2003 PONTIAC GRAND AM tow

The 2003 Pontiac Grand Am Owner Manual
Seats and Restraint Systems ........................... 1-1
Front Seats ............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats ............................................... 1-8
Safety Belts .............................................. 1-9
Child Restraints ....................................... 1-32
Supplemental Restraint
System
(SRS) ...................................... 1-53
Restraint System Check ............................ 1-60
Keys ........................................................ 2-2
Doors and Locks ....................................... 2-7
Theft-Deterrent Systems ............................ 2-1 7
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle ........... 2-18
Mirrors .................................................... 2-35
Sunroof .................................................. 2-38
Instrument Panel Overview .......................... 3-2
Climate Controls ...................................... 3-1 8
\Warning Lights, Gages a.nd Indicators ......... 3-22
Audio System@) ....................................... 3-38
Features and Controls ..................................... 2-1
Windows ................................................. 2-1 5
Stcr3.g~ .A rean ~ ................... 2-37 ..........
Instrument Panel ............................................. 3-1
Driving Your Vehicle ....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle ..... 4-2
Towing ................................................... 4-32
Service ..................................................... 5-3
Fuel ......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under
Service
and Appearance
Care .......................... 5-1
the Hood ............................................. 5-10
Bulb Replacement .................................... 5-49
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement ......... 5-52
Tires ...................................................... 5-53
Appearance Care ..................................... 5-72
Vehicle Identification ................................. 5-80
Electrical System ...................................... 5-81
Capacities and Specifications ..................... 5-86
Normai iviainienance Fiepiawl I 1t.1-1; F&iJiS ...... 5-00 nn
Maintenance Schedule ..................................... 6-1
bhintenance Schedule ................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information .................... 7-1
Customer Assistance Information .................. 7-2
Index ............................................................... ..I

Six-Way Power Driver Seat Reclining Seatbacks
If your vehicle has this
feature, the power seat control is located on
the outboard side of the
driver's seat.
This control allows
you to move the seat up, down,
forward, or backward.
It will also move the front or rear
of the seat cushion up or down.
Move the seat forward or rearward by pushing the
control toward the front or rear of the vehicle.
Raise or lower the entire seat cushion by holding
the control up or down.
Raise or lower the front of the seat cushion by
holding the front of the control up or down.
Raise or lower the rear of the seat cushion by
holding the rear of the control up or down. To adjust the seatback, lift the
lever located on the
outboard side of the seat and move the seatback
to where you want it. Release the lever
to lock the
seatback.
Pull up on the lever without pushing on the
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1 -3

--
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same belt.
The belt can’t properly spread the impact
forces.
In a crash, the two children can be
crushed together and seriously injured.
A belt
must be used by only one person at a time.
Q: What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child is
so small that the shoulder belt
is very close to the child’s face or neck?
A: Move the child toward the center of the vehicle, but
be sure that the shoulder belt still is on the child’s
shoulder, so that in a crash the child’s upper
body would have the restraint that belts provide.
If the child is sitting in a rear seat outside position,
see “Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides” in
the Index.
If the child is
so small that the shoulder belt is still
very close to the child’s face or neck, you might
want to place the child in the center seat position,
the one that has only a lap belt.
1-33

Child Restraint Systems
An infant car bed (A), a special bed made for use in a
motor vehicle, is an infant restraint system designed
to restrain or position a child on a continuous flat
surface. Make sure that the infant’s head rests toward
the center of the vehicle.
A rear-facing infant seat (B) provides restraint with the
seating surface against the back
of the infant. The
harness system holds the infant in place and, in a crash,
acts to keep the infant positioned
in the restraint.
1-38

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.
1-57

Starting and Operating Your
Vehicle
New Vehicle Break-In
Notice: Your vehicle doesn’t need an elaborate
“break-in.” But it will perform better in the long run
if you follow these guidelines:
Don’t drive at any one speed - fast or
slow
- for the first 500 miles (805 km).
Don’t make full-throttle starts.
Avoid making hard stops for the first 200 miles
(322 km) or so. During this time your new
brake linings aren’t yet broken in. Hard stops
with new linings can mean premature wear and
earlier replacement. Follow this breaking-in
guideline every time you get new brake linings.
Don’t tow a trailer during break-in. See “Towing
a Trailer” in the Index for more information.
Ignition Positions
With the key in the ignition switch, you can turn it to four
different positions.
I A
A (OFF): This is the only position from which you can
remove the key. With an automatic transaxle, the
shift lever
must be in PARK (P) with the ignition in OFF
to remove the key. With a manual transaxle, the shift
lever must be in REVERSE (R) with the ignition
in OFF
to remove the key.
2-1 8

A warning chime will sound if you open the driver’s door
when the ignition is
off and the key is in the ignition.
Notice: If your key seems stuck in OFF and
you can’t turn it, be sure you are using the correct
key; if
so, is it all the way in? Turn the key only
with your hand. Using
a tool to force it could break
the key or the ignition switch.
If none of this
works, then your vehicle needs service.
B (ACCESSORY): This position unlocks the transaxle.
It also lets you use things like the radio and windshield
wipers when the engine is not running. To use
ACCESSORY, turn the key clockwise to the first
position. Use this position
if your vehicle must be pushed
or towed, but never try to push-start your vehicle.
C (ON): This position is where the key returns to after
you start your engine and release the key. The
ignition switch stays in ON when the engine is running.
But even when the engine is not running, you can
use ON to operate your electrical accessories and to
display some instrument panel warning lights.
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)
Your vehicle is equipped with a Retained Accessory
Power (RAP) feature which will allow the radio to
continue to work up to
10 minutes after the ignition is
turned to
OFF.
Your radio will work when the ignition key is in ON or
ACCESSORY. Once the key is turned from ON to
OFF,
the radio will continue to work up to 10 minutes or
until the driver’s door is opened.
Starting Your Engine
Automatic Transaxle
Move your shift lever to PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N).
Your engine won’t start in any other position
- that’s a
safety feature. To restart when you’re already moving,
use NEUTRAL (N) only.
Notice: Don’t try to shift to PARK (P) if your
vehicle
is moving. If you do, you could damage the
transaxie.
shift to PARK (Pj oniy when your
vehicle
is stopped.
D (START): This position starts the engine. When the
engine starts, release the key. The ignition switch
will return to ON for normal driving.
2-1 9

Automatic Transaxle Operation
2
1
I
Your automatic transaxle has a shift lever located on
the console between the
seats.
PARK (P): This position locks your front wheels. It’s the
best position
to use when you start your engine
because your vehicle can’t move easily.
It is dangerous to get out of your vehicle if the
shift lever
is not fully in PARK (P) with the
parking brake firmly set. Your vehicle can roll.
Don’t leave your vehicle when the engine is
running unless you have to. If you have left the
engine running, the vehicle can move suddenly. You or others could
be injured. To
be sure your vehicle won’t move, even when
you’re on fairly level ground, always set your parking brake and move the shift lever to PARK
(P). See “Shifting Into Park (P)” in the
Index. If you’re pulling a trailer, see “Towing a
Traileryy
in the Index.
2-24