ESP OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA 1997 Owners Manual

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.
Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
e.' Won't I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if
I'm wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you're wearing a safety
belt or not.
But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even
if you're upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident, so
you C'CIM unbuckle and get out, is rwch greater if
you are belted.
Q.' If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered
for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even if you're in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have to buckle
up to get the most
protection. That's true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
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When should an air bag inflate?
An air bag is designed to inflate in a moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crash. 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
14 to 18 mph (23 to 29 ktdh). 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.
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
how quickly the vehicle slows down
in frontal and
near-frontal impacts.
The air bag system is designed to work properly under a
wide range of conditions, including off-road usage.
Observe safe driving speeds, especially on rough terrain.
As always, wear your safety belt. See “Off-Road
Driving“
in the Index for more tips on off-road driving.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is
in a crash. The sensing
system triggers
a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related
hardware
are all part of the air bag module inside the
steering wheel.
How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel.
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, rear impacts 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.
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1 Door Locks
Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
Passengers
-- especially children -- can easily
open the doors and fall out. When a door
is
locked, the inside handle won’t open it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an unlocked
door when you slow down or stop your vehicle.
This may not be
so obvious: You increase the
chance
of being thrown out of the vehicle in a
crash if the doors aren’t locked. Wear safety belts
properly, lock your doors, and you will be
far
better off whenever you drive your vehicle.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
You can use your key to unlock your door from
the outside.
To lock your door from the inside, slide the lever on
your inside door rearward.
To unlock the door, slide the
lever
on your inside door
forward.
You will see a red
area on the lever.
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Resynchronization
Resynchronization may be necessary due to the security
method used by this system. The transmitter does not
send the same signal twice to the receiver. The receiver
will not respond to a signal
it has been sent previously.
This prevents anyone from recording and playing back
the signal from the transmitter.
To resynchronize your transmitter, stand close to your
vehicle and simultaneously press and hold the
LOCK
and UNLOCK buttons on the transmitter for not more
than five seconds. The door locks should cycle to
confirm synchronization.
If the locks do not cycle, see
your retailer for service.
Liftgate
It can be dangerous to drive with the rear
window or liftgate open because carbon
monoxide
(CO) gas can come into your vehicle.
You can’t see or smell CO. It can cause
unconsciousness and even death.
If you must drive with the rear window or liftgate
open or if electrical wiring or other cable
connections must pass through the seal between
the body and the rear window or liftgate:
0 Make sure all windows are shut.
0 Turn the fan on your heating or cooling
system to its highest speed with the setting
on
VENT. That will force outside air into
your vehicle. See “Comfort Controls” in
the Index.
instrument panel, open them
all the way.
0 If you have air outlets on or under the
See “Engine Exhaust” in the Index.
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Xemote Liftgate Glass Release
This button on the driver’s
side of the steering column
allows you to release the
liftgate glass from inside the vehicle.
four shift lever must be
in PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N)
or the release to work.
Theft
Vehicle theft is big business, especially in some cities.
Although your Oldsmobile has a number of
theft-deterrent features, we know that nothing we put
on
it can make it impossible to steal. However, there are
ways you can help.
Key in the Ignition
If you leave your vehicle with the keys inside, it’s an
easy target for joy riders or professional thieves
-- so
don’t do it.
When you park your Oldsmobile and open the driver’s
door, you’ll hear a tone reminding you
to remove your
key from
the ignition and take it with you. Always do
this. Your steering wheel will be locked, and
so will
your ignition and transmission. And remember to lock
the doors.
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Press the bottom switch with the master lamps symbol on
it to turn on all the lamps listed as well as the headlamps.
Press the side of the switch marked
OFF to turn off
your lamps.
Lamps On Reminder
A reminder tone will sound when your headlamps or
parking lamps are turned on and your ignition is
in OFF,
LOCK or ACCESSORY. To turn the tone off, press the
OFF switch.
Daytime Running Lamps
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the day.
DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the
short periods after dawn and before sunset.
The DRL system
will make your headlamps come on at
reduced brightness when:
the ignition is on,
the headlalnp switch is off and
0 the parking brake is released. When
the DRL are
on, only your headlamps will be on.
The taillamps, sidemarker and other lamps won’t be
on.
The instrument panel won’t be lit up either.
When
it begins to get dark, your DRL indicator light
is a reminder to turn your headlamp switch on. The
other lamps that come
on with your headlamps will also
come on.
When you
turn the headlamp switch off, the regular
lamps will go off. and your headlamps
will change to
the reduced brightness of DRL.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, set the parking
brake. The DRL
will stay off until you release the
parking brake.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need
it.
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To unlock a secured radio, see “Unlocking the
Theft-Deterrent Feature After a Power
Loss” earlier in
this section.
