ESP OLDSMOBILE SILHOUETTE 1998 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
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 can unbuckle and eet out, is much 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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Door Locks
I-
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.
From the outside, use your key or the remote lock
control transmitter (if your vehicle
has this option).
To unlock either front door from the outside with the
key, insert the key and turn it toward the front
of
the vehicle.
You can lock either front door from the outside with
your key by inserting
and turning it toward the rear of
the vehicle.
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Theft Parking at Night
Vehicle theft is big business, especially in some cities.
Although your vehicle 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 chime 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 transaxle. And remember
to lock
the doors. Park
in a lighted spot,
close all windows and lock your
vehicle. Remember to keep your valuables out of sight.
Put them in a storage area, or take them with you.
Parking Lots
If you park in a lot where someone will be watching
your vehicle, it’s best to lock it
up and take your key.
But what
if you have to leave your key? What if you
have to leave something valuable in your vehicle?
Put your valuables in a storage area, like your
glove box.
Lock all the doors except the driver’s.
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Exterior Lamps
500: Turning the dial to this setting turns on:
0 Parking Lamps
Sidemarker Lamps
Taillamps
Instrument Panel Lights
@ Turning the dial to this setting turns on the
headlamps, together with:
. Parking Lmps
Sidemarker Lamps
0 Taillamps
0 Instrument Panel Lights
0 Turning the dial to this setting turns off all the lamps
and lights.
Lamps On Reminder
If the driver’s door is opened and you turn the ignition
to
OFF or LOCK while leaving the lamps on, you will
hear a warning chime.
Daytime Running Lamps
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others to see the front
of your vehicle during the day.
DlU can be helpful
in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the
short periods after dawn and before sunset.
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Understanding Radio Reception
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.
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.
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 harmful 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:
0 Adjust the volume control to the lowest setting.
0 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 Electronics radio or
other systems, and even damage them. Your
vehicle’s systems may interfere 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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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 passenger -- is in a crash, that
person’s chance of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than if the person had not been drinlung. 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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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
firmly and
let anti-lock work for you. You may feel a
slight brake pedal pulsation or notice some noise, but
this is normal.
If your vehicle has the
traction control system, this
LOW light will come on when
your anti-lock system is
help avoid a braking
skid.
TRACTI adjusting brake pressure to
See “Low Traction Light” in the Index.
Traction Control System (If Equipped)
Your vehicle may have a traction control system that
limits wheel spin. This is especially useful
in slippery
road conditions. The system operates only if it senses
that
one or both of the front wheels are spinning or
beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the
system works the front brakes and reduces engine power
to limit wheel spin.
This light will come on
when the traction control
system is limiting wheel
spin. See “Low Traction
Light” in the Index.
LOW
TRACTION
You may feel or hear the system working, but this
is normal.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction
control system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise
control will automatically disengage. When road
conditions allow you to safely
use it again, you may
reengage the cruise control. (See “Cruise Control”
in the Index.)
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This light should come
on briefly when you start
the engine.
If it stays
on
or comes on while you
are driving, there’s a
problem with your traction
control system.
See “Traction Control System Warning Light” in the
Index. When this warning light is on, the system will not
limit wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.
The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever you start your vehicle. To
limit wheel spin,
especially in slippery road conditions, you should
always leave the system on. But you can turn the
traction control system off
if you ever need to. (You
should turn the system
off if your vehicle ever gets stuck
in sand, mud, ice or snow. See “Rocking Your Vehicle”
in the Index.)
c the TCS symbol on the
C bottom of the button in the
C center console switchbank.
The indicator light on the
traction control button will
c
go off.
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If the system is limiting wheel spin when you press the
button, the indicator light will go
off, but the system will
not turn
off until there is no longer a current need to
limit wheel spin. You can turn the system back on at any
time by pressing the button again. The traction control
system warning light should go
off.
Braking in Emergencies
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.
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0 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.
When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start to accelerate but stay in the right lane and don’t
get too close. Time your move
so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes
to move into the
other lane.
If the way is clear to pass, you will have a
“running start” that more than makes up for the
distance you would lose
by dropping back. And if
something happens to cause you to cancel your pass,
you need only slow down and drop back again and
wait for another opportunity.
If other cars are lined up to pass a slow vehicle, wait
your turn. But take care that someone isn’t trying to
pass you as you pull
out to pass the slow vehicle.
Remember to glance over your shoulder and check
the blind spot.
Check your mirrors, glance over your shoulder and
start your left lane change signal before moving out
of the right lane to pass. When you are
far enough
ahead
of the passed vehicle to see its front in your
inside mirror, activate your right lane change signal
and move back into the right lane. (Remember that
your right outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you
just passed may seem to
be farther away from you
than it really is.)
0 Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time
on two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the
next vehicle.
Don’t overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly.
Even though the brake lamps
are not flashing, it may
be slowing down or starting
to turn.
0 If you’re being passed, make it easy for the
following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you
can ease a little to the right.
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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.
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 vehicle’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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