2004 PONTIAC GRAND AM stop start

This light should come on, as a check to show you it is
working, when the ignition is on and the engine is
not running. If the light does not come on, have it
repaired. This light will also come on during a
malfunction in one of two ways:
•Light Flashing— A misfire condition has been
detected. A misfire increases vehicle emissions
and may damage the emission control system on
your vehicle. Diagnosis and service may be
required.
•Light On Steady— An emission control system
malfunction has been detected on your vehicle.
Diagnosis and service may be required.
If the Light Is Flashing
The following may prevent more serious damage to
your vehicle:
•Reducing vehicle speed.
•Avoiding hard accelerations.
•Avoiding steep uphill grades.
•If you are towing a trailer, reduce the amount of
cargo being hauled as soon as it is possible.If the light stops flashing and remains on steady, see “If
the Light Is On Steady” following.
If the light continues to flash, when it is safe to do so,
stop the vehicle.Find a safe place to park your vehicle.
Turn the key off, wait at least 10 seconds and restart
the engine. If the light remains on steady, see “If
the Light Is On Steady” following. If the light is still
flashing, follow the previous steps, and see your dealer
for service as soon as possible.
If the Light Is On Steady
You may be able to correct the emission system
malfunction by considering the following:
Did you recently put fuel into your vehicle?
If so, reinstall the fuel cap, making sure to fully install
the cap. SeeFilling Your Tank on page 5-7. The
diagnostic system can determine if the fuel cap has
been left off or improperly installed. A loose or missing
fuel cap will allow fuel to evaporate into the atmosphere.
A few driving trips with the cap properly installed
should turn the light off.
Did you just drive through a deep puddle of water?
If so, your electrical system may be wet. The condition
will usually be corrected when the electrical system
dries out. A few driving trips should turn the light off.
3-32

Radio Messages
CAL (Calibration):The audio system has been
calibrated for your vehicle from the factory. If CAL
appears on the display it means that the radio has not
been configured properly for your vehicle and must
be returned to the dealer for service.
LOC (Locked):This message is displayed when the
THEFTLOCK
®system has locked up. Take the vehicle
to the dealer for service.
If any error occurs repeatedly or cannot be corrected,
contact your dealer.
Playing a CD
Insert a CD partway into the slot, label side up. The
player will pull it in and the CD should begin playing. CD
will appear on the display. If you want to insert a CD
with the ignition off, first press the eject button or
the RCL knob.
If you insert a CD with the radio off and the ignition on,
it will start to play
If the ignition or radio is turned off, with a CD in the
player, it will stay in the player. When the ignition
or radio is turned on, the CD will start playing where it
stopped, if it was the last selected audio source.
As each new track starts to play, the track number will
appear on the display.The CD player can play the smaller 3 inch (8 cm) single
CDs with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the
smaller CDs are loaded in the same manner.
If playing a CD-R the sound quality may be reduced
due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality
of the music that has been recorded, and the way the
CD-R has been handled. There may be an increase
in skipping, difficulty in finding tracks, and/or difficulty in
loading and ejecting. If these problems occur try a
known good CD.
Do not add paper labels to CDs, they could get caught
in the CD player.
If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages”
later in this section.
1 PREV (Previous):Press this pushbutton to go to the
beginning of the current track if more than eight
seconds have played. The track number will appear on
the display. If this pushbutton is held or pressed
more than once, the player will continue moving
backward through the CD.
2 NEXT:Press this pushbutton to go to the next track.
The track number will appear on the display. If this
pushbutton is held or pressed more than once,
the player will continue moving forward through the CD.
3 REV (Reverse):Press and hold this pushbutton to
reverse quickly within a track. Release this pushbutton
to play the passage. The elapsed time of the track
will appear on the display.
3-41

