check engine CHEVROLET VENTURE 1998 User Guide

If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you’re
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can make
your trips safer and more enjoyable.
0 Keep your vehicle in good sk -le. Check all fluid ~
levels and also the brakes, tires, cooling system
and transaxle. These parts can work hard on
mountain roads.
0 Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing
to know is this: let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift to a lower gear when you go
down a steep or long hill.
,A CAUTION:
If you don’t shift down, your brakes could
get
so hot that they wouldn’t work well. You
would then have poor braking or even none going
down a hill. You could crash. Shift down to let
your engine assist your brakes on
a steep
downhill slope.
Joasting downhill in NEUTRAL (N) or with the
ignition
off is dangerous. Your brakes will have to
do all the work of slowing down. They could get so
hot that they wouldn’t work well. You would then
have poor braking or even none going
down a hill.
You could crash. Always have your engine running
and your vehicle
in gear when you go downhill.
0
0
0
0
Know how to go uphill. You may want to shift down
to a lower gear. The lower gears help cool your engine
and transaxle, and you can climb the hill better.
Stay in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in hills or mountains. Don’t swing wide or cut
across the center
of the road. Drive at speeds that let
you stay in your own lane.
As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There could be
something in your lane, like a stalled car or
an accident.
You may see highway signs on mountains that warn of
special problems. Examples are long grades, passing or
no-passing zones, a falling
rocks area or winding
roads. Be alert to these and take appropriate action.
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Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you’ve been stopped by the snow.
Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you have no blankets or extra clothing, make body
insulators from newspapers, burlap bags, rags, floor
mats
-- anything you can wrap around yourself or
tuck under your clothing to keep warm.
You can run the engine to keep warm, but be careful. Snow can
trap exhaust gases under your vehicle.
This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas
to get inside.
CO could overcome you and kill
you.
You can’t see it or smell it, so you might not
know it is in your vehicle. Clear
away snow from
around the base of your vehicle, especially any
that
is blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time
to time to be sure snow
doesn’t collect there.
Open
a window just a little on the side of the
vehicle that’s away from the wind. This will help
keep
CO out.
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When You Are Ready to Leave After
Parking
on a Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold the pedal down
while you:
Start your engine;
@ Shift into a gear; and
Release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until thc .ailer
is clear of the chocks.
4. Stop and have son --- 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, belts, 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.
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NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check to
see if the electric engine cooling fans are running. If the
engine is overheating, both fans should be running. If
they aren’t, your vehicle needs service.
How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but the coolant
level isn’t
at or above the FULL COLD mark, add a
50/50 mixture of clean water (preferably distilled) and
DEX-COOL’ engine coolant at the coolant recovery
tank. (See “Engine Coolant” in the Index for
more information.)
A CAUTION:
Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water,
or some other
liquid like alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant mixture will. Your vehicle’s coolant
warning system is set for the proper coolant
mixture. With plain water or the wrong mixture,
your engine could get
too hot but you wouldn’t
get the overheat warning.
Your engine could
catch fire and you or others could be burned.
Use a
50/50 mixture of clean water and
DEX-COOL@ coolant.
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Section 6 Service and Appearance Care
Here you will find information about the care of your vehicle. This section begins with service and fuel information,
and then it shows how to check important fluid and lubricant levels. There is also technical information about your
vehicle, and
a part devoted to its appearance care.
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6-2 1
6-24
6-25
6-26
6-30
6-3
1
6-39 6-2
Service
6-3 Fuel
6-7 Filling a Portable Fuel Container
6-
8 Checking Things Under the Hood
6-11 Engine Oil
6-15 Air Cleaner
6-16 Passenger Compartment Air Filter
Replacement
Automatic Transaxle Fluid
Engine Coolant
Radiator Pressure Cap
Windshield Washer Fluid
Brakes
Battery
Bulb Replacement
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement 6-40
6-48
6-48
6-52
6-54
6-54
6-55
6-56
6-57
6-64
6-65
6-65
6-66
6-66
6-66 Tires
Appearance
Care
Cleaning the Inside of Your Vehicle
Cleaning the Outside of Your Vehicle
Underbody Maintenance Chemical Paint Spotting
Appearance Care Materials Chart
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)
Electrical System
Replacement Bulbs
Capacities and Specifications
Engine Specifications
Vehicle Dimensions
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts
Air Conditioning Refrigerants
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Fuel
L
You can be injured and your ve :le could be
damaged if you try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about
it.
Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts
and tools before you attempt any vehicle
maintenance task.
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners, “English” and “metric”
fasteners can be easily confused.
If you use
the wrong fasteners, parts can later break
or fall
off. You could be hurt.
