warning Oldsmobile Aurora 1997 s User Guide

Your vehicle may also have a driver information system
that works along with the warning lights and gages. See
“Driver Information Center” in the Index.
Safety Belt Reminder Light
When the key is turned to RUN or START, a chime will
come on for about eight seconds to remind people to
fasten their safety belts.
The safety belt light will
also come on and stay on
for about
70 seconds. If the
driver’s belt is already
buckled, neither the chime
nor the light will come on.
Air Bag Readiness Light
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. The system
check includes the air bag sensors, the air bag modules, the wiring and the crash
sensing and diagnostic module.
For more information on the air bag system, see
“Air
Bag” in the Index.
AIR BAG
This light will come on
when you start your engine,
and it will flash for a few
seconds. Then the light
should go out. This means
the system is ready.
If the air bag readiness light stays
on after you start the
engine or comes on when you are driving, your air bag
system may not work properly. Have your vehicle
serviced right away.
The air bag readiness light should flash for a few
seconds when you turn
the ignition key to RUN. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you
if there is a problem.

Battery Warning Light
U
VOLTS
This light will come on
briefly when you start the
vehicle, as a check to show
you it is working, then it
should go out. If
it stays on,
or comes on while
you are
driving, you may have a
problem with the electrical
charging system.
A warning chime and the message CHECK CHARGE
SYSTEM may also come on. Have it checked right
away. Driving while this light is on could drain
your battery.
If you must drive a short distance with the light on, be
certain to turn off all your accessories, such as the radio
and climate control.
Brake System Warning Light
Your Aurora’s hydraulic brake system is divided into
two parts. If one part isn’t working, the other part can
still work and stop you. For good braking, though, you
need both parts working well.
This light should come on
when you turn
the ignition
key to
START. If it doesn’t
come
on then, have it fixed
so it will be ready to warn
BRAKE (a) you if there’s a problem. FLUID
If this warning light stays on after you start the engine,
there could be a brake problem. Have your brake system
inspected right away.
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If the light and chime come on while you are driving,
pull
off the road and stop carefully. You may notice that
the pedal is harder to push. Or, the pedal may go closer
to the floor. It may take longer to stop. If the light
is still
on, have the vehicle towed for service. (See “Towing
Your Vehicle” in the Index.)
‘A CAUTI
I
Your brake system may not be working properly
if the brake warning light is on. Driving with the
brake warning light on can lead to an accident.
If
the light is still on after you’ve pulled off the road
and stopped carefully, have the vehicle towed
for service.
Parking Brake Indicator Light
PARK
When the ignition is on, this
light will come on when
you set your parking brake.
The light will stay on
if
your parking brake doesn’t
release fully.
If you try to
drive off with the parking
brake set, a chime will also
come on until you release
the parking brake.
This light should also come on when you turn the
ignition key to START.
If it doesn’t come on then, have
it fixed
so it will be ready to remind you if the parking
brake hasn’t released fully.
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Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light
LOCK
ANT‘- (e)
With the anti-lock brake
system, this light will come
on when you start your
engine and may stay on for
several seconds.
That’s normal.
Traction Control System Warning Light
TRACTION
OFF
This warning light should
come on briefly as you start
the engine. If the warning
light doesn’t come on then,
have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you
if there’s
a problem.
If the light stays on, turn the ignition to OFF. Or, if the
light comes on when you’re driving, stop as soon as
possible
and turn the ignition off. Then start the engine
again to reset the system.
If the light still stays on, or
comes on again while you’re driving, your Aurora needs
service.
If the regular brake system warning light isn’t
on, you still have brakes, but you don’t have anti-lock
brakes.
If the regular brake system warning light is also
on, you don’t have anti-lock brakes and there’s a
problem with your regular brakes. See “Brake System
Warning Light” earlier
in this section.
The anti-lock brake system warning light should
COITIC?
on briefly when you turn the ignition key to RUN. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
so it will be
ready to warn you
if there is a problem.
If it stays on, or comes on when you’re driving, there
may be a problem with your traction control system
and
your vehicle may need service. When this warning light
is on, the system will not limit wheel spin. Adjust your
driving accordingly.
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The traction control system warning light may come on
for the following reasons:
0
0
0 If you turn the system off by pressing the
TRACTION
CONTROL button located on the
center console, the warning light will come on
and
stay on. To turn the system back on, press the button
again. The warning light should
go off. (See
“Traction Control System” in the Index for
more information.)
If there’s a brake system problem that is specifically
related to traction control, the traction control system
will turn
off and the warning light will come on. If
your brakes begin
to overheat, the traction control
system will turn
off and the warning light will come
on until your brakes cool down.
If the traction control system is affected by an
engine-related problem, the system will turn
off and
the warning light will come
on.
If the traction control system warning light comes on
and stays on for an extended period
of time when the
system is turned on, your vehicle needs service.
Traction Control System Active Light
TRACTION
ACTIVE
When your traction control
system is limiting wheel
spin, this light will come on.
Slippery road conditions
may exist
if the traction
control system active light
comes on,
so adjust your
driving accordingly.
The light will stay on for a few seconds after the traction
control system stops limiting wheel spin.
2-73

Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
280
n 100
Q
This gage shows the engine
coolant temperature.
If the gage pointer moves into the red warning zone,
your engine
is hot. To prevent engine overheating, the
air conditioning compressor will turn off automatically,
a fast-pulsed chime will sound, and the message
ENGINE
HOT. ..A/C OFF will appear in the information
center.
As the engine cools down, the air conditioning
compressor will automatically turn back on.
If the coolant temperature is over 26 1 OF ( 127’ C), the
message
HOT ... STOP ENGINE will appear. It means
that your engine coolant has overheated. If you have
been operating your vehicle under normal driving
conditions, you should pull
off the road, stop your
vehicle and turn
off the engine as soon as possible.
The section “Problems on the Road,” in this manual
explains what
to do. See “Engine Overheating” in
the Index.
If your coolant level is low, the message
LOW ENGINE
COOLANT will appear on the Driver Information
Center. Check your coolant level as soon as possible.
See “Engine Coolant” in the Index.
2-74

Have you recently changed brands of fuel?
If so, be sure to fuel your vehicle with quality fuel (see
“Fuel” in the Index). Poor fuel quality will cause your
engine not to run as efficiently as designed. You may
notice this as stalling after start-up, stalling when you
put the vehicle into gear, misfiring, hesitation on
acceleration
or stumbling on acceleration. (These
conditions may go away once the engine is warmed up.)
This will be detected by the system and cause the light
to turn on.
If you experience one or more of these conditions,
change the fuel brand you use. It
will require at least one
full tank of the proper fuel
to turn the light off.
If none of the above steps have made the light turn off,
have your retailer or qualified service center check
the
vehicle. Your retailer has the proper test equipment and
diagnostic tools to fix any mechanical or electrical
problems that may have developed.
Oil Pressure Warning Light
OIL
If you have a problem with
your oil, this light may stay
on after you start your
engine,
or come on when
you
are driving. A warning
chime and the message
LOW OIL PRESSURE may
also come on.
These indicate that oil
is not going through your engine
quickly enough to keep it cool. The engine could be low
on oil, or could have some other oil problem. Have it
fixed right away.
2-77

Fuel Gage
When the ignition is on,
your
fuel gage tells you
about how much fuel you
have left.
When you have less than
3.0 gallons (1 It .3 L) of fuel
remaining, the message LOW FUEL will be displayed
and a chime will sound. You need to get more
fuel
right away.
Press the FUEL button on the Driver Information Center
to turn off the warning. Here
are four things that some owners ask about. None
of these show a problem with your fuel gage:
0
0
0
0
At the service station, the gas pump shuts off before
the gage reads
“F’ (Full).
It takes a little more or less fuel to fill up than the
gage indicated. For example, the gage may have
indicated the tank was half full, but it actually took a
little more or less than half the tank’s capacity to fill
the tank.
The gage moves a little when you turn a corner or
speed up.
The tank is not necessarily empty when the pointer is
over the
“E” (Empty) mark. There is a reserve of
about 1.5 gallons (5.6 L) in the tank. You should still
get more fuel as soon as possible.

Driver Information Center
The Driver Information Center (DIC) displays
information in either English or metric. When the
system
is on or off, push the OFF button down for two
seconds to change the display between English and
metric. This will also change the digital screen for the
climate control system between English and metric.
In addition to the functions described in this part, the
DIC also displays various warning messages under
appropriate conditions.
Turn on the system by pressing any button except
RESET, ENTER or
OFF- When you turn on the ignition,
the DIC will be in the mode
last displayed when the
engine was turned
off. Keep in mind that this also
applies to the
OFF mode.
To turn off messages on the DIC (except LOW OIL
PRESSURE,
LOW BRAKE FLUID, PARK BRAKE
SET and the hot engine warnings), press any button on
the DIC.
0
You will need to open the cover to access the control
buttons.
To open the cover, push the button located to
the right of the cover.
To close the cover, push it down to its closed position.
2-80

When the remaining oil life or transaxle fluid life is low,
the system will alert you with a message:
CHANGE OIL SOON
or CHANGE TRNS
FLUID SOON
When the oil or transaxle fluid life is down to zero, you
will receive
the message:
CHANGE OIL NOW or CHANGE TRNS
FLUID NOW
To reset the OIL LIFE reminder after an oil change or
the TRNS FLUID LIFE reminder after a transaxle
fluid change:
1. With the ignition on, press the ENG button so the
OIL LIFE percentage or the TRNS LIFE percentage
is displayed.
2. Press RESET and hold for five seconds. The word
RESET will appear, then OIL LIFE 100% or TRNS
FLUID 100%.
Remember, you must reset the OIL LIFE or TRNS
FLUID yourself after each oil or transaxle fluid change.
It will not reset itself. Also, be careful not to reset the
OIL LIFE or TRNS FLUID accidentally at any time
other than when the oil or transaxle fluid has just been
changed. It can’t be reset accurately until the next oil or
transaxle fluid change. The
DIC does
not replace the need to maintain your
vehicle
as recommended in the Maintenance Schedule in
this manual.
Also, the oil change reminder will not
detect dusty conditions or engine malfunctions that may
affect the oil.
If you drive in dusty areas, change your oil
after every
3,000 miles (5 000 km) or three months,
whichever occurs first, unless the DIC instructs you to
do so sooner. Also, the oil change reminder does not
measure how much oil you have in your engine.
So, be
sure to check your oil level often. See “Engine Oil” in
the Index.
Check Oil Level Warning
When CHECK OIL LEVEL appears, it indicates that the
engine oil level is
1 to 1 1/2 quarts (0.9 L to 1.4 L) low.
The message will appear only if the engine is running
and it’s been at least eight minutes since the engine was
last running. If the message appears, check the oil
dipstick level. If it reads low, your oil level should be
brought up
to the proper level (see “Engine Oil” in the
Index). After bringing the oil
to the proper level, the
ignition must be off for eight minutes to allow
the
majority of oil to drain into the oil pan.