Playing a CD
With the ignition on, insert a CD partway into the slot,
label side up. The player will pull it in and the CD should
begin playing. The CD symbol will appear on the
display. If you want to insert a CD when the ignition is
off, first press the eject button or push the RCL
knob. If you insert a CD with the radio off and the
ignition on, it will start to play.
When the CD is inserted, the CD symbol will be
displayed. If you select an EQ setting for your CD, it will
be activated each time you play a CD.
If you turn off the ignition or the radio with a CD in the
player, it will stay in the player. When you turn on
the ignition or the radio, the CD will start playing where
it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source.
As each new track starts to play, the track number will
appear on the display.
The CD player can play the smaller 3 inch (8 cm) single
CDs with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the
smaller CDs are loaded in the same manner.
If playing a CD-R the sound quality may be reduced
due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality
of the music that has been recorded, and the way the
CD-R has been handled. You may experience an
increase in skipping, difficulty in finding tracks and/or
difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur
try a known good CD.Do not add paper labels to CDs, they could get caught
in the CD player.
If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages”
later in this section.
\1 (Forward):Press and hold this pushbutton to
advance quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced volume. Release the pushbutton to play the
passage. The display will show the elapsed time of
the track.
RDM 3 (Random):Press this pushbutton to hear the
tracks in random, rather than sequential, order.
RDM and the track number will appear on the display.
Press RDM again to turn off random play.
4
s(Reverse):Press and hold this pushbutton to
reverse quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a
reduced volume. Release the pushbutton to play the
passage. The display will show the elapsed time of
the track.
EQ (Equalizer):Press EQ to select the desired
customized equalization setting while playing a CD. The
equalization will be automatically set whenever you
play a CD. See “EQ” listed previously for more
information.
3-52

wSEEKx:Press the down arrow to go to the start
of the current track if more than eight seconds have
played. Press the up arrow to go to the next track. If you
hold either arrow or press it more than once, the
player will continue moving backward or forward through
the CD.
wSCANx:Press and hold either arrow for more
than two seconds until SCAN and the track number
appear on the display and you hear a beep. The CD will
go to the next track, play for a few seconds, then go
on to the next track. Press either arrow again to
stop scanning.
RCL (Recall):Push this knob to see how long the
current track has been playing. To change the default
on the display (track and elapsed time), push the
knob until you see the display you want, then hold the
knob until the display flashes. The selected display
will now be the default. While elapsed time is showing,
CD TIME will appear on the display.
BAND:Press this button to listen to the radio when a
CD is playing. The inactive CD will remain safely
inside the radio for future listening.
CD AUX (Auxiliary):Press this button to play a CD
when listening to the radio. The CD symbol will appear
on the display when a CD is loaded.
Z(Eject):Press this button to eject a CD. Eject may
be activated with either the ignition or radio off. CDs
may be loaded with the radio and ignition off if this
button is pressed first.
CD Messages
CHECK CD:If this message appears on the display
and the CD comes out, it could be for one of the
following reasons:
•It is very hot. When the temperature returns to
normal, the CD should play.
•You are driving on a very rough road. When the
road becomes smoother, the CD should play.
•The CD is dirty, scratched, wet, or upside down.
•The air is very humid. If so, wait about an hour and
try again.
•There may have been a problem while burning
the CD.
•The label may be caught in the CD player.
If the CD is not playing correctly, for any other reason,
try a known good CD.
If any error occurs repeatedly or if an error cannot be
corrected, contact your dealer. If your radio displays an
error message, write it down and provide it to your
dealer when reporting the problem.
3-53

EQ (Equalizer):Press EQ to select the desired
customized equalization setting while playing a CD. The
equalization will be automatically set whenever you
play a CD. See “EQ” listed previously for more
information.
wSEEKx:Press the up arrow to go to the start of
the next track. Press the down arrow to go to the
start of the previous track. Pressing either arrow for
more than 2 seconds will search the previous or
next tracks at two tracks per second. When you see the
track number that you would like to play release the
button to stop searching and to play the track.
wSCANx:Press and hold either arrow for more
than two seconds until SCAN and the track number
appear on the display and you hear a beep. The CD will
go to the next track, play for a few seconds, then go
on to the next track. Press either arrow again to
stop scanning.
RCL (Recall):Push this knob to see how long the
current track has been playing. To change the default
on the display (track and elapsed time), push the
knob until you see the display you want, then hold the
knob until the display flashes. The selected display
will now be the default. While elapsed time is showing,
CD TIME will appear on the display.BAND:Press this button to listen to the radio when a
CD is playing. The inactive CD will remain safely
inside the radio for future listening.
CD AUX (Auxiliary):Press this button to play a CD
when listening to the radio. The CD symbol will appear
on the display when a CD is loaded.
EJECT:Press this button to eject a CD. Eject may be
activated with either the ignition or radio off. CDs
may be loaded with the radio and ignition off if this
button is pressed first.
Using an MP3 CD
MP3 Format
This MP3 player will accept MP3 files that were recorded
on an up to 700 MB CD-R CD. The files can be
recorded with the following fixed bit rates: 32 kbps,
40 kpbs, 56 kpbs, 64 kpbs, 80 kpbs, 96 kpbs,
112 kpbs, 128 kpbs, 160 kpbs, 192 kpbs, 224 kpbs,
256 kpbs and 320 kpbs or a variable bit rate. Song title,
artist name, and album will be available when recorded
using ID3 tags versions 1 and 2.
The player will be able to read and play a maximum of
50 folders, 50 playlists, 10 sessions, and 255 files.
Long file, folder, or playlist names or a combination of a
large number of files and folders or playlists may
cause the player to be unable to play up to the
maximum number of files, folders, playlists, or sessions.
3-63

