light PONTIAC VIBE 2006 Owners Manual

Seats and Restraint Systems........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
............................................... 1-7
Safety Belts
.............................................. 1-9
Child Restraints
.......................................1-26
Airbag System
.........................................1-49
Restraint System Check
............................1-66
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
...........2-14
Mirrors
....................................................2-30
OnStar
®System
......................................2-32
Storage Areas
.........................................2-34
Sunroof
..................................................2-37
Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
......................................3-18
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........3-24
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-42Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-37
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
...............5-10
All-Wheel Drive
........................................5-45
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-46
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
.........5-51
Tires
......................................................5-52
Appearance Care
.....................................5-81
Vehicle Identication
.................................5-89
Electrical System
......................................5-90
Capacities and Specications
.....................5-96
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts
......5-98
Maintenance Schedule..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance and Information.............. 7-1
Customer Assistance and Information
........... 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
...........................7-13
Index................................................................ 1
2006 Pontiac Vibe Owner ManualM

Vehicle Damage Warnings
Also, in this manual you will nd these notices:
Notice:These mean there is something that could
damage your vehicle.
A notice tells about something that can damage the
vehicle. Many times, this damage would not be covered
by your vehicle’s warranty, and it could be costly. But
the notice will tell what to do to help avoid the damage.
When you read other manuals, you might see
CAUTION and NOTICE warnings in different colors
or in different words.
There are also warning labels on the vehicle. They use
the same words, CAUTION or NOTICE.
Vehicle Symbols
The vehicle has components and labels that use
symbols instead of text. Symbols are shown along with
the text describing the operation or information
relating to a specic component, control, message,
gage, or indicator.
If you need help guring out a specic name of
a component, gage, or indicator, reference the
following topics:
Seats and Restraint Systems in Section 1
Features and Controls in Section 2
Instrument Panel Overview in Section 3
Climate Controls in Section 3
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators in Section 3
Audio System(s) in Section 3
Engine Compartment Overview in Section 5
iv

Safety Belts
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety
belts properly. It also tells you some things you should
not do with safety belts.
{CAUTION:
Do not let anyone ride where he or she cannot
wear a safety belt properly. If you are in a
crash and you are not wearing a safety belt,
your injuries can be much worse. You can hit
things inside the vehicle or be ejected from it.
You can be seriously injured or killed. In the
same crash, you might not be, if you are
buckled up. Always fasten your safety belt,
and check that your passengers’ belts are
fastened properly too.
{CAUTION:
It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo
area, inside or outside of a vehicle. In a
collision, people riding in these areas are more
likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not
allow people to ride in any area of your vehicle
that is not equipped with seats and safety
belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a
seat and using a safety belt properly.
Your vehicle has a light
that comes on as a
reminder to buckle up.
SeeSafety Belt Reminder
Light on page 3-27.
1-9

3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Do not let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt
across you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt
go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt
across you more slowly.4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt is not long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 1-25.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
5. Move the shoulder belt height adjuster to the height
that is right for you. SeeShoulder Belt Height
Adjustment on page 1-21.
6. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the
shoulder belt.
1-15

Lap-Shoulder Belt
All rear seat positions have lap-shoulder belts. Here is
how to wear one properly.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Do not let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt
across you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt
go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt
across you more slowly.2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. Pull
up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure. If the
buckle does not click, check to be sure that you are
using the correct buckle. The buckle for the center
rear passenger position has the word CENTER on it.
When the shoulder belt is pulled out all the way,
it will lock. If it does, let it go back all the way and
start again.
If the belt is not long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 1-25.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
1-23

Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners. Although
you cannot see them, they are located on the retractor
part of the safety belts for the driver and right front
passenger. They help the safety belts reduce a person’s
forward movement in a moderate to severe frontal or
near frontal crash.
If the passenger sensing system detects that there is
not a passenger in the right front passenger position,
the safety belt pretensioner for that position will not
activate. SeePassenger Sensing System on page 1-59.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a
crash, you will need to get new ones, and probably other
new parts for your safety belt system. SeeReplacing
Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 1-67.
Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you,
you should use it.
But if a safety belt is not long enough, your dealer
will order you an extender. It is free. When you go
in to order it, take the heaviest coat you will wear,
so the extender will be long enough for you.To help avoid personal injury, do not let someone else
use it, and use it only for the seat it is made to t.
The extender has been designed for adults. Never use
it for securing child seats. To wear it, just attach it to
the regular safety belt. For more information see
the instruction sheet that comes with the extender.
Always disconnect the extender from the safety belt after
you use it so that the airbag will work properly the
next time someone uses that seat.
When you use a safety belt extender in the right front
passenger’s seat, make sure the passenger airbag status
indicator shows “ON”. SeePassenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 3-29. If the indicator shows “OFF”,
disconnect the extender’s latch from the buckle then
reconnect the safety belt. Make sure the indicator light
shows “ON”, then reconnect the safety belt extender. If
you use the safety belt extender while the indicator light
shows “OFF”, the right front passenger’s frontal and
seat-mounted side impact airbags (if equipped) may not
activate correctly. SeeAirbag System on page 1-49for
important safety information about your airbags.
1-25

