2004 CHEVROLET TRACKER warning

Other Warning Devices
If you carry re¯ective triangles, you can set one up at
the side of the road about 300 feet (100 m) behind your
vehicle.
Horn
To sound the horn, press the portion of your steering
wheel marked with the horn symbol.
Tilt Wheel
If your vehicle has a tilt wheel, you can adjust the
steering wheel before you drive. You can raise it to the
highest level to give your legs more room when you
exit and enter your vehicle.
The lever that allows you to tilt the steering wheel is
located on the left side of the steering wheel column.
To tilt the wheel, hold the wheel and move the lever
down. Then move the wheel to a comfortable position
and release the lever to lock the wheel in place.
3-5

Warning Lights, Gages and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gages, and
Indicators
This part describes the warning lights and gages that
may be on your vehicle. The pictures will help you
locate them.
Warning lights and gages can signal that something is
wrong before it becomes serious enough to cause
an expensive repair or replacement. Paying attention to
your warning lights and gages could also save you
or others from injury.Warning lights come on when there may be or is a
problem with one of your vehicle's functions. As you will
see in the details on the next few pages, some
warning lights come on brie¯y when you start the
engine just to let you know they're working. If you are
familiar with this section, you should not be alarmed
when this happens.
Gages can indicate when there may be or is a problem
with one of your vehicle's functions. Often gages
and warning lights work together to let you know when
there's a problem with your vehicle.
When one of the warning lights comes on and stays on
when you are driving, or when one of the gages
shows there may be a problem, check the section that
tells you what to do about it. Please follow this
manual's advice. Waiting to do repairs can be
costly Ð and even dangerous. So please get to know
your warning lights and gages. They're a big help.
3-26

Speedometer and Odometer
Your speedometer lets you see your speed in both
miles per hour (mph) and kilometers per hour (km/h).
Your odometer shows how far your vehicle has
been driven, in either miles (used in the United States)
or kilometers (used in Canada).
Your vehicle's odometer is tamper-resistant.
You may wonder what happens if your vehicle needs a
new odometer installed. The new one is set at zero.
Then a label is attached on the driver's door to show the
old reading and when the new one was installed.
Trip Odometer
The trip odometer can tell you how far your vehicle has
been driven since you last set the trip odometer to
zero. The button located to the right of the odometer
display allows you to switch between the odometer and
the two trip odometers. Press the button once to
switch to TRIP A and again to switch to TRIP B. To
return the display to the odometer reading, press the trip
odometer button again.
To set the trip odometers to zero, press and hold the
button.
Tachometer
The tachometer shows engine speed in thousands of
revolutions per minute (rpm). You can use it while
driving to select correct shift points. The tachometer may
not return to zero when the engine is not running.
Notice:If you operate the engine with the
tachometer in the shaded warning area, your vehicle
could be damaged, and the damages would not
be covered by your warranty. Do not operate
the engine with the tachometer in the shaded
warning area.
Safety Belt Reminder Light
When the key is turned to ON or START, a tone will
come on for several seconds to remind people to fasten
their safety belts, unless the driver's safety belt is
already buckled.
The safety belt light will
also come on and stay on
until the driver's belt is
buckled.
3-28

Charging System Light
This light will come on
brie¯y when you turn on the
ignition, but the engine is
not running, as a check to
show you it is working.
Then it should go out when
the engine starts.
If the light stays on or comes on while you are driving,
you may have a problem with the electrical charging
system. It could indicate that you have an electrical
problem. Have it checked right away. Driving while this
light is on could drain your battery.
If you must drive a short distance with this light on, be
certain to turn off all your accessories, such as the radio
and air conditioner.
Brake System Warning Light
When the ignition is on, the brake system warning light
will come on when you set your parking brake. The
light will stay on if your parking brake doesn't release
fully. If it stays on after your parking brake is fully
released, it means you have a brake problem.
Your vehicle's hydraulic brake system is divided into two
parts. If one part isn't working, the other part can still
work and stop you. For good braking, though, you need
both parts working well.
If the warning light comes on, there could be a brake
problem. Have your brake system inspected right away.
This light should come on when you turn the ignition
key to START. If it doesn't come on then, have it ®xed
so it will be ready to warn you if there's a problem.
United StatesCanada
3-30

