cooling PONTIAC GRAND PRIX 2002 Owners Manual

2-25
Trunk
CAUTION:
It can be dangerous to drive with the trunk lid
open because carbon monoxide (CO) gas can
come into your vehicle. You can't see or smell
CO. It can cause unconsciousness and even death.
If you must drive with the trunk open or if
electrical wiring or other cable connections must
pass through the seal between the body and
the trunk:

Make sure all other windows are shut.

Turn the fan on your heating or cooling
system to its highest speed with the setting
on VENT. That will force outside air into
your vehicle. See ªComfort Controlsº in
the Index.

If you have air outlets on or under the
instrument panel, open them all the way.
See ªEngine Exhaustº in the Index.
Trunk Lock
To unlock the trunk from the outside, insert the key and
turn it clockwise. You can also press the trunk symbol
on the remote keyless entry transmitter (if equipped).
Remote Trunk Release
This feature is used to unlock the trunk from inside
the vehicle.
Press the TRUNK button
located behind the glove
box door.
The shift lever must be in PARK (P) for the remote
trunk release button to work.

2-83 Low Traction Light
If you have the Enhanced
Traction System or the
Traction Control System,
this light will also come
on when the system is
limiting wheel spin.
You may feel or hear the system working, but this is
normal. Slippery road conditions may exist if the low
traction light comes on, so adjust your driving
accordingly. The light will stay on for a few seconds
after the Enhanced Traction System or the Traction
Control System stops limiting wheel spin. See
ªEnhanced Traction Systemº or ªTraction Control
Systemº in the Index.
The low traction light also comes on briefly when you
turn the ignition key to RUN. If the light doesn't come
on then, have it fixed so it will be there to tell you when
the Traction Control System or Enhanced Traction
System is active.
Engine Coolant Temperature Light
This light tells tells you that
the engine coolant has
overheated or the radiator
cooling fan is not working.
If you have been operating the vehicle under normal
driving conditions, you should pull of the road, stop the
vehicle and turn off the engine as soon as possible.
See ªEngine Overheatingº in the Index.

3-3
(Vent): This setting brings in outside air and directs
it through the instrument panel outlets.
(Bi-Level): This setting brings in outside air and
directs it two ways. Half of the air is directed through
the vent outlets. Most of the remaining air is directed
through the floor ducts and a small amount to the defrost
and side window vents.
(Floor): This setting sends most of the air through
the ducts near the floor. The remaining airflow comes
out of the defroster and side window vents.
(Defogger): This setting allows half of the air to
go to the floor ducts and half to the defroster and side
window vents.
FRONT (Defroster): This setting directs most of
the air through the defroster. Some of the air goes to the
floor ducts and the side window vent. The air conditioning
compressor will run automatically in this setting unless the
outside temperature is below 38
F (3.3
C).
Air Conditioning Compressor Button
Press the A/C button to operate the air conditioning
compressor. The indicator light above the button will
glow when the button is pressed. You don't have topress the button to run the compressor in MAX
or defrost because it will already be running in
these modes.
Air Conditioning
On very hot days, open the windows long enough to let
hot, inside air escape. This reduces the time it takes for
the vehicle to cool down.
For quick cool down on very hot days, turn the fan on
and use MAX with the temperature levers all the way in
the blue area. If this setting is used for long periods of
time, the air in your vehicle may become too dry.
For normal cooling on hot days, turn the fan on and use
vent with the temperature levers in the blue area and the
A/C button pressed in. The system will bring in outside
air and cool it.
On cool, but sunny days, the sun may warm your upper
body, but your lower body may not be warm enough. To
remedy this, you can use bi
-level with the temperature
levers in the middle and the A/C button pushed in. The
system will bring in outside air and direct it to your
upper body, while sending slightly warmed air to your
lower body.

3-4
Heating
On cold days select a fan setting and use floor with the
temperature levers all the way in the red area. The
system will bring in outside air, heat it and send it to the
floor ducts.
If your vehicle has an engine coolant heater, you can use
it to help your system provide warm air faster when it's
cold outside 0
F (
-18
C) or lower. An engine coolant
heater warms the coolant your engine and heating
system use to provide heat. See ªEngine Coolant
Heaterº in the Index.
Ventilation
For mild outside temperatures when little heating
or cooling is needed, use a fan setting and vent with
the A/C button off, to direct outside air through
your vehicle.
Defogging and Defrosting
Your system has two settings for clearing the front and
side windows. To defrost the windows quickly, turn the
fan to a high setting and use defroster with the
temperature levers all the way in the red area. To
warm passengers while keeping the windows clear,
use defogger.
Rear Window Defogger
The rear window defogger uses a warming grid to
remove fog from the rear window.
The comfort control
system has a button to
operate your vehicle's
rear window defogger.
It is marked REAR.
Press the button to turn the rear window defogger on or
off. When the rear window defogger is operating, an
indicator above this button will light. The rear warming
grid will turn off after about 15 minutes.
If you turn the rear window defogger on again, it will
operate for about seven and one half minutes before
turning off. The system will turn off when the ignition is
turned off.
Do not attach anything like a temporary vehicle license
or decal across the rear window defogger grid.

