tow PONTIAC GTO 2004 Owners Manual

Seats and Restraint Systems........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Safety Belts
.............................................. 1-6
Child Restraints
.......................................1-26
Air Bag Systems
......................................1-46
Restraint System Check
............................1-52
Features and Controls..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-2
Doors and Locks
....................................... 2-6
Windows
.................................................2-10
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................2-12
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
...........2-15
Mirrors
....................................................2-29
Storage Areas
.........................................2-30
Vehicle Personalization
.............................2-32
Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-2
Climate Controls
......................................3-19
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........3-23
Trip Computer
.........................................3-36
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-42Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-29
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
...............5-10
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-47
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
.........5-50
Tires
......................................................5-51
Appearance Care
.....................................5-78
Vehicle Identification
.................................5-86
Electrical System
......................................5-87
Capacities and Specifications
.....................5-92
Maintenance Schedule..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance and Information.............. 7-1
Customer Assistance and Information
........... 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
...........................7-10
Index................................................................ 1
2004 Pontiac GTO Owner ManualM

Front Seats
Power Seats
The power front seat controls are located on the
outboard side of the driver’s and passenger’s seat.
The horizontal switch is used to electrically adjust the
height, the tilt, and the movement of the seat forward
and rearward. The vertical switch is used to electrically
adjust the angle of the back of the seat.
To adjust the seat, do the following:
•Move the seat forward or rearward by sliding the
horizontal switch toward the front or rear of the
vehicle.
•Raise or lower the seat cushion by sliding the
horizontal switch up or down.
•Tilt the horizontal switch up at the front to tilt the
front of the seat up, and tilt the horizontal switch
down at the rear to tilt the seat down at the rear.
•Tilt the vertical switch to adjust the angle of
the seatback. The seat back moves in the same
direction that the switch is tilted to.
Manual Lumbar
The manual lumbar control
lets you adjust the amount
of support in the lower
seatback.
1-2

{CAUTION:
If the seatback isn’t locked, it could move
forward in a sudden stop or crash. That could
cause injury to the person sitting there. Always
press rearward on the seatback to be sure it is
locked.
To return the seat to the original position after it has
been moved forward, do the following:
1. Before moving the seat, ensure there are no
objects in front or behind the seat.
2. Tilt the seatback
rearward until the
seatback latches
upright.3. Press and hold the
button under the front
seat lever to return
the seat to its original
position. The seat
will pause for
two seconds when it
reaches its original
position.
The seatback must first be returned upright before
pressing the button, otherwise it will not pause for two
seconds at the original position, and instead will
continue rearwards until the button is released.
When rear seat passengers are entering or exiting the
vehicle, it may be helpful to move the seat belt
anchor arm towards the rear of the vehicle, to avoid
tripping.
1-5

{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same belt.
The belt can’t properly spread the impact
forces. In a crash, the two children can be
crushed together and seriously injured. A belt
must be used by only one person at a time.
Q:What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child is so small that the shoulder belt
is very close to the child’s face or neck?
A:Move the child toward the center of the vehicle.
Be sure that the shoulder belt still is on the child’s
shoulder, so that in a crash the child’s upper
body would have the restraint that belts provide. If
the child is sitting in a rear seat position, see
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for Children and
Small Adults on page 1-23.
1-27

Child Restraint Systems
An infant car bed (A), a special bed made for use in a
motor vehicle, is an infant restraint system designed
to restrain or position a child on a continuous flat
surface. Make sure that the infant’s head rests toward
the center of the vehicle.A rear-facing infant seat (B) provides restraint with the
seating surface against the back of the infant. The
harness system holds the infant in place and, in a crash,
acts to keep the infant positioned in the restraint.
1-32

What Makes an Air Bag Inate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The
sensing system triggers a release of gas from the
inflator, which inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag,
and related hardware are all part of the air bag
modules inside the steering wheel and in the instrument
panel in front of the right front passenger.
How Does an Air Bag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. Air bags supplement the
protection provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute
the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s
upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually.
But air bags would not help you in many types of
collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts and many
side impacts, primarily because an occupant’s motion is
not toward those air bags. Air bags should never be
regarded as anything more than a supplement to safety
belts, and then only in moderate to severe frontal or
near-frontal collisions.
What Will You See After an Air Bag
Inates?
After the air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so quickly
that some people may not even realize the air bag
inflated. Some components of the air bag module will be
hot for a short time. These components include the
steering wheel hub for the driver’s frontal air bag and the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s frontal
air bag. The parts of the bag that come into contact with
you may be warm, but not too hot to touch. There will
be some smoke and dust coming from the vents in
the deflated air bags. Air bag inflation does not prevent
the driver from seeing or being able to steer the
vehicle, nor does it stop people from leaving the vehicle.
1-50

