Cold Driveaway Complaint - Advice to Owner

- Wait for the engine idle to stabilize before attempting to drive off.

- If engine is misfiring, e.g. due to an ignition system malfunction or worn or fouled spark plugs, the engine should be stopped and the problem diagnosed.

Idling or driving the vehicle in such a condition may cause overheating of the catalytic converter and other damage.

- Do not back out or pull out into traffic unless the engine is running and developing power well enough to do so safely. Leave the AC off until the vehicle is underway or until the engine is running without any tendency toward hesitation.

- Automatics: With the footbrake applied, move the gear selector from P or N to the drive position desired and pause a moment to allow the engine to react to the load of the torque converter. Release the brake and gradually open the throttle to drive off.

- Manuals: Learn to use a combination of clutch release and accelerator movement that gives the smoothest driveaway.

- Avoid abrupt changes in throttle opening while the engine is cold. If the engine is losing power under load, ease up on the accelerator and gradually depress it again as much as needed, short of the point where engine hesitation sets in.

WARRANTY INFORMATION: *These repairs are covered by Emission Warranties so long as the cause of fault is not tampering, contamination, prior improper repairs, etc.