FORD CONTOUR 1999 2.G Owners Manual

Maintenance and care
191
Observe the following guidelines
when handling automotive fuel:
¥ Extinguish all smoking materials
and any open flames before fueling
your vehicle.
¥ Always turn off the vehicle before
fueling.
¥ Make sure the fuel cap is
correctly fitted after fueling. Failure
to do so may cause the on board
diagnostic system to illuminate the
CHECK ENGINE light.
¥ Automotive fuels can be harmful
or fatal if swallowed. If fuel is
swallowed, call a physician
immediately, even if no symptoms
are immediately apparent. The
toxic effects of fuel may not be
visible for hours.
¥ Fuels can also be harmful if
absorbed through the skin. If fuel is
splashed on the skin, promptly
remove contaminated clothing and
wash skin thoroughly with soap and
water.
¥ If fuel is splashed in the eyes,
remove contact lenses (if worn),
flush with water for 15 minutes and
seek medical attention.
¥ Be particularly careful if you are
taking ÒAntabuseÓ or other forms of
disulfiram for the treatment of
alcoholism. Breathing gasoline
vapors or skin contact could cause
an adverse reaction. Consult a
physician immediately.
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Maintenance and care
192
Choosing the right fuel
Use only UNLEADED FUEL. The
use of leaded fuel is prohibited by
law and could damage your vehicle.
The damage may not be covered by
your warranty.
Your vehicle was not designed to
use fuel containing manganese-
based additives such as MMT.
Additionally, vehicles certified to
California emission standards
(indicated on the underhood
Vehicle Emission Control
Information label) are designed to
operate on California reformulated
gasolines. If California reformulated
gasoline is not available when you
refuel, your vehicle can be
operated on non-California fuels.
However, even though your engine
will perform adequately on other
gasolines, the performance of the
emission control devices and
systems may be adversely affected.
Repair of damage caused by a fuel
that your vehicle was not designed
for may not be covered by your
warranty.
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Maintenance and care
193
Octane recommendations
Your vehicle is designed to use
regular gasoline with an (R+M)/2
octane rating of 87. We do not
recommend gasolines labeled as
ÒregularÓ in high altitude areas that
are sold with octane ratings of 86
or even less.
Do not be concerned if your vehicle
sometimes knocks lightly. However,
if it knocks heavily under most
driving conditions on the
recommended octane, see your
dealer or a qualified service
technician to prevent any engine
damage.
87
MINIMUM OCTANE RATING
(R+M)/2 Method
Fuel quality
If you are experiencing starting,
rough idle or hesitation problems
try a different brand of fuel. If the
condition persists, see your dealer
or qualified service technician.
The American Automobile
Manufacturers Association
(AAMA) issued a gasoline
specification to provide information
on high quality fuels that optimize
the performance of your vehicle.
We recommend the use of gasolines
that meet the AAMA specification
if they are available.
It should not be necessary to add
any aftermarket products to your
fuel tank if you continue to use a
high-quality fuel.
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Maintenance and care
194
The fuel system may be
under pressure. If the fuel
filler cap is venting vapor or if you
hear a hissing sound, wait until it
stops before completely removing
the fuel filler cap. Otherwise fuel
may spray out and injure you or
others.
Fuel filler cap
If the Òcheck engineÓ indicator
comes on and stays on when you
start the engine, the fuel filler cap
may not be properly installed. Turn
off the engine, remove the fuel
filler cap and reinstall it being
careful to align the cap properly.
If you must replace the fuel
filler cap, replace it with an
authorized Motorcraft part.
The customer warranty may be
void for any damage to the fuel
tank or fuel system if an
authorized Motorcraft fuel
filler cap is not used.
Cleaner air
Ford approves the use of gasolines
to improve air quality, including
reformulated gasolines that contain
oxygenates such as a maximum of
10% ethanol or 15% MTBE. There
should be no more than 5%
methanol with cosolvents and
additives to protect the fuel
system.
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Maintenance and care
195
Calculating fuel economy
To accurately calculate your
vehicleÕs fuel economy:
1. Fill the tank completely and
record the initial odometer reading.
2. Each time you fill the tank,
record the amount of fuel added
(in litres or gallons).
