PONTIAC PONTIAC 1996 Owners Manual
Manufacturer: PONTIAC, Model Year: 1996, Model line: PONTIAC, Model: PONTIAC PONTIAC 1996Pages: 370, PDF Size: 17.69 MB
Page 151 of 370

Unlocking the Theft-Deterrent Feature After a
Power Loss
Enter your secret code as follows; pause no more than
If seconds between steps:
1. LQC appears when the ignition is on.
2.
Press MIN and 000 will appear on the display.
3. Press MIN again to make the last two digits agree
4. Press HR to make the first one or two digits agree
5. Press AM-FM after you have confirmed that the
I with your code.
with your code.
b.
code matches the secret code you have written down.
The display will show SEC, indicating~ the radio is
now operable and secure.'
If you enter the wrong code eight times, INOP will
appear
on the display. You will have to wait an hour
with the ignition on before you
can try again. When you
try again, you will only have three chances to enter the
correct cade before
INOP appears. --
If you lose or forget your code, contact your dealer.
Disabling the Theft-Deterrent Feature
Enter your secret code as follows; pause no more than
15 seconds between steps:
1. Turn the ignition tu the ACC or RUN position.
2. Turn the radio off.
3. Press the 1 ad 4 buttons together. Hold them down
until
SEC shows on the display.
4. Press MIN and 000 will appear on the display.
5. Press MIN again to make the last two digits agree
with your code.
(5. Press HR to make the first one or two digits agree
with
your code.
7. Press AM-FM after you have confirmed that the
code matches the secret code you have written down.
The display will show ---, indicating that the radio is
no longer secured..
If the code entered is incorrect,
SEC will appear on the
display. The radio will remain secured until the correct
code is entered.
When battery power is given to a secured radio, the
radio won't turn
on and LOC will appear on the display. -. .
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Page 152 of 370

,Steering Wheel Controls (Option)
If your vehicle nas this feature, you can control certain
radio functions using the buttons on your steering wheel.
VOLUME: Press the up arrow to increase the volume
and the down arrow to decrease volume.
PLAY Press this button to play a cassette tape or
compact disc when the radio is playing.
MUTE: Press this button to silence the system. Press it
again, or any other radio button, to turn
on the sound.
SEEK: Press the up arrow to tune to the next radio
station and the down arrow to tune to the previous radio
station. If
a cassette tape or compact disc is playing, the
player will advance with the up arrow and rewind with
the down arrow.
PRESET Press this button to play a station you have
programmed on the radio preset buttons.
AM-FM: Press this button to choose AM, FM1 or FM2.
If a cassette tape or compact disc is playing, it will stop
and the radio will play.
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Page 153 of 370

Understanding Radio Reception
FM stereo will give you the best sound. But FM signals
will reach only about
10 to 40 miles (16 to 65 h). Tall
buildings or hills can interfere with
FM signals, causing
the sound to come and
go..
AM
The range for mast tatians is greater than for FM,
especially at night. nger range, however, can
cause stations to in with each other. AM can pick
up noise from things'like storms and power lines. Try
reducing the treble to reduce this noise if you ever get it.
Tips About Your Audio System
Hearing damage from loud noise is almost undetectable
until it is too late. Your hearing can adapt to higher
volumes of sound. Sound
that seems normal can be loud
and harrrrful to your hearing Take precautions by
adjusting
the volume control on your radio to a safe
sound level before your hearing adapts to it.
To help avoid hearing loss or damage:
0 Adjust the volume control to the lowest setting.
Increase volume slowly until you hear comfortably
and clearly.
NOTICE:
Before you add any sound equipment to your
vehicle
-- like a tape player, CB radio, mobile
telephone
or two-way raclio -- be sure you can
add what you want. If you can, it's very important
to do it properly. Added sound equipment may
interfere with the operation of your vehicle's
engine, Delco radio or other systems, and even
damage them.
Your vehicle's systems may
interfere
with the operation of sound equipment
that
Ras been added'improperly.
So, before adding sound equipment, check with
your dealer and be sure to check Federal rules
covering mobile radio and telephone units. 1
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Page 154 of 370