The main key can be used
for the ignition, as well as
all locks, except for the
glovebox.
There is another key that
locks and unlocks the
glovebox.This key can usually be kept in the unlocked glovebox.
Then, when leaving your vehicle and master key
with a car park attendant, you can lock valuables in the
glovebox and take the glovebox key with you.
When a new key is delivered, it will come with a bar
coded tag attached to the key ring. Keep the bar code
tag that came with the original keys. Give this tag
to your dealer if you need a new key made.
The vehicle comes with a security card that lists various
security numbers for your vehicle, including key
numbers, and the radio PIN. Please keep the card in a
safe place, away from your vehicle.
If a replacement key is needed, you will have to go to
the dealership and make a request. If a key is lost, your
vehicle will have to be towed to a dealer to receive a
new key.
In an emergency, contact Pontiac Roadside Assistance.
SeeRoadside Assistance Program on page 7-5for
more information.
Notice:If you ever lock your keys in your vehicle,
you may have to damage the vehicle to get in.
Be sure you have spare keys.
2-3

There are several ways to unlock and lock your vehicle.
To unlock the doors from inside the vehicle, pull up
on the door lock knob. To lock the doors, press the knob
down. If you use the driver’s door lock knob, both
doors will lock or unlock.
Automatic transmission vehicles have an automatic
locking in DRIVE (D) feature which locks the doors
automatically when the transmission selector is shifted
out of PARK (P). To select this feature, seeVehicle
Personalization on page 2-32.
For safety reasons, vehicles cannot be locked using the
remote key if the key is in the ignition or if the driver’s
door is open.
To lock or unlock your vehicle from the outside, use
your key or the remote buttons on the key.
To lock the doors from the outside, do the following:
1. Insert the key in the driver’s door lock.
2. Turn the key towards the rear of the vehicle.
3. Then turn the key back to the vertical position and
remove.The alarm system is not set using this method.
To unlock the doors from the outside, do the following:
1. Insert the key in the driver’s door lock.
2. Turn the key towards the front of the vehicle.
3. Then turn the key back to the vertical position and
remove.
The alarm system will go off as soon as a door is
opened. If this happens, turn the key in the ignition to
ON to shut off the alarm.
Leaving Your Vehicle
If you are leaving your vehicle, make sure that you lock
it and take the keys with you.
2-7

Remote Trunk Release
This feature is used to unlock the trunk from inside the
vehicle.
Push the button in the glovebox to unlock the trunk,
provided you are not traveling over 12 mph (20 km/h) or
the alarm system is on. Then from the outside, lift up
the trunk. For added vehicle security, the glovebox
button is disabled when all the doors are locked with the
LOCK button on the key or through the door lock.There is also a secondary trunk release handle located
under the passenger’s side rear seat head restraint.
To access this handle, when the vehicle is not moving,
lift the head restraint and pull the yellow ring towards
the front of the vehicle.
2-9

Ignition Positions
With the key in the ignition switch, you can turn it to
three different positions.
A (LOCK and ACCESSORY):This is the only position
from which you can insert or remove the key. When
the key is inserted and is in this position, all accessories,
electrical systems, and engine are off. If the key is
cycled back to this position the accessories will remain
on until the key is removed. Once the key is removed
the accessories will turn off. If the key is left inserted in
this position, a chime will sound when the driver’sdoor is opened to remind you the key has been left in
the ignition. The key can only be turned to this position if
the vehicle’s automatic transmission is in PARK (P).
To help guard against theft, your vehicle’s engine
is automatically disabled shortly after turning the key to
this position. This is indicated by the flashing padlock
symbol on the bottom left corner of the instrument panel.
The steering column is automatically locked when the
key is removed. To release the steering wheel, insert the
key again and turn it towards the front of the vehicle.
Notice:Using a tool to force the key from the
ignition switch could cause damage or break the
key. Use the correct key and turn the key only with
your hand. Make sure the key is all the way in. If
it is, turn the steering wheel left and right while you
turn the key hard. If none of this works, then
your vehicle needs service.
B (ON and ACCESSORY):This position is where the
key returns to after you start your engine and release the
key. The ignition switch stays in ON when the engine
is running. But even when the engine is not running, you
can use ON to operate your electrical accessories
and to display some instrument panel warning lights.
C (START):This position starts the engine. When
the engine starts, release the key. The ignition switch
will return to ON for normal driving.
2-16