1996 Buick Century Owner's Manual - Page 80

Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine Running A CAUTION It can be dangerousto 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 And, if you set. leave the vehicle with the engine running, it could overheat and even catch fire. or others could You be 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 sureyour vehicle isin PARK (P) and your parking brake is firmly set before you leave it.After you've moved the shift lever intothe PARK (P) position, hold the regular brake pedal down. Then, see if you can move the shift lever away from PARK (P) without first pulling it toward you. If you can, it means that the shift lever wasn't fully locked into PARK (P). Note: If for some reason you leave your vehicle running and it is not in PARK (P) and the parking brake is applied, your doors will automatically lock when you close the door. Torque Lock 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 lock, set the parking brake and then shift into PARK (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 of PARK (P) before you release the parking brake. If torque lock does occur, 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). 2-22