2004 Oldsmobile Alero ECU

A rear seat is a safer place to secure a forward-facing
child restraint. If you need to secure a forward-facing
child restraint in the right front seat, you will be using the
lap-shoulder belt to secure the restraint in this position.
Be sure to follow the instructions that came with the
child restraint. Secure the child in the child restraint
when and as the instructions say.
1. Because your vehicle has a right front passenger
air bag, always move the seat as far back as it will
go before securing a forward-facing child restraint.
SeeManual Seats on page 1-2.
2. Put the restraint on the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder
portions of the vehicle’s safety belt through or
around the restraint. The child restraint instructions
will show you how.
4. Buckle the belt. Make sure the release button is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
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5. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of
the retractor to set the lock.6. To tighten the belt, feed the shoulder belt back into
the retractor while you push down on the child
restraint. You may find it helpful to use your knee to
push down on the child restraint as you tighten
the belt.
7. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
To remove the child restraint, just unbuckle the vehicle’s
safety belt and let it go back all the way. The safety
belt will move freely again and be ready to work for an
adult or larger child passenger.
1-53

{CAUTION:
Air bags inate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye. If you’re too close to an
inating air bag, as you would be if you were
leaning forward, it could seriously injure you.
Safety belts help keep you in position before
and during a crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with air bags. The driver should sit
as far back as possible while still maintaining
control of the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
Anyone who is up against, or very close to,
any air bag when it inates can be seriously
injured or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer the best protection for adults, but
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
not for young children and infants. Neither the
vehicle’s safety belt system nor its air bag
system is designed for them. Young children
and infants need the protection that a child
restraint system can provide. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle. To read how,
seeOlder Children on page 1-32andInfants
and Young Children on page 1-34.
There is a air bag
readiness light on the
instrument panel, which
shows the air bag symbol.
The system checks the air bag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. SeeAir Bag Readiness Light on page 3-26.
1-55

Keys...............................................................2-2
Remote Keyless Entry System.........................2-3
Remote Keyless Entry System Operation...........2-4
Doors and Locks.............................................2-7
Door Locks....................................................2-7
Power Door Locks..........................................2-8
Delayed Locking.............................................2-8
Programmable Automatic Door Locks................2-9
Rear Door Security Locks..............................2-10
Lockout Protection........................................2-11
Leaving Your Vehicle....................................2-12
Trunk..........................................................2-12
Windows........................................................2-14
Manual Windows..........................................2-14
Power Windows............................................2-15
Sun Visors...................................................2-15
Theft-Deterrent Systems..................................2-16
Passlock
®....................................................2-16
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle................2-16
New Vehicle Break-In....................................2-16
Ignition Positions..........................................2-17Starting Your Engine.....................................2-18
Engine Coolant Heater..................................2-20
Automatic Transaxle Operation.......................2-22
Manual Transaxle Operation...........................2-25
Parking Brake..............................................2-27
Shifting Into Park (P).....................................2-28
Shifting Out of Park (P).................................2-30
Parking Your Vehicle/Key Removal..................2-30
Parking Over Things That Burn.......................2-31
Engine Exhaust............................................2-31
Running Your Engine While You Are Parked. . . .2-32
Mirrors...........................................................2-33
Manual Rearview Mirror.................................2-33
Outside Remote Control Mirror.......................2-33
Outside Power Mirrors...................................2-33
Outside Convex Mirror...................................2-34
Storage Areas................................................2-34
Glove Box...................................................2-34
Cupholder(s)................................................2-34
Center Console Storage Area.........................2-35
Sunroof.........................................................2-35
Section 2 Features and Controls
2-1

