tires CHEVROLET SPARK 2014 3.G User Guide

Black plate (9,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Driving and Operating 9-9
{Warning
If the vehicle's tires spin at high
speed, they can explode, and you
or others could be injured. The
vehicle can overheat, causing an
engine compartment fire or other
damage. Spin the wheels as little
as possible and avoid going
above 56 km/h (35 mph).
Rocking the Vehicle to Get
it Out
Turn the steering wheel left and
right to clear the area around the
front wheels. Turn off any traction
system. Shift back and forth
between R (Reverse) and a low
forward gear, spinning the wheels
as little as possible. To prevent
transmission wear, wait until the
wheels stop spinning before shifting
gears. Release the accelerator
pedal while shifting, and press
lightly on the accelerator pedal
when the transmission is in gear.Slowly spinning the wheels in the
forward and reverse directions
causes a rocking motion that could
free the vehicle. If that does not get
the vehicle out after a few tries, it
might need to be towed out. If the
vehicle does need to be towed out,
see
Towing the Vehicle on
page 10-66.
Vehicle Load Limits
It is very important to know how
much weight the vehicle can
carry. This weight is called the
vehicle capacity weight and
includes the weight of all
occupants, cargo, and all
nonfactory-installed options.
Two labels on the vehicle show
how much weight it may
properly carry: the Tire and
Loading Information label and
the Certification label.
{Warning
Do not load the vehicle any
heavier than the Gross
Vehicle Weight Rating
(GVWR), or either the
maximum front or rear Gross
Axle Weight Rating (GAWR).
This can cause systems to
break and change the way the
vehicle handles. This could
cause loss of control and a
crash. Overloading can also
shorten the life of the vehicle.

Black plate (10,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
9-10 Driving and Operating
Tire and Loading Information
Label
Label Example
A vehicle-specific Tire and
Loading Information label is
attached to the vehicle's center
pillar (B-pillar). The Tire and
Loading Information label shows
the number of occupant seating
positions (1), and the maximum
vehicle capacity weight (2) in
kilograms and pounds.The Tire and Loading
Information label also shows the
tire size of the original
equipment tires (3) and the
recommended cold tire inflation
pressures (4). For more
information on tires and inflation
see
Tires on page 10-35 and
Tire Pressure on page 10-42.
There is also important loading
information on the Certification
label. It tells you the Gross
Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR)
and the Gross Axle Weight
Rating (GAWR) for the front and
rear axle. See “Certification
Label” later in this section.
“Steps for Determining Correct
Load Limit–
1.Locate the statement "The
combined weight of
occupants and cargo should
never exceed XXX kg or
XXX lbs." on your vehicle’s
placard.
2.Determine the combined
weight of the driver and
passengers that will be riding
in your vehicle.
3.Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and
passengers from XXX kg or
XXX lbs.
4.The resulting figure equals
the available amount of cargo
and luggage load capacity.
For example, if the "XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs. and
there will be five 150 lb
passengers in your vehicle,
the amount of available cargo
and luggage load capacity is
650 lbs. (1400-750 (5 x 150)
= 650 lbs.)
5.Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Vehicle Care 10-1
Vehicle Care
General Information
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
California Proposition65 Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . 10-3
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Vehicle Checks
Doing Your OwnService Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Engine Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-6
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-7
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 10-9
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
Manual Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11
Hydraulic Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . 10-11
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-12
Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-13
Engine Overheating . . . . . . . . 10-16 Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Brake Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-19
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . 10-22
Automatic Transmission Shift
Lock Control Function
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-22
Ignition Transmission Lock Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-22
Park Brake and P (Park) Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . 10-23
Wiper Blade Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-23
Headlamp Aiming
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . 10-24
Bulb Replacement
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-25
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-25
Headlamps, Front TurnSignal and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-25
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-26 Taillamps, Turn Signal,
Stoplamps, and Back-Up
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-26
License Plate Lamp . . . . . . . . 10-27
Replacement Bulbs . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Electrical System
Electrical System Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-29
Engine Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-29
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-33
Wheels and Tires
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
All-Season Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-36
Winter Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-36
Summer Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Tire Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . 10-37
Tire Designations . . . . . . . . . . . 10-38
Tire Terminology andDefinitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-42
Tire Pressure Monitor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-43

Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
10-2 Vehicle Care
Tire Pressure MonitorOperation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Tire Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-47
Tire Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-47
When It Is Time for New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-48
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . 10-49
Different Size Tires and Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-51
Uniform Tire Quality Grading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-51
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-53
Wheel Replacement . . . . . . . . 10-53
Tire Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-54
If a Tire Goes Flat . . . . . . . . . . 10-54
Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . 10-55
Storing the Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . 10-63
Jump Starting
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-64
Towing the Vehicle
Towing the Vehicle . . . . . . . . . 10-66
Recreational VehicleTowing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-67
Appearance Care
Exterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-69
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-74
Floor Mats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-77
General Information
For service and parts needs, visit
your dealer. You will receive
genuine GM parts and GM-trained
and supported service people.
Genuine GM parts have one of
these marks:
California Proposition
65 Warning
Most motor vehicles, including this
one, contain and/or emit chemicals
known to the State of California to

