brakes OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA 1996 Owners Manual

L
Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
For example,
these symbols are used on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
ACID COULD BATTERY
CAUSE
BURNS
AVOID
SPARKS
OR
FLAMES
SPARK
OR ,\I/,
COULD FLAME
EXPLODE BATTERY
These symbols are important
for you and
your passengers whenever your
vehicle is
driven:
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
FASTEN SEAT
BELTS
These symbols have
to do with
your lights:
SIGNALS e
TURN
RUNNING
.'*'**o
DAYTIME LAMPS
'**
FOG LAMPS $0
These symbols
are on some of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER
VENTILATING FAN
These symbols are used on
warning and
indicator lights:
ENGINE c
COOLANT - r-
TEMP -
CHARGING I-1
BATTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(@)
COOLANT a
ENGINE OIL e,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
LIGHTER
n
HORN b
SPEAKER
b
FUEL e3
V
ProCarManuals.com

Ensure the shift lever is fully in PARK (P) range
before starting
the engine. Your vehicle has a
brake-transmission shift interlock. You have to fully
apply your regular brakes before you can shift from
PARK (P) when
the ignition key is in the RUN position.
If you cannot shift
out of PARK (P), ease pressure on
the shift lever -- press the button on the shift lever and
push the shift lever all the way into PARK
(P) as you
maintain brake application. Then move the shift lever
into the gear you wish. See “Shifting Out of PARK
(P)”
in the Index.
REVERSE (R): Use this gear to back up.
I NOTICE:
Shifting to REVERSE (R) while your vehicle is
moving forward could damage your transmission.
Shift to REVERSE (R) only after your vehicle
is stopped.
To rock your vehicle back and forth to get out of snow,
ice
or sand without damaging your transmission, see
“Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow” in the Index.
NEUTRAL (N): In this position, your engine doesn’t
connect with the wheels. To restart when you’re already
moving, use NEUTRAL
(N) only.
I
Shifting out of PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N) while
your engine
is “racing” (running at high speed) is
dangerous. Unless your foot is firmly on the
brake pedal,
your vehicle could move very
rapidly. You could lose control and hit people or
objects. Don’t shift out
of PARK (P) or
NEUTRAL (N) while your engine is racing.
I NOTICE:
~~~
Damage to your transmission caused by shifting
out of PARK
(P) or NEUTRAL (N) with the
engine racing isn’t covered by your warranty.
ProCarManuals.com

AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE (@): This position is for
normal driving. If
you need more power for passing,
and you’re:
Going less than about 35 mph (56 km/h), push your
accelerator pedal about halfway down.
Going about 35 mph (56 km/h) or more, push the
accelerator all the way down.
You’ll shift down to the next gear and have more power.
AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
(@) should not be used
when towing a trailer, carrying a heavy load, driving
on
steep hills or for off-road driving. Select THIRD (3) when
operating the vehicle under any
of these conditions.
THIRD (3): This position is also used for normal
driving, however it offers more power but lower fuel
economy than AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
((LO). You
should use THIRD
(3) when towing a trailer, carrying a
heavy load, driving on steep hills or winding roads or
for off-road driving.
SECOND (2): This position gives you more power but
lower
fuel economy. You can use SECOND (2) on hills.
It can help control your speed as you
go down steep
mountain roads, but
then you would also want to use
your brakes off and
on.
You can also use SECOND (2) for starting your vehicle
from a stop on slippery road surfaces.
FIRST (1): This position gives you even more power
(but lower
fuel economy) than SECOND (2). You can
use it on very steep hills,
or in deep snow or mud. If the
selector lever is put
in FIRST (1) while the vehicle is
moving forward, the transmission won’t shift into
FIRST (1) until the vehicle is going slowly enough.
I NOTICE:
If your rear wheels can’t rotate, don’t try to
drive. This might happen if you were stuck in
very deep sand or mud or were up against
a solid
object. You could damage your transmission.
Also, if you stop when going uphill, don’t hold your
vehicle there with only the accelerator pedal. This
could overheat and damage the transmission. Use
your brakes or shift into PARK
(P) to hold your
vehicle in position on
a hill.
ProCarManuals.com

Locking Rear Axle
Your rear axle can give you additional traction on snow,
mud, ice, sand or gravel. It works like
a standard axle
most
of the time, but when one of the rear wheels has no
traction and the other does, the locking feature will
allow the wheel with traction to move the vehicle.
All-Wheel Drive
Your engine’s driving power is sent to all four wheels
for extra traction. All-wheel drive
is like four-wheel
drive, but there is no lever or switch
to engage or
disengage the front axle. It is
fully automatic and adjusts
itself
as needed for road conditions.
Parking Brake
To set the parking brake, hold the regular brake pedal
down with your right foot. Push down the parking brake
pedal with your left
foot. If the ignition is on, the brake
system warning light will come on.
