octane PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1998 Owners Manual

/1 CAUTION:
You can be injured and your vehicle could be
damaged
if you try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about it.
0 Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts
and tools before you attempt any vehicle
maintenance task.
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners. “English” and “metric”
fasteners
can be easily confused. If you use
the wrong fasteners, parts can later break
or fall
off. You could be hurt.
Adding Equipment to the Outside of
Your Vehicle
Things you might add to the outside of your vehicle can
affect the airflow around it. This may cause wind noise
and affect windshield washer performance. Check with
your dealer before adding equipment to the outside
of
your vehicle.
Fuel
The 8th digit of your vehicle identification number
(VIN) shows the code letter for your engine. You will
find the VIN at the top left
of your instrument panel.
(See .“Vehicle Identification Number”
in the Index.)
If you have the 3800 engine (VIN Code K), use regular
unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher. If you’re
using fuel rated at the recommended octane or higher
and you hear heavy knocking, your engine needs
service. But don’t
worry if you hear a little pinging
noise when you’re accelerating or driving up a
hill.
That’s normal, and you don’t have to buy a higher octane fuel to get
rid of pinging. It’s the heavy, constant
knock that means you have a problem.
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If you have the 3800 Supercharged engine (VIN Code
l), use premium unleaded gasoline rated at 91 octane
or higher. With the
3800 Supercharged engine, in an
emergency, you may be able to use a lower octane -- as
low as
87 -- if heavy knocking does not occur. If you
are using
91 or higher octane unleaded gasoline and
you hear heavy knocking, your engine needs service.
At a minimum, the gasoline you use should meet specifications
ASTM D4814 in the United States and
CGSB 3.5-M93 in Canada. Improved gasoline
specifications have been developed by the American
Automobile Manufacturers Association
(AAMA) for
better vehicle performance and engine protection.
Gasolines meeting the AAMA specification could
provide improved driveability and emission control
system protection compared to other gasolines.
Be sure the posted octane for premium is at least
91 (at
least
89 for middle grade and 87 for regular). If the
octane is less than
87, you may get a heavy knocking
noise when you drive. If it’s bad enough, it can damage
your engine.
If your vehicle is certified to meet California Emission
Standards (indicated
on the underhood emission control
label), it is designed to operate on fwels that meet
California specifications. If such fuels are not available
in states adopting California emissions standards, your vehicle will operate satisfactorily
on fuels meeting
federal specifications, but emission control system
performance may be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp on your instrument panel may
turn on and/or your
vehicle may fail a smog-check test. If this occurs, return
to
your authorized Pontiac dealer for diagnosis to
determine the cause of failure.
In the event it is
determined that the cause of the condition
is the type of
fuels used, repairs
may not be covered by your warranty.
Some gasolines that are not reformulated
for low
emissions contain
an octane-enhancing additive called
methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl
(MMT);
ask your service station operator whether or not his fuel
contains
MMT. General Motors does not recommend the
use of such gasolines. If fuels containing MMT are used,
spark plug life may be reduced and your emission
control system performance may be affected. The
malfunction indicator lamp
on your instrument panel
may
turn on. If this occurs, return to your authorized
Pontiac dealer for service.
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