PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1994 Owners Manual

Problems on the Road
To Jump Start Your
Pontiac: (CONT.)
9. 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
good there, but the chance of sparks
getting back to the battery is much
less.
16. Now start the vehicle with the good
battery and
run the engine for a while.
11. Try to start the vehicle with the dead
battery.
If it won't start after a few tries, it
probably needs service.
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12. Re'move the cables in reverse order to
prevent electrical shorting. Take care
that they don't touch each other or
any other metal. Towing Your Pontiac
Try to have a GM dealer or a professional
towing service tow your Pontiac. The
usual towing equipment is:
(A) Sling-type tow truck
(B) Wheel-lift
(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.
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Before you do anything, turn on the
hazard warning flashers.
When you call, tell the towing service:
0 That, if you have the SSE or SSEi
model, your vehicle cannot be towed
from the front 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. 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. Do not use the
vehicle’s steering column lock for this.
The transaxle should be in Neutral 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
will
be damaged. If these limits must be
exceeded, then the front wheels have
to be
supported on a dolly.
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Problems on the Road
Towing Your Vehicle
(COnrT.)
Towing from the
Front-Vehicle
Hook-up
(EXCEPT SSE & SSEi)
Before hooking up to a tow truck, be sure
to read all the information on “Towing
Your Pontiac” earlier in this section.
1. Attach T-hook chains into the bottom
slots in
the cradle behind the front
wheels, on both sides.
2. Across sling chains, position a 4x4
wood beam against the bottom of the
radiator support behind the front
bumper.
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I I
3. Attach a separate safety chain around
the outboard end of each control arm. Towing from the
Front-Vehicle
Hook-up
(SSE & SSEi Only)
Before hooking up to a tow truck, be sure
to read all the information on “Towing
Your Pontiac” earlier
in this section.
Attach T-hook chains into the
slots just
behind the front wheels on both sides.
NOTICE:
Do not tow with sling-type
equipment or fascia/fog light
damage
will occur. Use wheel-lift
or car carrier equipment (additional
ramping may be required for car
carrier equipment). Use safety
chains and wheel straps.
173...
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Problems on the Road
Towing from the
Front-Vehicle Hook-up
(SSE & SSEi Only) (CONT.)
Attach a separate safety chain around the
outboard end of each control arm.
NOTICE:
Towing a vehicle over rough
surfaces could damage a vehicle.
Damage can occur from vehicle to
ground or vehicle to wheel-lift
equipment.
To help avoid damage,
install a towing dolly and raise
vehicle
until adequate clearance is
obtained between the ground and/or
wheel-lift equipment.
Do not attach winch cables or
J-hooks to suspension components
when using car carrier equipment.
Always use T-hooks inserted
in the
T-hook slots.
NOTICE:
To help avoid damaging a vehicle
during a tow over rough surfaces,
install a towing dolly beneath the
wheels that would otherwise be on
the ground during the tow. This
will
increase clearance between the
wheel-lift equipment and the
underbody of the towed vehicle.
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Towing from the
Rear-Vehicle tiook=up
(ALL)
Before hooking up to a tow truck, be sure
~ to read all the information on “Towing
Your Pontiac” earlier
in this section.
1 I Attach T-hook chains on both sides in
the slotted holes in the floor pan
support rails
just ahead of the rear
wheels.
2. Position the lower sling crossbar
directly under the rear bumper. 3. Attach a separate safety chain around
the outboard end
of each lower control
arm.
r
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Problems on the Road
H Engine Overheating
You will find a coolant temperature gage
or a warning light about a hot engine on
your Pontiac’s instrument panel. See
“Coolant Temperature Gage” and
“Coolant Temperature Warning Light” in
the Index.
If Steam Is Coming From
Your Engine
NOTICE:
If your engine catches fire because
you keep driving with no coolant,
your vehicle can be badly damaged.
The costly repairs would not be
covered by your warranty.
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If No Steam Is Coming
From Your Engine
If you get the overheat warning but see or
hear no steam, the problem may not be
too serious. Sometimes the engine can get
a little too hot when you:
0 Climb a long hill on a hot day.
0 Stop after high speed driving.
0 Idle for long periods in traffic.
Tow a trailer.
If you get the overheat warning with
no
sign of steam, try this for a minute or so:
1. Turn off your air conditioner.
2. Turn on your heater to full hot at the
highest fan speed and open the
window as necessary.
3. If you’re in a traffic jam, shift to “N”
(Neutral).
If you no longer have the overheat
warning, you can drive. Just to be safe,
drive slower for about ten minutes. If the
warning doesn’t come back on, you can
drive normally.
If the warning continues, pull over, stop,
and park your vehicle right away.
If there’s still no sign of steam, you can
idle the engine for two or three minutes
while you’re parked, to see
if the warning
stops.
But then,
if you still have the warning,
TURN
OFF THE ENGINE AND GET
EVERYONE OUT
OF THE VEHICLE
until it cools down.
You may decide not to lift the hood but to
get service help right away.
11
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
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Problems on the Ro,ad
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Cooling System (CONT.)
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.
NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your
engine without coolant isn’t covered
by your warranty.
If there seems to be no leak, check to see
if the electric engine fan is running. If the
engine
is overheating, the fan 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
at or above the
“FULL COLD’ mark, add
a 50/50
mixture of clean water (preferably
distilled) and
a proper antifreeze at the
coolant recovery tank. (See “Engine Coolant”
in the Index for more
information about the proper coolant
mix.)
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NOTICE:
In cold weather, water can freeze
and crack the engine, radiator,
heater core and other parts. Use the
recommended coolant. When
the coolant
in the coolant recovery
tank
is at or above the “FULL COLD’
mark, start your vehicle.
If the overheat warning continues, there’s
one more thing you can try.
You can add
the proper coolant
mix directly to the
radiator
but be sure the cooling system is
cool before you do it.
179.
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