Buick LESABRE 1995 User manual

LeSabre

The 1995 Buick LeSabre Owner’s Manual
SeatsandRestraintSystems ............................................................. 1-1
This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains “SRS” system.
FeaturesandControls .................................................................. 2-1
This section explains how to start and operate your Buick.
ComfortControlsandAudioSystems ..................................................... 3-1
This section tells you how to adjustthe ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate your
sound system.
YourDrivingandtheRoad .............................................................. 4-1
Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions.
ProblemsontheRoad .................................................................. 5-1
This section tells you what to doif you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire 01- engine
overheating, etc.
Here the manual tells you how to keep your Buick running properly and looking good.
ServiceandAppearanceCare ............................................................ 6-1
Maintenanceschedule .................................................................. 7-1
This sectiontells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and what fluids and lubricants to use.
CustomerAssistanceInformation ........................................................ 8-1
This section tells you how to contact Buick for assistanceand how to get service publications. It also
gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page
8-4.
Index ................................................................................ 9-1
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want
to read.
i

I BUICK
GENERAL MOTORS, GM and the GM Emblem,
BUICK, and the BUICK Emblem are registered
trademarks
of General Motors Corporation.
This manual includes the latest information at the time
it
was printed. We reserve the right to make changes in the
product after that time without further notice. For
vehicles first sold
in Canada, substitute the name
“General Motors of Canada Limited” for Buick Motor
Division whenever
it appears in this manual.
Please keep this manual
in your Buick, so it will be there
if
you ever need it when you’re on the road. If you sell
the vehicle, please leave this manual
in it so the new
owner can use it.
Litho in U.S.A.
Part
No. 25620606 B First Edition
ii
WE SUPPORT
VOLUNTARY TECHNICIAN
CERTIFICATION THROUGH
I
Natlcnal In51 Iutelo~
AUTOMOTIVE
SERVICE
’ EXCELLENCE
I
We support voluntary
technician certification.
For Canadian Owners Who Prefer a
French Language Manual:
Aux propriktaires canadiens: Vous pouvez vous procurer
un exemplairede ce guide en franqais chez votre
concessionaire ou au
DCN Marketing Services Ltd.,
1500 Bonhill Rd., Mississauga, Ontario L5T lC7.
0
Copyright General Motors Corporation 1994
All Rights Reserved

iii

Walter Marrand ThomasBuick
Buick's chief engineer, Walter L. Marr (left), and
Thomas D. Buick, son of founder David Dunbar Buick,
drove thefistFlint Buick in a successful Flint-Detroit
round trip in July 1904.
David Buick was building gasoline engines by 1899,
and Man, his engineer, apparently built the first auto to
be called a Buick in 1900. However, Buick traditionally
dates its beginnings to 1903. That was the year the
company was reorganized, refinanced and moved from
Detroit to Flint. Buick has always been a product
innovator. Buick engineers developed the
"valve-in-head" engine, a light, powerful and reliable
engine which would eventually influence the entire
automotive industry.
William C. Durant was instrumentalinpromoting
Buicks across the country using
his Durant-Dort
Carriage Co. outlets and salespeople as the nucleus
of a
giant distribution system.
He knew the Buick as a
"self-seller,'. If automobiles could be this good, he
thought, maybeit was time to switch from the horse and
buggy business to automobiles.
At the 1905,New York
Auto Show, Durant took
orders for
1,000 Buicks
before the company had
built
40. On Buick's
William C. (Billy)Durant
success, Durant created a
holding company,
September 16, 1908. He
called it General Motors.
iv

