Oldsmobile Aurora (2001 year). Manual - part 12

3-26

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 CLEAN
PLAYR to indicate that you have used your tape player
for 50 hours without cleaning and resetting the tape
clean timer. If this message appears on the display, 
your cassette tape player needs to be cleaned. It will still
play tapes, but you should clean it as soon as possible to
prevent damage to your tapes and player. If you notice a
reduction in sound quality, try a known good cassette 
to see if it is the tape or the tape player at fault. If this
other cassette has no improvement in sound quality,
clean the tape player.

The recommended cleaning method for your 
cassette tape player is the use of a scrubbing action,
non

-

abrasive cleaning cassette with pads which scrub

the tape head as the hubs of the cleaner cassette turn.
The recommended cleaning cassette is available through
your dealer (GM Part No. 12344789).

When using a scrubbing action, non

-

abrasive cleaning

cassette, it is normal for the cassette to eject because
your unit is equipped with a cut tape detection feature
and a cleaning cassette may appear as a broken tape. 
If the cleaning cassette ejects, insert the cassette at least
three times to ensure thorough cleaning.

You may also choose a non

-

scrubbing action, wet

-

type

cleaner which uses a cassette with a fabric belt to clean
the tape head. This type of cleaning cassette will not
eject on its own. A non

-

scrubbing action cleaner may

not clean as thoroughly as the scrubbing type cleaner.
The use of a non

-

scrubbing action, dry

-

type cleaning

cassette is not recommended.

3-27

After you clean the player, press and hold EJECT for
five seconds to reset the CLEAN PLAYR indicator. 
The radio will display CLEANED to show the indicator
was reset.

Cassettes are subject to wear and the sound quality 
may degrade over time. Always make sure 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.

Care of Your Compact Disc Player

The use of CD lens cleaner discs is not advised, due to
the risk of contaminating the lens of the CD optics with
lubricants internal to the CD mechanism.

Diversity Antenna System

Your AM

-

FM antennas are located in the front

windshield and rear window. Be sure that the inside
surfaces of the front windshield and rear window are 
not scratched and that the lines on the glass are not
damaged. If the inside surfaces are damaged, they 
could interfere with radio reception. Also, for proper
radio reception, the antenna connector at the top

-

center

of the front windshield and the antenna connector at 
the top

-

center of the rear window need to be properly

attached to the posts on the glass.

NOTICE:

Do not try to clear frost or other material from
the inside of the rear window with a razor blade
or anything else that is sharp. This may damage
the rear defogger grid and affect your radio’s
ability to pick up stations clearly. The repairs
wouldn’t be covered by your warranty.

3-28

If, when you turn on your rear window defogger, you
hear static on your radio station, it could mean that a
defogger grid line has been damaged. If this is true, the
grid line must be repaired.

If you choose to add an aftermarket cellular telephone to
your vehicle, and the antenna needs to be attached to the
glass, be sure that you do not damage the grid lines for
the AM

-

FM antennas or place the cellular telephone

antenna over the grid lines.

Chime Level Adjustment

The volume level of the vehicle’s chimes can be
controlled by the radio. To change the volume level,
press and hold pushbutton 6 with the ignition on 
and the radio power off. The chime volume level will
change from the normal level to loud, and LOUD will
be displayed on the radio. To change back to the default
or normal setting, press and hold pushbutton 6 again.
The chime level will change from the loud level to
normal, and NORMAL will be displayed.

4-

4-1

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 tips on driving.

4

-

2

Defensive Driving

4

-

3

Drunken Driving

4

-

6

Control of a Vehicle

4

-

6

Braking

4

-

9

Traction Control System

4

-

11

Steering

4

-

13

Off

-

Road Recovery

4

-

13

Passing

4

-

15

Loss of Control

4

-

16

Driving at Night

4

-

17

Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads

4

-

20

City Driving

4

-

21

Freeway Driving

4

-

22

Before Leaving on a Long Trip

4

-

23

Highway Hypnosis

4

-

23

Hill and Mountain Roads

4

-

25

Winter Driving

4

-

28

Recreational Vehicle Towing

4

-

29

Loading Your Vehicle

4

-

31

Towing a Trailer

4-2

Defensive Driving

The best advice anyone can give about driving is: 
Drive defensively.

Please start with a very important safety device in your
vehicle: 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 going to 
brake or turn suddenly.

