key BUICK REGAL 1998 Owner's Manual

Starting Your Engine
Move your shift lever to PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N).
Your engine won’t start in any other position -- that’s a
safety feature.
To restart when you’re already moving,
use
NEUTRAL (N) only.
I NOTICE:
~
Don’t try to shift to PARK (P) if your Buick is
moving.
If you do, you could damage the
transaxle. Shift to
PARK (P) only when your
vehicle is stopped.
~ ~
1. Without pushing the accelerator pedal, turn your
ignition key to START. When the engine starts, let
go of the key. The idle speed will go down as your
engine gets warm.
I NOTICE:
Holding your key in START for longer than
15 seconds at a time will cause your battery to be
drained much sooner. And the excessive heat can
damage your starter motor.
2. If it doesn’t start right away, hold your key in
START for about three to five seconds at a time
until
your engine starts. Wait about 15 seconds between
each try to help avoid draining your battery or
damaging your starter.
2-19
ProCarManuals.com

3. If your engine still won’t start (,or starts but then stops),
it could
be flooded with too much gasoline. Tly
pushing your accelerator pedal all the way to the floor
and holding it there
as you hold the key in START for
about three seconds. If the vehicle
starts brkfly but
then stops again, do,the same thing, but this time keep
the pedal down for
five or six seconds. This clears the
extra gasoline from the engine. After waiting about
15 seconds, repeat the noma1 starting procedure.
NOTICE:
Your engine is designed to work with the
electronics in your vehicle.
If you add electrical
parts or accessories, you could change the way
the engine operates. Before adding electrical
equipment, check with your dealer.
If you don’t,
your engine might not perform properly.
If you ever have to have your vehicle towed, see
the part
of this manual that tells how to do it
without damaging your vehicle. See “Towing
Your Vehicle” in the Index.
Engine Coolant Heater (If Equipped)
In very cold weather, 0°F (- 18” C) or colder, the engine
coolant heater can help. You’ll get easier starting and
better fuel economy during engine warm-up. Usually,
the coolant heater should be plugged
in a minimum of
four hours prior to starting your vehicle.
2-20
ProCarManuals.com

Shift Lock Release Parking Brake
P
1 2
If your vehicle’s battery
should
go dead or there is a
lack of electrical power, there
is an access slot that will allov
you
to override the PARK (P)
lock if your shifter is stuck
in
PARK (P).
J
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.
The access slot is located beneath
a small cap on the
right side of the console shift panel.
To remove the cap,
use
a screwdriver or key. Then insert the key or
screwdriver into the slot, press down and hold. Make
sure you have your foot
on the brake pedal while you
are performing this procedure. You will now be able to
shift your vehicle out of PARK (P).
To release the parking brake, hold the regular brake
pedal down with your right foot and push the parking
brake pedal with your left foot. When
you lift your left
foot,
the parking brake pedal will follow it to the
released position.
A warning chime will sound if the parking brake is set,
the ignition
is on and the shift lever is not in PARK (P)
or NEUTRAL (N).
2-27
ProCarManuals.com

2. Move the shift lever into
the PARK
(P) position
like this:
0 Hold in the button on the lever, then push the lever
all the way toward the front
of your vehicle.
0 Move the ignition key to LOCK.
3. Remove the key and take it with you. If you can
leave your vehicle with the ignition key in your
hand, your vehicle is in PARK
(P).
Leaving Your Vehicle With the
Engine Running
It can be dangerous to leave your vehicle with the
engine running. Your vehicle could move
suddenly if the shift lever is not fully
in PARK (P)
with the parking brake firmly set. And, if you
leave the vehicle with the engine running, it could
overheat and even catch fire. You
or others could
be injured. Don’t leave your vehicle with the
engine running unless
you have to.
.~
If you have to leave your vehicle with the engine
running, be sure your
vehicle is in PARK (P) and your
parking brake is firmly set before
you leave it. After
you’ve moved the shift lever into the PARK
(P)
position, hold the regular brake pedal down. Then, see if
you can move the shift lever out
of PARK (P) without
first pushing the button. If you can, it means that the
shift lever wasn’t
fully locked into PARK (P).
2-29
ProCarManuals.com

Torque Lock
If you are parking on a hill and you don’t shift your
transaxle into
PARK (P) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl
in
the transaxle. You may find it difficult to pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P). This is called “torque lock.” To
prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then shift
into PARK (P) properly before
you leave the driver’s
seat. To find out how, see “Shifting Into PARK
(P)” in
the Index.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out of
PARK (P)
before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need
to have another
vehicle push yours
a little uphill to take some of the
pressure from the parking pawl in the transaxle, so you
can pull the shift lever out of PARK (P).
Shifting Out of PARK (P)
Your vehicle has a Brake-Transaxle Shift Interlock
(BTSI).
You must fully apply your regular brakes
before you can shift from PARK
(P) when the ignition is
in RUN. See “Automatic Transaxle Operation” in
the Index.
If you cannot shift out
of PARK (P), ease pressure on
the shift lever by pushing it all the way into PARK
(P)
while keeping the brake pedal pushed down. Release the
shift lever button. Then move the shift lever out of
PARK
(P).
If you ever hold the brake pedal down but still can’t
shift out of PARK
(P), try this:
1. Turn the ignition key to OFF.
2. Apply and hold the brake until the end of Step 4.
3. Shift to NEUTRAL (N).
4. Start the engine and shift to the drive gear you want.
5. Have the vehicle fixed as soon as you can.
2-30
ProCarManuals.com