Durant also created a racingteam that won 500 racing
trophies
in 1909and 19 10, including successesat
Indianapolis two years beforethe Indy
500 began.
The successof Buick engines was visible
not only on
the race track,but in endurance tests across the country
and around the world. Buick was the only car
to
complete a 1,000-mileChicago-to-New York race in
1906.And a Buick was the first car to travel across
South America, driven from Buenos Aires, Argentina,
over the Andes
to Santiago, Chilein 19 14.
1911 Model 21 Touring Car on Buick’s Test Hill
Buick drew plenty of attention because it could climb
hills and run through mud like
no other car. Buick’s
endurance and reliability were world famous.
During World War
I, Buick built Liberty aircraft engines
as well as Red Cross ambulances so successfulthat one
Buick ambulance was awarded the Croix de Guerre by
the French government.
As a builder of premier automobiles,Buick was hard hit
by the GreatDepression. However, new General
Manager, Harlow H. Curticecreated popular new
models including
the Special and the Roadmaster. Buick
sales soon flourished.
First Buick Fuctory
V

In World War 11, Buick built aircraft engines, tanks and
other military hardware. This post-war period brought
great styling and engineeringchanges which resulted
in
increased sales. The torque converter automatic
transmission, Dynaflow, was introduced
in the 1948
Roadmaster.Buick’s famous “portholes” came along
in
1949.
I949 Roadmaster
A high-compression V-8 engine was introduced in 1953.
And Buick’s ftlmous vertical pillar “toothy” grille,
(introduced
in 1942),became more massive in the
post-war era.
I953 Skylark
Motor Trend magazine named the 1962 Buick Special,
“Car
of the Year”. The first production V-6 engine was
used
in the Special.
vi

1962 Buick Special
Built inside the walls of the old buildings in Buick’s
former Flintcomplex, which formed the cornerstone
of
General Motors, Buick City, is a state-of-the-art
assembly facility with more than
200 robots and other
high-tech equipment. It was completed
in the fall of
1985.
Buicks are, and will continue tobe, premium American
motorcars with smooth power, high performance,rich
detail and comfortable accommodation.
Ed Mertz, Generul Manage6 Buick Motor Division
Our mission is simple:
“Buick
will provide Premium American Motorcars
backed with servicesthat exceed
our customers’
expectations,throughout the purchase, ownership,
service and repurchase experience.”
Buicks are SUBSTANTIAL.
Buicks are
DISTINCTIVE.
Buicks are POWERFUL.
Buicks are MATURE.
vii

How to Use This Manual
Many people read their owner’s manual from beginning
to end when they first receive their new vehicle. This
will help you learn about the featuresand controls for
your vehicle. In this manual, you’ll find that pictures
and words work together
to explain things quickly.
Index
A good place to look for what you need is the Index in
the back
of the manual. It’s an alphabetical list of all
that’s in the manual, and the page number where you’ll
find it.
Safety Warnings and Symbols
You will find a number of safety cautionsin this book.
We use a box with gray background and the word
CAUTION to tell you about things that could hurt you if
you were to ignorethe warning.
In the gray caution area, we tell you what the hazard is.
Then we
tell you what to do to help avoid or reduce the
hazard. Please read these cautions.
If you don’t, you or
others could be hurt.
You will also find a circle with a slash through it in this
book.
k This safetv svmbol means
“Don’t,’’ “Don’t
do this,” or
“Don’t let
this happen.”
4d
viii

Vehicle Damage Warnings
Also, in this book you will find these notices:
NOTICE:
These mean there is something that
could damage
your vehicle.
In the notice area, we tell you about something thatcan
damage your vehicle. Many times, this damagewould
not be covered
by your warranty, and it could be costly.
But the notice will tell you what todo
to help avoid the
damage.
When you read other manuals, you might see
CAUTION
and NOTICE warnings in different colors or
in differentwords.
You’ll also
see warning labels on your vehicle. They use
yellow for cautions,blue for noticesand the words
CAUTION
or NOTICE.
ix

Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
For example,
these symbols
are used
on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT
EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
ACID COULD
BATTERY
CAUSE
BURNS
AVOID
SPARKS OR
FLAMES
SPARK OR ,\I/,
COULD
FLAME
EXPLODE
BAllERY
These symbols
are important
foryou and
your passengers
whenever your
vehicle
is
driven:
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
FASTEN SEAT 4
BELTS
These symbols
have to do
with
your lights:
SIGNALS e 9
TURN
HIGH LAMPSoR BEAM = =o
FOG LAMPS $0
These symbols
are on some
of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
t* -e- -1
WINDSHIELD 6$
WASHER
I
WINDSHIELD
DEFROSTER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VENTILATING 7
FAN 1
5Y
These symbols
are used on
warning and
indicator
lights:
COOLANT F-
TEMP --
ENGINE
CHARGING 1-1
BATTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE (a)
RADIATOR
COOLANT a
FUEL
ENGINE OIL
PRESSURE w4
TEMPOIL &
ANTI-LOCK (@)
BRAKE
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
RADIO
VOLUME
CONDITIONING AIR 43
TRUNK a
RELEASE
LIGHTER
HORN
SPEAKER
b
X

Section 1 Seats and RestraintSystems
Here you’ll find information about the seatsin your
Buick and how touse your safety beltsproperly. You
can
also learn about some things you should not do with
air bags and safety belts.
Seats and Seat Controls
This section tellyou about the seats -- how to adjust
them
-- and also about reclining seatbacksand head
restraints.
Manual Seat
Move the lever under the
Eront seat to unlock
it. Slide
the seat to whereyou want
it.
Then release the leverand tryto move the seatwith your
body, to make sure the seat is locked into place.

Power Seat (Option)
The power seat controls arelocated on the armrest.
Front Control: Raise the front of the seat by pushing
the left side
of the switch.Push the right side of the
switch to
lower the front of the seat.
Center Control: Move the seatforward or back by
holding the control to the front orback. Raise the seat
by holding the control to the left. Hold the control to
the
right to lower the seat.
Rear Control: Raise the rear of the seat by holding the
switch to the left. Holding the switch to the right lowers
the rear
of the seat,
Reclining Front Seatbacks
To adjust the seatback, lift the lever on the outer sideof
the seat and move the seatback to where you want it.
Release the lever to lock the seatback. Pull up on the
lever and the seat will go toan upright position.
c
1-2

1-3

Head Restraints
Slide thehead restraint up or down so that the top of the
restraint is closest to the top of your ears. Thisposition
reduces the chance
of a neck injury in a crash.
Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety belts
properly. It
also tells you some things you should not do
with safety belts.
And it explains the Supplemental Restraint System, or
“air bag” system.
Your car has
a light that comes on as a reminder to
buckle up. (See “Safety Belt Reminder Light” in the
Index.)
In many states and Canadian provinces, the law says to
wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash.If you do have a
crash, you don’t know if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so
seriousthat even buckled upa person wouldn’t survive.
But mostcrashes are
in between. In many of them,
people who buckle up can surviveand sometimes walk
away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt or
killed.
After more than
25 years of safety belts in vehicles, the
facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does matter
... a lot!
1-4

Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as it
goes.
Take the simplest vehicle. Supposeit's just a seat on
wheels.
Put someone on it.
1-5

. ./
'. x ,
, . ..> .,
Get it up to speed.Then stop the vehicle. The rider
doesn't
stop.
The person keeps going until stopped by something.
In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield ...
1-6

or the instrument panel ...
or the safety belts!
With safety belts,
you slow clown as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That'swhy
safety belts make such
good sense.
1-7

Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts
-- and the Answers
Q: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident, so
you
can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
&: Why don’t they just put in air bags so people
won’t have to wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
more
of them in the future. But they are
supplementalsystems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for salehas required the use of
safetybelts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags, you
still have to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
&: If I’ma good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should
I wear safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident
-- even one that isn’t your fault -- you and
your passengers can be
hurt. Being a good driver
doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km) of
home. And the greatest number of seriousinjuries
and deaths occur at speeds
of less than 40 mph
(65 kmh).
Safety belts are for everyone.
1-8