Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme 1995 Owner's Manuals

Making ’hrns When towing a trailer, the green arrows on your
.~ ~~~ ~ ~~ ~ instrument panel will flash for turns even if the bulbs on
the trailer are burned oat. Thus, you may think drivers
c e.. NOTICE: behind you are seeing your signal when they are not. It’s
, important to check occasionally to be sure the trailer
Making very sharp turns while trailering could bulbs ‘be still w’orking.
cause the trailer to come in contact with the
vehicle. Your vehicle could
be damaged. Avoid Driving On Grades
I- making very sharp turns while trailering. I
When you’re turning with a trailer, make wider turns
than normal.
Do this so your trailer won’t strike soft
shoulders, curbs, road
signs, trees, or other objects.
Avoid,jerky or sudden maneuvers. Signal well in
advance.
lhrn Signals When Towing a Trailer
When you tow a trailer, your vehicle has to have a
different turn signal flasher and extra wiring. The green
arrows on your instrument panel will flash whenever
you signal a turn
or lane change. Properly hooked up,
the trailer lamps
will also flash, telling other drivers
you’re about to turn, change lanes or,stop. Reduce
speed and shift to a lower gear
before you start
down a long or steep downgrade. If you don’t shift
down, you might have to use your brakes
so much that
they would get hot and no longer work well.
On a long uphill grade, shift down and reduce your
speed to around
45 mph (70 kdh) to reduce the
possibility of engine and transaxle overheating.
If you are towing a trailer, you may prefer to drive in
THIRD (3) instead of DRIVE (D) (or, as you need to, a
lower gear).
4-33

Parking on Hills
You really should not park your vehicle, with a trailer
attached,
on a hill. If something goes wrong, your rig
could start to move. People can be injured, and
both^
your vehicle and the trailer can be darnaged.
But if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here’s
how to do it:
.I. Apply your regular brakes, but don’t shift into
.. !PARK (P) yet.
2. ‘Have someone place chocks under the trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the
regular brakes until the chocks absorb the load.
4. Reapply the regular brakes. Then apply your parking
brake, and then shift to PARK
(P).
When You Are Ready to Leave After
Parking o,n a
Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold the pedal down
8’. .
while you:
Start your engine;
Shift into a gear; and
Release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until the trailer is dear of the chocks.
4. Stop and have someone pick up and store the chocks.
Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more often when you’re
pulling a trailer. See the Maintenance Schedule for,more
.on this. Things that are especially important in trailer
operation are automatic transaxle fluid (don’t oyerfill),
engine oil, belt, cooling system, .and brake adjustment.
Each of these
is covered in this manual, and the Index
will help you find them quickly. If you’re trailering, it’s
a good idea
to review these sections before you start
your trip.
Check periodically to see that all hitch nuts and bolts are
tight.
4-34,

I Section 5 Problems on the Road
Here you’ll find what to do about some problems that Your
hazard warning flashers let you warn others. They
can occur on the road.
also let police know you have a problem. Your front and
rear turn signal lamps will flash on and
off.
Hazard Warning Flashers
Press the switch to make your front and rear turn si,gnal
lamps flash on and
off. Your hazard warning flashers
work no matter what position your key is in, and even if
the key isn’t in.
To turn
off the flashers, press the switch again. When
the hazard warning flashers are on, your turn signals
I ’won’t work.
5-1 /

2. Get the vehicles close enougn so the jumper cables
can reach, but be sure the vehicles aren’t touching
each other. If they are, it could cause a ground
connection you don’t want. You wouldn’t be able to
start your Oldsmobile, and the bad grounding could
damage the electrical systems.
You could be injured if the vehicles roll. Set the
parking brake firmly on each vehicle. Put
an
automatic transaxle in PARK (P) or a manual
transaxle in
NEUTRAL (N).
3. Turn off the ignition on both vehicles. Turn off all
lamps that aren’t needed, and radios.
This will avoid
sparks and help Save both batteries. And it could
save your radio!
“NOTICE:
If you leave your radio on, it could be badly
damaged. The repairs wouldn’t be covered by
your warranty.
4. Open the hoods and locate the batteries.
5. Find the positive (+) and negative (-) terminals
on each battery. Your Oldsmobile has a remote
positive
(+) jump starting terminal. The terminal is
on the same side
of the engine compartment as your
battery. You should always use the remote
positive
(+) terminal instead of the positive (+)
terminal on your battery. To uncover the remote .
positive (+) termihal, lift the red plastic cap.
1
5-3

..

6. Check that the jumper cables don’t have loose or
missing insulation. If they do, you could get
a shock.
The vehicles could be damaged, too.
Before you connect the cables, here
are some basic
things you should know. Positive
(+) will .go to
positive
(+) and negative (-) will go to negative (-)
or a metal engine part. Don’t connect (+) to (-), or
you’ll get a short that would damage the battery and
maybe other
parts, too.

7.
8. Don’t let the other: end
l touch. metal. Connect it ’ toihe positive (+)
terminal of the good
battery. Use a remote
. . positive (+) terminal if
the vehicle has one.
,9. Now connect the black
negative
(-) cable to the
Conpect the red positive
(+) cable to the positive (+) good battery’s negative
tekninal
of the vehicle with the dead battery. Use a (-) terminal. Don’t let
remote positive
(+> terminal if the vehicle has one. the other end touch
anything until the next
step.
The other end of
the negative cable
doesn’t go to the dead
battery. It goes to a
heavy, unpainted, metal
part on the engine
of the
vehicle with the dead
battery;
5-5

10. Attach the cable at least 18 inches (45 cm) away
from the dead battery, but not near engine parts that
move. The electrical connection
is just as goad
there, but the chance of
sparks getting back to the
battery is much less.
11. . Now start the vehicle with the good battery and'run
the engine for a while.
12. Try to start the vehicle with the dead battery. If it
won't
start after a few tries, it probably needs
service.
13. Remove the cables in reverse order to prevent
electrical shorting. Take care that they don't touch
each other or any other metal.
I
A. Heavy Metal Engine Part
B
. Good Battery
C. Dead Battery
5-6

Towing Your Vehicle
Try to have a GM retailer or a professional towing
service tow your Oldsmobile. The usual towing
equipment is:
A. Sling-type Tow Truck
B. Wheel-lift Tow Truck
C.
Car Carrier If
your vehicle has been changed or modified since it
was factory-new by adding aftermarket items like fog
lamps, aero skirting, or special tires and wheels, these
instructions and illustrations may not be correct.
Before
you do anything, turn on the hazard warning
flashers.
When you call, tell
the towing service:
That your vehicle cannot be towed from the front or
rear with sling-type equipment.
0 That your vehicle has front-wheel drive.
The make, model, and year of your vehicle.
Whether you can still move the shift lever.
0 If there was an accident, what was damaged.
When
the towing service arrives, let the tow operator
know that this manual contains detailed towing instructions and illustrations. The operator may want
to see them.
5-7

r. ..
When your vehicle is being towed, have the ignition
key
off. The steering wheel should be clamped in a
straight-ahead position, with a clamping device
designed for towing service.
DQ not use the vehicle’s
steering column lock for this. The transaxle should be’in
NEUTRAL (N) and the parking brake released.
Don’,t have your vehicle towed on the front wheels,
unless you must.. If the vehicle ‘must be towed
on the
front wheels, don’t go more
than 35 mph (56 km/h) or
farther than
50 miles (80 km) or your transaxle wilLbe
damaged. If these limits must be exceeded, then the
front wheels have
to be supported on a dolly.