Below is the link, as well as the text to a stripped down version of Garrett McKinnon’s, Vehicle MD Staff Writer, article titled “15 Reasons to Read Your Owners Manual”.  Some stuff is basic, but this article does a good job of decreasing frustration as well as pointing you in the right direction to take advantage of your vehicles options that often go unknown and unused.

http://vmd.epubxpress.com/link/vmd/2010/feb/1?s=0

15 Reason to Read Your Owners Manual

By Garrett mcKinnon, Vehicle MD Staff Writer

Let’s face it, reading an owner’s manual is about as much fun as a trip to the dentist. But in today’s increasingly sophisticated vehicles, it’s becoming more and more important that drivers spend at least a few minutes familiarizing themselves with exactly how their car works.

As such, we present 15 reasons you should read your owner’s manual:

1.) Find out what all those buttons do.
Modern cars have more buttons than ever before. You might want to know what they do before you start pressing them.

2.) Find out what that light means
Just as the number of buttons inside a car is proliferating, so too are the number of warning lights, some of which aren’t exactly self-explanatory. Your owner’s manual can decode those mysterious lights for you.

3.) Learn how to operate the radio
These days, you almost need a Ph.D. to operate a car radio. Gone are the days when you simply pushed the power button and turned the dial. In order to get the most out of your radio, spend a few minutes finding out how to work it. (Chances are the radio section in your owner’s manual will be the single largest section in the entire book!)

4.) Learn how to open the hood
Automakers are hiding the hood-release latch in some really odd places these days. If yours is hiding, your owner’s manual will tell you where it is.

5.) Learn how to open fuel filler lid
You pull you new car into the gas station, only to realize you have no idea how to open the fuel filler lid. Save yourself some time before your first fill-up.

6.) Find out how to set the trip computer
Does your car have one trip setting or two? How do you reset either one? What other information does my car’s computer keep track of? The answers to these questions and more are waiting to be found.

7.) Change your car’s settings
These days, many of your car’s systems can be controlled thought its central computer. You may be able to customize settings for your alarm, climate system, lights, ect., but read up on the system first in order to avoid problems later.

8.) Know what TPMS is
If your car was manufactured after September 2007, it has a tire pressure monitoring system, or TPMS. (Many vehicles as far back as 2003 also have these systems.) It’s important to know exactly what the TPMS is and how it affects you, information you can learn in the owner’s manual.

9.) Know where the spare tire is
A flat tire is the worst nightmare of most drivers. But even worse than the prospect of putting on the spare is not knowing where it is-or how to access it. Familiarize yourself with the spare tire before trouble strikes.

10.) Learn how the oil change reminder system works
By some estimates, more than 60 percent of all new vehicles have an oil change reminder system. Find out how yours works and what those service messages really mean.

11.) Find out what your car’s service intervals are
Be an educated customer. Read your owner’s manual before having your car serviced to know exactly what services it needs and what it doesn’t.

12.) Learn why your car is “limping”
Many late-model cars and light trucks have a “limp” mode that allows for low-speed travel in case of a cooling or other system failure. Find out if you car has such a system, and what it means if the “limp” mode engages.

13.) Learn the cool little features your salesman didn’t show you
Can your signal a lane change with just a tap of the turn signal? Can you roll the windows down with your key fob? You might never know all your car’s neat little “tricks” if you don’t read the owner’s manual.

As it turns out, when it comes to operating today’s highly complex automobiles, real men-and women-do need instructions!

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com