warning OLDSMOBILE SILHOUETTE 2003 Owner's Manual

Charging System Indicator Message
The charging system
battery symbol will come
on in the message
center when you turn on
the ignition as a check
to show you it is working.
It will remain on as long as the engine is not running.
It should go out once the engine is running.
If it stays on,
or comes on while you are driving, you may have a
problem with the charging system. It could indicate that
you have problems with a generator drive belt,
or another electrical problem. Have it checked right
away. Driving while this indicator appears in the
message center could drain your battery.
Low Oil Pressure Message
LOW
OIL
PRESSURE
LL
United States Canada
Your vehicle is equipped with a low oil pressure warning
message.
Your oil pressure message lets you know when you
may have a problem with your engine oil pressure.
When the engine is running and this message appears,
the engine oil level may be too low. There may also
be another problem causing low oil pressure.
If you must drive a short distance with the message on,
be certain to turn
off all your accessories, such as
the radio and air conditioner.
3-54

Change Engine Oil Message
I I I
CHANGE ENGINE
OIL c
United States Canada
If this message comes on and stays on after you started
the engine, have the oil changed.
For additional information on when to change the oil
and resetting the system, see
Engine Oil on page 5-14.
Power Sliding Door Warning
Message
DOOR AJAR
L:”
I I I
United States Canada
This message will come on
if the power sliding door is
not completely closed and the ignition is turned to
RUN or START.
3-56

If you shift the transaxle out of PARK (P) while the
power sliding door is open or in the process of closing,
and the power sliding door is turned
off, a buzzer
will sound. This is a warning that the power sliding door
is not completelv closed.
shift the transaxle out of PARK (Pi nd
accelerate before the power sliding door latches closed, the door may reverse to the
open position. A child or others could fall out
of the vehicle and be injured. Always make
sure the power sliding door
is closed and
latched before you drive away.
Door Ajar Warning Message
DOOR
AJAR
United States Canada
This message will come on when the ignition is turned
to
RUN or START and the driver’s or passenger’s
door is open.
It may also come on
if a sliding door is not in the fully
latched position.
3-57

Rear Hatch Ajar Warning Message
77
REAR
HATCH
AJAR
I I
United States
I
Canada
This message will come on when the ignition is turned
to
RUN or START and the rear hatch is open.
PASS-Key@ 111 Security Message
SECURITY
Ga
I I I I
United States Canada
If you are ever driving and this message comes on
and stays on, you will be able to restart your engine
if
you turn it off.
Your PASS-Key@ Ill system, however, is not working
properly and must be serviced
by your dealer. Your
vehicle
is not protected by the PASS-Key@ Ill system
at this time. See
PASS-Key@ 111 on page 2-29 for more
information.
3-58

All-Wheel Drive Disable Warning
Message
AWD
DISABLE
I I I I
United States Canada
Your vehicle may have this message. If
it does, it will
come on when there is a spare tire on the vehicle, or
when the anti-lock brake system warning light comes on,
or when the rear differential fluid is overheating. This
message will go out when the differential fluid cools.
The all-wheel-drive system will be disabled until the
compact spare tire is replaced by a full-size tire.
If the warning message is still on after putting on the
tull-slze tire, you need to reset the warning message.
To reset the warning message, turn the ignition
off
and then back on again. If the message stays on,
see your dealer right away. See
All-Wheel Drive
(A WD)
System on page 4-1 I for more information.
Low Fuel Warning Message
I
United States Canada
If your fuel is low, the warning message will come on
and stay on until you add fuel.
If the warning message is still on after adding fuel,
you need to reset the warning message. To reset the
warning message, turn the ignition off and then back on.
If the message stays on, see your dealer.
3-59

Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive
in spurts
- heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking
- rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is
a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool
between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much
faster
if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace
with the traffic and allow realistic following distances,
you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking.
That means better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes.
If you do,
the pedal may get harder to push down.
If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist.
But you will use
it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle may have anti-lock brakes. ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help prevent a braking skid.
If your vehicle has anti-lock
brakes, this warning light
on the instrument panel will
come on briefly when
you start your vehicle.
When you start your engine, or when you 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, and you may even
notice that your brake pedal moves or pulses a little.
This is normal.
4-7

Traction Control System (TCS)
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.
The TRACTION ACTIVE message will come on when
the traction control system is limiting wheel spin.
See
Traction Active Message on page 3-53. 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’’ under
Turn SignaVMultifunction Lever on page 3-7.
SERVICE
TRACTION
SYSTEM
United States
Canada
If this message comes on and stays on or comes on
while you are driving, there’s
a problem with your
traction control system.
See
Service Traction System Warning Message on
page
3-52. When this warning message is on, the TRAC
OFF light will come on to remind you that 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 or
snow and rocking the vehicle is required. See “Rocking
Your Vehicle” under
If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice
or Snow on page
4-30.
4-1 0

To turn the system off,
press the TCS button
located on the instrument
panel switchbank.
All-Wheel Drive (AWD) System
If your vehicle has all-wheel drive (AWD), the AWD
system operates automatically without any action
required by the driver.
If the front drive wheels begin
to slip, the rear wheels will automatically begin to
drive the vehicle as required. There may be a slight
engagement noise during hard use but this is normal.
During heavy
AWD applications, the engine torque
may be reduced to protect AWD system components.
If the vehicle is exposed to extended heavy AWD usage,
the AWD system will shut itself
off to protect the system
from overheatinq. When the system
cools down, the
AWD system will activate itself again automatically; this
If the System is hliting wheel Spin when
YOU press the cool-down can take up to 20 minutes depending on
button, the traction active message will go
off, but outside temperature and vehicle use. See All-Wheel
the system will not turn off until there is no longer a Drive Disable Warning Message on page 3-59.
current need to limit wheel spin. The TRAC OFF light will
come on to remind you the system is
off. You can
turn the system back
on at any time by pressing the
button again.
The traction control system warning
4-1 1

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 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 is best handled by easing your foot
off
the accelerator pedal.
If you have the Traction Control System, remember:
It helps avoid only the acceleration skid.
If you do not
have this system, or
if the system is off, then an
acceleration skid is also 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.
If you have the anti-lock braking system, remember:
It helps avoid only the braking skid.
if you do not have
anti-lock, then in a braking skid (where the wheels
are no longer rolling), release enough pressure on the
brakes to get the wheels rolling again. This restores
steering control. Push the brake pedal down steadily
when you have to stop suddenly.
As long as the wheels
are rolling, you will have steering control.
4-1 6

Hydroplaning .-- Thr -W
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
Nofice: 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.
~ 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.
9
e
Some Other Rainy Weather Tips
Turn on your low-beam headlamps - not just your
parking lamps -to help make you more visible
to others.
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 5-60.
9
4-20