
The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is
worn properly, it’s more
likely
that the fetus won’t be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective
is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right fiont passenger’s safety belt
properly,
see “Driver Position” earlier in this section.
The right front passenger’s safety belt works the same way
as
the driver’s safety belt -- except for one thing. If you ever pull
the shoulder portion of the belt out all the way, you will
engage the child restraint locking feature. If this happens, just
let the belt go back
all the way and start again.
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
This part explains the Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) or air bag system.
Your vehicle has “Next Generation” reduced-force
frontal
air bags -- one air bag for the driver and another
air bag for the right front passenger.
Reduced-force
fiontal air bags are designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from
the force of an inflating air bag. But
even these
air bags must inflate very quickly if they are to
do their job and comply with federal regulations. Here are the most important things to
know about the air
bag system:
’
A CAUTION: I
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 %pplemental restraints” to the safety belts.
All air bags -- even reduced-force 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, side or low-speed
frontal crashes.
And, for unrestrained occupants,
reduced-force
air bags may provide less protection
in frontal crashes than more forcefid air bags have
provided
in the past. Everyone in your vehicle
should
wear a safety belt properly -- whether or
not there’s
an air bag for that person.

A CAUTION:
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 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.
Center Passenger Position
i3
Lap Belt
U
If your vehicle has a bench seat, someone can sit in the
center position.
1-28

Section 2 Features and Controls
Here you can learn about the many standard and optional features on your vehicle, and inform\
ation on starting,
shifting and braking.
Also explained are the instrument panel and the warning systems that\
tell you if everything is
working properly
-- and what to do if you have a problem.
2-2
2-4
2-7
2-
12
2-13
2-14
2- 16
2-16
2-
17
2-20
2-2
1
2-26 2-27 2-30
Keys
Door Locks
Remote Keyless Entry System (If Equipped)
TrUnk
Theft
Content Theft-Deterrent (If Equipped)
New Vehicle “Break-In”
Ignition Positions
Starting Your Engine
Engine Coolant Heater
(If Equipped)
Automatic Transaxle Operation
Parking Brake Shifting Into PARK (P)
Shifting Out of PARK (P)
2-3 1
2-3 1
2-32
2-33
2-34
2-40
2-42
2-45
2-52
2-54
2-59
2-60
2-64
Parking Over Things That Burn
Engine Exhaust
Running Your Engine While You’re Parked
Power Windows
Turn SignaVMultifunction Lever
Exterior Lamps
Interior Lamps
Locks and Lighting Choices
Mirrors
Storage Compartments Sunroof
(If Equipped)
The Instrument Panel
-- Your
Information System
Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators
2-1

Keys
I
A CAUTION:
Leaving young children in a vehicle with the
ignition key is dangerous
for many reasons. A
child or others could be badly injured or
even killed.
They could operate power windows
or other
controls or even make the vehicle move. Don’t
leave the keys in a vehicle with young children.
2-2

The master key can be used
for the ignition, as well
as all door locks and
storage compartments.
The valet key can be used
for the ignition and the two
side doors only. It will not
open the
trunk, glove box or
fold down rear seat
trunk
access panel (if equipped). When a new vehicle
is delivered, it will come with
a bar
coded tag attached to the key ring.
This tag has a code on it that tells your dealer or
a
qualified locksmith how to make extra keys. Keep the
code in
a safe place. If you lose your keys, you’ll be able
to have new ones made easily using this code.
If you need a new ignition key, contact your dealer who
can obtain the correct key code. Remember to carry the
pre-cut emergency key which Pontiac sends after delivery.
(This service is not available in Canada.) In an
emergency, call Pontiac Roadside Assistance at
1-800-ROADSIDE or 1-800-762-3743. (In Canada call
1-800-268-6800.)
I 1
I NOTICE: I ~~
Your vehicle has a number of features that can
help prevent theft. But you can have a lot
of
trouble getting into your vehicle if you ever lock
your keys inside. You may even have to damage
your vehicle to get in.
So be sure you have
extra keys.
2-3