4-28
Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or mountains is different from
driving in flat or rolling terrain.If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you're
planning to visit there, here are some tips that can make
your trips safer and more enjoyable.

Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all fluid
levels and also the brakes, tires, cooling system
and transaxle. These parts can work hard on
mountain roads.

Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing to know is this: let your engine do some of the
slowing down. Shift to a lower gear when you go
down a steep or long hill.
CAUTION:
If you don't shift down, your brakes could get
so hot that they wouldn't work well. You would
then have poor braking or even none going
down a hill. You could crash. Shift down to let
your engine assist your brakes on a steep
downhill slope.

4-44 When You Are Ready to Leave After
Parking on a Hill
1. Apply your regular brakes and hold the pedal down
while you:

start your engine,

shift into a gear, and

release the parking brake.
2. Let up on the brake pedal.
3. Drive slowly until the trailer is clear of the chocks.
4. Stop and have someone pick up and store the chocks.
Maintenance When Trailer Towing
Your vehicle will need service more often when you're
pulling a trailer. See the Maintenance Schedule for more
on this. Things that are especially important in trailer
operation are automatic transaxle fluid (don't overfill),
engine oil, drive belts, cooling system and brake system.
Each of these is covered in this manual, and the Index
will help you find them quickly. If you're trailering, it's
a good idea to review this information before you start
your trip.
Check periodically to see that all hitch nuts and bolts
are tight.
Engine Cooling When Trailer Towing
Your cooling system may temporarily overheat during
severe operating conditions. See ªEngine Overheatingº
in the Index.

5-14
Cooling System
When you decide it's safe to lift the hood, here's what
you'll see:
3100 V6 Engine
A. Electric Engine Cooling Fans
B. Radiator Pressure Cap
C. Coolant Recovery Tank
3800 V6 and 3800 V6 Supercharged Engines
A. Electric Engine Cooling Fans
B. Radiator Pressure Cap
C. Coolant Recovery Tank

5-15
CAUTION:
An electric engine cooling fan under the hood 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 vehicle
should be parked on a level surface.
When the engine is cold, the coolant level should be at
or above the COLD mark on the coolant recovery tank.
If it isn't, you may have a leak at the pressure cap or in
the radiator hoses, heater hoses, radiator, water pump or
somewhere else in the cooling system.

5-16
CAUTION:
Heater and radiator hoses, and 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.
If there seems to be no leak, with the engine on, check to
see if the electric engine cooling fans are running. If the
engine is overheating, both fans should be running. If
they aren't, your vehicle needs service.
NOTICE:
Engine damage from running your engine
without coolant isn't covered by your warranty.
See ªOverheated Engine Protection Operating
Modeº in the Index.
NOTICE:
When adding coolant, it is important that you use
only DEX
-COOL
(silicate-free) coolant.
If coolant other than DEX-COOL is added to the
system, premature engine, heater core or
radiator corrosion may result. In addition, the
engine coolant will require change sooner
-- at
30,000 miles (50 000 km) or 24 months,
whichever occurs first. Damage caused by the use
of coolant other than DEX
-COOL
is not
covered by your new vehicle warranty.
How to Add Coolant to the Coolant
Recovery Tank
If you haven't found a problem yet, but the coolant level
isn't at the COLD mark, add a 50/50 mixture of clean,
drinkable water and DEX
-COOL
engine coolant at the
coolant recovery tank. See ªEngine Coolantº in the
Index for more information.

5-17
CAUTION:
Adding only plain water to your cooling system
can be dangerous. Plain water, or some other
liquid such as alcohol, can boil before the proper
coolant mixture will. Your vehicle's coolant
warning system is set for the proper coolant
mixture. With plain water or the wrong mixture,
your engine could get too hot but you wouldn't
get the overheat warning. Your engine could
catch fire and you or others could be burned.
Use a 50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable water
and DEX
-COOL
coolant.
NOTICE:
In cold weather, water can freeze and crack the
engine, radiator, heater core and other parts.
Use the recommended coolant and the proper
coolant mixture.
CAUTION:
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.