Twilight Sentinel
Twilight Sentinel provides a period of exterior
illumination
as you leave the vicinity of your vehicle.
The feature is activated when your vehicle’s headlamps
are on due to the automatic headlamp control feature
described previously
in this section, and when your
vehicle’s ignition is turned off. Your headlamps will
then remain on until the headlamp switch
is moved from
OFF to the parking lamp position or until a 90 second
illumination period has elapsed.
If you turn off the ignition with the headlamp switch in
the parking lamp or headlamp position, the Twilight
Sentinel cycle will not occur.
You can customize the vehicle to activate the Twilight
Sentinel when your vehicle’s ignition is turned off under
the conditions described above, or you may choose
not
to activate this feature under any conditions. The
enabled/disabled
state of this feature will be toggled
when
you perform the following sequence with the
doors closed and the ignition key
in RUN:
1.
2.
3.
Press and hold the power door lock switch. While
holding the door lock switch, cycle the headlamp
switch
on and then off two times.
Release
the power door lock switch. These
operations must be carried out
in a time period of
less than 10 seconds, followed by a delay period of
no more than 10 seconds.
Then, press and hold
the power door unlock switch.
While holding the door unlock switch, cycle the
headlamp switch
on and then off two times. Release
the courtesy door unlock switch. These operations
must be carried out
in a time period of less than
IO seconds.
After releasing the door unlock switch, a single chime
will be heard if the Twilight Sentinel function has been
disabled; two chimes will be heard if the feature
has
been enabled. Disconnecting the vehicle’s battery for up
to a year will not change the programmed operation of
this feature.
2-43
ProCarManuals.com

Fog Lamps Interior Lamps
To turn the fog lamps on,
press the
log lamps switch
located below the headlamp
switch on
the left side of the
steering column.
A light will glow on the switch to let you know that they
are on. (Your parking lamps must be on or your fog
lamps won’t come on.) Press the switch again to turn the
fog lamps off. The fog lamps will go off whenever you
change to high-beam headlamps. When you return to
low beams, the fog lamps will come
on again.
Cornering Lamps
The cornering lamps are designed to come on when you
signal a turn. This will provide more light for cornering
at night.
Instrument Panel Brightness Control
You can brighten or dim the instrument panel lights by
moving
the LIGHTS dial. If you turn the dial past
MAX, your courtesy or interior lamps will come on.
Courtesy Lamps
When any door is opened, several lamps come on. These
lamps are courtesy lamps. They make it easy for you to
enter and leave your vehicle. You can also turn these
lamps
on by moving the interior lamps dial all the way
to the right.
Illuminated Entry
Your courtesy lamps will come on and stay on for a set
time whenever you press
UNLOCK on the remote
keyless entry transmitter.
If you open a door, the lamps will stay on while it’s open
and
then turn off automatically about 25 seconds after
you close it. If you press UNLOCK and don’t open a
door, the lamps
will turn off after about 40 seconds.
Illuminated Entry includes a feature called theater
dimming. With theater dimming, the lamps don’t just
turn off
at the end of the delay time. Instead, they slowly
2-44
ProCarManuals.com

dim after the delay time until they go out. The delay
time
is canceled if you turn the ignition key to RUN or
START,
so the lamps will dim right away.
When the ignition is on, Illuminated Entry
is inactive,
which means the courtesy lamps won’t come on unless a
door is opened.
Delayed Entry Lighting
Delayed Entry Lighting illuminates your vehicle’s
interior for
a period of time after all the doors have
been closed.
The ignition must be off for Delayed Entry Lighting to
work. Just after all the doors have been closed, the
Delayed Entry Lighting feature will continue to
work until:
0 The ignition is in RUN.
o The doors are locked.
0 An illumination period of 25 seconds has elapsed.
If during the illumination period
a door is opened, the
timed illumination period will be canceled and the
interior lamps will remain on since
a door is open.
Delayed Exit Lighting
This feature illuminates your vehicle’s interior for a
period of time after the ignition key is removed from
the ignition.
The vehicle’s ignition must be off for Delayed Exit
Lighting to work. When the ignition key is removed,
interior illumination will activate and remain
on until:
0 The ignition is in RUN.
The power door locks are activated.
An illumination period of 25 seconds has elapsed.
If during the illumination period
a door is opened, the
timed illumination period will be canceled and the
interior lamps will remain on since
a door is open.
2-45
ProCarManuals.com

Rearview Mirror Reading Lamps
(If Equipped)
Use the switch next to each ].amp to turn them on
and off.
Dome Lamp
The dome lamp will come on when you open the doors.
Battery Rundown Protection
Your vehicle has a feature to help prevent you from
draining the battery in case you accidentally leave the
interior courtesy lamps, reading/map lamps, visor vanity
lamps, trunk lamp, underhood lamp or glove box lamps
on.
If you leave any of these lamps on, they will
automatically turn
off after 20 minutes, if the ignition is
in
OFF. The lamps won’t come back on again until you:
Turn the ignition on,
0 Turn the lamp switch off, then on; or
Open a door.
Note that if your vehicle has less than
15 miles (25 km)
on the odometer,
the battery saver will turn off the lamps
after only three minutes.
Retained Accessory Power
With retained accessory power, your power windows,
audio system and sunroof will continue to work up to
10
minutes after the ignition key is turned to OFF and none
of the doors are opened.
2-46
ProCarManuals.com

Storage Compartments
Glove Box
Use the door key to lock and unlock the glove box. To
open, lift the latch.
Center Console
To access the cupholders, press on the top of the
cupholder door, located just behind the console shift
lever. Two cupholders will pop into an upright position.
The console has cupholders, a cassette tape storage area
and a coinholder.
To open the console’s storage area,
press the latch located toward the front
of the console lid
on the driver’s side of the vehicle and pull up.
2-49
ProCarManuals.com