Care of Your Cassette Tape Player
A tape player that is not cleaned regularly can cause
reduced sound quality, ruined cassettes or a damaged
mechanism. Cassette tapes should be stored
in their
cases away from contaminants, direct sunlight and
extreme heat. If they aren't, they may not operate
properly or may cause failure of the tape player.
Your tape player should be cleaned regularly after every
50 hours of use. Your radio may display CLN, to indicate
that
you have used your tape player' for 50 hours without
resetting the kpe clean mer.
If you notice a reduction in
sound quality, try a known good cassette to see if the tape
or
the tape player is at fault. If this other cassette has no
improvement in sound quality, clean the tape player.
Cleaning may
be done with a scrubbing action,
non-abrasive cleaning cassette with pads which scrub
the tape head as the hubs of the cleaner cassette
turn. It
is normal for the cassette to eject while cleaning. Insert
the cassette at least three times to ensure thorough
cleaning.
A scrubbing action cleaning cassette is
available through your ,Pontiac dealer.
You may also choose a non-scrubbing action; wet-type
cleaner which uses a cassette with a fabric belt
to clean
the tape head. TKS type of cleaning cassette will not eject.
It may not clean
as thoroughly as the scrubbing
type cleaner.
Cassettes are subject to wear and the sound quality may
degrade over time. Always
make sure that the cassette
tape is in good condition before you have your tape
player serviced.
Care of Your Compact Discs,
Handle discs carefully. Store them in their original cases
,or other protective cases and away from direct sunlight
and dust.
If the surface of a disc is soiled, dampen a
clean, soft cloth in a mild, neutral detergent solution and
clean it, wiping from the center to the edge.
Be sure never to touch the signal surface when handling
discs. Pick up discs
by grasping the outer edges or the
edge of the hole and the outer edge. -,
Fixed Mast Antenna
I
.. r '. . .. x, '
The fixed mast antenna can withstand most car washes
without being damaged. If the mast should ever become
slightly bent, you can straighten it out by hand.
If the
mast is badly bent, as
it might be by vandals, you should
replace
it.
Check every once in a while to be sure the mast is still
tightened to the fender.
I
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Page 155 of 370

ntenna R/l are
Your power antenna will look its best and work
well if it’s cleaned from time to time.
To clean the
antenna mast:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Turn on’ the ignition and radio to raise the antenna.
Dampen a clean cloth with mineral spirits or
an
equivalent solvent.
Wipe the cloth over the mast sections, removing
any dirt.
Wipe
dry with a clean cloth.
Make the antenna go up and down by tuming the
radio
or ignition off and on.
Repeat if necessary.
I NOTICE:
I
Don’t lubricate the power antenna. Lubrication
could damage
it. ,
I NOTICE:
Before entering an automatic car wash, turn off
your radio to make the power antenna go down.
This will prevent the mast
from possibly getting
damaged,
If the antenna does not go down when ,
you turn the radio off, it may be damaged or
need to be cleaned. In either case, lower the
antenna by hand
by carefully pressing the
antenna down.
If the mast portion of your antenna is damaged, you can
easily replace it. See your dealer
for a replacement kit
and follow the instructions in the kit.
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Page 156 of 370

