belt PONTIAC GRAND AM 2003 Service Manual

Supplemental Restraint
System
(SRS)
This part explains the Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) or air bag system.
Your vehicle has air bags
- one air bag for the driver
and another air bag for the right front passenger.
Frontal air bags are designed to help reduce the risk
of
injury from the force of an inflating air bag. But these
air bags must inflate very quickly
to do their job
and comply with federal regulations.
Here are the most important things to know about the
air bag system: You can be severely injured or killed
in a crash
if you aren’t wearing your safety belt
- even if
you have air bags. Wearing your safety belt during a crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things inside the vehicle or being
ejected from
it. Air bags are designed to work
with safety belts, but don’t replace them. Air bags are designed to work only
in moderate to
severe crashes where the front of your vehicle hits something. They aren’t designed to inflate
at all
in rollover, rear or low-speed frontal
crashes, or
in many side crashes. And, for
some unrestrained occupants, air bags may
provide less protection in frontal crashes than
more forceful air bags have provided in the
past. Everyone in your vehicle should wear a
safety hp!t prnperly - whether nr not there’s
an air bag for that person.
1-53

Air bags inflate with great force, faster than the blink of an eye. If you’re too close to an
inflating air bag, as you would be
if you were
leaning forward,
it could seriously injure you.
Safety belts help keep you
in position before
and during a crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with air bags. The driver should sit
as far back as possible while still maintaining
control of the vehicle. Anyone who is up against, or very close
to,
any air bag when
it inflates can be seriously
injured or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer the best protection for adults, but
not for young children and infants. Neither the
vehicle’s safety belt system nor its air bag system is designed for them.Young children
and infants need the protection that
a child
restraint system can provide. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle.
To read how,
see
the parts of this manual called “Older
Children” and “Infants and Young Children”.
1 -54

if your vehicle strikes something that will move or
deform, such as a parked car, the threshold level will be
higher. The air bag is not designed
to inflate in
rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts because
inflation would not help the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle of the impact
and how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal and
near-frontal impacts.
What Makes an Air Bag Inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The
sensing system triggers a release of gas from the
inflator, which inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag
and related hardware are all part of the air bag modules
inside the steering wheel and in the instrument panel
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How Does an Air Bag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. Air bags supplement the
protection provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute
the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant's
upper body, stopping the occupant
more gradually.
But air bags would not help you in many types of
collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts and many
side impacts, primarily because an occupant's motion is
not toward those air bags. Air bags should never be
regarded as anything more than a supplement
to safety
belts, and then only in moderate
to severe frontal or
near-frontal collisions.
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Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module, which records information
about the air bag system. The module records
information about the readiness of the system, when
the system commands air bag inflation and
driver’s safety belt usage at deployment.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air bag
system. Improper service can mean that your air
bag system won’t work properly. See your dealer for
service.
Notice: If you damage the covering for the driver’s
or the right front passenger’s air bag, the bag
may not work properly. You may have to replace the
air bag module in
the steering wheel or both the
air bag module and the instrument panel for
the right front passenger’s air bag. Do not open or
break
the air bag coverings.
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped
Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the air bag system in several places
around your vehicle. You don’t want the system to
inflate white someone is working on your vehicle. Your dealer and
the service manual have information
about servicing your vehicle and the air bag system.
To purchase a service manual, see Service Publications
Ordering Information on page
7-9.
For up to 10 minutes after the ignition key is
turned
off and the battery is disconnected, an
air bag can
still inflate during improper
service. You can be injured
if you are close to
an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid wires
wrapped with yellow tape or yellow connectors. They are probably part of the air bag system. Be sure to follow proper service
procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you is qualified to do
so.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
1-59

Restraint System Check
Checking Your Restraint Systems
Now and then, make sure the safety belt reminder light
and all your belts, buckles, latch plates, retractors
and anchorages are working properly. Look for any other
loose or damaged safety belt system parts. If you see
anything that might keep a safety belt system from doing
its job, have it repaired.
Torn or frayed safety belts may not protect you in a
crash. They can rip apart under impact forces.
If a belt
is torn or frayed, get a new one right away.
Also look for any opened or broken air bag covers, and
have them repaired or replaced. (The air bag system
does not need regular maintenance.)
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash
A crash can damage the restraint systems in
your vehicle.
A damaged restraint system may
not properly protect the person using
it,
resulting in serious injury or even death in a
crash.
To help make sure your restraint
systems are working properly after
a crash,
have them inspected and any necessary
replacements made as soon as possible.
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If you’ve had a crash, do you need new belts or LATCH If your seat adjuster won’t work after a crash, the
system parts? special part
of the safety belt that goes through the seat
After a very minor collision, nothing may be necessary.
But
if the belts were stretched, as thev would be if If an air bag inflates, you’ll need to replace air bag
to the adjuster may need to be replaced.
worn during a more severe crash, the; you need new
parts.
If the LATCH system was being used during a more
severe crash, you may need new LATCH system parts.
If belts are cut or damaged, replace them. Collision
damage also may mean you will need to have LATCH
system, safety belt or seat parts repaired or replaced.
New parts and repairs may be necessary even
if the belt
or LATCH system wasn’t being used at the time
of
the collision. system
park. See
Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) on page
1-53.
1-61