Understanding Radio Reception
FM Stereo
FM stereo will give you the best sound. But FM signals
will reach only about 10 to 40 miles ( 16 to 65 km). Tall
buildings or hills can interfere
with FM signals, causing
the sound to come and
go.
AM
The range for most AM stations is greater than for FM,
especially at night. The longer range, however, can
cause stations to interfere with each other.
AM can pick
up noise from things like storms and power lines. Try
reducing the treble
to reduce this noise if you ever get it.
Tips About Your Audio System
Hearing damage from loud noise is almost undetectable
until it is too late. Your hearing can adapt to higher
volumes of sound. Sound that seems normal
can be loud
and harmf~ll to your hearing. Take precautions by
adjusting the volume control on your radio to
a safe
sound level before your hearing adapts to
it.
To help avoid hearing loss or damage:
Adjust the volume control to the lowest setting.
Increase volume slowly until you hear comfortably
and clearly.
NOTICE:
Before you add any sound equipment to your
vehicle
-- like a tape player, CB radio, mobile
telephone or two-way radio
-- be sure you can add
what you want. If you can, it’s very important to
do it properly. Added sound equipment may
interfere with the operation of your vehicle’s
engine, Delco radio or other systems, and even
damage them. Your vehicle’s systems may interf‘ere
with the operation
of sound equipment that has
been added improperly.
So, before adding sound equipment, check with
your retailer and be sure to check Federal rules
covering mobile radio and telephone units.
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But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC of
0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills of
many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent, and that the effects are worse at night.
All
drivers are impaired at BAC levels above 0.05 percent.
Statistics show that
the chance of being in a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC of
0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision.
At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of
this driver having a collision
is 12 times greater; at a
level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol
in one drink.
No amount of coffee or number of cold
showers will speed that up.
“I’ll be careful” isn’t the
right answer. What
if there’s an emergency, a need to
take sudden action, as when
a child darts into the street?
A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able
to react quickly enough to avoid the collision. There‘s something else about drinking and
driving that
many people don’t know. Medical research shows that
alcohol
in a person’s system can make crash injuries
worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal cord or
heart. This means that when anyone who has been
drinking
-- driver or passenge.r -- is in a crash, that
person’s chance of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than
if the person had not been drinking.
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgment can be affected by even a small amount
of alcohol. You can have a serious
-- or even
fatal
-- collision if you drive after drinking.
Please don’t drink and drive
or ride with a driver
who has been drinking. Ride home in a cab; or if
you’re with
a group, designate a driver who will
not drink.
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So here are some tips for passing: Passing
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two-lane highway waits for just
the right moment,
accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then goes
back into the right lane again.
A simple maneuver‘?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane
highway is
a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds.
A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger can
suddenly put the passing driver face to face with
the
worst of all traffic accidents -- the head-on collision.
0 “Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides and to
crossroads for situations that night affect your passing
patterns.
If you have any doubt whatsoever about
making
a successful pass, wait for a better time.
0 Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and lines.
If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a
turn or an intersection, delay your pass. A broken
center line usually indicates it’s all right to pass
(providing the road ahead
is clear). Never cross a solid
line on your side of the lane or
a double solid line,
even
if the road seems empty of approaching traffic.
Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to pass
while you’re awaiting an
opportunity. For one thing,
following too closely reduces your area of vision,
especially
if you’re following a larger vehicle. Also,
you won‘t have adequate space
if the vehicle ahead
suddenly
slows or stops. Keep back a
reasonable distance.
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Loss of Control
Let’s review what driving experts say about what
happens when
the three control systems (brakes, steering
and acceleration) don’t have enough friction where the
tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked.
In any emergency, don’t give up. Keep trying to steer and
constantly seek an escape route or area of less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited
to existing conditions, and by not “overdriving”
those conditions. But skids are always possible.
The three types of skids correspond to your
Oldsmobile’s three control systems. In the braking skid,
your wheels aren’t rolling.
In the steering or cornering
skid, too much speed or steering in a curve causes tires
to slip and lose cornering force. And
in the acceleration
skid, too much throttle causes the driving wheels
to spin.
A cornering skid and an acceleration skid are best
handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the
vehicle to go. If you start steering quickly enough, your
vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for
a
second skid if it occurs.
Of course, traction
is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel or other material is on the road. For safety, you’ll
want
to slow down and adjust your driving to these
conditions.
It is important to slow down on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and
vehicle control more limited.
While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try
your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration or
braking (including engine braking by shifting to a lower
gear).
Any sudden changes could cause the tires to slide.
You may not realize
the surface is slippery until your
vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning
clues
-- such as enough water, ice or packed snow on
the road to make a “mirrored surface” -- and slow
down
when you have any doubt.
Remember:
Any anti-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.
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