Defensive driving requires that a driver concentrate 
on the driving task. Anything that distracts from the 
driving task 

--

 such as concentrating on a cellular

telephone call, reading, or reaching for something on 
the floor 

--

 makes proper defensive driving more

difficult and can even cause a collision, with resulting
injury. Ask a passenger to help do things like this, or
pull off the road in a safe place to do them yourself.
These simple defensive driving techniques could save
your life.

4-3

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 thousands of victims
every year.

Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to 
drive a vehicle:
D Judgment
D Muscular Coordination
D Vision
D 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 who was drinking
and driving. In recent years, over 17,000 annual motor
vehicle

-

related deaths have been associated with the use

of alcohol, with more than 300,000 people injured.

Many adults 

--

 by some estimates, nearly half the 

adult population 

--

 choose never to drink alcohol, 

so they never drive after drinking. For persons under 21,
it’s against the law in every U.S. state to drink alcohol.
There are good medical, psychological and
developmental reasons for these laws.

The obvious way to solve the leading 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 less 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:
D The amount of alcohol consumed
D The drinker’s body weight
D The amount of food that is consumed before and

during drinking

D The length of time it has taken the drinker to

consume the alcohol.

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.

4-4

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 before 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.

But 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!

4-5

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, especially 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.

CAUTION:

Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgment can be affected by even a small amount
of alcohol. 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 will not drink.

4-6

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. Also see “Traction Control System” in the Index.

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 distances vary greatly with
the surface of the road (whether it’s pavement or gravel);
the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire tread; the
condition of your brakes; the weight of the vehicle and 
the amount of brake force applied.

4-7

Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive 
in spurts 

--

 heavy acceleration followed by heavy 

braking 

--

 rather than keeping pace with traffic. 

This is a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to 
cool between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out
much faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you 
keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic following
distances, you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary
braking. That means better braking and longer 
brake life.

If your engine ever stops while you’re driving, brake
normally but don’t pump your brakes. If you do, the
pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist. 
But you will use it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and the 
brake pedal will be harder to push.

Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)

Your vehicle has anti

-

lock brakes (ABS). ABS is an

advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.

When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti

-

lock brake system will check itself. You may

hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test
is going on, and you may even notice that your brake
pedal moves a little. This is normal.

If there’s a problem with 
the anti

-

lock brake system,

this warning light will stay
on.  See “Anti

-

Lock Brake

System Warning Light” 
in the Index.

4-8

Here’s how anti

-

lock works. Let’s say the road is wet.

You’re driving safely. Suddenly an animal jumps out in
front of you.

You slam on the brakes. Here’s what happens with ABS.

A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one
of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer will
separately work the brakes at each front wheel and at
both rear wheels.

The anti

-

lock system can change the brake pressure faster

than any driver could. The computer is programmed to
make the most of available tire and road conditions.

You can steer around the obstacle while braking hard.

As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on
wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly.

4-9

Remember: Anti

-

lock doesn’t change the time you need

to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease
stopping distance. If you get too close to the vehicle in
front of you, you won’t have time to apply your brakes
if that vehicle suddenly slows or stops. Always leave
enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have
anti

-

lock brakes.

Using Anti

-

Lock

Don’t pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down
firmly and let anti

-

lock work for you. You may hear 

a motor or clicking noise during a hard stop, but this 
is normal.

Braking in Emergencies

With anti

-

lock, you can steer and brake at the same

time. In many emergencies, steering can help you more
than even the very best braking.

Traction Control System

Your vehicle has a traction control system that limits
wheel spin. This is especially useful in slippery road
conditions. The system operates only if it senses 
that one or both of the front wheels are spinning or
beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the
system works the front brakes and reduces engine 
power to limit wheel spin.

This light will come 
on when your traction
control system is limiting
wheel spin. See “Traction
Control System Active
Light” in the Index.

You may feel or hear the system working, but this 
is normal.

If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction
control system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise
control will automatically disengage. When road
conditions allow you to safely use it again, you may
reengage the cruise control. See “Cruise Control” 
in the Index.

4-10

This light should come on
briefly when you start 
the engine. If it stays on 
or comes on while you 
are driving, there’s a
problem with your 
traction control system.

See “Traction Control System Warning Light” in the
Index. When this warning light is on, the system will 
not limit wheel spin. Adjust your driving accordingly.

The traction control system automatically comes on
whenever you start your vehicle. To limit wheel spin,
especially in slippery road conditions, you should
always leave the system on. But you can turn the
traction control system off if you ever need to. You
should turn the system off if your vehicle ever gets 
stuck in sand, mud, ice or snow. See “Rocking Your
Vehicle” in the Index.

To turn the system off, 
press the TC button on the
center console.

