instrument panel OLDSMOBILE AURORA 1995 Owners Manual

or the instrument panel . . . or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow
down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That's why
safety belts make such
good sense.
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AIR BAG
There is an air bag readiness light on the instrument
panel, which shows
AIR BAG. The system checks the
air bag’s electrical system for malfunctions. The light
tells you
if there is an electrical problem. See “Air Bag
Readiness Light”
in the Index for more information.
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How the Air Bag System Works
I
I
Where is the air bag?
The right front passenger’s air bag is in the instrument
panel on the passenger’s side.
The driver’s air bag is in the middle
of the steering
wheel.
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When should an air bag inflate?
The air bag is designed to inflate in moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crashes. The air bag will inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system’s designed
“threshold level.”
If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold level is
about
8 to 11 mph (13 to 18 kmh). The threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design,
so that
it can be somewhat above or below this range. If your
vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such as
a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts, or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
It is possible that in a crash only one
of the two air bags
in your Aurora will deploy. This is rare, but can happen
in
a crash just severe enough to make an air bag inflate.
In any particular crash,
no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to
a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle
of the impact and
the vehicle’s deceleration. Vehicle damage is only one
indication
of this.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In a frontal or near-frontal impact of sufficient severity,
the air bag sensing system detects that the vehicle is
suddenly stopping as a result of a crash. The sensing
system triggers a chemical reaction
of the sodium azide
sealed in the inflator. The reaction produces nitrogen
gas, which inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag, and
related hardware are all part of the air bag modules
packed inside the steering wheel and in the instrument
panel
in front of the right front passenger.
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How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. The air bag supplements the
protection provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute
the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s
upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But
air bags would not help you in many types of collisions,
including rollovers and rear and side impacts, primarily
because an occupant’s motion
is not toward the air bag.
Air bags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts, and then only in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After the air bag inflates, it quickly deflates. This occurs
so quickly that some people may not even realize the air
bag inflated. Some components
of the air bag module in
the steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag, or the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s bag, will
be hot for a short time, but the part of the bag that comes
into contact with you will not be hot to the touch. There
will be some smoke and dust coming from vents in the
deflated air bags. Air bag inflation will not prevent the
driver from seeing or from being able to steer the
vehicle, nor will it stop people from leaving the vehicle. In
many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from the
right front passenger air bag. The air bags are designed to inflate only once. After
they inflate, you’ll need some new parts for your air
bag system. If you don’t get them, the air bag system
won’t be there to help protect you in another crash.
A new system will include air bag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
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0 Your vehicle is equipped with a diagnostic module,
which records information about the air bag system.
The module records information about the readiness
of
the system, when the sensors are activated and
driver’s safety belt usage at deployment.
0 Let only qualified technicians work on your air bag
system. Improper service can mean that your air bag
system won’t work properly. See your retailer for
service.
I NOTICE:
If you damage the cover for the driver’s or the
right front passenger’s air bag, they may not
work properly. You may have to replace the
air
bag module in the steering wheel or both the air
bag module and the instrument panel for the
right front passenger’s
air bag. Do not open or
break the air bag covers.
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Aurora
Air bags affect how your Aurora should be serviced.
There are parts of the air bag system in several places
around your vehicle. You don’t want the system to
inflate while someone is working on your vehicle. Your
Aurora retailer and the
1995 Aurora Service Manual
have information about servicing your vehicle and the air bag system.
To purchase a service manual, see
“Service and Owner Publications’’ in the Index.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
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Features and Controls 0
Here you can lexn about the many standard and optional
features on your Aurora, and information
on starting,
shifting and braking.
Also explained are the instrument
panel
and the warning systems that tell you if everything is
working properly -- and what to do if you have a problem.
Keys
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Ignition Switch
RUN
ACCESSORY
W
I NOTICE:
If your key seems stuck in LOCK and you can’t
turn it, be sure it
is all the way in. If it is, then
turn the steering wheel left and right while you
turn the key hard. But turn the key only with
your hand. Using a tool to force
it could break
the key or the ignition switch.
If none of this
works, then your vehicle needs service. With
the ignition key
in the ignition switch, you can turn
the switch to five positions:
ACC (Accessory): An ON position in which you can
operate your electrical power accessories. Press
in the
ignition switch as you turn the top of
it toward you.
LOCK: The only position in which you can remove the
key. This locks your steering wheel, ignition and
transaxle.
OFF: Unlocks the steering wheel, ignition, and
transaxle, but does not send electrical power to any
accessories. Use this position
if your vehicle must be
pushed or towed, but never
try to push-start your
vehicle.
A warning chime will sound if you open the
driver’s door when
the ignition is off and the key is in
the ignition.
RUN: An ON position to which the switch returns after
you start your engine and release the switch. The switch
stays
in the RUN position when the engine is running.
But even when the engine is not running, you can use
RUN to operate your electrical power accessories, and
to display some instrument panel warning lights.
START: Starts the engine. When the engine starts,
release the key. The ignition switch will return to
RUN
for norlnal driving.
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If you leave the turn signal on, a chime will sound after
you drive about
3/4 of a mile (1.2 km).
Cruise Control
A green arrow on the instrument panel will flash in the
direction of the turn or lane change.
To signal a lane change, just raise or lower the lever
until the green arrow starts to flash. Hold it there until
you complete your lane change. The lever
will return by
itself when you release
it.
As you signal a turn or a lane change, if the arrows don’t
flash but just stay on, a signal bulb may be burned out
and other drivers won’t see your turn signal.
If a bulb
is burned out, replace it to help avoid an
accident.
If the green arrows don’t go on at all when you signal a
turn, check the fuse (see “Fuses and Circuit Breakers” in
the Index) and for burned-out bulbs. With
cruise control, you can maintain a speed
of about
25 mph (40 km/h) or more without keeping your foot on
the accelerator. This can really help on long trips.
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2. Get up to the speed you want. To Resume a Set Speed
3. Push in the SET button at the end of the lever and
release
it. The CRUISE light on your instrument
panel will come on.
4. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal. Suppose
you set your cruise control at
a desired speed
and then you apply the brake. This,
of course, shuts off
the cruise control. But you don’t need to reset it. Once
you’re going about
25 mph (40 km/h) or more, you can
move the cruise control switch from
ON to RES/ACC
(Resume/Accelerate) for about half a second.
You’ll
go right back up to your chosen speed and stay
there.
If you hold the switch at RES/ACC longer than half a
second, the vehicle will keep going faster until you
release the switch or apply
the brake. You could be
startled and even lose control.
So unless you want to go
faster, don’t hold the switch at REWACC.
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