spare tire PONTIAC G6 2007 Owners Manual

Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL)
(Retractable Hardtop and Coupe)........... 364
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker,
Stoplamps and Back-up
Lamps (Sedan)...................................... 364
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker,
Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps (Coupe) ... 365
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker,
Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps
(Retractable Hardtop)............................. 367
License Plate Lamp................................... 368
Replacement Bulbs................................... 368
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement....... 369
Tires............................................................ 370
Winter Tires.............................................. 372
Tire Sidewall Labeling............................... 372
Tire Terminology and Denitions............... 376
Ination - Tire Pressure............................. 379
High-Speed Operation............................... 381
Tire Inspection and Rotation...................... 381
When It Is Time for New Tires.................. 383
Buying New Tires...................................... 383
Different Size Tires and Wheels................ 385Uniform Tire Quality Grading..................... 386
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance............ 387
Wheel Replacement.................................. 388
Tire Chains............................................... 389
If a Tire Goes Flat.................................... 390
Changing a Flat Tire................................. 390
Removing the Spare Tire and Tools.......... 392
Removing the Flat Tire and Installing
the Spare Tire....................................... 394
Storing a Flat or Spare Tire
and Tools.............................................. 400
Compact Spare Tire.................................. 403
Appearance Care........................................ 404
Cleaning the Inside of Your Vehicle.......... 404
Fabric/Carpet............................................. 406
Leather...................................................... 407
Instrument Panel, Vinyl, and Other Plastic
Surfaces................................................ 407
Care of Safety Belts.................................. 408
Weatherstrips............................................ 408
Washing Your Vehicle............................... 408
Cleaning Exterior Lamps/Lenses................ 409
Finish Care............................................... 409
Windshield and Wiper Blades.................... 410
Section 5 Service and Appearance Care
306

Winter Tires
If your vehicle has P225/50R18 size tires, they are
classied as low-prole performance tires. These
tires are designed for very responsive driving on
wet or dry pavement. If you expect to drive on snow
or ice covered roads often, you may want to get
winter tires for your vehicle. The low-prole
performance tires may not offer the traction you
would like or the same level of performance as
winter tires on snow or ice covered roads.
Winter tires, in general, are designed for increased
traction on snow and ice covered roads. With winter
tires, there may be decreased dry road traction,
increased road noise and shorter tire tread life.
After switching to winter tires, be alert for changes
in vehicle handling and braking.
See your retailer for details regarding winter tire
availability and proper tire selection. Also, see
Buying New Tires on page 383.If you choose to use winter tires:Use tires of the same brand and tread type on
all four wheel positions.
Use only radial ply tires of the same size, load
range, and speed rating as your original
equipment tires.
Winter tires with the same speed rating as your
original equipment tires may not be available for H,
V, W and ZR speed rated tires. If you choose
winter tires with a lower speed rating, never
exceed the tire’s maximum speed capability.
Tire Sidewall Labeling
Useful information about a tire is molded into its
sidewall. The examples below show a typical
passenger vehicle tire and a compact spare tire
sidewall.
372

(E) Tire Ply Material:The type of cord and
number of plies in the sidewall and under
the tread.
(F) 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 seeUniform Tire Quality
Grading on page 386.
(G) Maximum Cold Ination Load Limit:
Maximum load that can be carried and the
maximum pressure needed to support that load.
(A) Temporary Use Only:The compact spare tire
or temporary use tire has a tread life of
approximately 3,000 miles (5 000 km) and should
not be driven at speeds over 65 mph (105 km/h).
The compact spare tire is for emergency use when
a regular road tire has lost air and gone at. If your
vehicle has a compact spare tire, seeCompact
Spare Tire on page 403andIf a Tire Goes Flat on
page 390.
Compact Spare Tire Example
374

(B) Tire Ply Material:The type of cord and
number of plies in the sidewall and under the tread.
(C) Tire Identication Number (TIN):The letters
and numbers following the DOT (Department of
Transportation) code is the Tire Identication
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.
(D) Maximum Cold Ination Load Limit:
Maximum load that can be carried and the
maximum pressure needed to support that load.
(E) Tire Ination:The temporary use tire or
compact spare tire should be inated to 60 psi
(420 kPa). For more information on tire pressure
and ination seeInation - Tire Pressure on
page 379.
(F) Tire Size:A combination of letters and
numbers dene a tire’s width, height, aspect ratio,
construction type, and service description. The
letter T as the rst character in the tire size means
the tire is for temporary use only.(G) TPC Spec (Tire Performance Criteria
Specication):Original equipment tires designed
to GM’s specic tire performance criteria have a
TPC specication code molded onto the sidewall.
GM’s TPC specications meet or exceed all federal
safety guidelines.
Tire Size
The following illustration shows an example of a
typical passenger vehicle tire size.
(A) Passenger (P-Metric) Tire:The United States
version of a metric tire sizing system. The letter P
as the rst character in the tire size means a
passenger vehicle tire engineered to standards
set by the U.S. Tire and Rim Association.
(B) Tire Width:The three-digit number indicates
the tire section width in millimeters from sidewall
to sidewall.
375

When to Check
Check your tires once a month or more. Do not
forget to check the compact spare tire, it should be
at 60 psi (420 kPa). For additional information
regarding the compact spare tire, seeCompact
Spare Tire on page 403.
How to Check
Use a good quality pocket-type gage to check tire
pressure. You cannot tell if your tires are properly
inated simply by looking at them. Radial tires
may look properly inated even when they are
under-inated. Check the tire’s ination pressure
when the tires are cold. Cold means your vehicle
has been sitting for at least three hours or driven no
more than 1 mile (1.6 km).Remove the valve cap from the tire valve stem.
Press the tire gage rmly onto the valve to
get a pressure measurement. If the cold tire
ination pressure matches the recommended
pressure on the Tire and Loading Information
label, no further adjustment is necessary. If the
ination pressure is low, add air until you reach
the recommended amount.
If you overll the tire, release air by pushing on
the metal stem in the center of the tire valve.
Re-check the tire pressure with the tire gage.
Be sure to put the valve caps back on the valve
stems. They help prevent leaks by keeping out dirt
and moisture.
380