Door Locks
1
I A CAUTION:
Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
Passengers
-- especially children -- can easily
open the doors and fall out. When
a door is
locked, the inside handle won’t open it.
Outsiders can easily enter through an unlocked
door
when you slow down or stop your vehicle.
This may not be so obvious: You increase the
chance of being thrown out of the vehicle in a
crash
if the doors aren’t locked. Wear safety belts
properly,
lock your doors, and you will be far
better off whenever you drive your vehicle.
There are several ways to lock and unlock your vehicle.
Front Door
To unlock either front door from outside the vehicle
with your key, insert it fully into the door key cylinder
and turn
it toward the front.
You can lock either front door from outside the vehicle
with your key
by inserting it fully into the door key
cylinder and
turning it toward the rear.
To unlock either front door from inside the vehicle, push
the lock lever forward.
To lock either front door from inside the vehicle, push
the lock lever back.

Rear Doors
To unlock either rear door from inside the vehicle, push
the lock lever forward.
To lock either rear door from inside the vehicle, push the
lock lever back.
Power Door Locks
I
You can lock all doors from inside the vehicle by
pressing the rear of the power lock switch on either front
door. If your vehicle is equipped with a Content
Theft-Deterrent system, the power lock switch may
cause the system to
arm (see “Content Theft-Deterrent”
in the Index for more details).
To unlock any door from outside the vehicle with your
key, insert it fully into the key cylinder and
turn it to the
unlock position. This will cause only the door you are
operating to be unlocked. If your vehicle is equipped
with Content Theft-Deterrent, you can unlock all doors
by holding the key cylinder in the unlock position for
one second.
Lockout Deterrent
The Lockout Deterrent feature makes it difficult for you
to lock your keys
in your vehicle. If the driver’s door is
open while the keys are in the ignition, you will not be
able to use your power door locks.
This feature cannot guarantee that you’ll never be locked out of your vehicle. If you don’t leave the keys in
the ignition, or if you used the manual door lock, you
could still lock your keys inside your vehicle, Always
remember to take your
keys with you.
To unlock all dour-s from inside the vehicle, press the
front of the power door lock switch on either front door.
If your vehicle is equipped with a Content
Theft-Deterrent system, the power door lock switch will not unlock the doors until the system is disarmed. See
“Content Theft-Deterrent” in the Index for more details.
2-5

To turn this feature on or off, see “Locks and Lighting
Choices” in the Index.
Last Door Closed Locking
The Last Door Closed Locking feature makes it more
convenient for you to use your power door locks
to lock
all the doors when leaving your vehicle. When any door is
open, the first time you attempt to lock
the doors using the
power door lock switch or remote remote keyless entry
transmitter will result
in three chimes to signal that Last
Door Closed Locking feature is being used.
All doors can
be opened for any reason for five seconds from the time
the last door has been closed. Five seconds
after the last
door
is closed, all doors will lock. You can lock the doors
immediately by using the power door lock switch or the
remote keyless
entry transmitter.
The Last Door Closed Locking feature will not occur
and doors will not be locked as a result of this feature
when the ignition switch is in RUN or ACCESSORY.
The Last Door Closed Locking feature is not enabled
from the factory.
To turn the Last Door Closed Locking feature on or off,
see “Locks and Lighting Choices” in the Index.
Automatic Door Locks
All of the doors will lock automatically when you move
your shift lever out of PARK
(P). All doors will unlock
automatically when the ignition is turned
off while the
shift lever is in PARK
(P). If you prefer to have your
doors unlocked automatically at
any time, see “Locks
and Lighting Choices” in the Index.
If someone needs to get in or out
of the vehicle after the
doors have been automatically locked, then place the
shift lever into PARK
(P). Unlock all doors by using the
power door lock switch or unlock just the door you want
by using the inside lever. If you have programmed your
automatic door locks (see “Locks and Lighting Choices’’\
in the Index) to unlock the doors when the shift lever is
shifted into PARK (P), then the doors will be
automatically unlocked
for you. The doors will
automatically lock when
you move your shift lever out
of PARK (P) with the ignition on.
If you don’t want the doors to unlock automatically
when you turn the ignition
off, see “Locks and Lighting
Choices” in the Index.
2-6