spare tire OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS 1997 Owners Manual

Section 5 Problems on the Road
Here you’ll find what to do about some problems that can occur on the road.
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5-2
5-3
5-8
5- 10
5-11
5-12 5-13
How to Use Warning Flashers
Other Types of Warning Devices
Step-by-step Procedure for Jump Starting
Information
You Should Know Before Towing
Towing Your Vehicle From the Front
Towing Your Vehicle From the Rear
If Your Engine is Overheating
If Steam is Coming From
Your Engine
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5-20
5-2
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5-30
5-32
5-33
5-33
How to Add Coolant
What to do if a Tire Goes Flat
How to Change a Flat Tire
Where to Store the Flat Tire and Tools
Information on the Compact Spare Tire
If You’re Stuck in Sand, Mud, Snow or on Ice
How to Rock Your Vehicle
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Removing the Spare Tire and Tools
The equipment you’ll
need is in the
trunk. Turn
the center retainer nut on
the compact spare cover
to the left to remove it.
Lift and remove the cover. (See “Compact Spare Tire”
later in
this section for more information about the
compact spare.)
You will find the jacking instructions
label
on the underside of the tire cover. Turn
the wing nut to the left
and remove it. Then
lift off
the adapter and remove
the spare tire.
mi
Remove the jack and wheel wrench from the trunk.
Your vehicle’s jack and wheel wrench are stored in
a foam tray.
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m
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18” (46cm) M
18 (46cm)
4. Position the jack and raise the jack head until it fits
firmly into the notch in the vehicle’s frame nearest
the flat tire. Put the compact spare tire near you.
~
Getting under a vehicle when it is jacked up is
dangerous. If the vehicle slips off the jack, you
could be badly injured or killed. Never get under
a vehicle when it is supported only by a jack.
NOTICE:
Raising your vehicle with the jack improperly
positioned
will damage the vehicle or may allow
the vehicle
to fall off the jack. Be sure to fit the
jack lift head into the proper location before
raising your vehicle.
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NOTICE:
Do not jack or lift the vehicle using the oil pan.
Pans could crack and begin to leak fluid. When
jacking or lifting your vehicle, always place the
jack in the proper position.
NOTICE:
Do not jack or lift the vehicle using the
suspension components. Suspension components
can be damaged by doing this. When jacking or
lifting your vehicle, always place the jack in the
proper position.
5. Raise the vehicle by turning the wheel wrench to the
right. Raise the vehicle far enough
off the ground so
there is enough room for the spare tire to fit.
6. Remove all of the wheel nuts.
7. Then take off the flat tire.
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11. Tighten the wheel nuts
firmly in a criss-cross
sequence, as shown. I NOTICE:
Improperly tightened wheel nuts can lead to
brake pulsation .and rotor damage. To avoid
expensive brake repair.., evenly tighten the
wheel nuts in the proper sequenee~ and to the
proper torque specification.
Don’t try to put a wheel cover on YQU~ comp:act spare
tire.
It won’t fit. Store the wheel cover and wheel^ nut
caps in the trunk until you have the flat tire repaired
or replaced.
I NOTICE:
Wheel covers won’t fit on your compact spare.
If you try to put a wheel cover on your compact
spare, you could damage the cover or the spare.
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Storing the Spare Tire and Tools
Storing a jack, a tire or other equipment in the
passenger compartment
of the vehicle could
cause
injury. In a sudden stop or collision, loose
equipment could strike someone. Store all these
in the proper place.
The compact spare is for temporary use only. Replace
the compact spare tire with
a full-size tire as soon as you
can. See “Compact Spare Tire”
in the Index. See the
storage instructions label to replace your compact spare
into
your trunk properly.
F
G
A. Nut
B. Cover
C. Wing Bolt
D. Adapter
E. Wrench
E Jack
G. Extension (Aluminum Wheels Only)
H. Spare Tire
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Compact Spare Tire
Although the compact spare tire was fully inflated
when your vehicle was new,
it can lose air after a time.
Check the inflation pressure regularly. It should be
60 psi (420 Wa).