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Vehicle Care 10-19
{Caution
Continuing to drive with worn-out
brake pads could result in costly
brake repair.
Some driving conditions or climates
can cause a brake squeal when the
brakes are first applied or lightly
applied. This does not mean
something is wrong with the brakes.
Properly torqued wheel nuts are
necessary to help prevent brake
pulsation. When tires are rotated,
inspect brake pads for wear and
evenly tighten wheel nuts in the
proper sequence to torque
specifications. See Capacities and
Specifications on page 12-2.
Brake pads should be replaced as
complete sets.
Brake Pedal Travel
See your dealer if the brake pedal
does not return to normal height,
or if there is a rapid increase in pedal travel. This could be a sign
that brake service might be
required.
Brake Adjustment
Every time the brakes are applied,
with or without the vehicle moving,
the brakes adjust for wear.
Replacing Brake System Parts
The braking system on a vehicle is
complex. Its many parts have to be
of top quality and work well together
if the vehicle is to have really good
braking. The vehicle was designed
and tested with top-quality brake
parts. When parts of the braking
system are replaced, be sure to get
new, approved replacement parts.
If this is not done, the brakes might
not work properly. For example,
installing disc brake pads that are
wrong for the vehicle, can change
the balance between the front and
rear brakes
—for the worse. The
braking performance expected can change in many other ways if the
wrong replacement brake parts are
installed.
Brake Fluid
The brake/clutch master cylinder
reservoir is filled with DOT 4 brake
fluid as indicated on the reservoir
cap. See
Engine Compartment
Overview on page 10-6 for the
location of the reservoir.
There are only two reasons why the
brake fluid level in the reservoir
might go down:
.The brake fluid level goes down
because of normal brake lining
wear. When new linings are
installed, the fluid level goes
back up.

Black plate (35,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Vehicle Care 10-35
Number Usage39 Heater, Ventilation, and Air
Conditioning
40 OnStar
41 Spare Fuse
42 Spare Fuse
43 Spare Fuse
44 Spare Fuse
45 Spare Fuse
46 Spare FuseWheels and Tires
Tires
Every new GM vehicle has
high-quality tires made by a
leading tire manufacturer. See
the warranty manual for
information regarding the tire
warranty and where to get
service. For additional
information refer to the tire
manufacturer.
{Warning
.Poorly maintained and
improperly used tires are
dangerous.
.Overloading the tires can
cause overheating as a
result of too much flexing.
There could be a blowout
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
and a serious crash. See
Vehicle Load Limits on
page 9-9.
.Underinflated tires pose
the same danger as
overloaded tires. The
resulting crash could
cause serious injury.
Check all tires frequently
to maintain the
recommended pressure.
Tire pressure should be
checked when the tires
are cold.
.Overinflated tires are more
likely to be cut, punctured,
or broken by a sudden
impact —such as when
hitting a pothole. Keep
tires at the recommended
pressure.
(Continued)

Black plate (36,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
10-36 Vehicle Care
Warning (Continued)
.Worn or old tires can
cause a crash. If the tread
is badly worn,
replace them.
.Replace any tires that
have been damaged by
impacts with potholes,
curbs, etc.
.Improperly repaired tires
can cause a crash. Only
the dealer or an
authorized tire service
center should repair,
replace, dismount, and
mount the tires.
.Do not spin the tires in
excess of 56 km/h
(35 mph) on slippery
surfaces such as snow,
mud, ice, etc. Excessive
spinning may cause the
tires to explode.
All-Season Tires
This vehicle may come with
all-season tires. These tires are
designed to provide good overall
performance on most road surfaces
and weather conditions. Original
equipment tires designed to GM's
specific tire performance criteria
have a TPC specification code
molded onto the sidewall. Original
equipment all-season tires can be
identified by the last two characters
of this TPC code, which will
be“MS.”
Consider installing winter tires on
the vehicle if frequent driving on
snow or ice-covered roads is
expected. All-season tires provide
adequate performance for most
winter driving conditions, but they
may not offer the same level of
traction or performance as winter
tires on snow or ice-covered roads.
See Winter Tires on page 10-36.
Winter Tires
This vehicle was not originally
equipped with winter tires. Winter
tires are designed for increased
traction on snow and ice-covered
roads. Consider installing winter
tires on the vehicle if frequent
driving on ice or snow covered
roads is expected. See your dealer
for details regarding winter tire
availability and proper tire selection.
Also, see Buying New Tires on
page 10-49.
With winter tires, there may be
decreased dry road traction,
increased road noise, and shorter
tread life. After changing to winter
tires, be alert for changes in vehicle
handling and braking.
If using winter tires:
.Use tires of the same brand and
tread type on all four wheel
positions.

