2003 PONTIAC GRAND AM Owners Manual

Understanding Radio Reception
The range for most AM stations is greater than for FM,
especially at night. The longer range, however, can
cause stations to interfere with each other. AM can pick
up noise from things like storms and power lines. Try
reducing the treble
to reduce this noise if you ever get it.
FM Stereo
FM stereo will give you the best sound, but FM signals
will reach only about
10 to 40 miles (16 to 65 km).
Tall buildings or hills can interfere with FM signals,
causing the sound
to come and go.
XMTM Satellite Radio Service
XMTM Satellite Radio gives you digital radio reception
from coast
to coast. Just as with FM, tall buildings
or hills can interfere with Satellite radio signals, causing
the sound
to come and go. Your radio may display
"NO SIGNAL"
to indicate interference.
DAB Radio
DAB gives you digital radio reception. Just as with FM,
tall buildings or hills can interfere with radio signals,
causing the sound
to come and go. Your radio
may display
"NO SIGNAL" to indicate interference.
Care of Your Cassette Tape Player
A tape player that is not cleaned regularly can cause
reduced sound quality, ruined cassettes or a damaged
mechanism. Cassette tapes should be stored in their
cases away from contaminants, direct sunlight and
extreme heat. If they aren't, they may not operate
properly or may cause failure of the tape player.
Your tape player should be cleaned regularly after every
50 hours of use. Your radio will display CLEAN
PLAYER to indicate that you have used your tape
player for
50 hours without resetting the tape clean
timer. If this message appears on the display, your
cassette tape player needs
to be cleaned. It will still play
tapes, but you should clean it as soon as possible
to
prevent damage to your tapes and player. If you notice
a reduction in sound quality, try a known good
cassette to see
if the tape or the tape player is at fault.
If this other cassette has no improvement in sound
quality, clean the tape player.
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For best results, use a scrubbing action, non-abrasive
cleaning cassette with pads which scrub the tape
head as the hubs of the cleaner cassette turn. The
recommended cleaning cassette is available through
your dealership.
The broken tape detection feature of your cassette tape
player may identify the cleaning cassette as
a
damaged tape, in error. To prevent the cleaning cassette
from being ejected, use the following steps:
1. Turn the ignition on.
2. Turn the radio off.
3. Press and hold the CD TAPE button for five
seconds. READY
will appear on the display for five
seconds.
4. Insert the scrubbing action cleaning cassette.
5. Eject the cleaning cassette after the manufacturer’s
recommended cleaning time.
After the cleaning cassette is ejected, the broken tape
detection feature will be active again.
You may also choose a non-scrubbing action, wet-type
cleaner which uses a cassette with a fabric belt
to
clean the tape head. This type of cleaning cassette will not eject on
its own. A non-scrubbing action cleaner
may not clean as thoroughly as the scrubbing type
cleaner. The use
of a non-scrubbing action, dry-type
cleaning cassette is not recommended.
After you clean the player, press and hold the eject
button for five seconds
to reset the CLEAN PLAYER
indicator. The radio will display CLEANED
to show the
indicator was reset.
Cassettes are subject
to wear and the sound quality
may degrade over time. Always make sure the cassette
tape is in good condition before you have your tape
player serviced.
Care of Your CDs
Handle discs carefully. Store them in their original cases
or other protective cases and away from direct sunlight
and dust.
If the surface of a disc is soiled, dampen
a clean, soft cloth in a mild, neutral detergent solution
and clean it, wiping from the center
to the edge.
Be sure never
to touch the side without writing when
nanaiing aiscs. Pick up aiscs by grasping ihe ouier
edges or the edge of the hole and the outer edge.
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Care of Your CD Player
The use of CD lens cleaner discs is not advised, due to
the risk of contaminating the lens of the CD optics
with lubricants internal
to the CD mechanism.
Fixed Mast Antenna
The fixed mast antenna can withstand most car washes
without being damaged. If the mast should ever
become slightly bent, you can straighten it
out by hand.
If the mast is badly bent, as it might be by vandals,
you should replace it.
Check occasionally
to be sure the mast is still tightened
to the fender. If tightening is required, tighten by
hand, then with
a wrench one quarter turn.
XM Satellite Radio Antenna System
Your XMTM Satellite Radio antenna is located on the
roof of your vehicle. Keep this antenna clear of
snow and ice build up for clear radio reception.
The performance of your XM system may be affected
if
your sunroof is open.
DAB Radio Antenna System
Your DAB antenna is located on the roof of your
vehicle. Keep this antenna clear of snow and ice build
up for clear radio reception.
If your vehicle is purchased in Canada and driven
into the United Stated the DAB radio antenna system
will not function. DAB radio reception is available
in Canada only.
The performance of your DAB antenna may be affected
if your sunroof is open.
Chime Level Adjustment
Chime level adjustment is only available on RDS radios.
The volume level of the vehicle’s chimes can be
controlled by the radio. To change the volume level,
press and hold pushbutton
6 with the ignition on and the
radio power
off. The chime volume level will change
from the normal level
to loud, and LOUD will be
displayed on the radio. To change back
to the default or
normal setting, press and hold pushbutton
6 again.
The chime level will change from the loud level
to normal, and NORMAL will be displayed.
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Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
Your Driving. the Road. and Your Vehicle .......... 4-2
Defensive Driving
........................................... 4.2
Drunken Driving
............................................. 4.2
Control of
a Vehicle ........................................ 4-6
Braking
......................................................... 4-6
Enhanced Traction System (ETS)
..................... 4-9
Steering
...................................................... 4-1 1
Passing ....................................................... 4-14
Loss of Control ............................................. 4-15
Driving at Night
............................................ 4-17
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads
.................. 4-19
Off-Road
Recovery
....................................... 4-13 City Driving
.................................................. 4-21
Freeway Driving
........................................... 4.22
Before Leaving on a Long Trip
....................... 4-23
Highway Hypnosis
........................................ 4.24
Hill and Mountain Roads
................................ 4-25
Winter Driving
.............................................. 4.26
If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud, Ice or Snow ........ 4-31
Towing
.......................................................... 4.32
Towing Your Vehicle
..................................... 4.32
Recreational Vehicle Towing
........................... 4.32
Loading Your Vehicle
.................................... 4-35
Towing a Trailer
........................................... 4.37
4-
1

