If your vehicle has one, the roof-mounted side
impact airbag for the right front passenger and the
person seated directly behind that passenger is
in the ceiling above the side windows.
{CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and
an airbag, the airbag might not in ate
properly or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury or even
death. The path of an in ating airbag must
be kept clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an airbag, and
do not attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any
other airbag covering. If your vehicle has
roof-mounted side impact airbags, never
secure anything to the roof of your
vehicle by routing the rope or tie-down
through any door or window opening. If
you do, the path of an in ating airbag will
be blocked. Do not let seat covers block
the in ation path of a side impact airbag.
The path of an in ating airbag must be
kept clear.
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The passenger sensing system will turn off the
right front passenger’s frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag under certain
conditions. The driver’s airbags are not part of the
passenger sensing system.
The passenger sensing system works with sensors
that are part of the right front passenger’s seat and
safety belt. The sensors are designed to detect the
presence of a properly-seated occupant and
determine if the right front passenger’s frontal
airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag should
be enabled (may in ate) or not.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if
they are restrained in the rear rather than the front
seat. We recommend that child restraints be
secured in a rear seat, including an infant riding in
a rear-facing infant seat, a child riding in a
forward-facing child seat and an older child riding
in a booster seat.
Your vehicle has a rear seat that will accommodate
a rear-facing child restraint. A label on your sun
visor says, “Never put a rear-facing child seat
in the front.” This is because the risk to the
rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the right
front passenger’s airbag in ates. This is
because the back of the rear-facing child
restraint would be very close to the
in ating airbag.
Even though the passenger sensing
system is designed to turn off the right
front passenger’s frontal and
seat-mounted side impact airbag if the
system detects a rear-facing child
restraint, no system is fail-safe, and no
one can guarantee that an airbag will not
deploy under some unusual circumstance,
even though it is turned off. We
recommend that rear-facing child
restraints be secured in the rear seat,
even if the airbags are off.
CAUTION: (Continued)
82
CAUTION: (Continued)
If you need to secure a forward-facing
child restraint in the right front seat,
always move the front passenger seat as
far back as it will go. It is better to secure
the child restraint in a rear seat.
The passenger sensing system is designed to turn
off the right front passenger’s frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag if:
The right front passenger seat is unoccupied.
The system determines that an infant is
present in a rear-facing infant seat.
The system determines that a small child is
present in a forward-facing child restraint.
The system determines that a small child is
present in a booster seat.
A right front passenger takes his/her weight off
of the seat for a period of time.
The right front passenger seat is occupied by
a smaller person, such as a child who has
outgrown child restraints.
Or if there is a critical problem with the airbag
system or the passenger sensing system.
When the passenger sensing system has turned
off the right front passenger’s frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact airbag, the off
indicator will light and stay lit to remind you that
the airbags are off.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on
indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove
the child restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the
child restraint following the child restraint
manufacturer’s directions and refer toSecuring a
Child Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position
on page 66.
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If, after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting
the vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to
make sure that the vehicle’s seatback is not
pressing the child restraint into the seat cushion. If
this happens, slightly recline the vehicle’s
seatback and adjust the seat cushion if possible.
Also make sure the child restraint is not trapped
under the vehicle head restraint. If this happens,
adjust the head restraint.
If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the
child restraint in a rear seat position in the
vehicle and check with your dealer.
The passenger sensing system is designed to
enable (may in ate) the right front passenger’s
frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag
anytime the system senses that a person of
adult size is sitting properly in the right front
passenger’s seat. When the passenger sensing
system has allowed the airbags to be enabled, the
on indicator will light and stay lit to remind you
that the airbags are active.For some children who have outgrown child
restraints and for very small adults, the passenger
sensing system may or may not turn off the right
front passenger’s frontal airbag and seat-mounted
side impact airbag, depending upon the person’s
seating posture and body build. Everyone in your
vehicle who has outgrown child restraints should
wear a safety belt properly — whether or not there
is an airbag for that person.
If a person of adult-size is sitting in the right front
passenger’s seat, but the off indicator is lit, it
could be because that person is not sitting properly
in the seat. If this happens, turn the vehicle off
and ask the person to place the seatback in
the fully upright position, then sit upright in the
seat, centered on the seat cushion, with the
person’s legs comfortably extended. Restart the
vehicle and have the person remain in this position
for about two minutes. This will allow the system
to detect that person and then enable the right
front passenger’s frontal airbag and seat-mounted
side impact airbag.
