
Passenger Sensing System
Your vehicle has a passenger sensing system.
The passenger airbag status indicator on the
overhead console will be visible when you turn
your ignition key to RUN or START.
The words ON and OFF or the symbol for on and
off, will be visible during the system check.
When the system check is complete, either the
word ON or the word OFF, or the symbol for on or
the symbol for off will be visible. SeePassenger
Airbag Status Indicator on page 246.The passenger sensing system will turn off the
right front passenger’s frontal 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 passenger’s 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.
United StatesCanada
101

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
passenger’s frontal 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.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
We recommend that rear-facing child
restraints be secured in the rear seat,
even if the airbag is off.
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 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
102

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 passenger’s airbag, the off indicator will light
and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is 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 85.
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
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 airbag to be enabled, the
on indicator will light and stay lit to remind you
that the airbag is 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 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.
103

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 598.
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, rollover sensor
module, steering wheel, instrument panel,
overhead console, ceiling headliner, ceiling
and pillar garnish trim, roof-mounted rollover
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 598.
107

Keys............................................................ 113
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System........ 114
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System
Operation............................................... 115
Doors and Locks........................................ 122
Door Locks................................................ 122
Power Door Locks..................................... 123
Delayed Locking........................................ 123
Programmable Automatic Door Locks........ 123
Rear Door Security Locks......................... 124
Lockout Protection..................................... 124
Liftgate/Liftglass......................................... 125
Power Liftgate........................................... 127
Power Running Boards.............................. 131
Windows...................................................... 132
Power Windows........................................ 133
Sun Visors................................................ 134
Theft-Deterrent Systems............................. 135
Content Theft-Deterrent............................. 135
PASS-Key
®III+......................................... 137
PASS-Key®III+ Operation......................... 137Starting and Operating Your Vehicle......... 139
New Vehicle Break-In................................ 139
Ignition Positions....................................... 140
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)............. 141
Starting the Engine.................................... 141
Adjustable Throttle and Brake Pedal.......... 143
Engine Coolant Heater.............................. 143
Active Fuel Management™........................ 145
Automatic Transmission Operation............. 145
Tow/Haul Mode......................................... 149
Four-Wheel Drive...................................... 150
Parking Brake........................................... 156
Shifting Into Park (P) ................................. 157
Shifting Out of Park (P)............................. 159
Parking Over Things That Burn................. 159
Engine Exhaust......................................... 160
Running the Engine While Parked............. 161
Section 2 Features and Controls
111

Rear Door Security Locks
Your vehicle has rear door security locks. These
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.
The label showing
lock and unlock
positions is located near
the lock.
To set the locks, do the following:
1. Insert the key into the security lock slot and
turn it so the slot is in the horizontal position.
2. Close the door.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, if the vehicle has one, the
power door lock switch, or by lifting the
rear door manual lock.
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. Insert the key into the security lock slot
and turn it so the slot is in the vertical position.
Lockout Protection
This feature protects you from locking the key in
the vehicle when the key is in the ignition and
a front door is open.
If the driver’s side power door lock switch is
pressed when the driver’s door is open and the
key is in the ignition, all of the doors will lock and
then the driver’s door will unlock.Security Lock Label
shown
124

Theft-Deterrent Systems
Vehicle theft is big business, especially in some
cities. Although your vehicle has a number of
theft-deterrent features, we know that nothing we
put on it can make it impossible to steal.
Content Theft-Deterrent
Your vehicle may have a content theft-deterrent
alarm system.To activate the theft-deterrent system, do the
following:
1. Open the door.
2. Lock the door with the Remote Keyless Entry
(RKE) transmitter. The security light should
come on and ash. The door does not need to
be open.
If the delayed locking feature is active, the
alarm will not be activated until all doors are
closed and the security light goes off.
3. Close all doors. The security light will stop
ashing and go off after approximately
30 seconds. The content theft deterrent alarm
is not armed until the security light goes off.
If a door is opened without using the RKE
transmitter, a ten second pre-alarm will occur. The
horn will chirp and the lights will ash. If the key
is not placed in the ignition and turned to
START or the door is not unlocked by pressing
the unlock button on the RKE transmitter
during the ten second pre-alarm, the alarm will go
off. Your vehicle’s headlamps will ash and the
horn will sound for about two minutes, then
will turn off to save the battery power.
135

The theft-deterrent system will not activate if you
lock the doors with a key, the manual door lock, or
the power door lock switch. It activates only if you
use the RKE transmitter. You should also
remember that you can start your vehicle with the
correct ignition key if the alarm has been set off.
Here is how to avoid setting off the alarm by
accident:
If you do not want to activate the
theft-deterrent system, the vehicle should be
locked with the door key after the doors
are closed.
Always unlock a door with the RKE transmitter.
Unlocking a door any other way will set off the
alarm if the system has been armed.
If you set off the alarm by accident, turn off the
alarm by pressing unlock on the RKE transmitter or
by placing the key in the ignition and turning it
to START.
Testing the Alarm
The alarm can be tested by following these steps:
1. From inside the vehicle, lower the driver’s
window and open the driver’s door.
2. Activate the system by locking the doors with
the RKE transmitter.
3. Get out of the vehicle, close the door and wait
for the security light to go out.
4. Then reach in through the window, unlock the
door with the manual door lock and open the
door. This should set off the alarm.
If the alarm does not sound when it should, but
the vehicle’s headlamps ash, check to see if the
horn works. The horn fuse may be blown. To
replace the fuse, seeFuses and Circuit Breakers
on page 564.
If the alarm does not sound or the vehicle’s
headlamps do not ash, see your dealer for
service.
136