2004 PONTIAC GRAND PRIX Owners Manual

Service............................................................5-3
Doing Your Own Service Work.........................5-3
Adding Equipment to the Outside
of Your Vehicle...........................................5-4
Fuel................................................................5-4
Gasoline Octane............................................5-4
Gasoline Speci®cations....................................5-5
California Fuel...............................................5-5
Additives.......................................................5-6
Fuels in Foreign Countries...............................5-7
Filling Your Tank............................................5-7
Filling a Portable Fuel Container.....................5-10
Checking Things Under the Hood....................5-10
Hood Release..............................................5-11
Engine Compartment Overview.......................5-12
Engine Oil...................................................5-16
Supercharger Oil..........................................5-21
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter................................5-22
Automatic Transaxle Fluid..............................5-24
Engine Coolant.............................................5-26
Radiator Pressure Cap..................................5-29
Engine Overheating.......................................5-29
Cooling System............................................5-32
Power Steering Fluid.....................................5-42
Windshield Washer Fluid................................5-43Brakes........................................................5-45
Battery........................................................5-48
Jump Starting...............................................5-49
Headlamp Aiming...........................................5-56
Bulb Replacement..........................................5-59
Halogen Bulbs..............................................5-59
Headlamps and Sidemarker Lamps.................5-60
Front Turn Signal, Parking and
Fog Lamps...............................................5-62
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL).........5-64
Taillamps, Turn Signal, and Stoplamps............5-64
Back-Up Lamps............................................5-65
Replacement Bulbs.......................................5-66
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement..............5-67
Tires..............................................................5-68
In¯ation -- Tire Pressure................................5-69
Tire Pressure Monitor System.........................5-70
Tire Inspection and Rotation...........................5-71
When It Is Time for New Tires.......................5-72
Buying New Tires.........................................5-73
Uniform Tire Quality Grading..........................5-74
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance..................5-75
Wheel Replacement......................................5-75
Tire Chains..................................................5-77
Section 5 Service and Appearance Care
5-1

If a Tire Goes Flat........................................5-78
Changing a Flat Tire.....................................5-78
Compact Spare Tire......................................5-89
Appearance Care............................................5-90
Cleaning the Inside of Your Vehicle.................5-90
Care of Safety Belts......................................5-93
Weatherstrips...............................................5-93
Cleaning the Outside of Your Vehicle..............5-93
Sheet Metal Damage.....................................5-95
Finish Damage.............................................5-95
Underbody Maintenance................................5-96
Chemical Paint Spotting.................................5-96
GM Vehicle Care/Appearance Materials...........5-96Vehicle Identi®cation......................................5-98
Vehicle Identi®cation Number (VIN).................5-98
Service Parts Identi®cation Label.....................5-98
Electrical System............................................5-99
Add-On Electrical Equipment..........................5-99
Headlamp Wiring..........................................5-99
Windshield Wiper Fuses................................5-99
Power Windows and Other Power Options.......5-99
Fuses and Circuit Breakers............................5-99
Capacities and Speci®cations........................5-104
Capacities and Speci®cations........................5-104
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts.........5-105
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts.........5-105
Section 5 Service and Appearance Care
5-2

Service
Your dealer knows your vehicle best and wants you to
be happy with it. We hope you'll go to your dealer
for all your service needs. You'll get genuine GM parts
and GM-trained and supported service people.
We hope you'll want to keep your GM vehicle all GM.
Genuine GM parts have one of these marks:
Doing Your Own Service Work
If you want to do some of your own service work, you'll
want to use the proper service manual. It tells you
much more about how to service your vehicle than this
manual can. To order the proper service manual,
see
Service Publications Ordering Information on
page 7-10.
Your vehicle has an air bag system. Before attempting
to do your own service work, see
Servicing Your Air
Bag-Equipped Vehicle on page 1-56.
You should keep a record with all parts receipts and list
the mileage and the date of any service work you
perform. See
Part E: Maintenance Record on page 6-17.
{CAUTION:
You can be injured and your vehicle could be
damaged if you try to do service work on a
vehicle without knowing enough about it.
·Be sure you have sufficient knowledge,
experience, the proper replacement parts
and tools before you attempt any vehicle
maintenance task.
CAUTION: (Continued)
5-3

