warning Oldsmobile Bravada 2003 s User Guide

Readings in the low warning zone may occur when a
large number of electrical accessories are operating in
the vehicle and the engine is left idling for an
extended period. This condition is normal since the
charging system is not able
to provide full power
at engine idle. As engine speeds are increased, this
condition should correct itself as higher engine speeds
allow the charging system
to create maximum power.
You can only drive for a short time with the reading
in either warning zone. If you must drive, turn
off
all unnecessary accessories.
Readings in either warning zone indicate a possible
problem in the electrical system. Have the vehicle
serviced as soon as possible. Your
vehicle’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.
If the warning light comes on, there could be a brake
problem. Have your brake system inspected right away.
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I BRAKE I I
I I I
United States Canada
Brake System Warning Light
When the ignition is on, the brake system warning light
will come on when you set your parking brake. The
light will stay on
if your parking brake doesn’t release
fully. If it stays on after your parking brake is fully
released, it means you have a brake problem.
A chime
may also sound when the light comes on. This light should come on briefly when you turn the
ignition key
to RUN. If it doesn’t come on then, have it
fixed
so it will be ready to warn you if there’s a
problem.
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If the light comes 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
on page 4-41.
. ,UT brake sl ,,em m,, not be WOL ... ng
properly if the brake system warning light is
on. Driving with the brake system 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.
I
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.
A chime may also
sound when the light
comes on.
If the light stays on, or comes on when you’re driving,
your vehicle 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 on page 3-33
earlier in this section.
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.
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Service All-Wheel Drive Light
S IC
AWD
United States Canada
This light should come on briefly when you turn on the
ignition, as a check to show you
it is working.
The SERVICE AWD light comes on
to indicate that
there may be a problem with the drive system and
service is required. Malfunctions can be indicated by the
system before any problem is apparent, which may
prevent serious damage
to the vehicle. This system is
also designed
to assist your service technician in
correctly diagnosing a malfunction.
Check Gages Warning Light
CHECK
GAGES
1 United States J
Canada
The CHECK GAGES light will come on briefly when you
are starting the engine.
If the light comes on and stays on while you are driving,
check your coolant temperature and engine oil pressure gages
to see if they are in the warning zones.
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Gate Ajar Light
‘1
United States Canada
If this light comes on, your liftgate or liftglass is ajar. Try
closing the liftgate or liftglass again. Never drive with
the liftgate or liftglass even partially open.
Fuel Gage
a
When the ignition is on, the fuel gage tells you about
how much fuel you have remaining.
Here are four things that some owners ask about. None
of these show a problem with your fuel gage:
At the gas station, the gas pump shuts off before
the gage reads 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
The gage doesn’t go back to empty when you turn
speed up.
off the
ignition.
Low Fuel Warning Light
The light next to the fuel gage will come on briefly when
you are starting the engine.
This light comes on when the fuel tank is low on fuel.
To turn it
off, add fuel to the fuel tank. See Fuel on
page 5-5.
United States Canada
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Driver Information Center (DIC)
Your vehicle may have this feature. The DIC display
is located on the instrument panel cluster above
the steering wheel. The DIC can display information
such as the trip odometer, fuel economy and
personalization features. The DIC buttons are located
on the steering wheel.
B. Fuel Information: This button will display the
current range, average fuel economy, instant fuel
economy and engine oil life.
C.
Personalization: This button will change personal
D.
Select: This button resets certain functions and
options available
on your vehicle.
turns
off or acknowledges messages on the DIC.
A. Trip Information: This button will display the
odometer, trip odometer and the timer.
DIC Operation and Displays
The DIC comes on when the ignition is on. After a short
delay the DIC will display the current driver and the
information that was last displayed before the engine
was turned
off.
If a problem is detected, a warning message will appear
on the display. Pressing the select button will
acknowledge any current warning or service messages.
The DIC has different modes which can be accessed
by pressing the four buttons on the DIC. These buttons
are trip information, fuel information, personalization
and select. The button functions are detailed in
the following.
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Personalization
You can program certain features to a preferred setting
for up to two people. Press the personalization button
to scroll through the following personalization features.
All of the personalization options may not be available
on your vehicle. Only the options available will be
displayed on your DIC.
ALARM WARNING TYPE
AUTOMATIC LOCKING
AUTOMATIC UNLOCKING
SEAT POSITION RECALL
PERIMETER LIGHTING
REMOTE LOCK FEEDBACK
REMOTE UNLOCK FEEDBACK
HEADLAMPS ON AT EXIT
MIRROR CURB VIEW ASSIST
EASY EXIT DRIVER SEAT
DISPLAY UNITS (E/M)
DISPLAY LANGUAGE
The driver’s preferences are recalled by pressing the
unlock button on the remote keyless entry transmitter or
by pressing the appropriate memory button
1 or 2
located on the driver’s door.
Alarm Warning Type
Press the personalization button until ALARM
WARNING TYPE appears in the display. To select your
personalization for alarm warning type, press the
select button while ALARM WARNING TYPE is
displayed on the DIC. Pressing the select button will
scroll through the following choices:
ALARM WARNING: BOTH (default)
ALARM WARNING: OFF
ALARM WARNING: HORN
ALARM WARNING: LAMPS
If you choose BOTH, the headlamps will flash and the
horn will chirp when the alarm is active.
If you choose OFF, there will be no alarm warning on
activation.
If you choose HORN, the horn will chirp when the alarm
is active.
If you choose LAMPS, the headlamps will flash when
the alarm is active.
Choose one of the four options and press the
personalization button while it is displayed
on the DIC to
select it and move on to the next feature. For more
information on alarm warning type, see
Content
Theft-Deterrent on page
2- 16.
3-46

