BUICK REGAL 1998 Owners Manual

Engine Coolant Temperature Light
This light tells you that your
engine coolant has
overheated or your radiator
- cooling fan is not working.
TEMP
The light will come on briefly when your ignition is
turned on to show you that it is working.
If you have been operating your vehicle under normal
driving conditions, you should pull off the road, stop
your vehicle and turn
off the engine as soon as possible.
The “Problems on the Road” section of this manual
shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in
the Index.
Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
TEMP
You have a gage that shows
the engine coolant
temperature.
If the gage
pointer moves into the red area, your engine is too hot!
That reading means the same thing as the warning light.
It means that your engine coolant has overheated.
If you
have been operating your vehicle under normal driving
conditions, you should pull
off the road, stop your
vehicle and turn off the engine as
soon as possible.
The “Problems on the Road” section of this manual
shows what to
do. See “Engine Overheating” in
the Index.
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Low Coolant Warning Light
LOW COOLANT
If this light comes on, your
system is low on coolant
and the engine may
overheat. See “Engine
Coolant”
in the Index and
have your vehicle serviced
as soon as you can.
The light will come on briefly when your ignition is
turned
on to show you that it is working properly.
Low Tire Light (If Equipped)
LOW
TIRE
The tire pressure monitor
system can alert you to
a
large change in the pressure
in one tire. After the system has “learned”
tire pressures with
properly inflated tires, the
LOW TIRE light will come
on if the pressure in one tire becomes
12 psi (83 kPa)
lower than the other three tires. The tire pressure
monitor system won’t alert you if the pressure in more
than one tire
is low, if the system is not yet calibrated, or
if the vehicle is moving faster than
70 mph (1 10 kdh).
When the
LOW TIRE light comes on, you should stop
as soon as you can and check all your tires for damage.
(If a tire is flat, see “If a Tire Goes Flat” in the Index.)
Also check the tire pressure in all four tires as soon
as
you can. See “Inflation - Tire Pressure” in the Index.
The light will stay on until you turn off the ignition or
reset the system. See “Tire Pressure Monitor System” in
the Index.
The
LOW TIRE light also comes 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 there to tell you if the
pressure in a tire is low or high.
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Malfunction Indicator Lamp (Service Engine Soon Light)
Your vehicle is equipped
with a computer which
SERVICE ENGINE fuel, ignition and emission
monitors
operation of the
SOON control systems.
This system is called OBD
I1 (On-Board
Diagnostics-Second Generation) and is intended to
assure that emissions are at acceptable levels for the life
of the vehicle, helping to produce a cleaner
environment. The SERVICE ENGINE
SOON light
comes on and a chime will sound to indicate that there is
a problem and service is required. Malfunctions often
will be indicated by the system before any problem is
apparent. This may prevent more serious damage to
your vehicle. This system is also designed to assist
your service technician in correctly diagnosing
any malfunction.
NOTICE:
If you keep driving your vehicle with this light
on, after a while, your emission controls may not
work as well, your fuel economy may
not be as
good and your engine may not run as smoothly.
This could lead to costly repairs that may not be
covered by your warranty.
This light should come on, as a check to show you it is
working, when the ignition
is on and the engine is not
running. If the light doesn’t come on, have it repaired.
This light will also come on during a malfunction in one
of two ways:
Light Flashing -- A misfire condition has been
detected.
A misfire increases vehicle emissions and
may damage the emission control system
on your
vehicle. Dealer or qualified service center diagnosis
and service may be required.
Light On Steady -- An emission control system
malfunction
has been detected on your vehicle.
Dealer
or qualified service center diagnosis and
service may be required.
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If the Light Is Flashing
The following may prevent more serious damage to
your vehicle:
Reducing vehicle speed.
Avoiding hard accelerations.
0 Avoiding steep uphill grades.
If you are towing a trailer, reduce the amount of
cargo being hauled as
soon as it is possible.
If the light stops flashing and remains on steady, see “If
the Light
Is On Steady” following.
If the light continues to flash, when it is safe to do
so,
stop the vehicle. Find a safe place to park your vehicle.
Turn the key off, wait at least
10 seconds and restart the
engine.
If the light remains on steady, see “If the Light
Is On Steady” following. If the light is still flashing,
follow the previous steps, and drive the vehicle to your
dealer or qualified service center for service.
If the Light Is On Steady
You may be able to correct the emission system
malfunction by considering the following:
Did you recently put fuel into your vehicle?
If
so, reinstall the fuel cap, making sure to fully install
the cap. The diagnostic system can determine if the fuel
cap has been left off or improperly installed.
A loose or
missing fuel cap will allow fuel
to evaporate into the
atmosphere.
A few driving trips with the cap properly
installed should turn the light
off.
Did you just drive through a deep puddle of water?
If so, your electrical system may be wet. The condition
will usually be corrected when the electrical system
dries out.
A few driving trips should turn the light off.
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Have you recently cnanged brands of fuel?
If
so, be sure to fuel your vehicle with quality fuel (see
“Fuel” in the Index). Poor fuel quality will cause your
engine not to run as efficiently as designed. You may
notice this as stalling after start-up, stalling when you
put the vehicle into gear, misfiring, hesitation on
acceleration or stumbling on acceleration. (These
conditions may go away once the engine is warmed up.)
This will be detected by the system and cause the light
to turn on.
If you experience one or more of these conditions,
change the fuel brand
you use. It will require at least one
full tank of the proper fuel
to turn the light off.
If none of the above steps have made the light turn off,
have your dealer or qualified service center check the
vehicle. Your dealer has the proper test equipment and
diagnostic tools to fix any mechanical
or electrical
problems that may have developed.
