tow Oldsmobile Alero 2003 s Owner's Guide

Setting Preset Stations
The six numbered pushbuttons let you return to your
favorite stations.
You can set up to 18 stations (six AM,
six FMI and six FM2) by performing the following steps:
1. Turn the radio on.
2. Press AM
FM to select AM, FMI or FM2.
3. Tune in the desired station.
4. Press and hold one of the six numbered
pushbuttons until you hear a beep. Whenever you
press that numbered pushbutton, the station
you set will return.
5. Repeat the steps for each pushbutton.
Setting the Tone (Bassnreble)
AUDIO: To adjust the bass or the treble, press and
release the AUDIO button repeatedly until BAS or TRE
appears on the display. Then press and hold the up or the
down arrow to increase or to decrease.
If a station is
weak or noisy, you may want to decrease the treble.
To adjust bass or treble to the middle position, select BAS
or TRE. Then press and hold the AUDIO button for more
than two seconds until you hear a beep. B and a zero
or T and a zero will appear on the display.
To adjust both tone controls and both speaker controls to
the middle position, first end out of audio mode by
pressing another button, causing the radio to perform that function, or
by waiting five seconds for the display to
return to time of day. Then press and hold the AUDIO
button for more than two seconds until you hear a beep.
CEN will appear on the display.
Adjusting the Speakers (Balance/Fade)
AUDIO: To adjust the balance between the right
and the left speakers, press and release the AUDIO
button until BAL appears on the display. Then press and
hold the up or the down arrow to move the sound
toward the right or the left speakers.
To adjust the fade between the front and rear speakers,
press and release the AUDIO button until FAD
appears on the display. Then press and hold the up or
the down arrow to move the sound toward the front
or the rear speakers.
To adjust balance or fade to the middle position, select
BAL or FAD. Then press and hold AUDIO for more
than two seconds until you hear a beep.
L and a zero
or
F and a zero will appear on the display.
To adjust both tone controls and both speaker controls
to the middle position, first end out of audio mode
by pressing another button, causing the radio to perform
that function, or by waiting five seconds for the display
to return to time
of day. Then press and hold AUDIO for
more than two seconds until you hear a beep. CEN
will appear on the display.
3-40

Adjusting the Speakers (Balance/Fade)
AUDIO: To adjust the balance between the right
and the left speakers, press and release the AUDIO
button until BAL appears on the display. Press the knob
above the AUDIO button to extend
it, then turn the
knob to move the sound toward the left or the right
speakers.
To adjust fade between the front and the rear speakers,
press and release the AUDIO button until FAD
appears
on the display. Press the knob above the
AUDIO button to extend it, then turn the knob to move
the sound to the front and the rear speakers.
Pressing and holding the AUDIO button for at least two
seconds will return all tone settings, including bass
and treble, to flat.
Finding a PTY Station
(RDS, XMTM and DAB)
To select and find a desired PTY perform the following:
1. Press the P-TYPE button. PTY will be displayed
on the screen.
2. Select a category by turning the P-TYPE knob.
3. Once the desired category is displayed, press either
SEEK arrow to select the category and take you to
the category’s first station.
4. If you want to go to another station within that
category and the category is displayed, press
either
SEEK arrow once. If the category is not
displayed, press either SEEK arrow twice to display
the category and then to go to another station.
5. If PTY times out and is no longer on the display, go
back to Step
1.
SCAN: You can also scan through the channels within
a category by performing the following:
1. Press the P-TYPE button. PTY will be displayed on
2. Select a category by turning the P-TYPE knob.
3. Once the desired category is displayed, press and
hold either SCAN arrow, and the radio will begin
scanning within your chosen category.
particular section.
the
screen.
4. Press either SCAN arrow again to stop at a
BAND (Alternate Frequency): Alternate frequency
allows the radio to switch to a stronger station with the
same program type. Press and hold BAND for two
seconds to turn alternate frequency on. AF
ON
will appear on the display. The radio may switch to
stronger stations. Press and hold BAND again for two
seconds
to turn alternate frequency off. AF OFF
will appear on the display. The radio will not switch to
other stations.
This function does not apply for
XMTM or DAB.
3-46

