PONTIAC G3 2010 Owners Manual

Towing
Towing Your Vehicle
To avoid damage, the disabled vehicle should be towed
with all four wheels off the ground. Consult your dealer/
retailer or a professional towing service if the disabled
vehicle must be towed. SeeRoadside Assistance
Program on page 8‑6.
To tow the vehicle behind another vehicle for
recreational purposes, such as behind a motorhome,
see “Recreational Vehicle Towing” following.
Recreational Vehicle Towing
Recreational vehicle towing means towing the vehicle
behind another vehicle–such as behind a motorhome.
The two most common types of recreational vehicle
towing are known as dinghy towing and dolly towing.
Dinghy towing is towing the vehicle with all four wheels
on the ground. Dolly towing is towing the vehicle with
two wheels on the ground and two wheels up on a
device known as a dolly. Here are some important things to consider before
recreational vehicle towing:
.What is the towing capacity of the towing vehicle?
Be sure to read the tow vehicle manufacturer's
recommendations.
.What is the distance that will be travelled? Some
vehicles have restrictions on how far and how long
they can tow.
.Is the proper towing equipment going to be used?
See your dealer/retailer or trailering professional
for additional advice and equipment
recommendations.
.Is the vehicle ready to be towed? Just as preparing
the vehicle for a long trip, make sure the vehicle is
prepared to be towed. See
Before Leaving on a
Long Trip on page 5‑10.
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Dinghy Towing
Notice:If the vehicle is towed with all four wheels
on the ground, the drivetrain components could be
damaged. The repairs would not be covered by the
vehicle warranty. Do not tow the vehicle with all four
wheels on the ground.
The vehicle was not designed to be towed with all four
wheels on the ground. If the vehicle must be towed, a
dolly should be used. See “Dolly Towing”that follows for
more information.
Dolly Towing From the Front
The vehicle can be towed from the front using a dolly.
To tow the vehicle using a dolly, follow these steps:
1. Attach the dolly to the tow vehicle following the dolly manufacturer's instructions.
2. Drive the front wheels onto the dolly.
3. Put an automatic transmission in P (Park) or a manual transmission in N (Neutral).
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4. Set the parking brake and remove the key.
5. For an automatic transmission, insert the key intothe shift‐lock release slot and shift to N (Neutral).
See Shifting Out of Park on page 3‑30.
6. Clamp the steering wheel in a straight-ahead position with a clamping device designed for
towing.
7. Release the parking brake.Dolly Towing From the Rear
Notice: Towing the vehicle from the rear with the
front wheels on the ground could cause
transmission damage. Do not tow the vehicle from
the rear with the front wheels on the ground.
Towing a Trailer
The vehicle is neither designed nor intended to tow a
trailer.
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2NOTES
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Section 6 Service and Appearance Care
Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
California Proposition 65 Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Doing Your Own Service Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Adding Equipment to the Outside of the Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Gasoline Octane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
California Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Filling a Portable Fuel Container . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Checking Things Under the Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-11
Hood Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Engine Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-15
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-18
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
Manual Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-23
Hydraulic Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-23
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-24 Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-25
Engine Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-30
Power Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-32
Windshield Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-33
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-34
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-37
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-38
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-42
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-43
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-43
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-43
Front Turn Signal, Sidemarker and Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-45
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) (Hatchback) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-46
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) (Sedan) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker, Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
License Plate Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-48
Replacement Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-49
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement . . . . . . . . . . .6-49
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-50
Tire Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-51
Tire Terminology and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-54
6-1

Section 6 Service and Appearance Care
Inflation - Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-57
Tire Pressure Monitor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-58
Tire Pressure Monitor Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-59
Tire Inspection and Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-61
When It Is Time for New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-63
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-63
Different Size Tires and Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-65
Uniform Tire Quality Grading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-65
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-67
Wheel Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-67
Tire Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-68
If a Tire Goes Flat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-69
Changing a Flat Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-70
Removing the Spare Tire and Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-71
Removing the Flat Tire and Installing theSpare Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-73
Storing a Flat or Spare Tire and Tools . . . . . . . . . 6-78
Compact Spare Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-78
Appearance Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-79
Interior Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-79
Fabric/Carpet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-80
Leather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-81
Instrument Panel, Vinyl, and Other Plastic Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-81
Interior Plastic Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-81 Glass Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-81
Care of Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-82
Weatherstrips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-82
Washing Your Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-82
Cleaning Exterior Lamps/Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-82
Finish Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-83
Windshield and Wiper Blades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-83
Aluminum Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-84
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-84
Sheet Metal Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-84
Finish Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-84
Underbody Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-85
Chemical Paint Spotting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-85
Vehicle Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-85
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-85
Service Parts Identification Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-86
Electrical System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-86
Add-On Electrical Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-86
Headlamp Wiring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-86
Windshield Wiper Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-86
Power Windows and Other Power Options . . . . . 6-86
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-87
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-87
Engine Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-89
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-93
6-2