Your Driving, the Road, and
Your
Vehicle
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive
defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device in your
vehicle: Buckle up. See
Safety Belts: They Are for
Everyone on page 1-9.
Defensive driving really means “be ready for anything.’’
On city streets, rural roads or freeways, it means
“always expect the unexpected.”
Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going
to
be careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what
they might do. Be ready for their mistakes.
Rear-end collisions are about the most preventable of
accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough following
distance.
It’s the best defensive driving maneuver, in
both city and rural driving. You never know when
the vehicle in front of you is going
to brake or turn
suddenly. Defensive driving
requires that a driver concentrate on
the driving task. Anything that distracts from the
driving task
- such as concentrating on a cellular
telephone call, reading, or reaching for something on
the floor
- makes proper defensive driving more difficult
and can even cause a collision, with resulting injury.
Ask a passenger to help do things like this, or pull off the
road in a safe place
to do them yourself. These simple
defensive driving techniques could save your life.
Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is
a national tragedy. It’s the number one contributor to
the highway death toll, claiming thousands of victims
every year.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs
to drive a
vehicle:
Judgment
Muscular Coordination
0 Vision
* Attentiveness.
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Police records show that almost half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most cases,
these deaths are the result of someone who was
drinking and driving. In recent years, more than
16,000 annual motor vehicle-related deaths have been
associated with the use of alcohol, with more than
300,000 people injured.
Many adults
- by some estimates, nearly half the adult
population
- choose never to drink alcohol, so they
never drive after drinking. For persons under 21,
it’s against the law in every
U.S. state to drink alcohol.
There are good medical, psychological and
developmental reasons for these laws.
The obvious way to eliminate the leading highway
safety problem is for people never
to drink alcohol and
then drive. But what
if people do? How much is “too
much” if someone plans to drive? It’s a lot less
than many might think. Although
it depends on each
person and situation, here is some general information
on the problem. The Blood Alcohol Concentration
(BAC) of someone
who is drinking depends upon four things:
The amount of alcohol consumed
The drinker’s body weight
0 The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
consume the alcohol.
0 The length of time it has taken the drinker to
According
to the American Medical Association, a 180 Ib
(82 kg) person who drinks three 12 ounce (355 ml)
bottles of beer in an hour will end up with a BAC
of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the
same BAC by drinking three
4 ounce (120 ml) glasses
of wine or three mixed drinks
if each had 1 - 1/2 ounces
(45 ml) of a liquor like whiskey, gin or vodka.
4-3

It’s the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces
or
90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s
BAC would be close to
0.1 2 percent. A person
who consumes food just before or during drinking will
have a somewhat lower BAC level. There is a gender
difference, too. Women generally
have a lower relative percentage of body water
than men. Since alcohol is carried in body water, this
means that a woman generally will reach a higher BAC
level than a man
of her same body weight when
each has the same number
of drinks.
The law in an increasing number of U.S. states, and
throughout Canada, sets the legal limit at
0.08 percent.
In some other countries, the limit is even lower. For
example, it is
0.05 percent in both France and Germany.
The BAC limit for all commercial drivers in the United
States is
0.04 percent.
The BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to six
drinks (in one hour). Of course, as we’ve seen, it
depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC
of
0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills
of many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent, and that the effects are worse at night. All
drivers are impaired at BAC levels above
0.05 percent.
Statistics show that the chance
of being in a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC
of
0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision. At a BAC level of
0.10 percent, the chance
of this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at a
level
of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
4-4

The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol
in one drink.
No amount of coffee or number of cold
showers will speed that up.
“1’11 be careful” isn’t the right
answer. What
if there’s an emergency, a need to
take sudden action, as when a child darts into the
street?
A person with even a moderate BAC might not
be able to react quickly enough to avoid the collision.
There’s something else about drinking and driving that
many people don’t know. Medical research shows
that alcohol in a person’s system can make crash
injuries worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal
cord or heart. This means that when anyone who
has been drinking
- driver or passenger - is in a
crash, that person’s chance of being killed or
permanently disabled is higher than
if the person had
not been drinking.
dl CAUTION:
-
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reflexes, perceptions, attentiveness and
judgement can be affected by even a small amount of alcohol. You can have a serious-or
even fatal-collision if you drive after drinking. Please don’t drink and drive or ride with a
driver who has been drinking. Ride home
in a
cab;
or if you’re with a group, designate a
driver who will not drink.
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