tow CHEVROLET PRIZM 1998 3.G Owner's Guide

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When You Are Ready to Leave After
Parking on a
Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold the pedal down
while you:
0 Start your engine;
0 Shift into a gear; and
0 Release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until the trailer is clear of the chocks.
4. Stop and have someone pick up and store the chocks.
Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more often when you’re
pulling a trailer. See the Maintenance Schedule for more
on this. Things that are especially important in trailer
operation are automatic transaxle fluid (don’t overfill),
engine oil, drive belt, cooling system and brake
adjustment. Each of
these is covered in this manual,
and the Index will help you find them quickly. If you’re
trailering, it’s a good idea to review these sections
before you start your trip.
Check periodically to
see that all hitch nuts and bolts
are tight.
Engine Cooling When Trailer Towing
Your cooling system may temporarily overheat during
severe operating conditions. See “Engine Overheating”
in the Index.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine a Section 5 Problems on the Road
Here you’ll find what to do about some problems that can occur on the road.
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5-2
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Hazard Warning Flashers
Other Warning Devices
Jump Starting
Towing Your Vehicle
Engine Overheating 5- 16
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Cooling System
If a Tire Goes Flat
Changing
a Flat Tire
Compact Spare Tire
If You’re Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Towing Your Vehicle
Try to have a Chevrolet dealer or a professional towing
service tow your vehicle. See “Roadside Assistance”
in the Index.
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
That your vehicle has front-wheel drive.
The make, model and year of your vehicle.
Whether you can still move the shift lever.
or
rear with sling-type equipment.
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 the
I
I
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.
5-8

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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 turned to
OFF. 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 with the front wheels in
contact with the ground if it has
an automatic transaxle.
If
a vehicle with an automatic transaxle must be towed
from the rear with wheel-lift equipment, the front
wheels must be supported on a dolly.
If your vehicle has a manual transaxle, don’t have it
towed on the front wheels unless you must. If a vehicle
with a manual transaxle must be towed on the front
wheels, it is recommended that the front wheels be
supported on a dolly. If you have a manual transaxle
and dollies won’t be used, turn the ignition key to
ACC
and put the transaxle in NEUTRAL (N).
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Front Towing
NOTICE:
Do not tow with sling-type equipment or fascia
damage will occur.
Use wheel-lift or car-carrier equipment.
Additional ramping may be required for
carcarrier equipment. Use safety chains and
wheel straps.
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, 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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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Rear Towing
I
Attach T-hook chains to slots in the bottom of the floor
pan, just ahead of the rear wheels, on both sides.
1 NOTICE:
Do not tow with sling-type equipment or rear
bumper valance
will be damaged.
NOTICE: (Continued)
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or hear no
steam, the problem may not be too serious. Sometimes
the engine can get a little too hot when you:
0 Climb a long hill on a hot day.
0 Stop after high-speed driving.
Idle for long periods in traffic.
Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for a minute or so:
1. If you have an air conditioner, turn it off.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving
-- DRIVE (D) for automatic transaxles. If you no
longer have the overheat warning, you
can drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about
10 minutes. If the warning doesn’t come back on,
you can drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can idle the
engine for two or three minutes while you’re parked, to
see if the warning stops. But then, if you still have the
warning,
turn off the engine and get everyone out of
the vehicle until it cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
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 an automatic transaxle shift lever in
PARK
(P), or shift a manual transaxle to
FIRST
(1) or REVERSE (R).
3. lbrn 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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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A CAUTION:
Rust or dirt on the wheel, or on the parts to
which
it is fastened, can make the wheel nuts
become loose after
a time. The wheel could come
off and cause an accident. When you change a
wheel, remove any rust or dirt from the places
where the wheel attaches to the vehicle. In an
emergency, you can use
a cloth or a paper towel
to do this; but be sure to use a scraper or wire
brush later,
if you need to, to get all the rust or
dirt
off.
Never use oil or grease on studs or nuts. If you
do, the nuts might come loose. Your wheel could
fall
off, causing a serious accident.
6. Replace the wheel nuts
with the rounded end
of
the nuts toward the
wheel. Tighten each
nut
by hand until the wheel
is held against the hub.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine NOTICE:
Spinning your wheels can destroy parts of your
vehicle
as well as the tires. If you spin the wheels
too fast while shifting your transaxle back and
forth, you can destroy your transaxle.
For information about using tire chains on your vehicle. see “Tire Chains” in the Index.
Rocking Your Vehicle To Get It Out
First, turn your steering wheel left and right. That will
clear the area around your front wheels. Then shift back
and forth between REVERSE
(R) and a forward gear
(or with
a manual transaxle, between FIRST (1) or
SECOND
(2) and REVERSE (R)), spinning the wheels
as little as possible. Release the accelerator pedal while
you shift, and press lightly on the accelerator pedal
when the transaxle is in gear.
If that doesn’t get you out
after a few tries, you may need to be towed out. Or, you
can use your recovery hooks. If you do need to be towed
out, see “Towing Your Vehicle” in the Index.
Using the Recovery Hooks
Your vehicle is equipped with recovery hooks. The
recovery hooks are provided at the front
of your vehicle.
They can only be used
for pulling your vehicle out.
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