If you need to secure a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front seat position, move the seat as far back
as it will go before securing the forward-facing child
restraint. SeeManual Seats on page 1-2.
If your child restraint is equipped with the LATCH
system, seeLower Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH) on page 1-37.
There is no top tether anchor at the right front seating
position. Do not secure a child seat in this position
if a national or local law requires that the top tether be
anchored or if the instructions that come with the
child restraint say that the top tether must be anchored.
SeeLower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH)
on page 1-37if the child restraint has a top tether.You will be using the lap-shoulder belt to secure the
child restraint in this position. Be sure to follow the
instructions that came with the child restraint.
Secure the child in the child restraint when and as
the instructions say.
1. Your vehicle has airbags. SeePassenger Sensing
System on page 1-59. General Motors recommends
that rear-facing child restraints be secured in a
rear seat, even if the airbag is off. If your child
restraint is forward-facing, move the seat as far
back as it will go before securing the child restraint
in this seat. SeeManual Seats on page 1-2.
When the passenger sensing system has turned off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag (if equipped),
the off indicator in the passenger airbag status
indicator should light and stay lit when you turn the
ignition to ON. SeePassenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 3-29.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder
portions of the vehicle’s safety belt through or
around the restraint. The child restraint instructions
will show you how.
1-46

6. To tighten the belt, push down on the child restraint,
pull the shoulder portion of the belt to tighten the
lap portion of the belt and feed the shoulder
belt back into the retractor. If you are using a
forward-facing child restraint, you may nd it helpful
to use your knee to push down on the child
restraint as you tighten the belt. You should not be
able to pull more of the belt from the retractor
once the lock has been set.7. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
8. If the passenger sensing system has turned off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag (if equipped),
the off indicator in the passenger airbag status
indicator will be lit and stay lit when the key
is turned to ON.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on
indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove the child
restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the child restraint
with the ignition key in the ACC or LOCK position.
If after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting the
vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to make
sure that the vehicle’s seatback is not pressing the child
restraint into the seat cushion. If this happens, slightly
recline the vehicle’s seatback and adjust the seat
cushion if possible. Also make sure the child restraint is
not trapped under the vehicle head restraint. If this
happens, adjust the head restraint.
1-48

If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child
restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle and
check with your dealer.
If the airbag readiness light and the OFF light in the
passenger airbag status indicator come on together,
it may mean there is a malfunction in the passenger
sensing system. Secure the child in the child restraint in
a rear seat position in the vehicle and check with
your dealer.
To remove the child restraint, just unbuckle the vehicle’s
safety belt and let it go back all the way. The safety
belt will move freely again and be ready to work for an
adult or larger child passenger.Airbag System
Your vehicle has a frontal airbag for the driver and a
frontal airbag for the right front passenger. Your vehicle
may also have the following airbags:
A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the driver
A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the right front
passenger
A roof-mounted side impact airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated directly behind the
driver
A roof-mounted side impact airbag for the right front
passenger and the passenger seated directly
behind that passenger
If your vehicle has seat-mounted side impact airbags,
it will say SRS-SIDE AIRBAG on a label on the
side of the driver’s and right front passenger’s seat
closest to the door.
If your vehicle has roof-mounted side impact airbags,
it will say SRS CURTAIN AIRBAG on the trim on
the side of the windshield.
1-49

{CAUTION:
Both frontal and side impact airbags inate
with great force, faster than the blink of an
eye. If you are too close to an inating airbag,
as you would be if you were leaning forward,
it could seriously injure you. Safety belts help
keep you in position for airbag ination before
and during a crash. Always wear your safety
belt even with frontal airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible while still
maintaining control of the vehicle. Occupants
should not lean on or sleep against the door.
{CAUTION:
Anyone who is up against, or very close to,
any airbag when it inates can be seriously
injured or killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer the best protection for adults,
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
but not for young children and infants. Neither
the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its airbag
system is designed for them. Young children
and infants need the protection that a child
restraint system can provide. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle. To read how,
seeOlder Children on page 1-26orInfants and
Young Children on page 1-28.
There is an airbag
readiness light on the
instrument panel, which
shows the airbag symbol.
The system checks the airbag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. SeeAirbag Readiness Light on page 3-28
for more information.
1-51