Service
For service and parts needs, visit your dealer/retailer.
You will receive genuine GM parts and GM-trained and
supported service people.
Genuine GM parts have one of these marks:
Accessories and Modifications
When non‐dealer/non‐retailer accessories are added to
the vehicle, they can affect vehicle performance and
safety, including such things as airbags, braking,
stability, ride and handling, emissions systems,
aerodynamics, durability, and electronic systems like
antilock brakes, traction control, and stability control.
Some of these accessories could even cause
malfunction or damage not covered by the vehicle
warranty.
Damage to vehicle components resulting from the
installation or use of non‐GM certified parts, including
control module modifications, is not covered under the
terms of the vehicle warranty and may affect remaining
warranty coverage for affected parts.
GM Accessories are designed to complement and
function with other systems on the vehicle. Your GM
dealer/retailer can accessorize the vehicle using
genuine GM Accessories. When you go to your GM
dealer/retailer and ask for GM Accessories, you will
know that GM-trained and supported service
technicians will perform the work using genuine GM
Accessories.
Also, seeAdding Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped
Vehicle on page 2‑71.
6-3

California Proposition 65 Warning
Most motor vehicles, including this one, contain and/or
emit chemicals known to the State of California to
cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive
harm. Engine exhaust, many parts and systems, many
fluids, and some component wear by-products contain
and/or emit these chemicals.
California Perchlorate Materials
Requirements
Certain types of automotive applications, such as airbag
initiators, seat belt pretensioners, and lithium batteries
contained in remote keyless transmitters, may contain
perchlorate materials. Special handling may be
necessary. For additional information, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate.
Doing Your Own Service Work
{WARNING:
You can be injured and the vehicle could be
damaged if you try to do service work on a vehicle
without knowing enough about it.
.Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts, and
tools before attempting any vehicle
maintenance task.
.Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts, and
other fasteners. English and metric fasteners
can be easily confused. If the wrong fasteners
are used, parts can later break or fall off. You
could be hurt.
If doing some of your own service work, use the proper
service manual. It tells you much more about how to
service the vehicle than this manual can. To order the
proper service manual, see Service Publications
Ordering Information on page 8‑15.
This vehicle has an airbag system. Before attempting to
do your own service work, see Servicing Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on page 2‑70.
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Keep a record with all parts receipts and list the mileage
and the date of any service work performed. See
Maintenance Record on page 7‑16.
Adding Equipment to the Outside of
the Vehicle
Things added to the outside of the vehicle can affect the
airflow around it. This can cause wind noise and can
affect fuel economy and windshield washer
performance. Check with your dealer/retailer before
adding equipment to the outside of the vehicle.
Fuel
Use of the recommended fuel is an important part of the
proper maintenance of this vehicle. To help keep the
engine clean and maintain optimum vehicle
performance, we recommend the use of gasoline
advertised as TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline.
Look for the TOP TIER label on the fuel pump to ensure
gasoline meets enhanced detergency standards
developed by auto companies. A list of marketers
providing TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline can be found
at www.toptiergas.com.
6-5

Gasoline Octane
Use regular unleaded gasoline with a posted octane
rating of 87 or higher. If the octane rating is less than
87, an audible knocking noise, commonly referred to as
spark knock, might be heard when driving. If this
occurs, use a gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher as
soon as possible. If heavy knocking is heard when
using gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher, the engine
needs service.
Gasoline Specifications
At a minimum, gasoline should meet ASTM
specification D 4814 in the United States or
CAN/CGSB‐3.5 or 3.511 in Canada. Some gasolines
contain an octane-enhancing additive called
methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl (MMT).
We recommend against the use of gasolines containing
MMT. SeeAdditives
on page 6‑7for additional
information.
California Fuel
If the vehicle is certified to meet California Emissions
Standards, it is designed to operate on fuels that meet
California specifications. See the underhood emission
control label. If this fuel is not available in states
adopting California emissions standards, the vehicle will
operate satisfactorily on fuels meeting federal
specifications, but emission control system performance
might be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp could
turn on and the vehicle might fail a smog‐check test.
See Malfunction Indicator Lamp
on page 4‑29. If this
occurs, return to your authorized dealer/retailer for
diagnosis. If it is determined that the condition is caused
by the type of fuel used, repairs might not be covered
by the vehicle warranty.
6-6