2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO service

Service............................................................5-3
Doing Your Own Service Work.........................5-3
Adding Equipment to the Outside of Your
Vehicle......................................................5-4
Fuel................................................................5-4
Gasoline Octane............................................5-4
Gasoline Speci®cations....................................5-5
California Fuel...............................................5-5
Additives.......................................................5-5
Fuels in Foreign Countries...............................5-6
Filling Your Tank............................................5-6
Filling a Portable Fuel Container.......................5-8
Checking Things Under
the Hood......................................................5-8
Hood Release................................................5-9
Engine Compartment Overview.......................5-10
Engine Oil...................................................5-16
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter................................5-21
Automatic Transmission Fluid (Except Allison
Transmission
ž) ..........................................5-23Automatic Transmission Fluid (Allison
Transmission
ž) ..........................................5-26
Manual Transmission Fluid.............................5-28
Hydraulic Clutch...........................................5-29
Engine Coolant.............................................5-30
Coolant Surge Tank Pressure Cap..................5-33
Engine Overheating.......................................5-33
Cooling System............................................5-36
Engine Fan Noise.........................................5-41
Power Steering Fluid.....................................5-42
Windshield Washer Fluid................................5-43
Brakes........................................................5-44
Battery........................................................5-47
Jump Starting...............................................5-48
All-Wheel Drive..............................................5-54
Rear Axle.......................................................5-55
Four-Wheel Drive............................................5-56
Noise Control System.....................................5-58
Tampering with Noise Control System
Prohibited.................................................5-58
Section 5 Service and Appearance Care
5-1

Bulb Replacement..........................................5-59
Halogen Bulbs..............................................5-59
Headlamps..................................................5-59
Front Turn Signal, Sidemarker and Daytime
Running Lamps.........................................5-61
Roof Marker Lamps......................................5-62
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) and
Cargo Lamp.............................................5-63
Pickup Box Identi®cation and Fender Marker
Lamps.....................................................5-65
Taillamps.....................................................5-65
Replacement Bulbs.......................................5-67
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement..............5-68
Tires..............................................................5-69
In¯ation -- Tire Pressure................................5-69
Dual Tire Operation.......................................5-70
Tire Inspection and Rotation...........................5-71
When It Is Time for New Tires.......................5-73
Buying New Tires.........................................5-74
Uniform Tire Quality Grading..........................5-75
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance..................5-76
Wheel Replacement......................................5-76
Tire Chains..................................................5-78
If a Tire Goes Flat........................................5-79
Changing a Flat Tire.....................................5-80Appearance Care..........................................5-100
Cleaning the Inside of Your Vehicle...............5-100
Care of Safety Belts....................................5-103
Weatherstrips.............................................5-103
Cleaning the Outside of Your Vehicle.............5-103
Sheet Metal Damage...................................5-105
Finish Damage...........................................5-106
Underbody Maintenance...............................5-106
Chemical Paint Spotting...............................5-106
Vehicle Care/Appearance Materials................5-107
Vehicle Identi®cation.....................................5-108
Vehicle Identi®cation Number (VIN)................5-108
Service Parts Identi®cation Label...................5-109
Electrical System..........................................5-109
Add-On Electrical Equipment.........................5-109
Windshield Wiper Fuses...............................5-109
Power Windows and Other Power Options......5-109
Fuses and Circuit Breakers..........................5-110
Capacities and Speci®cations........................5-118
Capacities and Speci®cations........................5-118
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts.........5-121
Section 5 Service and Appearance Care
5-2

