2003 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX Owners Manual

Cruise Control
With cruise control, you can maintain a speed of about
25 mph (40 km/h) or more without keeping your foot
on the accelerator. This can really help on long
trips. Cruise control does not work at speeds below
approximately
25 mph (40 km/h).
When you apply the brakes, the cruise control
shuts
off.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction
control system on the
3800 Supercharged V6 engine or
the enhanced traction system on the 3100 V6 and
3800 V6 engine begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise
control will automatically disengage. See Traction
Control System (TCS) on page
4- 10 or Enhanced
Traction System (ETS) on page
4-1 1. When road
conditions allow you to safely use it again, you may
turn the cruise control back on.
Setting Cruise Control
Cruise control can be dangerous where
you can’t drive safely at a steady speed.
So, don’t use you’r cruise control on
winding roads or in heavy traffic.
Cruise control can be dangerous on
slippery roads. On such roads, fast
changes
in tire traction can cause
needless wheel spinning, and you could
lose control. Don’t use cruise control on
slippery roads.
I
If you leave your cruise control on when you’re
not using cruise, you might hit a button and go
into cruise when you don’t want to. You could
be startled and even lose control. Keep the
cruise control switch off until you want to use
cruise control.
1. Move the cruise control switch to ON.
2. Get up to the speed you want.
3. Push in the SET button at the end of the
4. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal.
multifunction lever
and release it.
3-8

Resuming a Set Speed
Suppose you set the cruise control at a desired speed
and then you apply the brake. This, of course, shuts
off the cruise control. But you don’t need to reset it.
Once you’re going about 25 mph (40 km/h) or
more again, you can move the cruise control switch
from
ON to R/A (Resume/Accelerate) briefly. You’ll go
right back up
to your chosen speed and stay there.
Increasing Speed While Using Cruise
Control
There are two ways to go to a higher speed:
e
e Use the accelerator pedal to get to the higher
speed. Push in the §ET button, then release
the button and the accelerator pedal. You’ll now
cruise at the higher speed.
Move the cruise switch from
ON to R/A. Hold it
there until you get up to the speed you want,
and then release the switch. To increase your speed
in very small amounts, move the switch
to R/A
briefly and then release it. Each time you do this,
your vehicle will go about
1 mph (1.6 km/h) faster.
The accelerate feature
will only work after you set the
cruise control speed by pushing the
SET button.
Reducing Speed While Using Cruise
Control
There are two ways to reduce your speed while using
cruise control:
e
e Push in the SET button until you reach the lower
speed you want, then release it.
To
slow down in very small amounts, push the SET
button briefly. Each time you do this, you’ll go about
1 mph (1.6 km/h) slower.
Passing Another Vehicle While Using
Cruise Control
Use the accelerator pedal to increase your speed.
When you take your foot
off the pedal, the vehicle will
slow down to the cruise control speed you set earlier.
Using Cruise Control on Hills
How well the cruise control will work on hills depends
upon your speed, load and the steepness of the
hills. When going up steep hills, you may have
to step
on the accelerator pedal to maintain your speed.
When going downhill, you may have
to brake or shift to
a lower gear to keep your speed down. Of course,
applying the brake takes you out of cruise control. Many
drivers find this
to be too much trouble and don’t use
cruise control on steep hills.
3-9

Ending Cruise Control
There are two ways to turn off the cruise control:
Step lightly on the brake pedal,
or move the cruise switch to OFF.
Erasing Speed Memory
When you turn off the cruise control or the ignition,
or shift into PARK
(P) or NEUTRAL (N), the cruise
control set speed memory is erased.
Exterior Lamps
The exterior lamp control
is located on the lower
left side of the instrument
panel, to the left of the
steering wheel. The
exterior lamp has three positions.
OFF: Turning the control to this position, turns off all
lamps, except the Daytime Running Lamps (DRL).
pf (Parking Lamps): Turning the control to this
position turns on the parking lamps, together with the
following:
Sidemarker Lamps
Taillamps
License Plate Lamp
Instrument Panel Lights
4 20 (Headlamps): Turning the control to this position
turns on the headlamps, together with the previously
listed lamps and lights.
A warning chime will sound
if you open the driver’s door
when you turn the ignition switch to LOCK or
ACCESSORY with the lamps on.
3-1 0

Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) /
Automatic Headlamp System
Daytime Running Lamps (BRL) can make it easier for
others
to see the front of y~ur vehicle during the
day. DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the short
periods after dawn and before sunset. Fully functional
daytime running lamps are required on all vehicles
first sold in Canada.
A light sensor on top of the instrument panel makes the
DRL work,
so be sure it isn’t covered.
The DRL system will make your low-beam headlamps
come on at a reduced brightness when the following
conditions are met:
The ignition is on,
0 the exterior lamps control is off,
0 the transaxle is not in PARK (P) and
the parking brake is released. When
the DRL are on, only your low-beam headlamps,
at a reduced brightness, will be on. The taillamps,
sidemarker and other lamps won’t be on. Your
instrument panel won’t be lit up either.
When it’s dark enough outside, your headlamps
will
change to full brightness. The other lamps that come on
with your headlamps will also come on.
When it’s bright enough outside, the headlamps will go
out, and your low-beam headlamps will change to
the reduced brightness of DRL.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, set the parking
brake while the ignition is in OFF or LOCK. Then
start your vehicle. The DRL will stay
off until you shift
out of PARK (P) and release the parking brake.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamps system when you need
it.
3-1 1

