belt PONTIAC GRAND PRIX 2003 Owners Manual

The 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix Owner Manual a
Seats and Restpaint Systems ........................... ? -1
Front Seats ............................................... 1-2
Safety Belts
.............................................. 1-7
Child Restraints
....................................... 1-29
Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) ......... 1-51
Restraint System Check
............................ 1-58
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
....................................... 2-8
Windows
................................................. 2-1 3
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................ 2-1 5
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
........... 2-19
Mirrors
.................................................... 2-33
Onstar@ System
...................................... 2-38
Storage Areas
......................................... 2-40
Sunroof
.................................................. 2-42
Vehicle Personalization
............................. 2-43
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-2
Climate Controls
...................................... 3-20
Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators
......... 3-23
Driver Information Center (DIC)
.................. 3-38
Trip Computer
......................................... 3-40
Audio System(s)
....................................... 3-44
Features and Controls ..................................... 2-1
Instrument Panel ............................................. 3-1
~rivingi yoerr Vehicle ....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
................................................... 4-33
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
............... 5-10
Headlamp Aiming
..................................... 5-59
Bulb Replacement
.................................... 5-60
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
......... 5-67
Tires
...................................................... 5-68
Appearance Care
..................................... 5-88
Vehicle Identification
................................. 5-96
Electrical System
...................................... 5-97
Capacities and Specifications
................... 5-1 02
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts .... 5-1 04
Maintenance Schedule ........................... ,6-1 ..
Maintenance Schedule ................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information .................... 7-1
Customer Assistance Information
.................. 7-2
Service and Appearance Care .......................... 5-1
Reporting Safety Defects
......................... 7-9
Index ........................................ ..... 1

These are some examples of vehicle symbols you may find on your vehicle:
POSSlBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
BAlTERY
4CID COULD CAUSE
BURNS
AVO1
D
SPARKS OR
FLAMES
SPARK OR FLAME
\\I/'
COULD
EXPLODE BAlTERY LATCH BOTH LAP AND
SHOULDER BELTS
TO
PROTECT OCCUPANT 4
DO NOT TWIST SAFETY
BELT WHEN AlTACHING
FASTEN SEAT
BELTS
MOVE SEAT FULLY
\!$%
REARWARD* /z
SECURE
CHILD SEAT
PULL BELT
COMPLETELY
THEN SECURE CHILD SEAT
TI POWER
WINDOW DO NOT INSTALL
A REAR-FACING
CHILD RESTRAINT IN THIS SEATING POSITION
DO NOT INSTALL A
'ORWARD-FACING CHILD RESTRAINT IN THIS SEATING
POSITION
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
L
LlGHTlNG - MASTER SWITCH e- / ,
SIGNALS TURN
PARKING
pf
LAMPS
RUNNING LAMPS
LAMPS
so
ENGINE
COOLANT TEMP
CHARGING BAlTERY
SYSTEM
COOLANT
d
ENGINE OIL PRESSURE
Wb
ANTI-LOCK (@)
BRAKES ENGINE
COOLANT FAN
OWNERS MANUAL
SERVICE
MANUAL

Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
Front Seats ...................................................... 1.2
Manual Seats
................................................ 1.2
Six-Way Power Driver Seat .............................. 1-3
Power Lumbar
............................................... 1-3
Heated Seats
................................................. 1-4
Head Restraints
............................................. 1-6
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone
................. 1-7
Questions and Answers About Safety Belts
...... 1.11
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
................. 1.12
Driver Position
.............................................. 1.1 2
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
.................. 1-20
Reclining
Seatbacks
........................................ 1-4
Safety Belts ..................................................... 1-7
Right Front Passenger Position
....................... 1-20
Center Passenger Position
............................. 1-21
Rear Seat Passengers .................................. 1-22
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for Children
and Small Adults
....................................... 1.26
Safety Belt Extender
..................................... 1-28
Child Restraints ............................................. 1.29
Older Children
.............................................. 1-29
Infants and Young Children
............................ 1.32
Child Restraint Systems
................................. 1-35
Where to Put the Restraint
............................. 1-38 Top
Strap
.................................................... 1.39
Top Strap Anchor Location
............................. 1.40
Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System)
........................... 1.41
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the
LATCH System
......................................... 1-43
Securing a Child Restraint in
a Rear Outside
Seat Position
............................................ 1.43
Securing a Child Restraint in a Center Rear
Seat Position
............................................ 1-46
Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front
Seat Position
............................................ 1.48
Supplemental Restraint
System (SRS)
............................................. 1-51
Where Are the Air Bags?
............................... 1-53
When Should an Air Bag Inflate?
.................... 1-55
What Makes an Air Bag Inflate?
..................... 1-55
How Does an Air Bag Restrain?
..................... 1-55
What Will You See After an Air Bag Inflates?
....... 1.56
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
......... 1-57
Checking Your Restraint Systems ................... 1.58
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash
........................................ 1-58
Restraint System Check .................................. 1-58