CAUTION: (Continued)
·
Be sure to use the proper nuts, bolts and
other fasteners. ªEnglishº and ªmetricº
fasteners can be easily confused. If you
use the wrong fasteners, parts can later
break or fall off. You could be hurt.
Adding Equipment to the Outside of
Your Vehicle
Things you might add to the outside of your vehicle
can affect the air¯ow around it. This may cause
wind noise and affect windshield washer performance.
Check with your dealer before adding equipment to
the outside of your vehicle.
Fuel
The 8th digit of your vehicle identi®cation number (VIN)
shows the code letter or number that identi®es your
engine. You will ®nd the VIN at the top left of the
instrument panel. See
Vehicle Identi®cation Number
(VIN) on page 5-98.
Gasoline Octane
If your vehicle has the 3800 V6 engine (VIN Code 2),
use regular unleaded gasoline with a posted octane
of 87 or higher. If the octane is less than 87, you may
get a heavy knocking noise when you drive. If it is
bad enough, it can damage your engine. A little pinging
noise when you accelerate or drive uphill is considered
normal. This does not indicate a problem exists or
that a higher-octane fuel is necessary.
If your vehicle has the 3800 Supercharged V6 engine
(VIN Code 4), use premium unleaded gasoline with a
posted octane of 91 or higher for best performance. You
may also use middle grade or regular unleaded gasoline
rated at 87 octane or higher, but your vehicle's
acceleration may be slightly reduced. If the octane is less
than 87, you may get a heavy knocking noise when you
drive. If it is bad enough, it can damage your engine.
5-4

Gasoline Speci®cations
It is recommended that gasoline meet speci®cations
which were developed by automobile manufacturers
around the world and contained in the World-Wide Fuel
Charter which is available from the Alliance of
Automobile Manufacturers at www.autoalliance.org.
Gasoline meeting these speci®cations could provide
improved driveability and emission control system
performance compared to other gasoline.
In Canada, look for the
ªAuto Makers' Choiceº
label on the pump.
California Fuel
If your vehicle is certi®ed to meet California Emission
Standards (see the underhood emission control label),
it is designed to operate on fuels that meet California
speci®cations. If this fuel is not available in states
adopting California emissions standards, your vehicle
will operate satisfactorily on fuels meeting federal
speci®cations, but emission control system performance
may be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp may
turn on (see
Malfunction Indicator Lamp on page 3-40)
and your vehicle may fail a smog-check test. If this
occurs, return to your authorized GM dealer for
diagnosis. If it is determined that the condition is caused
by the type of fuel used, repairs may not be covered
by your warranty.
Canada Only
5-5

Additives
To provide cleaner air, all gasolines in the United States
are now required to contain additives that will help
prevent engine and fuel system deposits from forming,
allowing your emission control system to work properly.
You should not have to add anything to your fuel.
However, some gasolines contain only the minimum
amount of additive required to meet U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency regulations. General Motors
recommends that you buy gasolines that are advertised
to help keep fuel injectors and intake valves clean. If your
vehicle experiences problems due to dirty injectors or
valves, try a different brand of gasoline.
Gasolines containing oxygenates, such as ethers and
ethanol, and reformulated gasolines may be available in
your area to contribute to clean air. General Motors
recommends that you use these gasolines, particularly if
they comply with the speci®cations described earlier.
Notice:Your vehicle was not designed for fuel that
contains methanol. Don't use fuel containing
methanol. It can corrode metal parts in your fuel
system and also damage the plastic and rubber
parts. That damage wouldn't be covered under your
warranty.
Some gasolines that are not reformulated for low
emissions may contain an octane-enhancing additive
called methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl
(MMT); ask the attendant where you buy gasoline
whether the fuel contains MMT. General Motors does
not recommend the use of such gasolines. Fuels
containing MMT can reduce the life of spark plugs and
the performance of the emission control system may
be affected. The malfunction indicator lamp may turn on.
If this occurs, return to your authorized GM dealer for
service.
5-6

Fuels in Foreign Countries
If you plan on driving in another country outside the
United States or Canada, the proper fuel may be hard
to ®nd. Never use leaded gasoline or any other fuel
not recommended in the previous text on fuel. Costly
repairs caused by use of improper fuel wouldn't be
covered by your warranty.
To check the fuel availability, ask an auto club, or
contact a major oil company that does business in the
country where you'll be driving.
Filling Your Tank
{CAUTION:
Fuel vapor burns violently and a fuel ®re can
cause bad injuries. To help avoid injuries to
you and others, read and follow all the
instructions on the pump island. Turn off your
engine when you are refueling. Don't smoke
if you're near fuel or refueling your vehicle.
Keep sparks, ¯ames and smoking materials
away from fuel. Don't leave the fuel pump
unattended when refueling your vehicle Ð this
is against the law in some places. Keep
children away from the fuel pump; never let
children pump fuel.
Turn the vehicle off before refueling.
5-7

The fuel cap is located
behind a hinged door on
the driver's side of the
vehicle.
While refueling, let the fuel
cap hang by the tether
below the fuel ®ll opening.To remove the fuel cap, turn it slowly to the left
(counterclockwise). The fuel cap has a spring in it; if you
let go of the cap too soon, it will spring back to the right.
{CAUTION:
If you spill fuel and then something ignites it,
you could be badly burned. Fuel can spray out
on you if you open the fuel cap too quickly. This
spray can happen if your tank is nearly full, and
is more likely in hot weather. Open the fuel cap
slowly and wait for any ªhissº noise to stop.
Then unscrew the cap all the way.
5-8