Service
Your dealer knows your vehicle best and wants you to
be happy with it. We hope you will go to your dealer
for all your service needs. You will get genuine GM parts
and GM-trained and supported service people.
We hope you will want to keep your GM vehicle all GM.
Genuine GM parts have one of these marks:
Doing Your Own Service Work
If you want to do some of your own service work, you'll
want to use the proper service manual. It tells you
much more about how to service your vehicle than this
manual can. To order the proper service manual,
see
Service Publications Ordering Information on
page 7-9.
Your vehicle has an air bag system. Before attempting
to do your own service work, see
Servicing Your Air
Bag-Equipped Vehicle on page 1-80.
You should keep a record with all parts receipts and list
the mileage and the date of any service work you
perform. See
Part E: Maintenance Record on page 6-22.
{CAUTION:
You can be injured and your vehicle could be
damaged if you try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about it.
·Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts
and tools before you attempt any vehicle
maintenance task.
CAUTION: (Continued)
5-3

CAUTION: (Continued)
·
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners. ªEnglishº and ªmetricº
fasteners can be easily confused. If you
use the wrong fasteners, parts can later
break or fall off. You could be hurt.
Adding Equipment to the Outside of
Your Vehicle
Things you might add to the outside of your vehicle can
affect the air¯ow around it. This may cause wind
noise and affect windshield washer performance. Check
with your dealer before adding equipment to the
outside of your vehicle.
Fuel
If your vehicle has a diesel engine, see ªDiesel Fuel
Requirements and Fuel Systemº in the Diesel Engine
Supplement.
For vehicles with gasoline engines, please read this.
Gasoline Octane
For all except the Silverado SS model, use regular
unleaded gasoline with a posted octane of 87 or higher.
If the octane is less than 87, you may get a heavy
knocking noise when you drive. If this occurs, use a
gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher as soon as
possible. Otherwise, you might damage your engine. A
little pinging noise when you accelerate or drive
uphill is considered normal. This does not indicate a
problem exists or that a higher-octane fuel is necessary.
If you are using 87 octane or higher-octane fuel and
hear heavy knocking, your engine needs service.
If you have the Silverado SS model, use premium
unleaded gasoline with a posted octane of 91 or higher
for best performance. You may also use middle
grade or regular unleaded gasoline rated at 87 octane
or higher, but your vehicle's acceleration may be slightly
reduced. If the octane is less than 87, you may get a
heavy knocking noise when you drive. If this occurs, use
gasoline rated at 87 octane or higher as soon as
possible. Otherwise, you might damage your engine.
5-4

Notice:Your vehicle was not designed for fuel that
contains methanol. Do not use fuel containing
methanol. It can corrode metal parts in your fuel
system and also damage the plastic and rubber
parts. That damage would not be covered under
your warranty.
Some gasolines that are not reformulated for low
emissions may contain an octane-enhancing additive
called methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl
(MMT); ask the attendant where you buy gasoline
whether the fuel contains MMT. General Motors does
not recommend the use of such gasolines. Fuels
containing MMT can reduce the life of spark plugs and
the performance of the emission control system may
be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp may turn on.
If this occurs, return to your authorized GM dealer for
service.
Fuels in Foreign Countries
If you plan on driving in another country outside the
United States or Canada, the proper fuel may be hard
to ®nd. Never use leaded gasoline or any other fuel
not recommended in the previous text on fuel. Costly
repairs caused by use of improper fuel would not
be covered by your warranty.
To check the fuel availability, ask an auto club, or contact
a major oil company that does business in the country
where you will be driving.
Filling Your Tank
{CAUTION:
Fuel vapor is highly ¯ammable. It burns
violently, and that can cause very bad injuries.
Do not smoke if you are near fuel or refueling
your vehicle. Keep sparks, ¯ames and smoking
materials away from fuel.
The fuel cap is located behind a hinged door on the
driver's side of the vehicle.
5-6

What Kind of Engine Oil to Use
Oils recommended for your vehicle can be identi®ed by
looking for the starburst symbol.
This symbol indicates that the oil has been certi®ed by
the American Petroleum Institute (API). Do not use
any oil which does not carry this starburst symbol.
If you choose to perform
the engine oil change
service yourself, be sure
the oil you use has
the starburst symbol on
the front of the oil
container. If you have your
oil changed for you, be
sure the oil put into
your engine is American
Petroleum Institute certi®ed
for gasoline engines.
You should also use the proper viscosity oil for
your vehicle, as shown in the viscosity chart.
5-18

