wheel BUICK REGAL 1997 Owner's Guide

wing Distance
3tay at least twice as far behind the vehicle ahead as you
would when driving your vehicle without
a trailer. This
can help you avoid situations that require heavy braking
and sudden turns.
Making mrns
Passing
You’ll need more passing distance up ahead when
you’re towing a trailer. And, because you’re a good deal
longer, you’ll need to go much farther beyond the
passed vehicle before you can return to your lane.
Backing Up
Hold the bottom of the steering wheel with one hand.
Then, to move the trailer
to the left, just move that hand
to the left.
To move the trailer to the right, move your
hand to the right. Always back up slowly and, if
possible, have someone guide you.
NOTICE:
Making very sharp turns while trailering could
cause the trailer to come in contact with the
vehicle. Your vehicle could be damaged. Avoid
making very sharp turns while trailering.
When you’re turning with a trailer, make wider
turns than normal.
Do this so your trailer won’t
strike soft shoulders, curbs, road signs, trees or other
objects. Avoid jerky or sudden maneuvers. Signal well
in advance.
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Turn Signals When Towing a Trailer
When you tow a trailer, your vehicle may need a
different turn signal flasher and/or extra wiring. Check
with your Buick dealer. The green arrows on your
instrument panel will flash whenever
you signal a turn
or lane change. Properly hooked up, the trailer lamps
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.
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 and reduce your
speed to around
45 mph (70 kmh) 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
PARK (P)
yet.
2. Have someone place chocks under the
trailer’s 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 shift to PARK
(P).
5. Release the regular brakes.
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Towing Your Vehicle
Try to have a Buick dealer or a professional towing
service tow your vehicle.
If your vehicle has been changed or modified since it
was factory-new by adding aftermarket items like fog
lamps, aero skirting, or special tires and wheels, these
instructions and illustrations may not be correct.
Before
you do anything, turn on the hazard
warning flashers.
When you call, tell the towing service:
That your vehicle cannot be towed from the front or
rear with sling-type equipment.
0 That your vehicle has front-wheel drive.
The make, model and year of your vehicle.
Whether you can still move the shift lever.
If there was an accident, what was damaged.
When the towing service arrives, let the tow operator
know that this manual contains detailed towing
instructions and illustrations.
The operator may want to
see them.
To help avoid injury to you or others:
Never let passengers ride in a vehicle that is
Never tow faster than safe or posted speeds.
Never tow with damaged parts not
fully secured.
Never get under your vehicle after it has
been lifted by the tow truck.
Always secure the vehicle on each side with
separate safety chains when towing it.
Never use J-hooks. Use T-hooks instead.
being
towed.
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A vehicle can fall from a car-carrier if it isn’t
adequately secured. This can cause a collision,
serious personal injury and vehicle damage. The
vehicle should be tightly secured with chains or
steel cables before it is transported.
Don’t use substitutes (ropes, leather straps,
canvas webbing, etc.) that can be cut by sharp
edges underneath the towed vehicle. Always use
T-hooks inserted in the T-hook slots. Never use
J-hooks. They will damage drivetrain and
suspension components.
When your vehicle is being towed, have the ignition key
in the
OFF position. The steering wheel should be
clamped in a straight-ahead position, with a clamping
device designed for towing service.
Do not use the
vehicle’s steering column lock for this. The transaxle
should be in NEUTRAL
(N) and the parking
brake released.
Don’t have your vehicle towed on the drive wheels,
unless you must.
If the vehicle must be towed on the
drive wheels, be sure to follow the speed and distance
restrictions later in this section or your transaxle will be
damaged,
If these limitations must be exceeded, then the
drive wheels have to be supported on a dolly.
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Front Towing
NOTICE:
Do not tow with sling type equipment or
fascia/fog lamp damage
will occur. Use wheel-lift
or car-carrier equipment. Additional ramping
may be required
for car-carrier equipment. Use
safety chains and wheel straps. Use the T-slots for
car-carrier securing.
Towing a vehicle over rough surfaces could damage
a vehicle. Damage can occur from vehicle to
ground or vehicle to wheel-lift equipment.
To help
avoid damage, install
a towing dolly and raise the
vehicle until adequate clearance is obtained
between the ground and/or wheel-lift equipment.
Do not attach winch cables or J-hooks to
suspension components when using car-carrier equipment. Always use T-hooks inserted in the
T-hook slots.
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Attach T-hook chains in
front of the wheels, into the
slots of the front shipping
brackets on the cradle (both
sides). Insert the hook from
the inward side
of the slot
and not the outward side.
I
These slots are to be used when securing to
car-carrier equipment.
NOTICE:
When attaching T-hooks to the shipping slots in
the frame rail, attach them inside
of the frame to
avoid damage to the frame or front fascia.
Attach a separate safety
chain around the outboard
end of each lower
control arm.
/A
NOTICE:
Take care not to damage the brake pipes and
hoses or the
ABS sensor and wiring.
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Rear Towing
A towing dolly must be used under the drive wheels
when towing
from the rem
NOTICE:
Do not tow with sling-type equipment or the rear
bumper valance will be damaged. Use wheel-lift
or car-carrier equipment. Additional ramping
may be required for car-carrier equipment. Use
safety chains and wheel straps. Use the T-slots for
car-carrier securing.
Towing
a vehicle over rough surfaces could
damage
a vehicle. Damage can occur from vehicle
to ground or vehicle to wheel-lift equipment. To
help avoid damage, install a towing dolly and
raise the vehicle until adequate clearance is
obtained between the ground and/or
wheel-lift equipment.
Do not attach winch cables or J-hooks to
suspension components when using car-carrier
equipment. Always use T-hooks inserted in
T-hooks slots.
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Attach T-hook chains into
slots in
the bottom of the
floor pan,
just ahead of the
rear wheels, on both sides.
These
slots are to be used when securing to
car-carrier equipment. Attach
a separate safety
chain around the outboard
end
of both lateral arms.
I
NOTICE:
Take care not to damage the brake pipes
and cables.
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If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving,
especially
if you maintain your tires properly. If air goes
out of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But if you should ever have a “blowout,’’ here are
a few
tips about what to expect and what to do:
If a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel firmly.
Steer to maintain lane position, and then gently brake to
a stop well out
of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve, acts much like a
skid and may require the same correction you’d use
in a
skid. In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake
to a stop -- well off the road if possible.
If
a tire goes flat, the next part shows how to use your
jacking equipment to change
a flat tire safely.
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.
I
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.
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C
The tools you'll be using include the jack (A), extension
and protection guide
(B) and wheel wrench (C).
Wheel Covers
To remove a center cap, use
the wrench to pry gently at
the notch. Don't use a tool
that
is narrower than the
wrench
to pry at this notch.
Then pry
off the cap.
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