6!(Previous Folder):Press this pushbutton to go
to the first track in the previous folder or playlist. If
the disc contains playlists, it will go through the playlist,
then the folders. Pressing this button while in folder
random mode will take you to the previous folder and
random the tracks in that folder. This function will
not work on a CD that does not contain folders or
playlists.
wSEEKx:Press the up arrow to go to the start of
the next track. Press the down arrow to go to the
start of the previous track. Pressing either arrow for
more than 2 seconds will search the previous or
next tracks at two tracks per second. When you see the
track number that you would like to play release the
button to stop searching and to play the track.
TUNE:Turn this knob to fast track reverse or advance
through tracks in all folders or playlists. The track
number and file name will appear on the display for
each track. Turn this knob while in random to fast track
reverse or advance the tracks in sequential order.
RCL (Recall):Push this knob to switch between track
mode, folder/playlist mode, and time of day mode.
The display will show only 13 characters, but there can
be up to 3 pages of text. If there are more than 13
characters in the song, folder, or playlist name pushing
this knob within 2 seconds will take you to the next
page of text. If there are no other pages to be shown,pushing this knob within 2 seconds will take you to the
next display mode.
Track mode will display the current track number and
the ID3 tag song name.
Folder/playlist mode will display the current folder or
playlist number and the folder/playlist name.
Time of day mode will display the time of day and the
ID3 tag song name.
To change the default on the display, push this knob
until you see the display you want, then hold this knob
for two seconds. The radio will produce one beep
and the selected display will now be the default.
INFO (Information):INFO will appear on the display
whenever a current track has ID3 tag information. Press
this button to display the artist name and album
contained in the tag. INFO will disappear from the
display when the information in the ID3 tag has finished.
BAND:Press this button to listen to the radio when a
CD is playing. The inactive CD will remain safely
inside the radio for future listening.
CD AUX (Auxiliary):Press this button to play a CD
when listening to the radio. The CD symbol will appear
on the display when a CD is loaded.
3-67

Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in
spurts — heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking — rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is
a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool
between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much
faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. 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 briefly 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.
4-7

Passing
The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a
two-lane highway waits for just the right moment,
accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then
goes back into the right lane again. A simple maneuver?
Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane
highway is a potentially dangerous move, since the
passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming
traffic for several seconds. A miscalculation, an error in
judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger
can suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the
worst of all traffic accidents — the head-on collision.
So here are some tips for passing:
•“Drive ahead.” Look down the road, to the sides
and to crossroads for situations that might affect
your passing patterns. If you have any doubt
whatsoever about making a successful pass, wait
for a better time.
•Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings and
lines. If you can see a sign up ahead that might
indicate a turn or an intersection, delay your pass.
A broken center line usually indicates it is all
right to pass (providing the road ahead is clear).
Never cross a solid line on your side of the lane or
a double solid line, even if the road seems empty
of approaching traffic.
•Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to
pass while you are awaiting an opportunity. For one
thing, following too closely reduces your area of
vision, especially if you are following a larger
vehicle. Also, you will not have adequate space if
the vehicle ahead suddenly slows or stops.
Keep back a reasonable distance.
•When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up,
start to accelerate but stay in the right lane and
do not get too close. Time your move so you will be
increasing speed as the time comes to move into
the other lane. If the way is clear to pass, you
will have a “running start” that more than makes up
for the distance you would lose by dropping
back. And if something happens to cause you to
cancel your pass, you need only slow down
and drop back again and wait for another
opportunity.
•If other vehicles are lined up to pass a slow vehicle,
wait your turn. But take care that someone is not
trying to pass you as you pull out to pass the slow
vehicle. Remember to glance over your shoulder
and check the blind spot.
4-14