3. After at least three to five fill-
ups, fill the fuel tank and record
the current mileage reading.
4. Use one of the following
equations to calculate fuel
economy.
Litres used x 100 / Total kilometres
traveled.
Total miles traveled / Total gallons
used.
Keep a record for at least one
month. This will provide an
accurate estimate of the vehicleÕs
fuel economy.
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Maintenance and care
196
EMISSION CONTROL SYSTEM
Your vehicle is equipped with
various emission control
components and a catalytic
converter which will enable your
vehicle to comply with applicable
exhaust emission standards. To
make sure that the catalytic
converter and other emission
control components continue to
work properly:
¥ Use unleaded fuel only.
¥ Avoid running out of fuel.
¥ Do not turn off the ignition while
your vehicle is moving, especially
at high speeds.
¥ Have the items listed in your
maintenance guide and or service
guide performed according to the
specified schedule.
The scheduled maintenance
services listed in the maintenance
guide and or service guide are
required because they are
considered essential to the life and
performance of your vehicle and to
its emissions system.
If other than Ford, Motorcraft, or
Ford authorized parts are used for
maintenance replacements or for
service of components affecting
emissions control, such non-Ford
parts should be equivalent to
genuine Ford Motor Company parts
in performance and durability.
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Maintenance and care
197
BRAKE
O/D
OFFTRACTION
CONTROL
Alternative design
Alternative design
Watch for fluid leaks, strange
odors, smoke, loss of oil pressure,
engine overheating, illumination of
the charging systemwarning light
or the check enginewarning light.
These events could indicate that
the emission control system is not
working properly.
Exhaust leaks may result in
entry of harmful and
potentially lethal fumes into the
passenger compartment.
Do not park, idle or drive
your vehicle in dry grass or
other dry ground cover. The
emission system heats up the
engine compartment and exhaust
system, which can start a fire.
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Maintenance and care
198
Do not make any unauthorized
changes to your vehicle or engine.
By law, vehicle owners and anyone
who manufactures, repairs,
services, sells, leases, trades
vehicles, or supervises a fleet of
vehicles are not permitted to
intentionally remove an emission
control device or prevent it from
working. Information about your
vehicle's emission system is on the
Vehicle Emission Control
Information Decal located under
the hood. This decal identifies
engine displacement and gives
some tune up specifications.
Please consult your ÒWarranty
GuideÒ for complete emission
warranty information.
Readiness for
inspection/maintenance (I/M)
testing
In some localities, it may be a legal
requirement to pass an I/M test of
the on-board diagnostic (OBD-II)
system. If your check enginelight
is on, refer to the description in the
Instrument Cluster Lights and
Chimessection of the
Instrumentation chapter. Your
vehicle may not pass the I/M test
with the check engine light on.
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Maintenance and care
199
If the vehicleÕs powertrain system
or its battery has just been
serviced, the OBD-II system is
reset to a Ònot ready for I/M testÒ
condition. To ready the OBD-II
system for I/M testing, a minimum
of 30 minutes of city and highway
driving is necessary as described
below:
¥ First, at least 10 minutes of
driving on an expressway or
highway.
¥ Next, at least 20 minutes of
driving in stop and go, city-type
traffic with at least four idle
periods.
Allow the vehicle to sit for at least
eight hours without starting the
engine. Then, start the engine and
complete the above driving cycle.
The engine must warm up to its
normal operating temperature.
Once started, do not turn off the
engine until the above driving cycle
is complete.
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Maintenance and care
200
The bulbs for the low beam, high
beam, turn signals and side lamps
are housed in the lamp assembly.
To replace a bulb, the complete
lamp assembly has to be removed
as follows:
1. Switch off the lamps.
2. Open the hood.
3. Remove the lower screw (2)
from the headlamp housing.
4. Remove the two upper screws
(1) from the headlamp housing.
5. Gently pull the headlamp
housing outward.
6. Replace the headlamp bulbs.
BULB REPLACEMENT
Handle a halogen headlamp
bulb carefully and keep out
of childrenÕs reach.Grasp the bulb
only by its plastic base and do not
touch the glass. The oil from your
hand could cause the bulb to
break the next time the
headlamps are operated.
1
1
2
Removing the headlamps
assembly
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