ignition PONTIAC GRAND AM 2003 Owner's Manual

The main components of your instrument panel are the following:
A. Fog Lamp Button
B. Instrument Panel Brightness Thumbwheel
C. Turn SignaVMultifunction Lever
D. Horn
E. Instrument Panel Cluster
F. Windshield WiperNVasher Lever
G. Ignition Switch
H. Enhanced Traction System Button
I. Hazard Warning Flashers Button
J. Instrument Panel Fuse Blocks
K. Hood Release Handle
L. Tilt Wheel Lever
M. Audio System Steering Wheel Controls (If Equipped)
N. Cruise Control Buttons (If Equipped)
0. Shift Lever
P. Cigarette Lighter
Q. Climate Control System
R. Audio System
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An arrow on the instrument
panel cluster will flash in
the direction of the
turn or lane change. Headlamps On Reminder
If you open the driver’s door and turn off the ignition
while leaving the lamps on, you will hear a warning
chime.
Weadlamp High/low-Beam Changer
~~ ~~~
To signal a lane change, just raise or lower the lever
until the arrow starts to flash.
Hold it there until you
complete your lane change. The lever will return by itself
when you release it.
As you signal a turn or a lane change, if the arrows
flash rapidly, a signal bulb may be burned out and other
drivers won’t see your turn signal.
If a bulb is burned out, replace it to help avoid an
accident.
If the arrows don’t go on at all when you signal
a turn, check for burned-out bulbs and then check the
fuse. See
Fuses and Circuit Breakers on page 5-81.
To change the headlamps from low beam to
high beam, push the turn signaVmultifunction lever
away from you.
When the high beams are
on, a light on the
instrument panel cluster
also will be on
if the
ignition is in
ON.
To change the headlamps from high beam to low beam,
pull the turn signal lever toward you.
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Passing Another Vehicle While Using
Cruise Control
Use the accelerator pedal to increase your speed.
When you take your
foot off the pedal, your vehicle will
slow down
to the cruise control speed you set earlier.
Using Cruise Control on Hills
How well your cruise control will work on hills depends
upon your speed, load and the steepness of the
hills. When going up steep hills, you may have to step
on the accelerator pedal to maintain your speed.
When going downhill, you may have
to brake or shift to
a lower gear to keep your speed down. Of course,
applying the brake takes you out of cruise control. Many
drivers find this to be too much trouble and don’t use
cruise control on steep hills.
Ending Cruise Control
There are four ways to turn off the cruise control:
Step lightly on the brake pedal.
Press the cruise control RESUME ACCEL button
and the SET
COAST buttons at the same time.
Press cruise ON OFF.
Push the clutch pedal if you have a manual
transaxle.
Erasing Speed Memory
When you turn off the cruise control or the ignition, your
cruise control set speed memory is erased.
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Exterior Lamps
The lever on the left side of the steering column
operates the exterior lamps.
-g- (Exterior Lamps): Turn the outside part of the
lever with the symboi on
it, to operate tne iamps.
The exterior lamp control has three positions:
pf (Parking Lamps): Turning the control to this
position turns
on the parking lamps, together with the
following.
0 Sidemarker Lamps
0 Taillamps
e License Plate Lamps
0 Instrument Panel Lights
- - ED (Headlamps): Turning the control to this position
turns on the headlamps, together with the previously
listed lamps and lights.
AUTO: Turning the control to this position turns the
headlamps, taillamps and parking lamps on and
off automatically, while the ignition is on, by sensing
how dark it is outside. For more information see
“Automatic Headlamp System” later in this section.
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
nq~time R~Inning l_~~y.np (DRL) r,a.n make it ewier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the
day. DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the short
periods after dawn and before sunset. Fully functional
daytime running lamps are required on all vehicles
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The DRL system will make your low-beam headlamps
come on at a reduced brightness when the following
conditions are met:
The ignition is on.
the exterior lamps control is in AUTO or the parking
the light sensor detects daytime light,
lamps
only position.
the parking brake is released, and
0 the shift lever is not in PARK (P) on vehicles with
When the DRL system is on, the taillamps, sidemarker
lamps, parking lamps and instrument panel lights
will not be illuminated unless you have turned the
exterior lamps control
to the parking lamp position.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need it.
an automatic transaxle only.
Automatic Headlamp System
When it
is dark enough outside, your automatic
headlamp system will turn on your headlamps at the
normal brightness along with other lamps such as
the taillamps, sidemarker, parking lamps and the
instrument panel lights. The radio lights will also be dim. Your
vehicle is equipped with a light sensor on the top
of the instrument panel under the defroster grill, so
be sure it is not covered which will cause the
automatic headlamp system
to be on whenever the
ignition is on.
The automatic headlamp system may also be on when
driving through a parking garage, heavy overcast
weather or a tunnel. This is normal.
There is a delay in the transition between the daytime
and nighttime operation
of the DRL and the automatic
headlamp systems
so that driving under bridges or
bright overhead street lights does not affect the system.
The DRL and automatic headlamp systems will only
be affected when the light sensor sees a change
in lighting lasting longer than this delay.
To idle your vehicle with the automatic headlamp
system
off, set the parking brake while the ignition is off.
Then start the vehicle. The automatic headlamp
system will stay
off until you release the parking brake.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamps when you need them.
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Headlamps Off in Park (P) Fog Lamps
To turn the headlamps off when it is dark outside, turn
the exterior lamps control
to the parking lamp position.