Programmable Automatic Door
Locks
Programmable automatic power door locks are intended
to provide enhanced security and convenience by
automatically locking and unlocking doors. This features
lets you program your power door locks to one of
four different modes.
Customizing the Automatic Door Locks
for Automatic Transaxle Vehicles
Mode 1:All doors automatically lock when the transaxle
is shifted out of PARK (P). The doors will remain
locked unless manually unlocked or the lock button is
pressed. All doors will unlock when the transaxle is
shifted into PARK (P) and the key is turned to OFF.
Mode 2:This mode is only available on vehicles
equipped with a remote keyless entry transmitter. All
doors automatically lock when the transaxle is shifted
out of PARK (P). Automatic driver’s door only unlock
when the transaxle is shifted into PARK (P) and the key
is turned to OFF.
Mode 3:All doors automatically lock when the transaxle
is shifted out of PARK (P). No automatic door unlock.
Mode 4:No automatic door lock or unlock.
Customizing the Automatic Door Locks
for Manual Transaxle Vehicles
Mode 1:All doors automatically lock when the vehicle
speed is greater than 5 mph (8 km/h). The doors
will remain locked unless manually unlocked or the lock
button is pressed. All doors will unlock when the
transaxle is shifted into REVERSE (R) and the key is
turned to OFF.
Mode 2:This mode is only available with the remote
keyless entry transmitter. All doors automatically
lock when the vehicle speed is greater than 5 mph
(8 km/h). Automatic driver’s door only unlock when the
transaxle is shifted into REVERSE (R) and the key
is turned to OFF.
Mode 3:All doors automatically lock when the vehicle
speed is greater than 5 mph (8 km/h). No automatic
door unlock.
Mode 4:No automatic door lock or unlock.
2-9

Before your vehicle was shipped from the factory it was
programmed in Mode 1. To determine the current
mode or to change to a different mode, do the following:
1. Put an automatic transaxle in PARK (P) or a
manual transaxle in REVERSE (R) with the parking
brake engaged and turn the ignition to ON.
2. Press and hold the lower part of the power door
lock switch for 10 seconds. Release the switch
when you hear the chime.
3. Count the number of chimes you hear. The number
of chimes tells you which mode your vehicle is in.
You can change the mode by pressing and
holding the lower part of the power door lock switch
(two chimes for Mode 2, three chimes for Mode 3
and four chimes for Mode 4).
4. Repeat Step 2 until you hear the number of chimes
that matches the mode you want.
The mode you selected is now set.Rear Door Security Locks
If your vehicle is a four-door model, it has rear door
security locks that help prevent passengers from
opening the rear doors from the inside.
The switch is located on the
inside of each rear door.
To use the security locks, do the following to each
rear door:
1. Move the switch up.
2. Close the door.
2-10

The rear doors on your vehicle cannot be opened from
the inside when this feature is in use. If you want to
open a rear door when the security lock is on, do
the following:
1. Unlock the door from the inside.
2. Then open the door from the outside.
If you don’t cancel the security lock feature, adults or
older children who ride in the rear won’t be able to open
the rear door from the inside. You should let adults
and older children know how these security locks work,
and how to cancel the locks.
To cancel a rear door lock, do the following:
1. Unlock the door from the inside and open it from
the outside.
2. Move the switch down.
3. Do the same to the other rear door.
The rear doors will now work normally.Lockout Protection
Lockout protection is intended to provide enhanced
security and convenience. This feature prevents a driver
who has left the key in the ignition from locking the
doors, using the power door locks while any door
is open.
To override this feature, when the key is in the ignition
and any door is open, press and hold down the
power door lock switch for three seconds.
This feature cannot guarantee that you will never be
locked out of your vehicle. If you don’t leave the key in
the ignition, or if you use the manual door lock or
the remote keyless entry transmitter, you could still lock
your keys inside your vehicle. Always remember to
take your keys with you.
2-11

Remote Trunk Release
Press the remote trunk release button, located on the
driver’s door, to release the trunk lid. The remote
trunk release will only work when either the ignition is
off, the parking brake is engaged or the vehicle speed is
less than 2 mph (3 km/h).
Emergency Trunk Release Handle
Notice:Using the emergency trunk release handle
as a tie-down or anchor point when securing
items in the trunk may damage it. Use the
emergency trunk release handle only to help you
open the trunk lid.
There is a glow-in-the-dark emergency trunk release
handle located inside the trunk on the trunk latch. This
handle will glow following exposure to light. Pull the
release handle up to open the trunk from the inside.
2-13