tow PONTIAC VIBE 2007 Owners Manual

Seats and Restraint Systems
....................... 7
Front Seats
.............................................. 8
Rear Seats
............................................. 16
Safety Belts
............................................ 18
Child Restraints
...................................... 37
Airbag System
........................................ 63
Restraint System Check
......................... 82
Features and Controls
................................ 85
Keys
....................................................... 87
Doors and Locks
.................................... 92
Windows
................................................ 98
Theft-Deterrent Systems
....................... 100
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
..... 102
Mirrors
.................................................. 121
OnStar
®System
................................... 123
Storage Areas
...................................... 127
Sunroof
................................................ 131Instrument Panel
....................................... 133
Instrument Panel Overview
................... 136
Climate Controls
................................... 152
Warning Lights, Gages, and
Indicators
.......................................... 158
Audio System(s)
................................... 177
Driving Your Vehicle
................................. 221
Your Driving, the Road, and
Your Vehicle
..................................... 222
Towing
................................................. 259
Service and Appearance Care
.................. 269
Service
................................................. 272
Fuel
...................................................... 274
Checking Things Under the Hood
......... 280
Bulb Replacement
................................ 315
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
... 321
2007 Pontiac Vibe Owner ManualM
1

Passenger Folding Seatback
{CAUTION:
If you fold the seatback forward to carry
longer objects, such as skis, be sure any
such cargo is not near an airbag. In a
crash, an inating airbag might force that
object toward a person. This could cause
severe injury or even death. Secure
objects away from the area in which an
airbag would inate. For more
information, seeWhere Are the Airbags?
on page 66andLoading Your Vehicle on
page 253.
{CAUTION:
Things you put on this seatback can
strike and injure people in a sudden stop
or turn, or in a crash. Remove or secure
all items before driving.
You can fold the front passenger’s seatback down
to allow for more cargo space or as a temporary
table while the vehicle is stopped. When the
area is not being used for more cargo space, the
seatback should be placed in the locked,
upright position.
To fold the seatback down, do the following:
1. Lower the head restraint to the lowest position
and make sure the seatback is at the most
upright position and locked.
14

Rear Seats
Rear Seat Operation
You can fold either side of the seatback down for
more cargo space. The rear right side seatback
can also be used as a temporary table while
the vehicle is stopped. Make sure the front
seatback is not reclined or in the rearward most
position. If it is, the rear seatback will not fold down
all the way.
{CAUTION:
A rear seatback folded forward, or any
other object contacting or pressing the
front seatback may affect the proper
functioning of the passenger sensing
system. SeePassenger Sensing System
on page 74.To fold either seatback down, do the following:
1. Pull up on the lock
release knob,
located on the top
outboard side
of the seatbacks.
Notice:Folding a rear seat with the safety
belts still fastened may cause damage to the
seat or the safety belts. Always unbuckle
the safety belts and return them to their normal
stowed position before folding a rear seat.
2. Fold the seatback down. Each seatback can
be folded separately.
16

{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same
belt. The belt cannot 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:If the child is sitting in a seat next to a window,
move the child toward the center of the vehicle.
If the child is sitting in the center rear seat
passenger position, move the child toward the
safety belt buckle. In either case, 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.
38

{CAUTION:
The body structure of a young child is
quite unlike that of an adult or older child,
for whom the safety belts are designed. A
young child’s hip bones are still so small
that the vehicle’s regular safety belt may
not remain low on the hip bones, as it
should. Instead, it may settle up around
the child’s abdomen. In a crash, the belt
would apply force on a body area that is
unprotected by any bony structure. This
alone could cause serious or fatal injuries.
Young children always should be secured
in appropriate child restraints.
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 at surface. Make sure that the infant’s
head rests toward the center of the vehicle.
43

{CAUTION:
Each top tether anchor and lower anchor
in the vehicle is designed to hold only
one child restraint. Attaching more than
one child restraint to a single anchor
could cause the anchor or attachment to
come loose or even break during a crash.
A child or others could be injured if this
happens. To help prevent injury to people
and damage to your vehicle, attach only
one child restraint per anchor.
{CAUTION:
Children can be seriously injured or
strangled if a shoulder belt is wrapped
around their neck and the safety belt
continues to tighten.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
Secure any unused safety belts behind
the child restraint so children cannot
reach them. Pull the shoulder belt all the
way out of the retractor to set the lock, if
your vehicle has one, after the child
restraint has been installed. Be sure to
follow the instructions of the child
restraint manufacturer.
Notice:Contact between the child restraint or
the LATCH attachment parts and the vehicle’s
safety belt assembly may cause damage to
these parts. Make sure when securing unused
safety belts behind the child restraint that
there is no contact between the child restraint
or the LATCH attachment parts and the
vehicle’s safety belt assembly.
Folding an empty rear seat with the safety
belts secured may cause damage to the safety
belt or the seat. When removing the child
restraint, always remember to return the safety
belts to their normal, stowed position before
folding the rear seat.
53