The traction control system warning light will come 
on and stay on. If the system is limiting wheel spin 
when you press the button, the warning light will 
come on 

--

 but the system won’t turn off right 

away. It will wait until there’s no longer a current 
need to limit wheel spin.

You can turn the system back on at any time by 
pressing the button again. The traction control system
warning light should go off.

4-11

Steering

Power Steering

If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops or the system is not functioning, you can steer but
it will take much more effort.

Magnetic-Speed Variable Assist Steering

Your vehicle is equipped with a steering system that
continuously adjusts the effort you feel when steering 
at all vehicle speeds. It provides ease when parking yet 
a firm, solid feel at highway speeds.

Steering Tips

Driving on Curves

It’s important to take curves at a reasonable speed.

A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned 
on the news happen on curves. Here’s why:

Experienced driver or beginner, each of us is subject to
the same laws of physics when driving on curves. The
traction of the tires against the road surface makes it
possible for the vehicle to change its path when you turn

the front wheels. If there’s no traction, inertia will keep
the vehicle going in the same direction. If you’ve ever
tried to steer a vehicle on wet ice, you’ll understand this.

The traction you can get in a curve depends on the
condition of your tires and the road surface, the angle at
which the curve is banked, and your speed. While you’re
in a curve, speed is the one factor you can control.

Suppose you’re steering through a sharp curve. Then you
suddenly accelerate. Both control systems 

--

 steering and

acceleration 

--

 have to do their work where the tires meet

the road. Adding the sudden acceleration can demand too
much of those places. You can lose control. Refer to
“Traction Control System” in the Index.

What should you do if this ever happens? Ease up on the
accelerator pedal, steer the vehicle the way you want it
to go, and slow down.

If you have Stabilitrak

R

, you may see the STABILITY

ACTIVE message on the Driver Information Center. 
See “Stability Active Message” in the Index.

Speed limit signs near curves warn that you should
adjust your speed. Of course, the posted speeds are
based on good weather and road conditions. Under less
favorable conditions you’ll want to go slower.

4-12

If you need to reduce your speed as you approach a
curve, do it before you enter the curve, while your front
wheels are straight ahead.

Try to adjust your speed so you can “drive” through the
curve. Maintain a reasonable, steady speed. Wait to
accelerate until you are out of the curve, and then
accelerate gently into the straightaway.

Steering in Emergencies

There are times when steering can be more effective
than braking. For example, you come over a hill and
find a truck stopped in your lane, or a car suddenly 
pulls out from nowhere, or a child darts out from
between parked cars and stops right in front of you. 
You can avoid these problems by braking 

--

 if you 

can stop in time. But sometimes you can’t; there isn’t
room. That’s the time for evasive action 

--

 steering

around the problem.

Your vehicle can perform very well in emergencies 
like these. First apply your brakes. See “Braking in
Emergencies” earlier in this section. It is better to
remove as much speed as you can from a possible
collision. Then steer around the problem, to the left 
or right depending on the space available.

An emergency like this requires close attention and a
quick decision. If you are holding the steering wheel at
the recommended 9 and 3 o’clock positions, you can
turn it a full 180 degrees very quickly without removing
either hand. But you have to act fast, steer quickly, 
and just as quickly straighten the wheel once you have
avoided the object.

The fact that such emergency situations are always
possible is a good reason to practice defensive driving 
at all times and wear safety belts properly.

4-13

Off

-

Road Recovery

You may find that your right wheels have dropped off the
edge of a road onto the shoulder while you’re driving.

If the level of the shoulder is only slightly below the
pavement, recovery should be fairly easy. Ease off the
accelerator and then, if there is nothing in the way, steer
so that your vehicle straddles the edge of the pavement.
You can turn the steering wheel up to one

-

quarter turn

until the right front tire contacts the pavement edge.
Then turn your steering wheel to go straight down 
the roadway.

Passing

The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two

-

lane highway waits for just the right moment,

accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then goes
back into the right lane again. A simple maneuver?

Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two

-

lane

highway is a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds. A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger 
can suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents 

--

 the head

-

on collision.

So here are some tips for passing:
D “Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides 

and to crossroads for situations that might affect your
passing patterns. If you have any doubt whatsoever
about making a successful pass, wait for a better time.

D Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and lines. 

If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a 
turn or an intersection, delay your pass. A broken 
center line usually indicates it’s all right to pass
(providing the road ahead is clear). Never cross a solid    
line on your side of the lane or a double solid line, 
even if the road seems empty of approaching traffic.