In this position, the parking lamps, sidemarker lamps,
taillamps, license plate lamps and instrument panel
lights will be on, but the headlamps will be
off.
To turn on the headlamps along with the other lamps
when it is dark outside, turn the exterior lamps control
to
the AUTO or headlamp position.
Delayed Headlamps
The delayed headlamps feature will continue to
illuminate the headlamps for 20 seconds after the key is
turned to OFF, then the headlamps will automatically
turn
off.
To override the 20 second delayed headlamp feature
while
it is active turn the turn signaVmultifunction
lever up one position and then back
to AUTO. If
your vehicle has this
feature, the button for your
fog lamps is located on
the instrument panel,
to the
left of the steering wheel,
beside the instrument
panel brightness
thumbwheel.
When using the fog lamps, the ignition must be on as
well as the parking lamps or the low-beam headlamps.
Press the button
to turn the fog lamps on. An indicator
light on the button will glow when the fog lamps are on.
Press the button again
to turn the fog lamps off. The
fog lamps will turn
off whenever the high-beam
headlamps are turned on. When the high beams are
turned
off, the fog lamps will come on again.
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Interior Lamps
Instrument Panel Brightness
This feature controls the brightness of the instrument
panel lights.
The thumbwheel for this feature
is located on the
instrument panel
to the left of the steering wheel.
Entry/Exit Lighting
When you lift the driver’s door handle or open any door,
the lamps inside your vehicle will go on. These lamps
will fade out after about
10 seconds after all of the doors
have been closed or when the ignition is turned to
ON. These lamps will also go on when you press the
trunk release, unlock symbol button or the horn symbol on the keyless entry system transmitter (if equipped).
The lamps inside your vehicle will stay on for about
10 seconds after your key is removed from the ignition
to provide an illuminated exit.
Dome Lamp
If your vehicle has this feature, the switch on this lamp
has three positions. The
ON position will turn on the
light. The
DOOR position will turn on the light whenever
a door is opened or when the instrument panel
brightness thumbwheel is moved up. The OFF position
will shut
off the lamp completely, even when a door
is opened.
Move the thumbwheel right
to brighten the lights and left
to dim them.
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Trunk Lamp Battery Run-Down Protection
The trunk lamp comes on when you open your trunk.
Your vehicle has a battery run-down feature designed
to
protect your vehicle’s battery.
When any interior lamp (trunk, reading lamps, dome
lamp or glove box) is left on when the ignition is turned
off, the battery run-down protection system will
automatically shut the lamp
off after 20 minutes. This
will avoid draining the battery.
To reactivate the interior lamps, do one of the following:
Lift the driver’s door handle,
open any door or
press any remote keyless entry transmitter button
(if equipped),
press the power door lock switch,
~r~~~ rei-,-iGte ti-Ufik Gr
turn the lamp that was left on to off and then to on
again.
Ashtrays and Cigarette Lighter
To use the lighter, just push it in all the way and
Nofices Don’t put papers or other flammable
items into your ashtrays. Hot cigarettes or otl let
go.
her
smoking materials could ignite them, causing
SI damaging fire.
Nofice: Don’t hold a cigarette lighter in with your
hand while
it is heating. If you do, it won’t be able to
back away from the heating element when
it’s
ready. That can make it overheat, damaging the
lighter and
the heating element. It can also blow
the fuse.
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The air bag readiness light should flash for a few
seconds when you turn the ignition key to
ON. If the
light doesn’t come on then, have it fixed
so it will
be ready to warn you
if there is a problem.
Charging System Light
The charging system light
will come on when you
turn on the ignition, but the
II engine is not running, as
a check to show you
it
is working.
When the engine is running, the light should go out.
If it stays on, or comes on while you are driving and you
hear a chime, you may have a problem with the
electrical charging system. It could indicate that you have a loose generator drive belt or another electrical
problem. Have it checked right away. Driving while
this light is on could drain your battery. If
you must drive a short distance with the light on, be
certain to turn
off all your accessories, such as the radio
and air conditioner.
Up-Shift Light
If your manual transaxle
vehicle has this feature
this light comes on
when you need to shift to
the next higher gear.
See
Manual Transaxle
Operation on page
2-27.
Brake System Warning Light
Your vehicle’s hydraulic brake system is divided into two
parts. If one part isn’t working, the other part can still
work and stop you.
For good braking, though, you need
both parts working well.
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If the warning light comes on, there is a brake problem.
Have your brake system inspected right away.
BRAKE
~~~
United States
Canada
This light should come on briefly when you turn the
ignition key to
ON. If it doesn’t come on then, have it
fixed
so it will be ready to warn you if there’s a problem.
When the ignition is on, the brake system warning
light will also come on when you set your parking brake.
The light will stay on
if your parking brake doesn’t
release fully.
If it stays on after your parking brake is
fully released, it means you have a brake problem.
If the light comes on while you are driving, pull off the
road and stop carefully. You may notice that the pedal is
harder
to push. Or, the pedal may go closer to the
floor. It may take longer to stop.
If the light is still on,
have the vehicle towed for service. See
Towing
Your Vehicle on page 4-32.
Your brake system may not be working
properly
if the brake system warning light is
on. Driving with the brake system warning light
on can lead to an accident.
If the light is still
on after you’ve pulled
off the road and stopped
carefully, have the vehicle towed for service.
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