Adjusting the Speakers (Balance/Fade)
AUDIO: To adjust balance between the right and
the left speakers, press and release the AUDIO button
until BAL appears
on the display. Press the knob
above the AUDIO button to extend it, then turn the knob
to move the sound toward the left or the right speakers.
To adjust fade between the front and the rear
speakers, press and release the AUDIO button until
FAD appears on the display. Press the knob above the
AUDIO button to extend it, then turn the knob to
move the sound toward the left or the right speakers.
Pressing and holding the AUDIO button for at least two
seconds will return all tone settings, including bass
and treble to flat.
Finding a PTY Station
(RDS, XMTM and DAB)
To select and find a desired PTY perform the following:
1. Press the P-TYPE button. PTY will be displayed
2. Select a category by turning the P-TYPE knob.
3. Once the desired category is displayed, press either
on
the screen.
SEEK arrow to select the category and take you to
the category’s first station.
4. If you want to go to another station within that
category and the category is displayed, press
either SEEK arrow once.
If the category is not
displayed, press either SEEK arrow twice to display
the category and then
to go to another station.
5. If PTY times out and is no longer on the display, go
back to Step
1.
SCAN: You can also scan through the stations within a
category by performing the following:
1. Press the P-TYPE button. PTY will be displayed on
2. Select a category by turning the P-TYPE knob.
3. Once the desired category is displayed, press and
hold either SCAN arrow, and the radio will begin
scanning within your chosen category.
particular section.
the screen.
4. Press either
SCAN arrow again to stop at a
3-56

Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
Your Driving. the Road. and Your Vehicle .......... 4-2
Defensive Driving
........................................... 4.2
Drunken Driving
............................................. 4.2
Control of a Vehicle
........................................ 4-5
Braking
......................................................... 4-6
Enhanced Traction System
(ETS) ..................... 4-9
Steering
...................................................... 4-10
Off-Road Recovery
....................................... 4-12
Passing
....................................................... 4-13
Loss of Control
............................................. 4-14
Driving at Night
............................................ 4-15
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads
.................. 4-17
City Driving
.................................................. 4.20 Freeway
Driving
.......................................... -4-21
Before Leaving on a Long Trip
....................... 4-22
Highway Hypnosis
....................................... -4-22
Hill and Mountain Roads
................................ 4-23
Winter Driving
.............................................. 4-25
If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud,
Ice or Snow
.............................................. 4-29
lowing Your Vehicle
..................................... 4-31
Recreational Vehicle lowing
........................... 4-31
Loading Your Vehicle
.................................... 4-34
lowing a Trailer
........................................ 4-36
Towing
.......................................................... 4-31
4- 1

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. See
“Rocking Your Vehicle
To Get It Out.”
For information about using tire chains on your vehicle,
see Tire
Chains on page 5-60.
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. By slowly spinning your
wheels in the forward and reverse directions, you
will cause a rocking motion that may free your vehicle.
H
that doesn’t get you out after a few tries, you may
need to be towed out. If you do need to be towed
out
see “Towing Your Vehicle’’ following.
4-30

Towing
Towing Your Vehicle
Consult your dealer or a professional towing service if
you need to have your disabled vehicle towed. See
Roadside Assistance Program on page 7-5.
If you want to tow your vehicle behind another vehicle
for recreational purposes (such as behind a motorhome),
see
Recreational Vehicle Towing on page 4-31.
Recreational Vehicle Towing
Recreational vehicle towing means towing your vehicle
behind another vehicle
- such as behind a motorhome.
The two most common types of recreational vehicle
towing are known as “dinghy towing” (towing your
vehicle with all four wheels on the ground) and “dolly
towing” (towing your vehicle with two wheels on
the ground and two wheels up on a device known
as a i’dolly”).
With the proper preparation and equipment, many
vehicles can be towed in these ways. See “Dinghy
Towing” and “Dolly Towing,” following. Here
are some important things to consider before you
do recreational vehicle towing:
What’s the towing capacity
of the towing vehicle?
Be sure you read the tow vehicle manufacturer’s
recommendations.
How far will you tow? Some vehicles have
restrictions on how far and how long they can tow.
Do you have the proper towing equipment?
See your dealer or trailering professional for
additional advice and equipment recommendations.
Is your vehicle ready to be towed? Just as you
would prepare your vehicle for a long trip, you’ll
want to make sure your vehicle is prepared to be
towed. See
Before Leaving on a Long Trip on
page
4-22.
4-31