How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the
steering wheel or the instrument panel. In
moderate to severe side collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the inside of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection provided
by safety belts. Airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper
body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But
the frontal airbags 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 the airbag.
Side impact airbags would not help you in many
types of collisions, including many frontal or
near frontal collisions, rollovers, and rear impacts.
Airbags 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 for the driver’s and right front
passenger’s frontal airbags, and only in moderate
to severe side collisions for vehicles with side
impact airbags.
What Will You See After an Airbag
Inates?
After the frontal and seat-mounted side impact
airbags inate, they quickly deate, so quickly that
some people may not even realize an airbag
inated. Roof-mounted side impact airbags may still
be at least partially inated minutes after the vehicle
comes to rest. Some components of the airbag
module — the steering wheel hub for the driver’s
airbag, the instrument panel for the right front
passenger’s bag, the side of the seatback closest to
the door for the seat-mounted side impact airbags
(if equipped), and the garnish trim and the area
along the ceiling of your vehicle near the side
windows for the roof–mounted side impact airbags
(if equipped) — may be hot for a short time. The
parts of the airbag that come into contact with you
may be warm, but not too hot to touch.
72

An object, person or child in the rear seat
contacting or pressing the right front passenger’s
seatback, or objects stowed under the right
front passenger’s seat, may affect the proper
functioning of the passenger sensing system.
When you use a safety belt extender in the right
front passenger’s seat, make sure the passenger
airbag status indicator shows the word ON. 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 airbag, seat-mounted side impact airbag
(if equipped), and the safety belt pretensioner may
not activate correctly. SeeAirbag System on
page 63for important safety information about your
airbags.The passenger sensing system is designed to
enable (may inate) the right front passenger’s
frontal airbag, seat-mounted side impact airbag
(if equipped), and the safety belt pretensioner
anytime the system senses that a person of
adult size is sitting properly in the right front
passenger’s seat. When the passenger sensing
system has allowed the airbags and pretensioner
to be enabled, the ON indicator will light and
stay lit to remind you that the airbags and
pretensioner are active.
For some children who have outgrown child
restraints and for very small adults, the passenger
sensing system may or may not turn off the
airbags and pretensioner, depending upon the
person’s seating posture and body build. Everyone
in your vehicle who has outgrown child restraints
should wear a safety belt properly — whether
or not there is an airbag for that person.
77

{CAUTION:
If the airbag readiness light in the
instrument panel cluster ever comes on
and stays on, it means that something
may be wrong with the airbag system. If
this ever happens, have the vehicle
serviced promptly, because an adult-size
person sitting in the right front
passenger’s seat may not have the
protection of the frontal airbag. See
Airbag Readiness Light on page 162for
more on this, including important safety
information.Aftermarket equipment, such as seat covers or
seat backpacks, can affect how well the passenger
sensing system operates. You may want to
consider not using seat covers, seat backpacks, or
other aftermarket equipment if your vehicle has
the passenger sensing system. SeeAdding
Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on
page 81for more information about modications
that can affect how the system operates.
{CAUTION:
Stowing of articles under the passenger’s
seat or between the passenger’s seat
cushion and seatback may interfere with
the proper operation of the passenger
sensing system.
79

CAUTION: (Continued)

Young children who get into unlocked
vehicles may be unable to get out. A
child can be overcome by extreme
heat and can suffer permanent injuries
or even death from heat stroke.
Always lock your vehicle whenever
you leave it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an
unlocked door when you slow down
or stop your vehicle. Locking your
doors can help prevent this from
happening.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your
vehicle.From the outside, use your key or the remote
keyless entry transmitter, if equipped. SeeRemote
Keyless Entry (RKE) System Operation on
page 90for more information.
If your vehicle has power door locks, open the
driver’s door by turning the key in the lock toward
the rear of the vehicle. Turning the key back
toward the center, then toward the rear again will
unlock all of the doors. Using the key in the
passenger’s door will also unlock all of the doors.
Lock a door by turning the key toward the front
of the vehicle. If you have power door locks, all the
doors will lock.
93