To release the parking brake, hold the regular brake
pedal down. Pull the
BRAKE RELEASE
lever.
It is located on the
bottom driver’s side of the
instrument panel.
NOTICE:
Driving with the parking brake on can cause
your rear brakes to overheat. You may have to
replace them, and you could
also damage other
parts of your vehicle.
If you are towing a trailer and you must park on a hill,
see “Towing
a Trailer” in the Index. That section shows
what to do first to keep the trailer from moving.
2-17
ProCarManuals.com

Cruise Control
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.
Cruise control does not
work at speeds below about
25 mph (40 km/h).
If you apply your brakes, the cruise control will shut off. Setting Cruise Control
Cruise control can be dangerous where
you
can’t drive safely at
a steady speed. So,
don’t use your cruise control on winding
roads or in heavy traffic.
slippery roads. On such roads, fast changes
in tire traction can cause needless wheel
spinning, and you could lose control. Don’t
use cruise control on slippery roads.
Cruise control can be dangerous on
If you leave your cruise control switch on when
you’re not using cruise, you might hit a button and
go into cruise when you don’t want to. You could
be startled and even lose control. Keep the cruise
control switch
OFF until you want to use it.
1. Move the cruise control switch to ON,
2. Get up to the speed you want.
3. Press in the SET button
at the end of the lever
and release
it.
4. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal.
ProCarManuals.com

Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light
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.
Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
This gage shows the engine
coolant temperature.
If the
gage pointer moves into the
red area, your engine is
too hot!
If the light stays on, or comes on when you’re driving,
your Oldsmobile 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 part.
The anti-lock brake system warning light should come
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. It
means that your engine coolant has overheated.
Tf 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.
In “Problems on the Road,”
this manual shows you what
to do. See “Engine Overheating” in the Index.
ProCarManuals.com

Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where
you want it
to go. They are the brakes, the steering and
the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work
at the places where the tires meet the road.
Braking
Braking action involves perception time and reaction tirne.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That’s
perception time. Then you have to bring up your
foot and do
it. That’s reaction time.
Average reaction time is about 3/4 of a second. But
that’s only an average. It might be less with one driver
and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part.
So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in
3/4 of a second, a vehicle
moving at
60 mph (1 00 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could be a lot of distance in an emergency, so
keeping enough space between your vehicle and others
is important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road (whether it’s pavement or
gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; and the condition
of your brakes.
Sometimes, as
when you’re driving on snow or ice, it’s
easy
to ask more of those control systems than the tires
and road can provide. That means you can lose control
of your vehicle.
4-5
ProCarManuals.com

Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive
in spurts
-- heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking
-- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a
mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool between
hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much faster
if you
do
a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the
traffic and allow realistic following distances, you will
eliminate a
lot of unnecessary braking. That means
better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes. If you do, the
pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist. But
you will use it when you brake. Once the power assist is
used up, it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder to push.
Anti-Lock Brakes
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that
will help
prevent a braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti-lock brake system will check itself.
You may
hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test
is going on. This is normal.
If there’s a problem
with the
anti-lock brake system, this warning light will stay on.
See “Anti-Lock Brake
System Warning Light”
in
the Index.
4-6
.-
ProCarManuals.com

I
Here's how anti-lock works. Let's say the road is wet.
You're driving safely. Suddenly an animal jumps out
in
front of you.
You slam on the brakes. Here's what happens with ABS.
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels
is about to stop rolling. the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at the
rear wheels. The
anti-lock system can change the brake pressure faster
than
any driver could. The computer is programmed to
make the most of available tire and road conditions.
You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.
4-7
ProCarManuals.com

Remember: Anti-lock doesn’t change the time you need
to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease
stopping distance. If
you get too close to the vehicle in
front of you, you won’t have time to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows or stops. Always leave
enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have
anti-lock brakes.
Using Anti-Lock
Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal
down and let anti-lock work for you. You may feel
the brakes vibrate, or you may notice some noise, but
this
is normal.
Braking in Emergencies
Use your anti-lock braking system when you need to.
With anti-lock, you can steer and brake at the same
time. In many emergencies, steering can help you more
than even the very best braking.
Steering
Power Steering
If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops or the system is not functioning, you can steer but
it
will take much more effort.
Steering Tips
Driving on Curves
It’s important to take curves at a reasonable speed.
A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on
the news happen on curves. Here’s why:
Experienced driver or beginner, each
of us is subject to
the same laws of physics when driving
on curves. The
traction
of the tires against the road surface makes it
possible for the vehicle to change its path when you turn
the front wheels. If there’s no traction, inertia will keep
the vehicle going in the same direction.
If you’ve ever
tried to steer a vehicle on wet ice, you’ll understand this.
The traction you can get in
a curve depends on the
condition
of your tires and the road surface, the angle at
which the curve is banked, and your speed. While you’re
in a curve, speed is the one factor you can control.
ProCarManuals.com