2003 Oldsmobile Silhouette Owner's Manual - Page 403

Electrical System Add-on Electrical Equipment Notice: Don't add anything electrical to your vehicle unless youcheck with your dealer first. Some electrical equipment can damage your vehicle and the damage wouldn'tbe covered by your warranty. Someadd-on electrical equipment can keep other components from working as they should. Your vehicle has an air bag system. Before attempting to add anything electrical to your vehicle, see Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle on page 1-76. Power Windows and Other Power Options Circuit breakers in the instrument panel fuse panel protect the power windows and other power accessories. When the current load is too heavy, the circuit breaker opens and closes, protecting the circuit until the problem is fixed. Fuses and Circuit Breakers The wiring circuits in your vehicle are protected from short circuits by a combination of fuses, circuit breakers and fusible thermal links. Look at the silver-colored band inside the fuse. If the band is broken or melted, replace the fuse. Be sure you replace a bad fuse with a new one of the identical size and rating. If you ever have a problem on the road and don't have a spare fuse, you can borrow one that has the same amperage or use one of the spare fuses in the underhood fuse block. Just pick some feature of your vehicle that you can get along without - like the radio or cigarette lighter - and use its fuse, if it is the right amperage. Replace it as soon as you can. There are two fuse blocks in your vehicle, the instrument panel fuse block and the underhood fuse block. Headlamp Wiring The headlamp wiring is protected by an internal circuit breaker in the instrument panel fuse panel. An electrical overload will cause the lamps to go on and off, or in some cases to remain off. If this happens, have your headlamp wiring checked right away. Windshield Wiper Fuses The windshield wiper motor is protected by an internal circuit breaker and a fuse. If the motor overheats due to heavy snow, etc., the wiper will stop until the motor cools. If the overload is caused by some electrical problem, be sure to get it fixed. 5-96