After installing the compact spare on your vehicle,
you should stop as soon as possible and make sure
your spare tire is correctly inflated. The compact
spare is made to perform well at speeds up to
65 mph
(105 km/h) for distances up to 3,000 miles (5 000 lun),
so you can finish your trip and have your full-size tire
repaired or replaced where you want. Of course, it’s best
to replace your spare with a full-size tire as soon
as you
can.
Your spare will last longer and be in good shape in
case you need it again.
NOTICE:
When the compact spare is installed, don’t take
your vehicle through an automatic car wash with
guide rails. The compact spare can get caught on
the rails. That can damage the tire and wheel,
and maybe other parts
of your vehicle. Don’t use your compact spare on other vehicles.
And don’t
mix your compact spare tire or wheel with
other wheels or tires. They won’t fit. Keep your spare
tire and its wheel together.
NOTICE:
Tire chains won’t fit your compact spare. Using
them can damage your vehicle and can damage
the chains too. Don’t use tire chains on your
compact spare.
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When to Check
Check your tires once a month or more.
Don’t forget your compact spare tire. It should be at
60 psi (420 Ea).
How to Check
Use a good quality pocket-type gage to check tire
pressure.
You can’t tell if your tires are properly inflated
simply by looking at them. Radial tires may look
properly inflated even when they’re underinflated.
Be sure to put the valve caps back on the valve
stems. They help prevent leaks by keeping out dirt
and moisture.
Tire Inspection and Rotation
Tires should be rotated every 6,000 to 8,000 miles (10
000 to 13 000 km). Any time you notice unusual wear,
rotate your tires
as soon as possible and check wheel
alignment.
Also check for darnaged tires or wheels. See
“When It’s Time for New Tires” and “Wheel
Replacement” later
in this section for more information.
The purpose of regular rotation is to achieve more
uniform wear for
dl tires on the vehicle. The first rotation is the most important.
See “Scheduled
Maintenance Services” in the Index for scheduled
rotation intervals.
When rotating your tires, always use the correct rotation
pattern shown here.
Don’t include the compact spare
tire in your tire rotation.
After the tires have been rotated, adjust the front and
rear inflation pressures as shown on the Tire-Loading
Information label. Make certain that all wheel nuts are
properly tightened. See “Wheel Nut Torque” in
the Index.
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Buying New Tires
To find out what kind and size of tires you need, look at
the Tire-Loading Information label,
The tires installed on your vehicle when it was new had
a Tire Performance Criteria Speclfication (TPC Spec)
number on each tire’s sidewall. When you get new tires,
get ones with that same TPC Spec number. That way
your vehicle will continue to have tires that are designed
to give proper endurance, handling, speed rating,
traction, ride and other things during normal service on
your vehicle.
If your tires have an all-season tread
design, the TPC number will be followed by an
“MS”
(for mud and snow).
If
you ever replace your tires with those not having a
TPC Spec number, make sure they are the same size,
load range, speed rating and construction type (bias,
bias-belted or radial) as your original tires. Mixing
tires could cause you to lose control while
driving.
If you mix tires of different sizes or types
(radial and bias-belted tires), the vehicle may not
handle properly, and you could have a crash.
Using tires
of different sizes may also cause
damage to your vehicle. Be sure to use the same
size and type tires on
all wheels.
I
It’s all right to drive with your compact spare,
though.
It was developed for use on your vehicle.
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Uniform Tire Quality Grading
The following information relates to the system developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Adrninistration, which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance.
(This
applies only to vehicles sold in the United States.) The
grades are molded on the sidewalls of most passenger
car tires. The Uniform Tire Quality Grading system does
not apply to deep tread, winter-type snow tires,
space-saver or temporary use spare tires, tires with
nominal
rim diameters of 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm),
or to some limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger
cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these
grades, they must also conform to Federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified government test course. For
example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and a half
.
(1 1/2) times as well on the government course as a tire
graded
100. The relative performance of tires depends
upon the actual conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to variations
in driving habits, service practices and differences
in
road characteristics and climate.
Traction -- A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are A, B, and
C, and they represent the tire’s ability to stop on wet
pavement
as measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt and concrete.
A tire marked C may have poor traction performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based
on braking (straight ahead) traction tests and does not
include cornering (turning) traction.
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