Fog Lamps
The fog lamps switch is located on the upper corner of
the instrument panel, to the left of the instrument
panel cluster.
For this feature to work the exterior
lamps control must
be on. To turn the fog lamps on, press the right side
of the fog lamp switch.
A light will glow in the switch to
let you know that they are on. Press the left side of
the switch to turn the fog lamps
off.
Interior Lamps
Instrument Panel Brightness
This feature controls the brightness of the instrument
panel lights.
The thumbwheel for
this feature
is located
on the instrument
panel, to the left of
the steering wheel.
Turn the thumbwheel to the right to increase the
brightness of the instrument panel lights and to the
left to decrease the brightness.
3-1 2

Courtesy Lamps
When a door is open, the courtesy lamps will
automatically come on. You can also turn these lamps
on by manually turning the interior lamps thumbwheel
all the way to the right.
Entry Lighting
The entry lighting feature illuminates the interior of the
vehicle before you enter. The interior lamps will come on
for
40 seconds when you unlock the doors using the
remote keyless entry transmitter (if equipped) and
the ignition is in LOCK or
OFF. After 40 seconds have
elapsed, the interior lamps will slowly fade out. The
lamps will fade out before
40 seconds have elapsed if
you do the following:
Lock all doors using the remote keyless entry
Lock the doors using the power door lock switch.
transmitter (if equipped).
When any door is opened, entry lighting is canceled.
The interior lamps will stay on while any door is opened
and slowly fade out when all doors are closed. The interior lamps may
stay on for up to
25 seconds
after all doors have been closed
if they have not been
locked. See Delayed lllumination and Exit Lighting
on page
2-44.
Delayed Lighting
The delayed lighting feature will continue to illuminate
the interior of the vehicle for 25 seconds after all
the doors have been closed
so that you can find the
ignition and buckle the seat belt at night. Delayed
lighting will not occur while the ignition is
in RUN or
ACCESSORY. After 25 seconds have elapsed,
the interior lamps will slowly fade out. The lamps will
fade out before the 25 seconds have elapsed
if you do
any of the following:
@ Turn the ignition to RUN or ACCESSORY.
@ Lock all doors using the remote keyless entry
transmitter
(if equipped).
@ Lock the doors using the power door lock switch.
To turn delayed lighting feature
off or on, see Vehicle
Personalization
on page 2-43.
3-1 3

Delayed Exit Lighting
For exiting the vehicle at night, the vehicle is equipped
with the delayed exit lighting feature. The interior
lamps will illuminate for up to
25 seconds when you
remove the key from the ignition. After
25 seconds have
elapsed, the interior lamps will slowly fade out. The
lamps will fade out before the
25 seconds have elapsed
if you do any of the following:
Insert the key and turn the ignition to RUN or
ACCESSORY.
Lock all doors using the remote keyless entry
Lock the doors using the power door lock switch.
transmitter
(if equipped).
When any door is opened, delayed exit lighting is
canceled. The interior lamps will stay on while any door
is opened and will slowly fade out when all the doors
are closed. The interior lamps may stay on for up
to
25 seconds after all the doors have been closed if
they have not been locked. See Delayed Illumination
and Exit lighting on page
2-44.
Overhead Console Reading Lamps
Your vehicle may have reading lamps on the overhead
console. These lamps will turn on when you open
the doors. When the doors are closed, push the button
next to each lamp
to turn them on and off. The
overhead console also contains an open storage bin.
Front Reading Lamps
If the vehicle has the optional sunroof, you will have
reading lamps in front of the sunroof switch located on
the headliner. These lamps will come on when you
open the doors. The lamps can be turned on and
off
manually by pressing the button behind each reading
lamp when the doors are closed.
Rear Assist Handle Reading Lamps
Your vehicle may have reading lamps on each
rear assist handle. Press the reading lamp
to turn it on.
Press it again to turn it
off.
To turn the delayed exit lighting feature off or on,
see Vehicle Personalization on page
2-43.
3-1 4

Battery Run-Down Protection
Your vehicle has a feature to help prevent you from
draining the battery in case you accidentally leave the
interior, trunk or underhood lamps
on. If you leave any of
these lamps on while the ignition is in LOCK or OFF,
they will automatically turn off after 10 minutes. The
lamps won’t come back
on again until you do one of
the following:
Turn the ignition to RUN or ACCESSORY.
Turn the interior lamps thumbwheel completely to
the right, then back slightly to the left.
Open (or close and reopen) a door that is closed.
If the vehicle has less than 15 miles (25 km) on
the odometer, the battery saver will turn
off the lamps
after only three minutes.
Head-Up Display (HUD)
.. :he HUD imag- .s too bri, It o DO high in
your field
of view, it may take you more time to
see things you need to see when it’s dark
outside. Be sure to keep the HUD image dim
and placed
low in your field of view.
If your vehicle is
equipped with the Head-Up
Display (HUD), you can
1 see the speedometer
reading (in English
or metric units) and a brief
display of the current
radio station or CD track,
displayed “through”
the windshield.
When you sit up straight in your seat, the HUD image
will appear straight ahead near the front bumper.
3-1 5