key removed from the ignition and the driver's
door open, a chime will sound three times to signal that
delayed locking is active. When all doors have been
closed, the doors will lock automatically after five
seconds. If any door is opened before this, the
five
-second timer will reset itself once all the doors have
been closed again.
Pressing the door lock switch twice within two seconds
will override this feature.

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Personal Choice Programming
The delayed locking feature can be turned on or off for
each remote keyless entry transmitter. Vehicles are
delivered with each transmitter defaulted with delayed
locking off.
To turn the feature on:
1. Press and hold LOCK on the driver's power door
lock switch throughout this procedure. All the doors
will lock.
2. Press the UNLOCK button on the transmitter.
The lock delay is still off and all doors will
remain locked.
3. Press the UNLOCK button on the transmitter again.
Lock delay is now active and all doors will unlock.
4. Release the power door lock switch.
To turn this feature off, repeat the previous procedure.
This procedure only changes the mode for the
transmitter used to change this setting. The procedure
will need to be repeated for the second transmitter.If your vehicle is not equipped with remote keyless
entry, the delayed locking feature can be turned on or off
by using the following procedure:
1. With the ignition on, press and hold LOCK on the
driver's power door lock switch. All doors will lock.
2. Cycle the headlamp switch four times. On the third
cycle, the doors will lock if the feature is now off, or
will unlock if the feature has been turned on.
3. To change modes, cycle the headlamp switch once
more. A locking action will confirm the new mode.
4. Release the power door lock switch.
To turn the feature off, repeat the previous procedure.

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2-8 Rear Door Security Lock
Your vehicle is equipped
with rear door security
locks that help prevent
passengers from opening
the rear doors of your
vehicle from the inside.
To Use One of These Locks
1. Open the rear door you wish to lock.
2. Move the lever located on the door edge all the way
up to the ENGAGED position.
3. Close the door.
4. Do the same thing to the other rear door lock.
The rear doors of your vehicle cannot be opened from
the inside when this feature is in use.To Open a Rear Door When the Security Lock is On
1. Unlock the door.
2. Then open the door from the outside.
If you don't cancel the security lock feature, adults or
older children who ride in the rear seat won't be able to
open the rear door from the inside. You should let adults
and older children know how these security locks work,
and how to cancel the locks.
To Cancel the Rear Door Lock
1. Unlock the door and open the door from the outside.
2. Move the lever all the way down.
3. Do the same for the other rear door.
The rear door locks will now work normally.
Lockout Protection
The power door locks will not work if the key is left in
the ignition with the driver's door open. You can
override this feature by holding the power door lock
switch for more than three seconds, unless the engine
is running.