Display Language
To select your personalization for display language, press the select button while DISPLAY LANGUAGE is
displayed on the DIC. Pressing the select button
will scroll through the available languages:
Choosing a language will display all of the information
on the DIC in the desired language.
If you accidentally choose a language that you don’t
want or understand, press and hold the personalization
button and the trip information button at the same
time. The DIC will begin scrolling through the languages
in their particular language. English will be in English,
French will be in French and
so on. When you see
the language that you would like, release both buttons.
The DIC will then display the information in the language you chose.
Choose one of the options and press the personalization
button while it is displayed on the DIC to select it.
Select
The select button is used to reset certain functions and
turn
off or acknowledge messages on the DIC display.
The select button also toggles through the options
available in each personalization menu. For example, this
button will reset the trip odometers, turn
off the FUEL
LEVEL LOW message, and toggle through the languages
you can select the DIC to display information in.
DIC Warnings and Messages
Warning messages are displayed on the DIC to notify
the driver that the status of the vehicle has changed and
that some action may be needed by the driver to
correct the condition. More than one message may
appear at one time. They will appear one behind
the other. Some messages may not require immediate
action but you should press the select button to
acknowledge that you received the message and clear it
from the display. Some messages cannot be cleared
from the display because they are more urgent. These
messages require action before they can be removed
from the DIC display. The following are the possible
messages that can be displayed and some information
about them.
ENGINE COOLANT HOThDLE ENGINE
If the cooling system temperature gets hot, this
message will appear in the DIC and you will hear a
chime. Stop the vehicle and let the engine idle in
PARK (P) to allow the coolant to reach a safe
temperature. This message will clear when the coolant
temperature drops to a safe operating temperature.
3-52

Anti-lock Brake System
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes. 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
on page 3-34.
Along with ABS, your vehicle has a Dynamic Rear
Proportioning (DRP) system. If there’s a DRP problem,
both the brake and ABS warning lights will come on
accompanied by a IO-second chime. The lights
and chime will come on each time the ignition
is turned
on until the problem is repaired. See your dealer for
service. Let’s say the
road is wet and you’re driving safely.
Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam
on the brakes and continue braking. 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 both rear wheels.
4-7

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.
Operating Your All-Wheel-Drive
Vehicle
Off Paved Roads
Many of the same design features that help make your
vehicle responsive on paved roads during poor
weather conditions
- features like the locking rear axle
and all-wheel drive
- help make it much better suited
for off-road use than a conventional passenger
car. Its higher ground clearance also helps your vehicle
step over some off-road obstacles. But your vehicle
doesn’t have features like special underbody shielding and a transfer case low gear range, things that are
usually thought necessary for extended or severe
off-road service. This guide is for operating your vehicle
off paved roads.
Also, see
Braking on page 4-6.
Off-road driving can be great fun. But it does have
some definite hazards. The greatest
of these is
the terrain itself.
“Off-roading” means you’ve left the
North American road
system behind. Traffic lanes aren’t marked. Curves
aren’t banked. There are no road signs. Surfaces can
be slippery, rough, uphill or downhill. In short, you’ve
gone right back
to nature.
Off-road driving involves some new skills. And that’s
why it’s very important that you read this guide.
You’ll find many driving tips and suggestions. These will
help make your off-road driving safer and more
enjoyable.
4-1 5

Hydroplaning C ‘vir T’ lough --
Hydroplaning is dangerous. So much water can build up
under your tires that they can actually ride on the
water. This can happen
if the road is wet enough and
you’re going fast enough. When your vehicle is
hydroplaning, it has little or no contact with the road.
Hydroplaning doesn’t happen often. But it can
if
your tires do not have much tread or if the pressure in
one or more is low.
It can happen if a lot of water is
standing on the road. If you can see reflections
from trees, telephone poles or other vehicles, and
raindrops “dimple” the water’s surface, there could be
hydroplaning.
Hydroplaning usually happens at higher speeds. There
just isn’t
a hard and fast rule about hydroplaning.
The best advice
is to slow down when it is raining.
Driving Through Deep Standing Water
Notice: If you drive too quickly through deep
puddles or standing water, water can come
in
through your engine’s air intake and badly damage
your engine. Never drive through water that is
slightly lower than the underbody of your vehicle.
If
you can’t avoid deep puddles or standing water,
drive through them very slowly.
owing W
-
:er
-
Flowing or rushing water creates strong
forces.
If you try to drive through flowing
water, as you might
at a low water crossing,
your vehicle can be carried away.
As little as
six inches of flowing water can carry away
a
smaller vehicle. If this happens, you and other
vehicle occupants could drown. Don’t ignore police warning signs, and otherwise be very
cautious about trying to drive through flowing
water.
Some Other Rainy Weather Tips
Besides slowing down, allow some extra following
distance. And be especially careful when you
pass another vehicle. Allow yourself more clear
room ahead, and be prepared
to have your
view restricted by road spray.
Have good tires with proper tread depth. See Tires
on page 5-52.
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