Pontiac 1996 Grand Am Owner's Manual page 82

Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine
Running (Automatic Transaxle
Models Only)
-
It can be dangerous to leave your vehicle with the.
engine running, Your vehicle could move
suddenly if the shift lever is not fully in PARK (P)
with the parking brake firmly set. And, if you
leave the vehicle with the engine running, it could
overheat and even catch fire. You or others could
b'e injured. Don't leave your vehicle with the
engine running unless you have to,
If you have to leave your vehicle with the engine
running,
be
sure your vehicle is in PARK (P) and your
parking brake is firmly set before you leave it. After
you've moved the
shift
lever
into the PARK
(P)
I
position, hold the regular brake pedal down. Then, see if
you can move the shift lever away from PARK (P)
without first pushing the button.
If you can, it means that the shift lever wasn't fully
locked into PARK
(P).
Torque Lock (Automatic Transaxle)
If you are parking'on a hill and you don't shift your
transaxle into
PARK (P) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl in
the transaxle. YOU may find it difficult to pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P), This is called "torque lock." To
prevent torque l'ock, set &e parking brake and then shift
into BARK (P) properly before you leave the driver's
seat. To find out how, see "Shifting Into PARK (P)" in
the Index.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out Qf
PARK (P) before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does opcus, you may need to have another
vehicle push yours a little uphill to take some of the
pressure from the transaxle, so you can pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P).
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