Black plate (37,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Vehicle Care 10-37
.Use only radial ply tires of the
same size, load range, and
speed rating as the original
equipment tires.
Winter tires with the same speed
rating as the original equipment tires
may not be available for H, V, W, Y,
and ZR speed rated tires. If winter
tires with a lower speed rating are
chosen, never exceed the tire's
maximum speed capability.
Summer Tires
This vehicle may come with high
performance summer tires. These
tires have a special tread and
compound that are optimized for
maximum dry and wet road
performance. This special tread and
compound will decrease
performance in cold climates, and
on ice and snow. We recommend
installing winter tires on the vehicle
if frequent driving in cold
temperatures or on snow or ice
covered roads is expected. See
Winter Tires on page 10-36.
Tire Sidewall Labeling
Useful information about a tire is
molded into its sidewall. The
examples show a typical
passenger tire sidewall.
Passenger (P-Metric) Tire Example
(1) Tire Size:The tire size is a
combination of letters and
numbers used to define a
particular tire's width, height,
aspect ratio, construction type,
and service description. See the
“Tire Size” illustration later in this
section for more detail. (2) TPC Spec (Tire
Performance Criteria
Specification)
:Original
equipment tires designed to
GM's specific tire performance
criteria have a TPC specification
code molded onto the sidewall.
GM's TPC specifications meet or
exceed all federal safety
guidelines.
(3) DOT (Department of
Transportation)
:The
Department of Transportation
(DOT) code indicates that the
tire is in compliance with the
U.S. Department of
Transportation Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards.

Black plate (38,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
10-38 Vehicle Care
DOT Tire Date of
Manufacture
:The last four
digits of the TIN indicate the tire
manufactured date. The first two
digits represent the week
(01-52) and the last two digits,
the year. For example, the third
week of the year 2010 would
have a four-digit DOT date
of 0310.
(4) Tire Identification Number
(TIN)
:The letters and numbers
following the DOT code are the
Tire Identification Number (TIN).
The TIN shows the
manufacturer and plant code,
tire size, and date the tire was
manufactured. The TIN is
molded onto both sides of the
tire, although only one side may
have the date of manufacture.
(5) Tire Ply Material
:The type
of cord and number of plies in
the sidewall and under the tread. (6) Uniform Tire Quality
Grading (UTQG)
:Tire
manufacturers are required to
grade tires based on three
performance factors: treadwear,
traction, and temperature
resistance. For more information
see Uniform Tire Quality
Grading on page 10-51.
(7) Maximum Cold Inflation
Load Limit
:Maximum load that
can be carried and the
maximum pressure needed to
support that load.
Tire Designations
Tire Size
The following is an example of a
typical passenger vehicle
tire size.
(1) Passenger (P-Metric) Tire:
The United States version of a
metric tire sizing system. The
letter P as the first character in
the tire size means a passenger
vehicle tire engineered to
standards set by the U.S. Tire
and Rim Association.
(2) Tire Width
:The three-digit
number indicates the tire section
width in millimeters from
sidewall to sidewall.
(3) Aspect Ratio
:A two-digit
number that indicates the tire
height-to-width measurements.
For example, if the tire size
aspect ratio is 60, as shown in

Black plate (41,1)Chevrolet Spark Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-5853490) -
2014 - crc - 9/3/13
Vehicle Care 10-41
Passenger (P-Metric) Tire:A
tire used on passenger cars and
some light duty trucks and
multipurpose vehicles.
Recommended Inflation
Pressure
:Vehicle
manufacturer's recommended
tire inflation pressure as shown
on the tire placard. See Tire
Pressure on page 10-42 and
Vehicle Load Limits on
page 9-9.
Radial Ply Tire
:A pneumatic
tire in which the ply cords that
extend to the beads are laid at
90 degrees to the centerline of
the tread.
Rim
:A metal support for a tire
and upon which the tire beads
are seated.
Sidewall
:The portion of a tire
between the tread and the bead. Speed Rating
:An
alphanumeric code assigned to
a tire indicating the maximum
speed at which a tire can
operate.
Traction
:The friction between
the tire and the road surface.
The amount of grip provided.
Tread
:The portion of a tire that
comes into contact with
the road.
Treadwear Indicators
:Narrow
bands, sometimes called wear
bars, that show across the tread
of a tire when only 1.6 mm
(1/16 in) of tread remains. See
When It Is Time for New Tires
on page 10-48.
UTQGS (Uniform Tire Quality
Grading Standards)
:A tire
information system that provides
consumers with ratings for a
tire's traction, temperature, and
treadwear. Ratings are determined by tire
manufacturers using
government testing procedures.
The ratings are molded into the
sidewall of the tire. See
Uniform
Tire Quality Grading on
page 10-51.
Vehicle Capacity Weight
:The
number of designated seating
positions multiplied by
68 kg (150 lb) plus the rated
cargo load. See Vehicle Load
Limits on page 9-9.
Vehicle Maximum Load on the
Tire
:Load on an individual tire
due to curb weight, accessory
weight, occupant weight, and
cargo weight.
Vehicle Placard
:A label
permanently attached to a
vehicle showing the vehicle
capacity weight and the original
equipment tire size and
recommended inflation pressure.