But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is
moving.
Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle
is in motion can be dangerous. Even if you
buckle up, your safety belts can’t do their job
when you’re reclined
like this.
The shoulder belt can’t do its job because
it
won’t be against your body. Instead, it will be
in front of you. In a crash you could go into
it,
receiving neck or other injuries.
The lap belt can’t do its job either.
In a crash
the belt could go up over your abdomen. The
belt forces would be there, not at your pelvic
bones. This could cause serious internal
injuries.
For proper protection when the vehicle
is in
motion, have the seatback upright. Then sit
well back in the seat and wear your safety belt
properly.
1-5

Safety Belts
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety
belts properly.
It also tells you some things you should
not do with safety belts.
Don’t let anyone ride where he or she can’t
wear a safety belt properly. If you are
in a
crash and you’re not wearing a safety belt,
your injuries can be much worse. You can
hit
things inside the vehicle or be ejected from it.
You can be seriously injured or killed. In the
same crash, you might not be, if you are
buckled
up. Always fasten your safety belt,
and check that your passengers’ belts are
fastened properly too.
I
It is extremely dangerous to E*.-- .n a cargo
area, inside or outside of a vehicle.
In a
collision, people riding
in these areas are more
likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not
~ allow people to ride in any area of your vehicle
~ that is not equipped with seats and safety
belts. Be sure everyone
in your vehicle is in a
seat and using a safety belt properly.
Your vehicle has a light
that comes on as a
reminder to buckle up.
See Safety
Belt Reminder
Light on page
3-26.
1-7

In most states and in all Canadian provinces, the law
says to wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a
crash, you don’t know
if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be
so
serious that even buckled up, a person wouldn’t survive.
But most crashes are in between. In many of them,
people who buckle up can survive and sometimes walk
away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt
or killed.
After more than
30 years of safety belts in vehicles, the
facts are clear.
In most crashes buckling up does
matter
... a lot!
Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as
it goes.
Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it’s just a seat on
wheels.
1-8

or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That’s why
safety belts make such good sense.
Questions and Answers About
Safety Belts
0: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if
I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be - whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even
if you’re upside down. And your chance
of being conscious during and after an accident,
so you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater
if you are belted.
Q: If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be
in most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts
- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even
if you’re in a vehicle that has
air bags, you still have to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
wear safety belts?
1-1 1

Q: If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident
- even one that isn’t your fault - you and
your passengers can be hurt. Being a good
driver doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km) of
home. And the greatest number of serious injuries
and deaths occur at speeds of less than
40 mph (65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.
home, why should I wear safety belts?
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things
to know about
safety belts and children. And there are different
rules for smaller children and babies. If a child will be
riding in your vehicle, see Older Children on page
1-29
or Infants and Young Children on page 1-32. Follow
those rules for everyone’s protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear
it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat
so you can sit up straight.
To see how, see “Seats’’ in the Index.
1-12

Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock
if you pull the belt
across you very quickly.
If this happens, let the belt
go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt
across you more slowly.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If
the belt isn’t long enough, see Safety Belt Extender
on page 1-28 at the end of this section.
5. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end
of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder belt.
1-13

The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force to the strong pelvic bones. And you’d be less likely
to slide under the lap belt.
If you slid under it, the belt
would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go
over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts of
the body are best able to take belt restraining forces.
The safety belt locks
if there’s a sudden stop or crash,
or if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster
Before you begin to drive, move the shoulder belt
adjuster to the height that is right for you.
To move it down, squeeze the release lever and the
shoulder belt guide as shown and move the height
adjuster to the desired position. You can move
the adjuster up just by pushing up on the shoulder belt
guide. After you move the adjuster to where you
want it, try to move it down without squeezing the
release lever to make sure it has locked into position.
1-14