brakes BUICK PARK AVENUE 1997 Owners Manual

Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
For example,
these symbols
are used on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
ACID COULD
&
BAllERY
CAUSE
BURNS
AVOID
SPARKS
OR
FLAMES
SPARK
OR ,\I/,
COULD FLAME
EXPLODE BAllERY
X
These symbols are important
for you and
your passengers
whenever your
vehicle is
driven:
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
FASTEN SEAT
BELTS
POWER
WINDOW
These symbols have to do with
your lamps:
SIGNALS 6
TURN
RUNNING
* ' 0
DAYTIME -
LAMPS .'*
FOG LAMPS $0
These symbols
are
on some of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
These symbols are used
on
warning and
indicator lights:
COOLANT -
TEMP -
CHARGING I-1
BAlTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(a)
COOLANT a
ENGINE OIL e,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
LIGHTER
a
HORN )tr
SPEAKER
IJ
FUEL p3
1 I
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PARK (P): This locks your front wheels. It’s the best
position to use when you start your engine because your
vehicle can’t move easily.
It is dangerous to get out of your vehicle if the
shift lever is not fully in
PARK (P) with the
~ parking brake firmly set. Your vehicle can roll.
Don’t leave your vehicle when the engine
is
running unless you have to. If you have left the
engine running, the vehicle can move suddenly.
You or others could be injured.
To be sure your
vehicle won’t move, even when you’re on fairly
level ground, always set your parking brake and
move the shift lever to
PARK (P).
See “Shifting Into PARK (P)” in the Index. If
you’re pulling a trailer, see “Towin9: a Trailer” in
I theIndex* I
Ensure the shift lever is fully in PARK (P) range before
starting
the engine. Your Buick has a brake-transaxle
shift interlock.
You have to fully apply your regular
brakes
before you can shift from PARK (P) when the
ignition key is in the
RUN position. If you cannot shift
out of PARK
(P), ease pressure on the shift lever -- push
the shift lever all the way into PARK (P) as you
maintain brake application. Then move the shift lever
into the gear you wish. See “Shifting Out of PARK
(P)”
in the Index.
REVERSE (R): Use this gear to back up.
NOTICE:
Shifting to REVERSE (R) while your vehicle is
moving forward could damage your transaxle. Shift to
REVERSE (R) only after your vehicle
is stopped.
To rock your vehicle back and forth to get out of snow,
ice or sand without damaging your transaxle, see “If
You’re Stuck:
In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow” in the Index.
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SECOND (2): This position gives you more power but
lower fuel economy. You can
use SECOND (2) on hills.
It
can help control your speed as you go down steep
mountain roads, but then
you would also want to use
your brakes off and on.
NOTICE:
Don’t drive in SECOND (2) for more than
5 miles (8 km), or at speeds over 55 mph
(88 km/h), or you can damage your transaxle.
Use AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
(a) or
THIRD
(3) as much as possible.
Don’t shift into SECOND
(2) unless you are going
slower than
65 mph (105 km/h), or you can
damage your engine.
FIRST (1): This position gives you even more power (but
lower fuel economy) than
SECOND (2). You can use it on
very steep hills, or in deep snow or mud, If the selector
lever is put in
FIRST (l), the transaxle won’t shift into
first gear until
the vehicle is going slowly enough.
NOTICE:
If your front wheels can’t rotate, don’t try to
drive. This might happen
if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud or were up against
a solid
object. You could damage your transaxle.
Also,
if you stop when going uphill, don’t hold
your vehicle there with only the accelerator
pedal. This could overheat and damage the
transaxle. Use your brakes or shift into PARK
(P)
to hold your vehicle in position on a hill.
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Parking Brake
Your Park Avenue has a
PUSH TO RELEASE
parking brake pedal. To set
the parking brake, hold the
regular brake pedal down
with your right foot. Push
down the parking brake
pedal with your left foot.
~___
Whether the ignition key is
in RUN or OFF, the brake
system warning light stays on while the parking brake
is set.
The parking brake uses the brakes on the rear wheels.
To release the parking brake, hold the regular brake
pedal down and push the parking brake pedal with your
left foot. This will unlock the pedal. When you lift your
left foot, the parking brake pedal will follow it to the
release position. If you
try to drive
off (approximately 20 feet (6.1 m)),
with the parking brake on, the brake light stays on and a continuous chime sounds until you release the
parking brake.
I NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brake on can cause
your rear brakes to overheat.
You may have to
replace them, and you could also damage other
parts
of your vehicle.
If you are towing a trailer and are parking on any hill,
see “Towing a Trailer” in the Index. That part shows
what to do first to keep the trailer from moving.
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Windshield Washer
At the top of the multifunction lever there’s a paddle
with the word
PUSH on it. To spray washer fluid on the
windshield, push the paddle for less than a second. The
wipers will clear the window and then either stop or
return
to your preset speed. For more washer cycles,
push and hold the paddle.
In freezing weather, don’t use your washer until
the windshield is warmed. Otherwise the washer
fluid can form ice
on the windshield, blocking
your vision.
If your vehicle is equipped with a DIC, a
WINDSHIELD WASHER FLUID LOW message will
appear on the display when you are low on washer fluid.
Cruise Control
With cruise control, you can
maintain a speed
of about
25 mph (40 kmh) or more
without keeping your foot
on the accelerator.
This can
really help on long
trips.
Cruise control does not work at speeds below about
25 mph (40 km/h).
When you apply your brakes, the cruise control
shuts
off.
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Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light
With the anti-lock brake
system, the light(s) will
come on when you start
your engine and may stay
on for several seconds.
That’s normal.
If the light stays on and the chime sounds, turn the
ignition to
OFF. Or, if the light comes on and the chime
sounds when you’re driving, stop as soon as possible
and turn the ignition
off. Then start the engine again to
reset the system. If the light still stays on and the chime
sounds, or the light comes on again while you’re
driving, your Buick needs service.
If the regular brake
system warning light isn’t on, you still have brakes,
but you don’t have anti-lock brakes. If the regular
brake system warning light is also on, you don’t have
anti-lock brakes and there’s a problem with your regular
brakes. See “Brake System Warning Light” earlier in
this section. The
anti-lock brake system warning light should come
on briefly when you turn the ignition
key to RUN. If the
light doesn’t
come on then, have it fixed so it will be
ready
to warn you if there is a problem.
Traction Control System Warning Light
(Option)
TRAC
OFF
This warning light should
come
on briefly as you start
the engine. If the warning
light doesn’t come
on then,
have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you if there’s
a problem.
If it stays on, or comes on when you’re driving, there
may be a problem with your traction control system and
your vehicle may need service. When this warning light
is on, the system will not limit wheel spin. Adjust your
driving accordingly.
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Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where
you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering and
the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work
at the places where the tires meet the road.
Sometimes, as when you’re driving on snow
or ice, it’s
easy to ask more of those control systems than the tires
and road can provide. That means you can lose control
of your vehicle.
Braking
Bralung action involves perception time and
reaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That’s
perception time. Then you have to bring up your
foot and do it. That’s
reaction time.
Average reaction time is about 314 of a second. But
that’s only an average. It might be less with one driver
and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part.
So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in
3/4 of a second, a vehicle
moving at
60 mph (1 00 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could be a lot
of distance in an emergency, so
keeping enough space between your vehicle and others
is important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface
of the road (whether it’s pavement or
gravel); the condition
of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; the condition of your brakes; the weight of the
vehicle and the amount
of brake force applied.
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Avoid needless heavy bralung. Some people drive in Anti-Lock Brakes
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 Your
vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
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. When
you start your engine, or when you 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.
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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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.
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at the
rear wheels. The
anti-lock system can change the brake pressure
faster than any driver could. The computer is
programmed to make the most
of available tire and
road conditions.
You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.
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Remember: Anti-lock doesn’t change the time you need
to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease
stopping distance. If you get too close to the vehicle in
front of you, you won’t have time to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows
or stops. Always leave
enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have
anti-lock brakes.
Using Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down and let anti-lock work for you. You may feel the system
working, or you may notice some noise, but this is normal.
Traction Control System (If Equipped)
Your vehicle may have a traction control system that
limits wheel spin. This is especially useful in slippery
road conditions. The system operates only if it senses
that one or both of the front wheels are spinning or
beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the
system works the front brakes and reduces engine power
to
limit wheel spin.
You may feel or hear the system working, but
this is normal.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction
control system begins to 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.)
TRAC
OFF
When the system is on, this
warning light will come on
to let you know if there’s
a
problem with your traction
control system.
I
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
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.)
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