Doors and Locks
Unlocked doors can be dangerous. Passengers
- especially children - can
easily open the doors and fall out of a
moving vehicle. When a door is locked, the
handle won’t open
it. You increase the
chance of being thrown out of the vehicle
in a crash
if the doors aren’t locked. So,
wear safety belts properly and lock the
doors whenever you drive.
Young children who get into unlocked
vehicles may be unable to get out.
A child
can be overcome by extreme heat and can
SIJffer permanent injuries or even death
from heat stroke. Always lock your vehicle
whenever you leave
it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an
unlocked door when you slow down or
stop your vehicle. Locking your doors can heip
prevent this from happening.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
From the outside, use your key or remote keyless
entry system,
if your vehicle is equipped with this
feature. If your vehicle
has remote keyless entry, you
can only use your key
to unlock the driver’s side door
2-7

Section 3 Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel Overview ............................... 3.2
Hazard Warnin Flashers
................................ 3.4
Other Warning !bevices
................................... 3.5
Horn
............................................................. 3.5
Tilt Wheel
..................................................... 3.5
Turn Signal/Multifunction Lever
......................... 3.6
Exterior Lamps
............................................. 3.13
Interior Lamps
.............................................. 3.16
Ashtrays and Cigarette Lighter
........................ 3.17
Climate Controls
............................................ 3.18
Climate Control System
................................. 3.18
Outlet Adjustment
......................................... 3.21
Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators
............. 3-22
Instrument Panel Cluster
................................ 3.23
Speedometer and Odometer
........................... 3.24
Tachometer
................................................. 3.24
Safety Belt Reminder Light
............................. 3.25
Air Bag Readiness Light ................................ 3.25
Charging System Light
.................................. 3.26
Up-Shift Light
............................................... 3.26
Erake QlQtT! -J -.-. !n!=lrning Light ........................ ~ 3-76 .
Warnin Light ........................................... 3-28
Warning Light
........................................... 3.28
Active Light
.............................................. 3.29
Low Coolant Warning Light
............................ 3.30
Anti-Lock
Brake System
Enhance
c? Traction System
Enhanced Traction System
Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
3.3~ rl on ..................
Malfunction Indicator Lamp ............................. 3.31
Oil Pressure Light
......................................... 3.34
Low Oil Level Li ht
....................................... 3.35
Securit Light:
............................................... 3-36
Service Vehicle Soon Light
............................ 3-36
Fuel Gage
................................................... 3-37
Audio System(s)
............................................. 3-38
Data Systems RDS)
.................................. 3-38
Change Engine
ail Light ................................ 3-35
Low dsher Fluid Warning Light
..................... 3-36
Setting the Time for Radios without Radio
Setting the Time
1 or Radios with Radio 3-39
........................... 3-39
.............................. 3-43
Radio with Cassette and CD
.......................... 3-55
Theft-Deterrent Feature
Theft-Deterrent Feature (Non-RDS Radios)
..................................... 3-68
(RDS Radios)
........................................... 3-68
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Understanding Radio Reception ...................... 3-70
Care of Your Cassette Tape Player
................. 3-70
Care of Your CDs ......................................... 3-71
Care of Your CD Player
................................ 3-72
Fixed Mast Antenna ...................................... 3-72
XM Satellite Radio Antenna System
................ 3-72
DAB Radio Antenna System 3-11 Chime Level Adjustment ................................ 3-72
n Tn ...........................
3- 1

Safety Belt Reminder Light
When the key is turned to ON or START, a chime will
come on for several seconds to remind people
to fasten
their safety belts, unless the driver's safety belt is
already buckled.
The safety belt light will
also come on and stay on
for several seconds,
then it will flash for
several more.
If the driver's belt is already buckled, neither the chime
nor the light will come on.
Air Bag Readiness Light
There is an air bag readiness light on the instrument
panel, which shows AIR BAG. The system checks
the air bag's electrical system for malfunctions. The light
tells you
if there is an electrical problem. The system
check includes the air bag modules, the wiring and the
crash sensing and diagnostic module. For more
information on the air bag system, see
Supplemental
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AIR
BAG
This light will come on
when you start your
vehicle, and it will flash for
a few seconds. Then
the light should go out.
This means the system
is ready.
If the air bag readiness light stays on after you start the
vehicle or comes
on when you are driving, your air
bag system may not work properly. Have your vehicle
serviced right away.
If the air bag readiness light stays on after you
start your vehicle, it means the air bag system
may not be working properly. The air bags in
your vehicle may not inflate in a crash, or they
avoid injury to yourself or others, have your
vehicle serviced right away if the air bag
readiness light stays on after you start your
vehicle.
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3-25

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.
3-26