The purpose of regular rotation is to achieve more
uniform wear for all tires on the vehicle. The rst
rotation is the most important. SeeScheduled
Maintenance on page 431.
When rotating your tires, always use the correct
rotation pattern shown here.
Do not include the compact spare tire in your tire
rotation.
After the tires have been rotated, adjust the front
and rear ination pressures as shown on the
Tire and Loading Information label.Make certain that all wheel nuts are properly
tightened. See “Wheel Nut Torque” under
Capacities and Specications on page 424.
{CAUTION:
Rust or dirt on a wheel, or on the parts to
which it is fastened, can make wheel nuts
become loose after time. The wheel could
come off and cause an accident. When
you change a wheel, remove any rust or
dirt from places where the wheel attaches
to the vehicle. In an emergency, you can
use a cloth or a paper towel to do this;
but be sure to use a scraper or wire brush
later, if needed, to get all the rust or dirt
off. SeeChanging a Flat Tire on page 390.
382

If the tires have an all-season tread design, the
TPC spec number will be followed by an MS
for mud and snow. SeeTire Sidewall Labeling
on page 372for additional information.
{CAUTION:
Mixing tires could cause you to lose
control while driving. If you mix tires of
different sizes, brands, or types (radial
and bias-belted tires), the vehicle may not
handle properly, and you could have a
crash. Using tires of different sizes,
brands, or types may also cause damage
to your vehicle. Be sure to use the correct
size, brand, and type of tires on all
wheels. It is all right to drive with your
compact spare temporarily, as it was
developed for use on your vehicle. See
Compact Spare Tire on page 403.
{CAUTION:
If you use bias-ply tires on your vehicle,
the wheel rim anges could develop
cracks after many miles of driving. A tire
and/or wheel could fail suddenly, causing
a crash. Use only radial-ply tires with the
wheels on your vehicle.
If you must replace your vehicle’s tires with those
that do not have a TPC Spec number, make sure
they are the same size, load range, speed rating,
and construction type (radial and bias-belted tires)
as your vehicle’s original tires.
Your vehicle’s original equipment tires are listed
on the Tire and Loading Information Label.
This label is attached to the vehicle’s center pillar
(B-pillar). SeeLoading Your Vehicle on page 288,
for more information about the Tire and Loading
Information Label and its location on your vehicle.
384

Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Quality grades can be found where applicable on
the tire sidewall between tread shoulder and
maximum section width. For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which
grades tires by treadwear, traction, and
temperature performance. This applies only to
vehicles sold in the United States. The grades are
molded on the sidewalls of most passenger car
tires. The Uniform Tire Quality Grading (UTQG)
system does not apply to deep tread, winter-type
snow tires, space-saver, or temporary use spare
tires, tires with nominal rim diameters of
10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm), or to some
limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors
passenger cars and light trucks may vary with
respect to these grades, they must also conform
to federal safety requirements and additional
General Motors Tire Performance Criteria (TPC)
standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specied
government test course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one and a half (1.5) times
as well on the government course as a tire
graded 100. The relative performance of tires
depends upon the actual conditions of their use,
however, and may depart signicantly from
the norm due to variations in driving habits, service
practices, and differences in road characteristics
and climate.
Traction – AA, A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are AA,
A, B, and C. Those grades represent the tire’s
ability to stop on wet pavement as measured under
controlled conditions on specied government test
surfaces of asphalt and concrete. A tire marked C
may have poor traction performance.
Warning:The traction grade assigned to this tire
is based on straight-ahead braking traction tests,
and does not include acceleration, cornering,
hydroplaning, or peak traction characteristics.
386

Removing the Spare Tire and Tools
The equipment you will need is located in the
trunk.
1. If you have a retractable hardtop model, make
sure the hardtop is in the up position.
2. Open the trunk. SeeTrunk on page 113for
more information.
3. If you have a sedan or coupe model, lift the
handle on the spare tire cover. The handle
can hook on the front edge of the trunk’s
weatherstrip to hold the cover out of the way.
If you have a retractable hardtop model,
unlatch the trunk cargo cover so that it is in
the open position. Then remove the cover from
the spare tire.4. Turn the wing nut counterclockwise and
remove it. Then remove the compact
spare tire. SeeCompact Spare Tire on
page 403for more information.
5. Remove the wing nut holding the jack
in place.
6. Remove the extension bolt that is clipped to
the jack. You will need this later to store the
at tire.
7. Remove the jack and wheel wrench from the
trunk.
392

3. Extend the handle on the wheel wrench by
pressing the button with your index nger
and pulling on the end of the wrench.
You must do this before using the wheel
wrench.
Removing the Flat Tire and
Installing the Spare Tire
1. If your vehicle has a wheel cover or hubcap
that has plastic wheel nut caps, then loosen
the plastic nut caps. You may need to use the
wheel wrench to loosen them. Do not pry
off wheel covers or center caps that
have plastic wheel nut caps.
2. Remove the wheel cover or center cap from
the wheel to locate the wheel nuts.
If your vehicle has a wheel cover or hubcap
without plastic wheel nut caps, gently pry
on the edge of the plastic wheel trim to remove
it from the wheel to nd the wheel nuts.
394