If the light comes on while you are driving, pull off the
road and stop carefully. You may notice that the pedal is
harder to push. Or, the pedal may go closer to the
¯oor. It may take longer to stop. If the light is still on,
have the vehicle towed for service. See ªAnti-Lock Brake
System Warning Lightº following and
Towing Your
Vehicle on page 4-47.
{CAUTION:
Your brake system may not be working
properly if the brake system warning light is
on. Driving with the brake system warning light
on can lead to an accident. If the light is still
on after you have pulled off the road and
stopped carefully, have the vehicle towed for
service.
Anti-Lock Brake System Warning
Light
With the anti-lock brake
system, this light will come
on when you start your
engine and it will stay on
for three seconds.
That's normal.
If the light comes on when you're driving, you don't
have anti-lock brakes and there could be a problem with
your regular brakes. Pull off the road and stop carefully.
You may notice that the pedal is harder to push. Or,
the pedal may go closer to the ¯oor. It may take longer
to stop. Have the vehicle towed for service. See
Towing Your Vehicle on page 4-47.
3-31

{CAUTION:
Your regular brake system may not be working
properly if the anti-lock brake system warning
light is on. Driving with the anti-lock brake
system warning light on can lead to an
accident. After you have pulled off the road
and stopped carefully, have the vehicle towed
for service.
If the anti-lock brake system warning light stays on
longer than normal after you've started your engine, turn
the ignition off. Or, if the light comes on and stays on
when you're driving, stop as soon as possible and turn
the ignition off. Then start the engine again to reset
the system. If the light still stays on, or comes on again
while you're driving, your vehicle needs service. If
the light is on and the regular brake system warning
light isn't on, you still have brakes, but you don't have
anti-lock brakes.
The anti-lock brake system warning light should come
on brie¯y when you turn the ignition key to ON. If
the light doesn't come on then, have it ®xed so it will be
ready to warn you if there is a problem.
Engine Coolant Temperature Gage
This gage shows the
engine coolant
temperature. If the gage
pointer moves to the
H (red) side, your engine
is too hot.
It means that your engine coolant has overheated and
you should stop your vehicle and turn off the engine
as soon as possible.
See
Engine Overheating on page 5-28.
3-32

If you keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic
following distances, you will eliminate a lot of
unnecessary braking. That means better braking and
longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you are driving, brake
normally but do not pump your brakes. If you do,
the pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist.
But you will use it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle may have anti-lock brakes. ABS is an
advanced electronic braking system that will help
prevent a braking skid.
If your vehicle has anti-lock
brakes, this warning light
on the instrument panel will
come on brie¯y when
you start your vehicle.
When you start your engine, or when you begin to drive
away, your anti-lock brake system will check itself.You may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while
this test is going on, and you may even notice that your
brake pedal moves or pulses a little. This is normal.
If there is a problem with the anti-lock brake system, the
anti-lock brake system warning light will stay on. See
Anti-Lock Brake System Warning Light on page 3-31.
Let us say the road is wet and you are driving safely.
Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam
on the brakes and continue braking. Here is what
happens with ABS:
4-8

Loss of Control
Let us review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems (brakes,
steering and acceleration) do not have enough friction
where the tires meet the road to do what the driver
has asked.
In any emergency, do not give up. Keep trying to steer
and constantly seek an escape route or area of less
danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not
ªoverdrivingº those conditions. But skids are always
possible.
The three types of skids correspond to your vehicle's
three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels
are not rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too
much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip
and lose cornering force. And in the acceleration
skid, too much throttle causes the driving wheels
to spin.
A cornering skid and an acceleration skid are best
handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal.If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want
the vehicle to go. If you start steering quickly enough,
your vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready
for a second skid if it occurs.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel or other material is on the road. For safety,
you will want to slow down and adjust your driving to
these conditions. It is important to slow down on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and
vehicle control more limited.
While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try
your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration
or braking (including engine braking by shifting to a
lower gear). Any sudden changes could cause the tires
to slide. You may not realize the surface is slippery
until your vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning
clues Ð such as enough water, ice or packed snow
on the road to make a ªmirrored surfaceº Ð and slow
down when you have any doubt.
If you have the anti-lock braking system, remember: It
helps avoid only the braking skid. If you do not have
anti-lock, then in a braking skid (where the wheels are
no longer rolling), release enough pressure on the
brakes to get the wheels rolling again. This restores
steering control. Push the brake pedal down steadily
when you have to stop suddenly. As long as the wheels
are rolling, you will have steering control.
4-15