instrument panel BUICK PARK AVENUE 1994 User Guide

Courtesy Lights
When any door is opened, several lights go on. They
make it easy for you
to enter and leave the car. You also
can
turn these lights on by sliding the panel lights lever
to INT (interior).
Time Out Feature
The interior lights will automatically shut off after a 10
minute period if a door is left open. This feature is
designed
to help eliminate battery wear down.
Twilight Sentinel (Option)
Twilight Sentinel turns your
lights on and
off by sensing
how dark it is outside.
To operate
it, leave the light
switch off and move the
Twilight Sentinel control to
any position but MIN. If you
move the control all the way to
MAX, your lights
will remain on
for three minutes after you turn off your
engine.
If you move the control almost all the way in the
other direction,
so it’s just on, the lights will go off
quickly when you turn off your engine. You can change
this delay time from only a few seconds to three
minutes.
Please don’t cover the light
sensor. If you cover the
sensor,
it will read “dark”
~ and your lights will come
on. It is
on top of the
instrument panel, on the
driver’s side
of the
defroster outlets.
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Daytime Running Lights (Canada Only)
The Canadian Federal Government has decided that
“Daytime Running Lights” (DRL) are a useful feature,
in that DRL can make your vehicle more visible to
pedestrians and other drivers during daylight hours.
DRL are required
on new vehicles sold in Canada.
Your DRL works with a light sensor on top of the
instrument panel. Don’t cover
it up.
The low beam headlights will come on at reduced
brightness in daylight when:
The ignition is on,
0 The headlight switch is off and,
0 The transaxle is not in “P” (Park). At
dusk, if the Twilight Sentinel feature is turned on, the
exterior lights will come on automatically and the low
beams will change to
full brightness. At dawn, the
exterior lights will go out and the low beams will
change to the reduced brightness
of DRL (if the
headlight switch is
off).
Of course, you may still turn on the headlights any time
you need to.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, shift the
transaxle into
“P’ (Park). The DRL will stay off until
you shift out
of “P’ (Park).
To turn off all exterior lighting at night when you are
parked, move
the twilight sentinel control from ON to
OFF,
if it was on from the start. Or, move the control
from OFF to
ON, then back to OFF, if it was off from
the start. The lights will come back on when
you move
the transaxle out of PARK.
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The Instrument Panel: Your
Information System
I
Speedometer and Odometer
Your speedometer lets you see your speed in both miles
per hour (mph) and kilometers per hour (km/h). Your
odometer shows how far your vehicle has been driven,
in either miles (used in the U.S.) or kilometers (used in
Canada).
Your Buick has
a “tamper-resistant odometer.’’ If you
can see very noticeable bright silver lines between the
numbers, probably someone has tried
to turn it back.
The numbers may not be true.
You may wonder what happens if a car has to have a
new odometer installed.
If possible, the new one has to
be set to the same reading the old one had.
If it can’t be,
then it’s set at zero, and a label on the driver’s door must
show the old reading and when the new one was
installed.
Your instrument panel is designed to let you know at a
glance how your car
is running. You’ll know how fast
you’re going, how much fuel you’re using, and many
other things you’ll need
to know to drive safely and
economically.
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Low Coolant Warning Light Engine
Oil Pressure Light and Gage
COOLANT
LOW
When this light comes on,
the cooling system is low
on coolant. As a bulb
check, it will come on
when the ignition in the
RUN position and then go
Off.
Wb
OIL
If the coolant level is low, the light will come back on
and
a warning chime will sound. If this happens, see
“Engine Coolant’’ in the Index for proper cooling system
fill.
After the coolant level is returned to its proper level, the
LOW COOLANT light will go off after 20 seconds or
remain off
on the next ignition cycle. This
light
tells you if there could be a problem with your
engine oil pressure.
If your car has the optional gage cluster, you can read
your oil pressure directly from the gage on your
instrument panel.
There are three ways this light can come on briefly,
which
is normal and doesn’t show a problem. They are:
0 The light comes on when you turn your key to
“Run.”
It goes off once you turn the key to “Start.”
That’s just a check
to be sure the light works. If it
doesn’t, be sure
to have it fixed so it willbe there to
warn you if something goes wrong.
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Auto
AUTO is used when you
want the system to adjust
automatically to changes
in
temperature. When the
system is set for automatic,
air will come from
the floor
outlets, the instrument
panel outlets or windshield
outlets.
Fan speed
will vary as the system gets to and maintains
the temperature setting you have selected (unless a
blower
LO or HI button has been pushed). To
find your comfort zone, start with
75 AUTO, give
the car about
20 minutes to stabilize, and adjust the
temperature setting
if necessary.
In cold weather
the system will delay turning on the fan,
to avoid blowing cold air. The length
of the delay
depends on engine coolant temperature, outside
temperature and time since the engine was last started.
Pushing a
LO or HI blower button will override this
delay, and cause the fan to start.
To rid the system of stale air
in warm weather, air will
come out
of the floor outlets for a short time.
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If you want the blower fan
to run at a lower speed,
push the
LO button. The
blower speed
will decrease
with every push of the
button
until the lowest
speed is reached.
If you want to raise the
blower speed, push
HI. The
blower speed
will increase
with every
push of the
button
until maximum
speed
is reached.
Econ
You can use ECON when
you don’t need to cool the
outside air. The system will
work like the AUTO mode
without cooling. The air
flow
will come from the
instrument panel outlets.