As in the chart shown previously, SAE 5W-30 is the
only viscosity grade recommended for your vehicle. You
should look for and use only oils which have the API
Starburst symbol and which are also identi®ed as
SAE 5W-30. If you cannot ®nd such SAE 5W-30 oils,
you can use an SAE 10W-30 oil which has the API
Starburst symbol, if it's going to be 0ÉF (-18ÉC)
or above. Do not use other viscosity grade oils, such as
SAE 10W-40 or SAE 20W-50 under any conditions.
Notice:Use only engine oil with the American
Petroleum Institute Certi®ed For Gasoline Engines
starburst symbol. Failure to use the recommended
oil can result in engine damage not covered by
your warranty.
GM Goodwrench
žoil meets all the requirements for
your vehicle.
If you are in an area of extreme cold, where the
temperature falls below-20ÉF (-29ÉC), it is
recommended that you use either an SAE 5W-30
synthetic oil or an SAE 0W-30 oil. Both will provide
easier cold starting and better protection for your engine
at extremely low temperatures.
Engine Oil Additives
Don't add anything to your oil. The recommended oils
with the starburst symbol are all you will need for
good performance and engine protection.
When to Change Engine Oil
(GM Oil Life System)
Your vehicle has a computer system that lets you know
when to change the engine oil and ®lter. This is based on
engine revolutions and engine temperature, and not on
mileage. Based on driving conditions, the mileage at
which an oil change will be indicated can vary
considerably. For the oil life system to work properly, you
must reset the system every time the oil is changed.
When the system has calculated that oil life has been
diminished, it will indicate that an oil change is
necessary. A CHANGE ENGINE OIL light will come on.
Change your oil as soon as possible within the next
two times you stop for fuel. It is possible that, if you are
driving under the best conditions, the oil life system
may not indicate that an oil change is necessary for over
a year. However, your engine oil and ®lter must be
changed at least once a year and at this time the system
must be reset. Your dealer has GM-trained service
people who will perform this work using genuine GM
parts and reset the system. It is also important to check
your oil regularly and keep it at the proper level.
If the system is ever reset accidentally, you must change
your oil at 3,000 miles (5 000 km) since your last oil
change. Remember to reset the oil life system whenever
the oil is changed.
5-19

How to Reset the CHANGE ENGINE OIL
Message System
The GM Oil Life System calculates when to change
your engine oil and ®lter based on vehicle use. Anytime
your oil is changed, reset the system so it can
calculate when the next oil change is required. If a
situation occurs where you can change your oil prior to
a CHANGE ENGINE OIL message being turned on,
reset the system.
To reset the CHANGE ENGINE OIL message, see ªGM
Oil Life Systemº under
DIC Operation and Displays
on page 3-55for vehicles equipped with the DIC, or do
the following:
1. Turn the ignition key to RUN with the engine off.
2. Fully press and release the accelerator pedal three
times within ®ve seconds.
If the OIL LIFE RESET message ¯ashes for 10 seconds,
the system is reset.
If the system does not reset, try the procedure once
again. If it still does not reset, see your dealer for
service.
What to Do with Used Oil
Used engine oil contains certain elements that may be
unhealthy for your skin and could even cause cancer.
Don't let used oil stay on your skin for very long. Clean
your skin and nails with soap and water, or a good
hand cleaner. Wash or properly dispose of clothing or
rags containing used engine oil. See the manufacturer's
warnings about the use and disposal of oil products.
Used oil can be a threat to the environment. If you
change your own oil, be sure to drain all the oil from the
®lter before disposal. Never dispose of oil by putting it
in the trash, pouring it on the ground, into sewers, or into
streams or bodies of water. Instead, recycle it by
taking it to a place that collects used oil. If you have a
problem properly disposing of your used oil, ask
your dealer, a service station or a local recycling center
for help.
5-20