engine coolant PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1993 Owners Manual

r
These symbols are on some of your
controls:
Windshield Wipers
Windshield Washer
Headlight Washers
Windshield Defroster
Rear Window Defogger
Q@
Ventilating Fan
Power Window
These symbols are used on warning and
indicator lights:
L
I
a
Engine Coolant Temperature
Battery Charging System
Fuel
Engine
Oil Pressure
Brake
Anti-Lock Brakes
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Engine Coolant Temperature Warning Light
This light tells you that your engine
coolant has overheated
or your radiator
cooling fans are
not working. If you
have been operating your vehicle under
normal driving conditions, you should
pull off the road, stop your vehicle and
turn the engine
off as soon as possible.
HOT
COOLANT CAN BURN YOU
BADLY!
In Problems on the Road, this
manual shows what to do. See the
Index
under Engine Overheating.
Some clusters with gages do not have a
coolant temperature warning light.
In
those clusters a CHECK GAGES
warning light will alert you of a
potential coolant heating problem.
Low Coolant Warning light
(OPT/ON)
If this light comes on, your system may
be low
on coolant and the engine may
overheat. Check to see
if the level is
low, and add coolant if necessary. See
the
Index under Engine Coolant.
The LOW COOLANT warning light
will also come on when
you turn on the
ignition, but your engine is not running,
as a check to show you it is working.
If
it doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
right away.
101
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Features & Controls
Id
Traction Control System Warning
Light (CONT.)
108
rn Gages
Your Pontiac may have many of the
following gages. Be sure to read about
the ones that came with your vehicle.
Check Gage5 Warning Light
(OPTION)
This 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 gages for fuel,
coolant temperature,
oil pressure or
voltage.
This light will stay on if your
engine
is not running.
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Fuel Gage
You will either have this fuel gage or
one very similar. Your fuel gage tells
you about how much fuel you have left,
when
the ignition is on. When the gage
reads in the yellow band, a warning
chime will sound and the
CHECK
GAGES warning light will go on, if you
have it.
Here are five 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
F (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 speed up.
The gage doesn't go back to E (Empty)
when you turn off the ignition.
If you have the large span (220") gage,
the needle moves more for a given
amount
of fuel. This does not indicate
excessive fuel consumption, and is
normal.
For your fuel
tank capacity, see Sewice
Station Informution
on the last page of
this manual.
Engine Coolant Temperature
Gage
(OPTION)
A coolant temperature gage shows the
engine coolant temperature.
If the gage pointer moves into the red
warning area, your engine is too hot!
The
CHECK GAGES light will go on
and a warning chime will sound, if you
have this option. It means that your
engine coolant has overheated. If you
have been operating your vehicle under
normal driving conditions, you should
pull off the road, stop your vehicle and
turn off
the engine as soon as possible.
HOT COOLANT CAN
BURN YOU
BADLY! In Problems on the Road, this
manual shows what to do. See the
Index
under Engine Overheating.
10s
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Boost Gage (OPTION)
Vehicles equipped with the supercharged
engine have this boost gage that indicates vacuum during light to
moderate throttle and boost under
heavier throttle. The gage displays the
air pressure level
in psi going into the
engine’s combustion chamber.
The gage is automatically centered at
zero psi
every time the engine is started.
Actual vacuum or boost
is displayed
from this zero point. Changes
in
ambient pressure, such as driving in
mountains and changing weather, will slightly change
the zero reading.
I
rn Driver Znformation Center
If you have the Driver Information
Center, it gives you important safety and
maintenance facts. When you turn the ignition on, the entire Center lights up
for a few seconds. Then it goes to work.
FUNCTION MONITOR: This lets you
know if you are low
on fluids or have a
problem with a vehicle function:
CHECK OIL LEVEL: This message
could mean your oil level is low. If
it
comes on for more than three seconds, see
the Index under Check Oil Level
Warning Light.
WASHER FLUID: This message
means your washer fluid tank is less
than
30% full. The windshield portion
of the vehicle outline will also glow. If
these come on, see the
Index under
Windshield Washer Fluid.
means your coolant level has fallen to
about half full. If it comes on,
see the
Index under Engine Coolant.
CHECK GAGES: If this light comes
on and stays on while
you are driving,
check your gages for fuel, coolant
temperature, oil pressure or battery
voltage.
LOW COOLANT This message
111
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Toque Lock
If you are parking on a hill and you
don’t shift your transaxle into P (Park)
properly, the weight of the vehicle may
put too much force on the parking pawl in the transaxle.
You may find it difficult
to pull the shift lever out of P (Park).
This is called “torque lock.” To prevent
torque lock, always be sure
to shift into
P (Park) properly before you leave the
driver’s seat. To find out how, see the
Index under Shifing Into P (Park).
When you are ready to drive, move the
shift lever
out of P (Park) before you
release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need
to have another vehicle push yours a
little uphill
to take some of the pressure
from the transaxle,
so you can pull the
shift lever out
of P (Park).
Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your Pontiac in good shape for
winter. Be sure your engine coolant
mix is correct.