Section 4 Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find information about driving on different
kinds of roads and in varying weather conditions. We’ve
also included many other useful tiprs on driving. The
best advice anyone can give about driving is:
Drive defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device
in your
Pontiac: Buckle
up. (See “Safety Belts” in the Index.)
Defensive driving really means “be ready for anything.”
On city streets, rural roads or freeways, it means
“always expect the unexpected.’’
Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going to be
careless and
make mistakes. Anticipate what they might
do.
Be ready for their mistakes.
Rear-end collisions are about the most preventable of
accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough
following distance. It’s the best defensive driving
maneuver, in both city and rural driving.
You never
know when the vehicle in front of you
is g,oing to brake
or turn suddenly.
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Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated, with drinking and driving is
a national tragedy. It,s the number one contributor to
the highway death toll, claiming thous&ds of victims
every year.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to
drive
a vehcle:
Judgment
Muscular Coordination
0 Vision
Attentiveness.
Police records
‘show that almost half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol.
In most cases,
these deaths are the result of someone wh-o was drinking
and driving.
In recent years, some 18,000 annual motor
vehicle-related deaths have been associated with the use
of alcohol; with more than
30i),OOO people injured. __
Many adults -- by some estimates, nearly half the
adult population
-- ‘choose never to dririk alcohal, so
they never drive after drinking. Fot ,persons under 21 ,.
it’s against the law in every U.S. state to dfink alcohol.
There are
good medical, psychological and
lopmental reasons for these laws. The obvious
way to solve
this highway safety problem
is for people never to drink alcohol and then drive. But
what if people do? How much is
“too much” if the
driver plans to drive? It’s
a lot l&s than many might
think. Although it depends on each .person and situation,
here is some general information on the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC).of someone
who is drinking depends upon four things:
The amount of alcohol consumed
The drinker’s body weight
0 The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the-alc’ohol:
According to the American Medical Association, a
180-lb.
(82 kg) person who drinks three 12-ounce
(355 ml) bottles of beer in an hour will end up with a
BAC
of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the
same
BAC by drinking three 4-ounce (120 ml) glasses
of wine or three mixed drinks if each had.
1 - 1/2 ounces
(45 ml) of a liquor like whiskey, gin or vodka.
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It’s the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis
(3 ounces
or
90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s
BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person who
consumes food just b.efore or during drinking will have a
’somewhat lower
BAC level.
There is a gender difference, too. Women generally have
a lower relative percentage of body water than men. Since
alcohol is carried in body water,
this means that a
woman generally will reach
a higher BAC level than a
man of her same body weight when each has the same
number of drinks.
The law in many U.S. states sets the legal limit at a
BAC
of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of U.S. states, and
,throughout Canada, the limit
is 0.08 percent. In some
other countries, it’s even lower. The
BAC limit for all
commercial drivers in the United States is
0.04 percent.
The
BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to six
drinks (in one hour). Of course,
as we’ve seen, it
depends on how much alcohol
is in the drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
B.ut the ability to drive is affected well below a
BAC of
0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills of
many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent, and that the effects are worse at night. All
drivers are impaired at
BAC levels above 0.05 percent.
Statistics show that the chance of being in
a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have
a BAC of
0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision.
At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of
this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at
a
level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
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The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol
in one drink. No amount of coffee or number of cold
showers will speed that up.
"I'll be careful'' isn't the
right answer. What if,there's an emergency, a need to
take sudden action, as when a child darts into
the street?
A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able
to react quickly enough to avoid the collision.
There's something else about drinking and driving that
many people don't know. Medical research shows that
alcohol in
a person's system can make crash injuries
worse, &specially injuries, to the brain, spinal cord or
heart. This means that when anyone who has been
drinking - driver or passenger - is in a crash, that
person's chance of being killed or permanently disabled
is higher than if the person had not been drinking.
A CAUTION:
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgment can be affected by
even a small amount
of ZrlcohoL You can have a serious =- or even
fatal
-- collision if you drive after drinking.
Please don't
drink and drive or ride with a driver
who has been drinking. Ride home
in a cab; or if
you're with a group, designate a driver who win
not drink.
~~ ~
.. . . ... I1 I,
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Page 160 of 370

Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where
you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering and
the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work
at the places where the tires meet the road.
Sometimes, as when you’re driving on snow or ice, it’s
easy to ask more of those control systems than the tires
and road can provide. That means you can lose control
of your vehicle.
Braking
Braking action involves perception time and
reaction time.
First, you have to decide
to push on the brake pedal.
That’s perception time. Then you have to bring up your
foot and do
it. That’s reaction time.
Average reaction time is about
3/4 of a second. But
that’s only an average. It might be less with one driver
and
as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part.
So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in
3/4 of a second, a vehicle
moving at
60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could be a lot of distance in an emergency,
so
keeping enough space between your vehicle and others
is important.
And, of course, actual stopping &stances vary greatly
with the surface
of the road (whether it’s pavement or
gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; and the condition
of your brakes.
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