Qil Warning Light
If you have a problem with
your oil, this light may stay
on after you start your
engine, or come on when
you are driving.
This indicates that oil is not going through your engine
quickly enough to keep it lubricated. The engine could
be low on oil or could have some other oil problem.
Have it fixed right away.
The oil light could also come on
in the following
situations:
0
0 The light will come on briefly when you turn on the
ignition to show you that it is working properly.
(If it doesn’t come on with the ignition on,
you may
have a problem with the fuse or bulb. Have it fixed
right away.)
Sometimes when the engine is idling at a stop, the
light may blink on and off. This
is normal.
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Low Oil Level Light
Don’t keep driving if the oil pressL-d is low. If
you do, your engine can become so hot that it
catches fire. You or others could be burned.
Check your
oil as soon as possible and have your
vehicle serviced.
I NOTICE:
Damage to your engine from neglected oil
problems can be costly and
is not covered by
your warranty.
LOW
OIL
Your engine is equipped
with an oil level monitoring
system. When the ignition
key
is turned on, the
LOW
OIL light will come
on briefly.
If the light does not come on briefly, have it fixed
so it
will be ready to warn you if there’s a problem.
If the light stays on, stop the vehicle on a level surface
and turn the engine
off. Check the oil level using the
engine oil dipstick. (See “Engine Oil” in the Index.) If
the light does not flash, have the
low oil level sensor
system repaired
so it will be ready to warn you if there’s
a problem.
The oil
level monitoring system only checks oil level
during the brief period between key on and engine
crank. It does not monitor engine oil level when the
engine is running. Additionally, an oil level check is
only performed if the engine has been turned off for a
considerable period of time, allowing the oil normally in
circulation
to drain back into the oil pan.
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Change Oil Soon Light
Your CHANGE OIL SOON
light should come on as a
CHANGE OIL
SOON
bulb check when you start
the engine.
Security Light
SECURITY
This light will come on
when you turn the key
to
START and stay on until the
vehicle starts.
If this light stays on for about
20 seconds after you turn
on the ignition, have the oil changed.
When to change your oil also depends on driving habits
and conditions because
they directly affect engine speed,
coolant temperature and vehicle speed. Because of this,
the CHANGE OIL
SOON light may come on as early as
2,000 miles (3,200 km) or less for harsh conditions.
Also see “Maintenance Schedule” in the Index for
further instructions on when
to change your oil.
To reset the CHANGE OIL SOON light, see “CHANGE
OIL SOON Light, How to Reset” in the Index. Also, see
“Oil Life Monitor”
in the Index. It
will also flash if your ignition key is too dirty or wet
for the PASS-Key I1 system to read the resistor pellet.
See “Pass-Key
11” in the Index.
If the resistor pellet is damaged or missing, the light will
come
on.
If you’re ever driving and the SECURITY light comes
on, you will be able to restart your engine
if you turn it
off. Your PASS-Key I1 system, however, is not working
properly and must be serviced by your dealer. Your
vehicle is not protected by the PASS-Key I1 system.
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Cruise Light
CRUISE
The CRUISE light comes
on whenever you set your
cruise control. See “Cruise
Control” in the Index.
Service Vehicle Soon Light
SERVICE VEHICLE
SOON
Performance Shift Light (If Equipped)
PERF
SHIFT
The PERF SHIFT light
comes on when you press
the performance shift button
to indicate that your vehicle
1 is in performance shifting
mode. See “Performance
Shifting” in the Index. This
light will come on
if
you have certain
non-emission related
vehicle problems.
These problems may not be obvious and may affect
vehicle performance or durability. Consult a qualified
dealership for necessary repairs to maintain top vehicle
performance. The light will come on briefly when your
ignition is turned on to show that it is working properly.
Low Washer Fluid Warning Light
LOW WASH
This light will come on
when your windshield
washers
are working and the
fluid container is low.
The light will also come
on briefly when your ignition is
turned on
to show that it is working properly.
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Door/Trunk Ajar Warning Light
This light will come on if
your trunk or any door is
DOOR/TRUNK
not completely closed.
Fuel Gage
1 /2
Your fuel gage tells you
about how much fuel you
have left when the ignition
is on. When the indicator
nears
EMPTY (E), you still
have a little fuel left, but
you should get more soon.
Here are some things owners ask about. All these
situations are normal and do not show a problem with
your fuel gage:
0 At the service station, the pump shuts off before the
gage reads
FULL (F).
0 It takes a little more or less fuel to fill up than the
gage indicated.
For example, the gage may have
indicated the tank was half full, but it actually took a
little more or less than half the tank’s capacity to
fill it.
0 The gage moves a little when you turn a corner or
speed up.
Low Fuel Light
If your fuel is low, a circular
light
on your instrument
anel cluster will come on
Rl and stay on and a chime will JJ! UNLEADED sound periodically until you
0
It will also come on for a few seconds when you first
turn on the ignition as a check to show you it’s working.
If it doesn’t come
on then, have it fixed.
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Driver Information Center (Option)
- PSI kPa
INST- - -MPG %
AVGnm D 1
OIL u "b! L/100 km
LIFERANGE SC BOOST
3.8L L67 Supercharged Engine
INST- - -MPG %
OIL ),I umb! L/100 km
AVG in nl )'I(
LIFERANGE
3.8L L36 Engine
Your Driver Information Center, (DIC) located below
the tachometer on the instrument panel cluster, gives
you important safety and maintenance facts. When
you
turn the ignition on, the entire center lights up for just a
few seconds.
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