Snow tires can help in loose snow, but
they may give
you less traction on ice
than regular tires.
If you do not expect
to be driving in deep snow, but may
have to travel over ice,
you may not
want to switch to snow tires at all.
I
You may want to put winter
emergency supplies in your trunk.
Include an ice scraper, a small brush
or broom, a supply of windshield
washer fluid, a rag,
some winter outer
clothing, a small shovel, a flashlight, a
red cloth, and a couple
of reflective
warning triangles. And,
if you will be
driving under severe conditions,
include a small bag of sand, a piece of
old carpet
or a couple of burlap bags
to help provide traction. Be sure
you
properly secure these items in your
vehicle.
17s ...
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I' Problems on the Road
Engine Overheating
You will find a coolant temperature gage
or the warning light about a hot engine
on your Pontiac's instrument panel. See
the
Index under Coolant Temperature
Gage
and Coolant Temperature Warning
Light.
202
If your engine catches fire because
you keep driving with no coolant,
your vehicle can be badly
damaged. The costly repai
not be covered
by your warranty.
' Steam is Coming from Your Engine:
Steam from an overheated
, engine can burn you badly,
even
if you just open the hood. Stay
away hm the engine if you see or
hear steam coming from it. Just
turn it off and get everyone away
from the vehicle until itmols down.
Wait until there is no sign of steam
or coolant before opening the hood.
If you keep driving when your
engine is overheated, the liquids in
it can catch fm You or-others
could be badly burned. Stop your
engine if it wetheats, and get out
of the vehicle until the engine is
cool.
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Problems on the Road
Engine Overheating (CONK)
Cooling System
When you decide it’s safe to
lift the
hood, here’s what you’ll see:
(A) Coolant recovery tank
(B) Radiator pressure cap
(C) Electric engine fan
An
electric fan under the hood
h can start up even when the
engine is not running and can
injure
you. Keep hands, clothing
and tools away from any
underhood electric fan.
If the coolant inside the coolant
recovery tank is boiling, don’t do
anything else
until it cools down.
The coolant level should be at or above
the
FULL COLD mark. If it isn’t, you
may have a leak
in the radiator hoses,
heater hoses, radiator, water pump or
somewhere else
in the cooling system.
I I 1 Heater and radiator hoses, anc
- other engine parts, can be
very hot. Don’t touch them.
If you
do, you can be burned.
Don’t run the engine if there is a
leak.
If you run the engine, it
could lose all coolant. That could
cause an engine fire, and you could
be burned. Get any leak fixed
before you drive the vehicle.
I
Engine damage from running your
engine without coolant isn’t
covered by your warranty.
.. . 204
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should be running. If it isn’t, your
vehicle needs service.
How
to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery Tank:
If you haven’t found a problem yet, but
the coolant level isn’t up to the
FULL
COLD mark, add a 50/50 mixture of
clean water (preferably distilled) and a
proper antifreeze at the coolant recovery
tank. See the Index under Coolant for
more information about the proper
coolant mix.
I b-Au I IUN If there seems to be no leak, check to
see
if the electric engine fan is running. Adding only plain water to
If the engine is overheating, the fan L your cooling system can be
dangerous. Plain water, or some
other liquid like alcohol, can boil
before the proper coolant
mix will.
Your vehicle’s coolant
warning
,k L
You can be burned if you spill
coolant on
hot engine parts.
Coolant contains ethylene glycol
and it will burn if the engine parts
are
hot enough. Don’t spill coolant
on a hot engine.
system is set for the proper coolant
I
mix. With plain water or the
too hot but you wouldn’t get the
overheat warning. Your engine
could catch fm and you or others
be Use a mix
of clean water and a proper
antifreeze. When
the coolant in the coolant
COLD, start your vehicle. If the
overheat warning continues, there’s one
proper coolant mix directly
to the
more
thing you can try. You can add the
radiator, but be sure the cooling system
is cool before
you do it.
wrong
mix, Your
engine could get recovery tank is at or above FULL
I
In cold weather, water can freeze II
and crack the engine, radiator,
heater core and other
parts. Use
the recommended coolant.
I
r
205 ”
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Problems on the Road
i '. 'k
I Engine Overheating (CONT.)
Steam and scalding liquids
From a hot cooling system can
3w out and burn you badly. They
ale under pressure, and if you turn
I thl= radiator pressure cap-even a
tle-they can come out at high
I eed. Never turn the pressure cap
when the cooling system, including
the radiator pressure cap,
is hot.
Wait for the cooling system and
radiator pressure cap to cool if you
ever have to turn. the pressure cap.
How to Add Coolant to the Radiator:
1. You can remove the radiator pressure
cap when the cooling system,
including the radiator pressure cap
and upper radiator hose, is no longer
hot. Turn the pressure cap slowly to
the left
until it first stops. (Don't
press down while turning the
pressure cap.)
If you hear a hiss, wait for that to stop.
A hiss means there is still some pressure
left.
2. Then keep turning the pressure cap,
but now push down as you turn it.
Remove the pressure cap.
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