ABS CHEVROLET MALIBU 2003 5.G Owners Manual

Braking
Braking action involvesperception timeandreaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That'sperception time.Then you have to bring up your
foot and do it. That'sreaction time.
Averagereaction timeis about 3/4 of a second. But
that's only an average. It might be less with one driver
and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs and
frustration. But even in 3/4 of a second, a vehicle moving
at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m). That
could be a lot of distance in an emergency, so keeping
enough space between your vehicle and others is
important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road (whether it's pavement
or gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; the condition of your brakes; the weight of
the vehicle and the amount of brake force applied.
Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in
spurts Ð heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking Ð rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is
a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to coolbetween hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much
faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace
with the traffic and allow realistic following distances,
you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking.
That means better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you're driving, brake
normally but don't pump your brakes. If you do,
the pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist.
But you will use it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle may have anti-lock brakes. ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
If your vehicle has anti-lock
brakes, this warning light
on the instrument panel will
come on brie¯y when
you start your vehicle.
4-6

Let's say the road is wet and you're driving safely.
Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam
on the brakes and continue braking. Here's what
happens with ABS:
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down.
If one of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer
will separately work the brakes at each wheel.The anti-lock system can change the brake pressure
faster than any driver could. The computer is
programmed to make the most of available tire and road
conditions. This can help you steer around the obstacle
while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates
on wheel speed and controls braking pressure
accordingly.
4-7

When towing a trailer, the arrows on your instrument
panel will ¯ash for turns even if the bulbs on the trailer
are burned out. Thus, you may think drivers behind
you are seeing your signal when they are not. It's
important to check occasionally to be sure the trailer
bulbs are still working.
Driving On Grades
Notice:Do not tow on steep continuous grades
exceeding 6 miles (9.6 km). Extended, higher than
normal engine and transaxle temperatures may result
and damage your vehicle. Frequent stops are very
important to allow the engine and transaxle to cool.
Reduce speed and shift to a lower gear
beforeyou start
down a long or steep downgrade. If you don't shift
down, you might have to use your brakes so much that
they would get hot and no longer work well.
On a long uphill grade, shift down and reduce your
speed to around 45 mph (70 km/h) to reduce the
possibility of engine and transaxle overheating.
Pay attention to the engine coolant gage. If the indicator
is in the red area, turn off the air conditioning to
reduce engine load. See
Engine Overheating on
page 5-22.
Parking on Hills
{CAUTION:
You really should not park your vehicle, with a
trailer attached, on a hill. If something goes
wrong, your rig could start to move. People
can be injured, and both your vehicle and the
trailer can be damaged.
But if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here's
how to do it:
1. Apply your regular brakes, but don't shift into
PARK (P) yet.
2. Have someone place chocks under the trailer
wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the
regular brakes until the chocks absorb the load.
4. Reapply the regular brakes. Then apply your
parking brake and shift into PARK (P).
5. Release the regular brakes.
4-39

6. Carefully remove the backplate by gently pulling up
on the two upper and two lower tabs.
7. Gently wiggle the bulb to remove it from the socket.
Replace the bulb.
8. Reverse the steps to reassemble the backplate and
attach the taillamp assembly to the vehicle. Make
sure that all four tabs of the backplate are securely
fastened to the taillamp assembly before reinstalling
it on the vehicle.
9. When securing the lamp assembly back into place,
align the assembly so that the trunk lid doesn't
contact it.
10. Close the trunk.
Replacement Bulbs
Exterior Lamp Bulb Number
Back-Up/Rear Turn 3156
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp
(Interior Mounted)912
Front Parking/Turn 3157A or 3157NA
Front Sidemarker 24
High-Beam Headlamp 9005
Low-Beam Headlamp 9006
Tail/Stoplamp 3057
For any bulb not listed here, contact your dealer.
5-47

Relays Usage
20 Automatic Headlamp System
21 Horn
22 Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
Fuses Usage
23±32 Spare Fuse Holder
33 Rear Defogger
34Accessory Power Outlets,
Cigar Lighter
35 Generator
36 Not Used
37Air Conditioning Compressor,
Body Function Control Module
38 Automatic Transaxle
39Powertrain Control Module (PCM),
Ignition
40 Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS)
41 Ignition System
42Back-Up Lamps, Automatic
Transaxle Shift Lock Control SystemFuses Usage
43 Horn
44 PCM
45 Parking Lamps
46 Climate Control System
47Canister Purge Valve, PCM, Exhaust
Gas Recirculation, Heated Oxygen
Sensor
48 Fuel Pump Injectors
49 Not Used
50 Right Headlamp
51 Left Headlamp
52 Cooling Fan
53 HVAC Blower (Climate Control)
54 Not Used
55 Cooling Fan #2 Ground
56 Fuse Puller
57 Not Used
5-81

A
Accessory Power Outlets.................................3-16
Adding Washer Fluid.......................................5-31
Additional Program Information........................... 7-8
Additives, Fuel................................................. 5-5
Add-On Electrical Equipment............................5-76
Adjusting the Speakers
(Balance/Fade)............................3-39, 3-43, 3-50
Air Bag System, Supplemental
Restraint System (SRS)................................1-48
Air Bag .........................................................3-26
Readiness Light..........................................3-26
Air Cleaner/Filter, Engine.................................5-17
AM ...............................................................3-57
Antenna, Fixed Mast.......................................3-59
Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)............................ 4-6
Anti-Lock Brake, System Warning Light..............3-28
Appearance Care............................................5-67
Care of Safety Belts....................................5-70
Chemical Paint Spotting...............................5-73
Cleaning the Inside of Your Vehicle................5-68
Cleaning the Outside of Your Vehicle..............5-71
Finish Damage............................................5-73
Sheet Metal Damage...................................5-72
Underbody Maintenance...............................5-73Appearance Care (cont.)
Vehicle Care/Appearance Materials................5-73
Weatherstrips..............................................5-70
Ashtrays........................................................3-17
Audio System(s).............................................3-36
Care of Your Cassette
Tape Player.............................................3-58
Care of Your CD Player...............................3-59
Care of Your CDs........................................3-59
Chime Level Adjustment...............................3-59
Fixed Mast Antenna.....................................3-59
Radio with Cassette and CD.........................3-48
Radio with CD....................................3-37, 3-41
Setting the Time for Radios with
Radio Data Systems (RDS).......................3-37
Setting the Time for Radios without
Radio Data Systems (RDS).......................3-36
Theft-Deterrent Feature................................3-57
Understanding Radio Reception.....................3-57
Automatic Headlamp System............................3-13
Automatic Transaxle Inspection.........................6-16
Automatic Transaxle Shift Lock Control
System Check.............................................6-17
Automatic Transaxle........................................5-18
Fluid..........................................................5-18
Operation...................................................2-20
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