ECON does not have the
blower delay feature as
the
AUTO mode setting.
This setting turns off the air conditioner allowing better
fuel economy.
Heater
To warm the air, press mR
and adjust the temperature
and fan speed for your
comfort. Most of the air
will come from the floor
outlets.
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Max Vent
This setting provides maximum cooling with the least
amount
of work. MAX recirculates much of the air
inside
your vehicle so it maximizes your air
conditioner’s performance and fuel economy. Air is
directed through
the instrument panel outlets.
Norm
Use NORM for normal cooling on hot days. This setting
cools outside air and directs
it through the instrument
panel outlets.
Bi-Level
This setting is designed for use on sunny days when the
air is only moderately warm or cool. On days like these,
the sun may adequately warm your upper body, but your
lower body may not be warm enough.
The Bi-level setting directs vehicle air
in two ways.
Cool air
is directed toward your upper body through
instrument panel outlets, while slightly warmed air is
directed through the heater outlet at your feet. For
mild outside temperatures when little heating or
cooling is needed, use the VENT setting. Air
will flow
through the instrument panel outlets. ,Use the air outlets
to turn
on, adjust and turn off the air flow. Adjust the
temperature lever to the desired temperature.
Heater
When outside temperatures are cold, pressing the HTR
setting and adjusting the temperature lever
will send
warm air through
the floor outlets and some through the
defroster vents.
Defrost
The DEFROST setting directs most of the air flow
toward the windshield. Use defrost when you want
to
remove fog or ice from the windshield. When it’s 42°F
(6°C) or warmer, you’ll get cooled air.
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Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)
Your Buick has an advanced electronic braking system
that will help prevent skidding.
ANT‘ LOCK (@)
ANTI
LOCK
This light on the instrument panel will go on when you
start your vehicle.
When you start your vehicle and begin to drive away, you
may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise. And you
may even notice that your brake pedal moves a little while
this is going
on. This is the ABS system testing itself. If
there’s a problem with the anti-lock brake system, the
anti-lock brake system warning light will stay on.
See “Anti-lock Brake System Warning Light”
in the
Index. Here’s how
anti-lock works. Let’s say the road is wet.
You’re driving safely. Suddenly an animal jumps out in
front of you.
You slam
on the brakes. Here’s what happens with ABS.
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limit wheel spin, the cruise control will automatically
disengage. When road conditions allow you to safely
use it again, you may re-engage the cruise control. (See
“Cruise Control” in the Index.) traction control system
off if you ever need to. (You
should turn the system off if your vehicle ever gets stuck
in sand, mud, ice or snow. See “Rocking Your Vehicle’’
in the Index.)
TRACTION
OFF
The “TRACTION OFF” warning light will come on
when you turn the traction control system off. When the
system
is on, this light will come on to let you know if
there’s a problem with your traction control system. See
“Traction Control System Warning Light” in
the Index.
When this warning light is
on, the system will not limit
wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.
The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever you start your vehicle.
To limit wheel spin,
especially in slippery road conditions,
you should
always leave the system on. But you can turn the To
turn the system off,
press the “TRACTION
CONTROL” button
on the
instrument panel to the left
of the steering wheel.
The “TRACTION
OFF” warning light will come on and
stay on.
If the system is limiting wheel spin when you
press the button, the system won’t
turn off right away. It
will wait until there’s no longer
a current need to limit
wheel spin.
You can
turn the system back on at any time by pressing
the button again. The “TRACTION
OFF” warning light
should go off.
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Turn Signals When Towing a Trailer
When you tow a trailer, your vehicle has to have a
different turn signal flasher and extra wiring. The green
arrows on your instrument panel
will flash whenever
you signal a turn or lane change. Properly hooked up,
the trailer lights
will also flash, telling other drivers
you’re about to turn, change lanes or stop.
When towing a trailer, the green arrows on your
instrument panel will flash for turns even
if the bulbs on
the trailer are burned out. Thus, you may
think drivers
behind you are seeing your signal when they are not. It’s
important to check occasionally to be sure the trailer
bulbs are still working.
Your vehicle has bulb warning lights. When you plug
trailer lights into your vehicle’s lighting system, its bulb
warning lights may not
let you know if one of your
lights goes out.
So, when you have trailer lights plugged
in, be sure to check your vehicle and trailer lights from
time to time to be sure they’re all working. Once you
disconnect the trailer lights, the bulb warning lights
again can tell you
if one of your vehicle lights is out.
Driving On Grades
Reduce speed and shift to a lower gear before you start
down a long or steep downgrade. If you don’t shift down,
you might have to use your brakes
so much that
they would get hot and no longer work well.
On a long uphill grade, shift down to “D or 3” (Drive)
and reduce your speed to around
45 mph (70 km/h) to
reduce the possibility of engine and transaxle
overheating.
Parking on Hills
You really should not park your vehicle, with a trailer
attached,
on a hill. If something goes wrong, your rig
could start to move. People can be injured, and both
your vehicle and the trailer can be damaged.
But
if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here’s
how
to do it:
1. Apply your regular brakes, but don’t shift into “P”
(Park) yet.
2. Have someone place chocks under the trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the
regular brakes until the chocks absorb the load.
4. Reapply the regular brakes. Then apply your parking
brake, and the shift to
“P” (Park).
5. Release the regular brakes.
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