maintenance reset Mercury Mystique 1998 Owner's Manuals

Maintenance and care
146Relearning the idle function
Because your vehicle’s engine is
electronically controlled, some
control conditions are maintained
by power from the battery. When
the battery is disconnected or a
new battery is installed, the
computer must “relearn” its idle
conditions before your vehicle can
drive properly. To begin this
process:
1. Put the automatic transaxle
gearshift in P (Park). Put the
manual transaxle gearshift in
neutral.
2. Turn off all accessories and start
the vehicle.
3. Let the engine idle for at least
one minute.
4. The “relearning” process will
automatically complete as you
drive the vehicle.
•If you do not allow the engine to
“relearn” its idle, the idle quality
of your vehicle may be adversely
affected until the idle is
eventually “relearned”.
•If the battery has been
disconnected or if a new battery
has been installed, the clock and
preset radio stations must be
reset once the battery is
reconnected.
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Maintenance and care
166Preparing your vehicle 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 vehicle’s powertrain
system or battery has just been
serviced, the OBD II system is reset
to a condition unready for I/M
testing. To ready the OBDII system
for I/M testing, the law specifies
that additional city and highway
driving is necessary to complete
the check of the OBDII system.
The driving mode required to reach
the ready condition consists of a
minimum of 30 minutes of city and
highway driving:
•At least 20 minutes driving in
stop and go city-type traffic with
at least four idle periods.
•At least 10 minutes of driving on
an expressway or highway.
Before completing the above
driving modes, the engine must be
warmed up and at operating
temperature. Once started, the
vehicle must not be turned off
during these modes.
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