84
Adding Equipment to Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q:Is there anything I might add to the front
or sides of the vehicle that could keep the
airbags from working properly?
A:Yes. If you add things that change your
vehicle’s frame, bumper system, height,
front end or side sheet metal, they may keep
the airbag system from working properly.
Also, the airbag system may not work properly
if you relocate any of the airbag sensors. If
you have any questions about this, you should
contact Customer Assistance before you
modify your vehicle. The phone numbers and
addresses for Customer Assistance are in
Step Two of the Customer Satisfaction
Procedure in this manual. SeeCustomer
Satisfaction Procedure on page 482.
Q:Because I have a disability, I have to get
my vehicle modi ed. How can I nd out
whether this will affect my airbag system?
A:Changing or moving any parts of the
front seats, safety belts, the airbag sensing
and diagnostic module, steering wheel,
instrument panel, overhead console, ceiling
headliner, ceiling and pillar garnish trim,
roof-mounted airbag modules, or airbag wiring
can affect the operation of the airbag
system. If you have questions, call Customer
Assistance. The phone numbers and
addresses for Customer Assistance are in
Step Two of the Customer Satisfaction
Procedure in this manual. SeeCustomer
Satisfaction Procedure on page 482.
87
Keys.............................................................. 93
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System.......... 95
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System
Operation................................................. 96
Doors and Locks........................................ 102
Door Locks................................................ 102
Central Door Unlocking System................. 103
Power Door Locks..................................... 103
Programmable Automatic Door Locks........ 104
Rear Door Security Locks......................... 104
Lockout Protection..................................... 105
Trunk........................................................ 106
Windows...................................................... 108
Power Windows........................................ 109
Sun Visors................................................ 111
Theft-Deterrent Systems............................. 112
Valet Lockout Switch................................. 112
Content Theft-Deterrent............................. 113
PASS-Key
®III+......................................... 115
PASS-Key®III+ Operation......................... 115Starting and Operating Your Vehicle......... 117
New Vehicle Break-In................................ 117
Ignition Positions....................................... 118
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)............. 119
Starting the Engine.................................... 119
Engine Coolant Heater.............................. 121
Automatic Transaxle Operation.................. 122
Performance Shifting................................. 125
Parking Brake........................................... 125
Shifting Into Park (P)................................. 126
Shifting Out of Park (P)............................. 129
Parking Over Things That Burn................. 129
Engine Exhaust......................................... 130
Running the Engine While Parked............. 131
Mirrors......................................................... 132
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror with
Intellibeam™, OnStar
®, and Compass.... 132
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror
with OnStar
®and Compass................... 134
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror
with Compass........................................ 136
Section 2 Features and Controls
91
Programmable Automatic Door
Locks
Your vehicle is programmed so that, when the
doors are closed, the ignition is on, and the shift
lever is moved out of PARK (P), all the doors will
lock. The doors will unlock every time you stop the
vehicle and move the shift lever into PARK (P).
If someone needs to get out while your vehicle is
not in PARK (P), have the person use the
manual lock knob or power door lock switch.
When the door is closed again, it will not
lock automatically. Use the manual lock knob or
power door lock switch to lock the door.
With the vehicle in PARK (P) and the ignition on,
the door locks can be programmed through
prompts displayed on the Driver Information Center
(DIC). These prompts allow the driver to choose
various lock and unlock settings. For programming
information, seeDIC Vehicle Customization on
page 259.
Rear Door Security Locks
Your vehicle has security locks that prevent
passengers from opening the rear doors from the
inside.
The rear door security locks are located on the
inside edge of each rear door. You must open the
rear doors to access them.
To assist you in nding the lock, your vehicle will
have one of the following:
To use these locks, do the following:
1. Turn the knob to the vertical position to engage
the lock.
2. Close the door.
3. Do the same for the other rear door.
104
The rear doors on your vehicle cannot be opened
from the inside when this feature is in use.
When you want to open a rear door when the
security lock is on, do the following:
1. Unlock the door using the remote keyless
entry transmitter, the front door power lock
switch, or by lifting the rear door manual
lock knob.
2. Open the door from the outside.
To cancel the rear door security lock, do the
following:
1. Unlock the door and open it from the outside.
2. Turn the knob to the horizontal position to
disengage the lock.
3. Do the same for the other rear door.Lockout Protection
If the key is in the ignition and the power door lock
switch is used to lock the doors, all doors will
lock and then the driver’s door will unlock.
It is always recommended that you remove the
ignition key when locking your vehicle.
The lockout protection feature can be
overridden by holding the power door lock
switch for three seconds or longer.
105