Adding Equipment to the - hide of
Your Vehicle
Things you might add to the outside of your vehicIe can
affect the airflow around
it. This may cause wind noise
and affect windshield washer performance. Check with
your dealer before adding equipment to the outside
of
your vehicle. Use regular unleaded gasoline rated at
87 octane
or
higher. At
a minimum, it should meet specifications
ASTM
D4814 in the United States and CGSB 3.5-M93
in Canada. Improved gasoline specifications have been
developed by the American Automobile Manufacturers
Association (AAMA) for better vehicle performance
and engine protection. Gasolines meeting the
AAMA
specification could provide improved driveability
and emission control system protection compared to
other gasolines.
Be sure the posted octane is at least 87. If the octane is
less than 87,
you may get a heavy knocking noise when
you drive. If it’s bad enough, it can damage your engine.
If you’re using fuel rated at
87 octane or higher and you
hear heavy knocking, your engine needs service. But
don’t worry if you hear a little pinging noise when
you’re accelerating or driving up
a hill. That’s normal,
and you don’t have
to buy a higher octane fuel to get rid
of pinging. It’s the heavy, constant knock that means
you have
a problem.
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If your vehicle is certified to meet California Emission
Standards (indicated on the underhood emission control
label),
it is designed to operate on fuels that meet
California specifications. If such fuels are not available
in states adopting California emissions standards, your
vehicle will operate satisfactorily on fuels meeting
federal specifications, but emission control system
performance may be affected. The malfunction indicator
lamp on your instrument panel may turn on and/or your
vehicle may fail a smog-check test. If
this occurs, return
to your authorized Chevrolet dealer for diagnosis to
determine the cause of failure. In the event it is
determined that the cause of the condition is the type
of
fuels used, repairs may not be covered by your warranty.
Some gasolines that are not reformulated for low
emissions contain an octane-enhancing additive called
methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl
(MMT);
ask your service station operator whether or not his fuel
contains MMT. General Motors does not recommend the
use of such gasolines. If fuels containing
MMT are used,
spark plug life may be reduced and your emission
control system performance may be affected. The
malfunction indicator lamp on your instrument panel
may turn on.
If this occurs, return to your authorized
Chevrolet dealer for service.
To provide cleaner air, all gasolines in the United States
are now required to contain additives that will help
prevent deposits from forming in your engine and fuel
system, allowing your emission control system to
function properly. Therefore, you should not have to
add anything to the fuel. In addition, gasolines
containing oxygenates, such as ethers and ethanol, and
reformulated gasolines may be available in your area to
help clean the air. General Motors recommends that you
use these gasolines
if they comply with the
specifications described earlier.
NOTICE:
Your vehicle was not designed for fuel that
contains methanol. Don’t use it. It can corrode
metal parts in your fuel system and also damage
plastic and rubber parts. That damage wouldn’t
be covered under your warranty.
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Checking Things Under the Hood
I A CAUTION: I
An electric fan under the hood can start up and
injure you even when the engine is not running,
Keep hands, clothing and tools away from any
underhood electric fan.
A CAUTION:
Things that burn can get on hot engine parts and
start a fire. These include liquids like gasoline,
oil, coolant, brake fluid, windshield washer and
other fluids, and plastic or rubber. You or others
could be burned. Be careful not to drop or spill
things that will burn onto
a hot engine.
Hood Release
To open the hood, first pull the hood release handle
inside
the vehicle.
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Before closing the hood, be sure all the filler caps are
on properly. Then lift the hood to relieve pressure on
the hood prop. Remove the hood prop from the slot in
the hood and return the prop
to its retainer. Then just
let the hood down and close it firmly.
Underhood Lamp (If Equipped)
Your underhood lamp will go on when you open
the hood.
Engine Oil
If the LEVEL light on
the instrument panel comes on, it means you need
to
level right away.
hhhhhh
LWEL
check your engine oil
For more information, see “LOW Oil Level Light” in the
Index. You should check your engine oil level regularly:
this
is an added reminder. It’s a good idea to check your engine oil every time
you
get
fuel. In order to get an accurate reading, the oil must
be warm and the vehicle must be on level ground.
The engine oil dipstick
is located at the front of the
engine compartment, near the center. The dipstick
handle has a bright, yellow loop design for easy
identification.
Turn off the engine and give the oil a few minutes
to
drain back into the oil pan. If you don’t, the oil dipstick
might not show
the actual level.
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Checking Engine Oil
Pull out the dipstick and clean it with a paper towel or
cloth, then push it back in all the way. Remove it again,
keeping the tip down, and check the level.
When to Add Engine Oil
If the oil is at or below the ADD mark, then you’ll need
to add at least one quart of oil. But you must use the
right kind. This part explains what kind
of oil to use. For
crankcase capacity, see “Capacities and Specifications” in the Index.
NOTICE: I
Don’t add too much oil. If your engine has so
much oil that the oil level gets above the
cross-hatched area that shows the proper
operating
range, your engine could be damaged.
The engine oil fill cap is
located just behind the
engine oil dipstick.
Be sure to fill it enough to put the level somewhere in
the proper operating range. Push the dipstick all the way
back in when you’re through.
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