Dinghy Towing
To tow your vehicle with all four wheels on the ground,
follow these steps:
I
L
m
1. Position the vehicle to tow and then secure it.
2. Turn the ignition switch to OFF.
3. Set the parking brake
4. To prevent your battery from draining while the
vehicle is being towed, remove the following
fuses from the left side instrument panel fuse block:
WIPER, PCM ACC and IPC/BFC ACC. See
“Instrument Panel Fuse Block (Driver’s Side)” under
Fuses and Circuit Breakers on page 5-81 for the
location
of these fuses.
5. Turn the ignition switch to ACCESSORY.
6. Shift your transaxle to NEUTRAL (N).
7. Release the parking brake.
Remember to reinstall the fuses once you reach your
destination. To reinstall a fuse do the following:
1. Set the parking brake.
2. Remove the key from the ignition switch.
3. Put the fuse back in
4-32

Notice: Make sure that the towing speed does not
exceed
65 mph (1 10 km/h), or your vehicle could
be badly damaged.
Dolly Towing
To tow your vehicle with two wheels on the ground and
a dolly, do the following:
Notice:
Do not tow your vehicle from the rear. Your
vehicle could be badly damaged and the repairs
!?!!X!d !?e! he Pn~!PlPc! by ;mL!r wsrrsnty.
1. Put the front wheels on a dolly.
2. Put the vehicle in PARK (P) for automatic transaxles
and NEUTRAL for manual transaxles.
3. Set the parking brake and then remove the key.
(For manual transaxle vehicles, the shift lever
must be in REVERSE
(R) before removing the key.)
4. Clamp the steering wheel in a straight-ahead
position with a clamping device designed for towing.
5. Release the parking brake.
4-33

Towing a Trailer
If you don’t use the correct equ,pment and
drive properly, you can lose control when you
pull a trailer. For example, if the trailer is too
heavy, the brakes may not work well
-- or even
at all.
You and your passengers could be
seriously injured. You may also damage your
vehicle; the resulting repairs would not be
covered by your warranty. Pull a trailer only
if
you have followed all the steps in this section.
Ask your dealer for advice and information
about towing a trailer with your vehicle. Your
vehicle can tow a trailer
if it is equipped with the
proper trailer towing equipment. To identify what
the vehicle trailering capacity is for your vehicle, you
should read the information in “Weight of the Trailer” that
appears later in this section. But trailering is different
than just driving your vehicle by itself. Trailering means
changes in handling, durability and fuel economy.
Successful, safe trailering takes correct equipment, and
it has to be used properly.
That’s the reason for this part. In it are many time-tested,
important trailering tips and safety rules. Many of
these are important for your safety and that of your
passengers.
So please read this section carefully before
you pull a trailer.
Load-pulling components such as the engine, transaxle,
wheel assemblies and tires are forced to work harder
against the drag of the added weight. The engine
is required to operate at relatively higher speeds and
under greater loads, generating extra heat. What’s more,
the trailer adds considerably to wind resistance,
increasing the pulling requirements.
4-36

If You Do Decide To Pull A Trailer
If you do, here are some important points:
There are many different laws, including speed limit
restrictions, having
to do with trailering. Make sure
your rig will be legal, not only where you live
but also where you’ll be driving. A good source for
this information can be state or provincial police.
Consider using a sway control. You can ask a hitch
dealer about sway controls.
Don’t tow a trailer at all during the first 1,000 miles
(1 600 km) your new vehicle is driven. Your
engine, axle or other parts could be damaged.
tow a trailer, don’t drive over
50 mph (80 km/h)
and don’t make starts at full throttle. This helps your
engine and other parts
of your vehicle wear in at
the heavier loads.
Obey speed limit restrictions when towing a trailer.
Don’t drive faster than the maximum posted speed
for trailers, or no more than
55 mph (90 km/h),
to save wear on your vehicle’s parts.
ihree important considerations have to do with weight:
Then, during the first 500 miles (800 km) that L’W
the weight of the trailer,
- the weight of the traiier tongue
0 and the total weight on your vehicle’s tires.
Weight of the Trailer
How heavy can a trailer safely be?
It should never weigh more than 1,000 Ibs. (450 kg). But
even that can be
too heavy.
It depends on how you plan to use your rig. For
example, speed, altitude, road grades, outside
temperature and how much your vehicle is used to pull
a trailer are all important. And,
it can also depend
on any special equipment that you have on your vehicle.
You can ask your dealer for our trailering information
or advice, or you can write us at:
Oldsmobile Customer Assistance
P.O. Box 33171
Detroit, MI 48232-51 71
In Canada, write
to:
General Motors of Canada Limited
Customer Communication Centre, 163-005
1908 Colonel Sam Drive
Oshawa, Ontario LIH 8P7
4-37