OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA 1996 Owners Manual

Engine Overheating
You will find a coolant temperature gage on your
vehicle’s instrument panel.
If Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
Steam from an overheated engine can burn you
badly, even if you just open the hood. Stay away
from the engine
if you see or hear steam coming
from it. Just turn it off and get everyone
away
from the vehicle until it cools down. Wait until
there is no sign of steam or coolant before
opening the hood.
If you keep driving when your engine is
overheated, the liquids in it can catch fire. You or
others could be badly burned. Stop your engine if
it overheats, and get out of the vehicle until the
engine is cool.
I NOTICE:
If your engine catches fire because you keep
driving with no coolant, your vehicle can be
badly damaged. The costly repairs would not be
covered by your warranty.
3-11
ProCarManuals.com

If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or hear no
steam, the problem may not be too serious. Sometimes
the engine can get a little too hot when you:
Climb a long hill on a hot day.
Stop after high-speed driving.
Idle for long periods in traffic.
0 Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with no sign of steam,
try this for
a minute or so:
1. Turn off your air conditioner.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the highest fan
speed and open the window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to NEUTRAL (N);
otherwise, shift to the highest gear while
driving
-- AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (@) or
THIRD
(3).
If you no longer have the overheat warning, you
can drive. Just to be safe, drive slower for about
10 minutes. If the warning doesn’t come back on,
you can drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park your
vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, push the accelerator until
the engine speed is about twice as fast as normal idle
speed. Bring the engine speed back to normal idle speed
after two or three minutes. Now see
if the warning stops.
But then, if you still have the warning,
turn off the
engine
and get everyone out of the vehicle until it
cools down.
You may decide not to
lift the hood but to get service
help right away.
5-12
ProCarManuals.com

wnen you decide it's safe to lift the hood, here's what
you'll see:
A. Coolant Recovery Tank
B. Radiator Pressure Cap
C. Engine Fan
An electric fan under the hood can start up even
when the engine is not running and can injure
you. Keep hands, clothing and tools away from any underhood electric fan.
If the coolant inside the coolant recovery tank is boiling,
don't
do anything else until it cools down.
ProCarManuals.com

The coolant level should be at the ADD mark. If it
isn’t, you may have a leak in the radiator hoses, heater
hoses, radiator, water pump or somewhere else in the
cooling system.
1 A CAUTION:
Heater and radiator hoses, and other engine
parts, can be very hot. Don’t touch them.
If you
do, you can
be burned.
Don’t run the engine if there is
a leak. If you run
the engine, it could lose all coolant. That could
cause an engine fire, and you could be burned.
Get any leak fixed before you drive the vehicle.
I I
NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn’t covered
by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, start the engine again. See
if the fan speed increases when idle speed
is doubled by
pushing the accelerator pedal down.
If it doesn’t, your
vehicle needs service. Turn
off the engine.
ProCarManuals.com

How to Add Coolant to the
Coolant Recovery Tank
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but the coolant level
isn’t at the
ADD mark, add a 50/50 mixture of clean
water (preferably distilled) and DEX-COOL TM
(orange-colored, silicate-free) antifreeze at the coolant
recovery tank. (See “Engine Coolant”
in the Index for
more information.)
I
Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water, or some other
liquid like alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant mix will. Your vehicle’s coolant warning
system
is set for the proper coolant mix. With
plain water or the wrong
mix, your engine could
get too hot but you wouldn’t get the overheat
warning. Your engine could catch fire and you or
others could be burned. Use a
50/50 mix of clean
water and
DEX-COOL TM antifreeze.
I NOTICE:
r
In cold weather, water can freeze and crack the
engine, radiator, heater core and other parts. Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant mix.
ProCarManuals.com

You can be burned if you spill coolant on hot
engine parts. Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and
it will burn if the engine parts are hot
enough. Don't spill coolant on
a hot engine.
When the coolant
in the coolant recovery tank is at
ADD, start your vehicle.
If the overheat warning continues, there's one more
thing you can try. You can add the proper coolant
mix
directly to the radiator but be sure the cooling system is
cool before you do it.
Steam and scalding liquids from a hot cooling
system can blow out and burn you badly. They
are under pressure, and if you turn the radiator
pressure cap
-- even a little -- they can come out
at high speed. Never turn the cap when the
cooling system, including the radiator pressure
cap, is hot. Wait for the cooling system and
radiator pressure cap to cool if you ever have to
turn the pressure cap.
ProCarManuals.com

How to Add Coolant to the Radiator
1. You can remove the radiator pressure cap when the
cooling system, including the radiator pressure cap and
upper radiator hose. is no longer hot. Turn the pressure
cap slowly counterclockwise
until it first stops. (Don’t
press down while turning
the pressure cap.)
If you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop. A hiss means
there is still some pressure left.
2. Then keep turning the pressure cap, but now push
down as you
turn it. Remove the pressure cap.
ProCarManuals.com

3. Fill the radiator with the proper mix, up to the base
of the filler neck. 4. Then fill the coolant recovery tank to the ADD mark.
5. Put the cap back on the coolant recovery tank, but
leave the radiator pressure cap off.
5-18
ProCarManuals.com

6. Start the engine and let it run until you can feel the
upper radiator hose getting hot. Watch out for the
engine fan.
filler neck may be lower.
If the level is lower, add
more of the proper mix through the filler neck until
the level reaches the base of the filler neck.
7. By this time the coolant level inside the radiator
8. Then replace the pressure cap. At any time during I
this procedure if coolant begins to flow out of the
filler neck, reinstall the pressure cap. Be sure the.
arrows on the pressure cap line up like this.
5-19
ProCarManuals.com

If a Tire Goes Flat
It’s unusual for a tire to “blow out” while you’re driving,
especially if you maintain your tires properly.
If air goes
out
of a tire, it’s much more likely to leak out slowly.
But if
you should ever have a “blowout,” here are a few
tips about what to expect and what to do:
If
a front tire fails, the flat tire will create a drag that
pulls the vehicle toward that side. Take your foot off the
accelerator pedal and grip the steering wheel
firmly.
Steer to maintain lane position, and then gently brake to
a stop well out of the traffic lane.
A rear blowout, particularly on a curve, acts much like a
skid and may require the same correction you’d use in a
skid. In any rear blowout, remove your foot from the
accelerator pedal. Get the vehicle under control by
steering the way you want the vehicle to go. It may be
very bumpy and noisy, but you can still steer. Gently
brake to a
stop -- well off the road if possible.
If a tire goes flat, the next part shows how to use your
jacking equipment to change a
flat tire safely.
Changing a Flat Tire
If a tire goes flat, avoid further tire and wheel damage
by driving slowly to a level place. Turn on your hazard
warning flashers.
ur
Changing a tire can cause an injury. The vehicle
can slip
off the jack and roll over you or other
people. You and they could be badly injured.
Find a level place to change your tire.
To help
prevent the vehicle from moving:
1. Set the parking brake firmly.
2. Put the shift lever in PARK (P).
3. Turn off the engine.
To be even more certain the vehicle won’t move,
you can put blocks at the front and rear of the
tire farthest away from the one being changed.
That would be the tire
on the other side of the
vehicle, at the opposite end.
ProCarManuals.com